Halloween Craft: How to Make Milk Jug Luminaries

Start by collecting enough one-gallon milk jugs for your luminaries. You'll need to place one about every two to three feet along the path you're lining them with. Decide whether you want to line both sides of your trail, in which case you'll need twice as many.

Let your friend and neighbors know you're collecting jugs, ad ask them to save theirs for you too. Remember that water, juice, and tea also come in this size. Those will all work for your luminary project.

Carefully cut away the lid area and enough of the side opposite the handle so that you can reach inside of them. Then cut your designs into the top two-thirds of the jugs. (The light will be shining through these from the inside later.) Keep your cuts fairly small; you shouldn't have any really big open spaces. Two or three smaller cuts will look better than one large cut.

For the designs on your luminaries, choose Halloween themed pictures. Cats with arched backs, pointed witch's hats, crescent moons, stars, and lightening zig-zags are all traditional images. You could also fashion your luminaries as jack-o-lanterns, by cutting out facial features in each jug. Be creative! There are no 'wrong' designs.

Be sure to leave the handle area intact, so that you'll be able to pick them up easily to move them later.

The reason that you only make designs on the top two-thirds of the milk jug is that you're going to fill the bottom third with sand. You can borrow sand from the sandbox, (you'll be able to put it back later). You could also fill your luminaries with small rocks, driveway gravel, or even dirt. Anything heavy enough to weight the jug down will work, as long as it's not flammable.

Line your luminaries up along your path, to get the spacing correct before you light them up. Then, place a small candle in the center of each one's sand, being careful not to let flames get too close to the sides.

Candles are traditional in luminaries, but you should also consider non-fire light sources, especially if you have small children around, or expect it to be windy. 'Break and shake' light sticks are an inexpensive alternative, and they even come in a variety of colors.

Be sure to clean up all your luminaries in the morning, so that they don't become litter in your neighborhood. Return your sand, rocks, or dirt, and then tie the handles of your luminaries together in bunches. If you're careful, you can store them to be used again next year.

Happy Halloween!!

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