Weddingbee Blog

Do you have a metric ton of tin cans in your recycle bin? Well holy smokes, so do I! At least, I did until I decided to use them for our wedding, and then we had a metric ton of tin cans in our freezer.

Allow me to explain. A while ago, I received a can lantern for my birthday. This funky bit of recycled goodness was a gift from my sister, purchased for next to nothing at Portland’s infamous Saturday market. It looked a little something like this:

Seriously, how cool is that? And if one thing pairs well with mason jar vases to complement a rustic vibe, it’s tin can lanterns.

But the type of lantern above requires either a dremel or a torch, neither of which I own. So, I decided to undertake my own variety, using the tools I had on hand.

I present, for your approval, Miss Cherry Pie’s foray into DIY Can Lanterns, which I’ll dub “canterns” from here on.

Instructions for DIY Canterns

Step One: Collect a ton of empty cans. Make sure they are washed well, the “top” lid safely removed and free of sharp edges, and the label torn off.

Small tomato paste cans are nice for single tea lights, large diced tomato cans are great for 3 tea lights, and standard cans will nicely hold one votive or tea light.

Step Two: Fill your cans to the top with water and place them in your freezer. I wish I had a photo of our freezer full of cans because it was hilarious.

The ice, as you will see, is a key stabilizing element. If you don’t have something to hold the can’s form as you are puncturing it, the can will dent unattractively. If you are using a drill and a workbench, you can probably forgo this step and just stabilize the jar somehow.

Step Three: Choose your implement of puncture. I had a tin of nails in various sizes and a trusty hammer.

A dremel would also work, as would a drill, or blowtorch, or many other fun things likely to get you killed. I like hitting things, so a hammer is right up my alley.

Step Four: Make sure your can is on a soft surface. Put it on some towels if you’re going to be working on a table. This will help hold the can in place and prevent accidents.

Puncture can with implement of puncture! Because the ice is stabilizing the can wall and preventing a lot of vibration, it should go in without too much effort. You don’t have to jam it in there, just make sure it punctures the wall.

Step Five: Make a pattern of holes on your can! The horizontal lines on many cans really help with lining up cool designs and stabilizing the nail head on the can’s slippery edge. This pattern sucks, but I was getting tired of making them when I took photos:

Just make sure you put enough holes in so the light can shine through!

Step Six: Put a bandage on your thumb when you inevitably smash it with the hammer. (Only kidding.)

Now look what you’ve done! You’ve made something awesome out of otherwise useless garbage. Wooooooo.

Here’s some of my hardworking cans modeling for you:

They make pretty patterns in the dark. Especially when you actually know how to take a picture in the bathroom with the lights off.

If you’re not inclined to make these yourself, you can also buy can lanterns on etsy.

I’ve made about 30 of these that we’ll use on the wooden tables near the Polebridge stage after dark:

What are your creative solutions for mood lighting?