Orange Lantern Candle

It feels good to use something instead of throwing it out.  And it’s cool to say to your kids in the afternoon, “Hey, we are going to cut up oranges to eat, AND make a candle lantern.”

Below are the steps on how I made an orange lantern.

Materials

Orange

Tea light candle

Small knife

Instructions

Step 1

Cut around the belly of an orange (with the two points at each end). Don’t cut all the way through, just so the knife is just into the flesh of the orange.

Step 2

Using the knife, make a small cut between the skin and the flesh of the orange.

Step 3

Place a finger in the cut and carefully run your finger around the orange, separating the flesh from the skin.

Step 4

Continue working your finger around the orange until you’re close to the base.

Step 5

Use the knife to cut the remaining flesh off the bottom of the orange.  This is to make sure you don’t tear a hole in the bottom of the orange. Use a spoon to carefully remove the rest of the orange (or just leave it in there if there is only a small amount of residue left).

Step 6

Repeat with the other side of the orange.

Step 7

Make a circle shape cut, about the size of a 20 cent – 50 cent piece, on the inside of one of the orange halves and push out to make a hole. This will become the top of the candle.

Tip: Test the orange to see which side sits best on a flat surface and use that for the bottom of your candle holder.

Step 8

Place a tea light candle in the base of your orange lantern.

Step 9

Light the candle, put the top on and enjoy a lovely orange smell throughout the house! Pretty!  I had my candle lanterns burning for a couple of hours, and the skin didn’t burn because the hole in the top of the orange was large enough (plus I would only use a fresh orange and single use only).  As for any candle, never leave it unattended.

Step 10

The orange lanterns look absolutely gorgeous as a table centrepiece, and I can see myself using them for Christmas decorations, a dinner party, or just because I can.

I placed pebbles on a large rectangle and put 2 orange lanterns in the centre.

Step 11

We ate the orange too, of course.

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