Perfect Paper Luminaries

Here's another great project that you use a plain ol' brown paper lunch bag. Well, here's another one.

And you can find paper lunch bags in all kinds of different colors now, which makes making this paper luminary even more fun to make.

What you'll need:
- Lunch bags
- Flower and leaf punches
- 2 sheets of colorful, contrasting paper (scrapbooking paper works great for this)
- Decorative-edged scissors
- Glue
- Votive candle in holder
- Sand

What to do:
1. With the bag still folded, carefully punch two flowers in the center front of the bag - punching through to the back as well.

2. Cut rectangles from the decorative papers to fit inside the back side of the shape you just punched. Do this for all punched areas.

3. Cut two strips of the colored paper with the decorative-edged scissors to fit the front side of the bag. You can do one wide and one narrow. Place the narrow one closer to the top and place the wider one at the bottom.

4. Glue the strips in place smoothing out any air bubbles with your fingertips as you go along.

5. Punch out four leaf shapes from colored paper and glue in place under your flower punched holes.

6. Fill the bottom of the bag with about an inch or two of sand. Place the votive in its holder into the center of the bag and anchor with the sand so it sits in there firmly and securely.

BIG NOTE: This goes without saying, but as a reminder, never leave the burning candles unattended - particularly in a paper luminary.

Enjoy the art you've created. Everyone else that sees it will too.