Luminarias, or candle lanterns, can lend an extra glow to a stargazing party, an outdoor storytelling session, or a night hike.

Materials

• Empty soda can
• Marker
• Craft knife
• Pencil

• Votive candle
• Small screw-in hook
• 20-inch wooden dowel
• Thin wire for hanging

Instructions

1. Draw two lines around the can, the first 1 inch down from the top of the can and the second 1 inch up from the bottom of the can. Using the craft knife (an adult's job), make straight cuts between the top and bottom lines, 1/2 to 3/4 inches apart.

2. Once you've cut all the way around the can, make a cut across the bottom of two adjacent strips to create an opening for the candle. Wearing gloves, carefully pull the two strips away from the can. Next, use the pencil to bend out the remaining strips, while slightly pressing the top of the can so it has a squatty, Chinese lantern-like shape.

3. Pass the candle through the opening and use a drop of melted wax to attach it to the bottom of the can. Next, bend the two cut strips and tuck them into place inside the can.

4. Screw the hook into one end of the wooden dowel. To hang, loop a length of wire between the hook and the circular opening on the soda-can tab.

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