I grew up outside of the city in a small town where kids were more likely to spend All-Hallows-Eve out collecting sugared goodies. The school even held a fancy dress night on the last Friday of October. There were games such as - throw the gumboot, three-legged races and a stall where you could smash old china plates. It was a really fun event, topped off with a costume parade concluding the evening.
Its probably because of this small town enthusiasm that I love Halloween so much. However, as I said, New Zealand as a whole just does not 'do' Halloween. It arrives in Spring when the nights are light and bright (not very spooky) Decorations are hard to come by, those that are available are cheap and generic. The stores treat Halloween as an inconvenience, getting in the way of the Christmas decorations that go on sale in SEPTEMBER! (-In my opinion that's way too early but anyhoo)
Despite all this I still like to decorate for Halloween, something small, quick throwaway crafts. If you decorate you attract more trick or treaters, those costumes are too cute!
These lanterns reuse and recycle milk bottles (If you are tuning in from NZ the light proof bottles will not work), battery powered fairy lights (dug out of the box of Christmas decorations). Quick easy stuff you probably already have lying around the house.
You Will Need:
Method
Step One
*Using a craft/cutting knife will give you cleaner lines than scissors.
Step Two
Because the fairy lights adhere to gravity they tend to pool at the bottom of the bottle. Drilling two holes close together on the neck of the bottle (on the back side of the bottle/ opposite side to where your picture will go) you can tie the string of lights to the neck of the bottle, use string or a twist of wire.
Step Three
Step Four
I used a spray tack glue so that the images can be removed afterward, but PVA or even a glue stick would work.