Fire lantern boat
Lighting a little paper lantern boat and setting it sail can be quite spectacular on a summer’s evening.
Here we show you how to make a paper boat, which holds a small candle. The candle should be a tea light, but tea lights can burn for a very long time, so to reduce the risk of fire we need to reduce the burn time. As the wax is the fuel, you need to remove most of it. So use a spoon to chisel out all the wax apart from a small amount around the wick. Or use a candle which has almost burnt out of fuel (like we have).
To make your lantern boat you will need:
- A rectangular (coloured looks best) piece of paper
- A modified tea light candle (or one low on fuel)
- A small blob of blue tack
Get your rectangular piece of paper
Get a rectangular piece of paper
1. Fold the paper in half, length wise.
Fold in half
2. Fold the paper in half again.
Fold in half again
3. Unfold the paper half way.
Unfold the paper
4. Fold in the corners so that they touch the middle crease.
Fold in the corners
5. This is what you should now, have a semi folded boat.
The semi folded boat
6. Fold up the flap facing you.
Fold up the flap facing you
7. Turn the paper over and fold the remaining flap.
Fold up the flap on the other side
8. Insert both thumbs into the middle of the paper and pull outwards.
Insert thumbs and pull outwards
9. Tuck the flaps under one another on both sides.
Tuck flaps in
10. You should have a rhombus.
You should have a rhombus
11. Hold the rhombus and lift one corner up to meet the tip.
Lift one corner up to meet the tip
12. Flip the paper over and do the same for the other side.
Flip the paper over and do the same
13. The paper should be a folded triangle.
Folded triangle
14. Insert both thumbs into the triangle and pull out.
Pull out the triangle
15. You should now have another rhombus.
Another rhombus
16. Find the flaps at the top and open out until you have the boat shape.
Open out until you have the boat shape
17. Open the underside too to give the boat a wider bottom.
Pull out the underside to make more of the boat shape
18. Fold down the central sail and use a small blob of blue tack to hold the candle in place.
Secure with blue tack
19. Light the boat’s candle where it is not likely to cause a fire and watch it sail away.
Boats on the water
Date: June 8, 2012 by Ben R
Fire lantern boat
Lighting a little paper lantern boat and setting it sail can be quite spectacular on a summer’s evening.
Here we show you how to make a paper boat, which holds a small candle. The candle should be a tea light, but tea lights can burn for a very long time, so to reduce the risk of fire we need to reduce the burn time. As the wax is the fuel, you need to remove most of it. So use a spoon to chisel out all the wax apart from a small amount around the wick. Or use a candle which has almost burnt out of fuel (like we have).
To make your lantern boat you will need:
- A rectangular (coloured looks best) piece of paper
- A modified tea light candle (or one low on fuel)
- A small blob of blue tack
Get your rectangular piece of paper
Get a rectangular piece of paper
1. Fold the paper in half, length wise.
Fold in half
2. Fold the paper in half again.
Fold in half again
3. Unfold the paper half way.
Unfold the paper
4. Fold in the corners so that they touch the middle crease.
Fold in the corners
5. This is what you should now, have a semi folded boat.
The semi folded boat
6. Fold up the flap facing you.
Fold up the flap facing you
7. Turn the paper over and fold the remaining flap.
Fold up the flap on the other side
8. Insert both thumbs into the middle of the paper and pull outwards.
Insert thumbs and pull outwards
9. Tuck the flaps under one another on both sides.
Tuck flaps in
10. You should have a rhombus.
You should have a rhombus
11. Hold the rhombus and lift one corner up to meet the tip.
Lift one corner up to meet the tip
12. Flip the paper over and do the same for the other side.
Flip the paper over and do the same
13. The paper should be a folded triangle.
Folded triangle
14. Insert both thumbs into the triangle and pull out.
Pull out the triangle
15. You should now have another rhombus.
Another rhombus
16. Find the flaps at the top and open out until you have the boat shape.
Open out until you have the boat shape
17. Open the underside too to give the boat a wider bottom.
Pull out the underside to make more of the boat shape
18. Fold down the central sail and use a small blob of blue tack to hold the candle in place.
Secure with blue tack
19. Light the boat’s candle where it is not likely to cause a fire and watch it sail away.
Boats on the water
June 8, 2012 | Activities, Summer | No comment
