How To Make Jellyfish Lanterns

Just a few of these Jellyfish Lanterns will make a big impact on your party decorating. They are perfect for any water, sea, or mermaid themed event. You can even fold them flat for easy storage and save them for another time.

For my daughter’s 9th birthday, we threw an Under the Sea themed party. Everyone who walked through our door commented on these Jellyfish Lanterns. Since then many people have asked me how to make them, so here’s the step-by step tutorial.

• paper lanterns (we used aqua, lime green and purple)
• rectangular plastic tablecloths (in the same colors as the lanterns)
• crepe party streamers (same colors)
• various coordinating ribbon including some curling ribbon
• hot glue gun and glue sticks (the low-heat kind)

Remove the plastic tablecloth from the bag. Don’t unfold the whole thing. It will be too big and awkward to work with.
Only unfold one section, then cut off a strip as pictured above.

When you unfold that strip it is really long!

Here’s the trick to getting that ruffled look. Grasp the strip with both hands. Place your thumbs close together and give it a little stretch right in the center. Don’t pull too hard or you’ll put a hole in it. You can stretch it a little or a lot. Experiment and see which look you like best.

Keep moving down the strip of plastic repeating that center stretch. See how it starts to ruffle? Create several ruffled plastic strips, varying the lengths for best results. Cut crepe streamers, ribbon and curling ribbon in varying lengths as well.

Working from the bottom of the paper lantern, remove the paper from 3 horizontal rows of the lantern. Leave some vertical strips in tact so your lantern doesn’t fall apart. Tie the ruffled plastic strips, ribbon, crepe streamers and curling ribbon around the bottom of the paper lantern.

Cut a wider strip of plastic to use as a skirt around the bottom of the paper lantern. This will hide all the knots used to tie on the streamers. Glue the top edge of the ruffled plastic strip around the bottom of the paper lantern just high enough to hide all your knots.

Here’s what it looks like from the bottom when it’s all done.
I pulled the skirt up a little so you can see in there.

And here’s the finished Jellyfish Lantern hanging up! Aren’t they so pretty?

You don’t need a lot of these to make a big impact. We made a total of 9 using a few inside and outside our home. Here are a few more pics from our Under the Sea party.

We put a couple out by the pool. Look how the sunlight brightens them up!

Another view of the Jellyfish Lanterns outside.

Here are all nine of them on my kitchen counter. We mixed and matched the streamers making each one a little different.

Three Jellyfish Lanterns hanging in the foyer.

And a couple in the living room dangling from the ceiling fan.

Even though they’re only made of paper and plastic, these Jellyfish Lanterns have been quite durable. I used them a few months later for a Baby Whale themed baby shower, and they still look great! This summer I will donate them our church to be used as part of our VBS decorations. This year’s theme is “Submerged,” so they will be perfect!

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