Why not try a hanging centerpiece this Christmas to free up space for all that important food and conversation flow? This one is made with cardboard tubes! Dressed up with paint and glitter, you have to look hard to realise what they really are. Makes a good conversation starter!

• Paint
• Cardboard tubes – you can use old kitchen paper tubes cut in half, or create your own tubes by gluing pieces of card into a tube shape
• Paintbrushes
• A scalpel
• Glitter
• Also required: pegs, fishing wire and masking tape

1. Materials needed 2. Peg the roll and paint the inside 3. Roll in glitter 4. Cut in spirals

Step one

Clip a peg to the cardboard tube for ease of painting and paint the tube inside and out like we did, contrasting solid colours on the inside and outside. You’ll need to move the peg slightly to paint the part it covers.

Step two

Still holding the peg and with the paint still wet, roll in glitter. Move the peg again to cover the entire tube. Leave to dry.

Step three

Use your scalpel to cut the cardboard tube roll along a spiral (if you are reusing a tube there may be a natural spiral seam for you to follow). Start about a centimetre from the top and finish a centimetre from the bottom. Repeat the entire way around the roll with the cuts one to two centimetres apart. Use both hands to manouevre the roll slightly so the cut pieces bend a little, forming a lantern.

Step four

Cut or punch a hole in the top of the roll on opposite sides and thread a piece of fishing wire through and tie.

Step five

Hang from the ceiling with white-coloured masking tape (to blend in with the paint) or tie to a light fitting.

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