These paper luminaries are super easy to make with my free luminary SVG templates.

While it is possible to make these with a knife, I would highly recommend a cutting machine like a Cricut or Silhouette.

These are super cost-effective to make which is why they are great to add some festivities around the holidays or as a centerpiece for a wedding.

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What lighting to use with paper luminaries

I like making luminaries out of paper mostly because there is so much variety in colors and textures with paper cardstock.

Please do not use a real candle with paper luminaries. It will catch on fire.

Even if you are using a plastic sheet or glass, a battery-powered candle is a much better choice.

LED lights are an even better choice. They tend to consume less power and dissipate less heat. The light will last longer and reduce the likelihood of overheating your luminary. I have several sets I purchased from Amazon.

Materials for DIY Paper Luminary

Cardstock – There are so many to choose from. If you are doing a more intricate design like the one in the photos, I would recommend a non-textured cardstock with a colored core. The will minimize fraying create a clean finished product. Here are some of my favorite brands for cardstock:

• Assorted Starter Pack – Basic assorted colors, great starter pack, perfect weight for most papercraft projects
• Cricut Joy Insert Card Packs – You don’t have to use these with the Cricut Joy, they are nice material kids for cardmaking.
• Cardstock Warehouse Brand on Amazon – I love the quality of all the matte-colored cardstock with Cardstock Warehouse. It is my go-to brand for individual matte colors that I might need
• Poptone Assorted Variety Pack – This is the perfect peppy assortment of colors of heavy cardstock. It’s a heavy cardstock assortment with colors I actually use frequently for cardmaking.
• Seasonal Assorted Variety Pack – This is a slight variation on the Poptone assortment and has a quite few neutrals that complement almost any accent color.
• Stardream Metallics Line – For paper crafts, the Stardream line is the go-to for a metallic shimmer finish. It is the perfect sheen to make any project pop. The core is also colored is which hard to find for metallic paper.

Glue or Tape – You can either glue the seams together with Tacky Glue or a glue gun but I find tape to create the cleanest look.

Cutting Machine – I use a Cricut. Check out my recommendations for Cricut machines and accessories for beginners for more info.

Template – These free luminary SVG templates available for in my resource library.

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Tips for Making your DIY Paper Luminary

I find the blue mat is sufficient for most designs but if the paper starts to snag, you might want to switch to a stickier mat like the green one. I would also check to make sure your blade is clean and hasn’t picked up too much lint.

To clean up all the paper scraps, my recommendation is to use a lint roller. It makes it go soooo much faster.

Adding a Layer of Vellum to the Paper Luminary

If you prefer a more opaque look, try adding a layer of vellum to line the inside of the design.

I like to place the cutout design on a scrap magazine or piece of paper and then rolled glue rolls on it. Then I cut a piece of Vellum to size and place it on top.

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Assembling the Paper Luminary

When assembling the luminary, I like to just tape it from the inside. I find this creates the cleanest edges.

My template has only the individual size panels. Depending on your cardstock, you could also weld the SVG panels together and create a continuous piece.

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It is not that I advocate it or something, but I highly recommend to friends and family to make their DIY luminaries. I usually suggest it when they have an intimate party or a small event. I believe that you can lower costs by finding things you can easily DIY.

If you tried looking around stores and online shops, you can easily check out cheap paper luminaries. It is great and all. But sometimes, these paper luminaries tend to be crumpled during shipping or packing. We wanted to avoid that! At the same time, doing paper luminaries are probably the best way to cut your spending, but still making your event place look pull together.

What I love about DIY paper luminaries is that I have the freedom to make the designs that I wanted. Have you ever experience a situation wherein you failed to find what you are looking for? Me too! It is a struggle when I started going around just to find the perfect design for paper luminaries. Fortunately, a simple DIY would make it easier for me.

Crafting your DIY paper luminaries is a great way to spend some quality time with friends. At the same time, you could share inputs in making your personalized paper luminaries. Who does not want that? Maybe you can invite some guests over before the event to find the design they are looking for. It will be a fun task and the load of the work could be disseminated to everyone.