(Ahrensburg, July 2005) As soon as Christmas comes knocking on your door, you know it’s time to get out the festive lights. This Christmas, add an extra touch of seasonal cheer to your home by designing your very own lantern shades for your fairy lights? Not only are home-made creations highly trendy, they are beautifully bright and will really light up your yuletide celebrations. To make your own mini lantern shades, all you need is some coloured (green) waxed paper, cut into shapes and decorated and inscribed using edding 750 paint markers in the design of your choosing. Simple to make, the possibilities are endless: whether draped around a garland, suspended around a window, adorning a tree or as a gift – these decorative lights will bathe your home in a warm, festive glow.

Fairy lights are more than just a source of light. They also give your home a warm, cosy feel, whilst adding a certain decorative touch. Not only that: should you find yourself wishing that the “Night Before Christmas” was still at least a whole week before Christmas – they are quick and easy to make. All you need in order to brighten up your home is a set of certified low-voltage fairy lights for indoor use, the paint-like opaque paint markers from edding and some strong waxed paper in a single colour of your choice. And here’s a tip: don’t use the same traditional Christmas colours such as red and silver to set the tone year in, year out. Not only are fresh colours such as light green and orange currently extremely fashionable, they also add a flavour of spring to the dark days of winter.

First of all, take a piece of cardboard to make a template for your mini lanterns. Next, with your template placed on the waxed paper, draw around the outline. Repeat until you have the desired number of shapes. Now it’s time to use the scissors: this means cutting out the mini lantern shades and cutting tabs to enable them to be slotted together. Now you can get on with the lettering. Think of a festive message such as “Merry Christmas” or “Season’s Greetings” and write the letters in the centre of the shade, using a different shade for each letter. Alternatively, use the shades as a countdown to Christmas in the style of an advent calendar. You can even individually decorate any shades you have left over to great effect using the highly non-fade edding paint markers. How about a pair of stars? To round things off, simply bend the lantern shades around the fairy-light bulbs, pushing in the tabs to hold them in place. Use a piece of sticky tape to give the shades added security. And there you have it: your Christmas lights are ready!
One further highlight: give your lantern shades a nostalgic angel look. Simply cut out small wings from the waxed paper and stick them on over the tabs.

The non-wipe, waterproof paint markers from edding are available in four stroke widths: 2-4 mm (edding 750), 1-2 mm (edding 751), 1-2.5 mm (edding 753 - complete with a calligraphy tip) and 0.8 mm (edding 780). In total, there are 14 colours to choose from, including gold, copper and silver.