DIY Solar Light Mason Jar Lanterns
Mason jar crafts are one of my favorite things! There are so many great things you can do with those little jars. From pretty gifts in a jar to farmhouse style home decor, the possibilities are endless! With this simple DIY project, you can add some farmhouse charm to your front porch or garden. These pretty DIY solar light mason jar lanterns are not only beautiful, but they’re also so easy to make!
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These DIY solar light lanterns are so easy make! All you need are a few simple supplies to transform your mason jars into pretty lanterns that you can set and forget. Since your mason jar lanterns will be powered by the sun, all you have to do is set them on your porch or in your garden and let mother nature do all the work! They’ll light up every night without the need to turn them on or off.
Looking for more summer farmhouse craft ideas? Check out my mason jar bug repellant candles post to see another simple rustic craft you can make for your home.
Supplies for Your Mason Jar Lanterns
To create these rustic farmhouse lanterns, you’ll need:
- Mason jars
- Solar lights
- Washers
- Hot glue gun or super glue
These DIY jar lanterns are not only so simple to make, but they’re also one of the easiest ways to decorate your outdoor space with DIY farmhouse style! Once you make them, you can set them outside to light up your outdoor space each and every night.
How to Make Solar Light Lanterns
The hardest part about this DIY project is finding the right supplies. I’ll give you the breakdown of each supply I used to make this project. But the supplies you use will depend on the size of your mason jars and the size of your solar lights.
Let’s start with the solar lights. For this project, I used the cheapest solar lights available at Wal-Mart. These little lights cost less than $1. I’ve also check the solar lights available at Dollar Tree and they look like they’re the same size, so they would work for this project as well.
After finding the right solar lights, start by removing the ground stake and plastic lamp shade from the light. You’ll be left with just the black top with the solar panel on the top and the light on the bottom.
Now let’s talk about the washer. This is the most important part of putting your solar light lanterns together. The washer needs to have an opening in the center big enough for the solar panel on top of your light to display. And it needs to be wide enough to cover the top of the jar.
Since I used traditional mason jars (not wide-mouth) for these mason jar lanterns, I used a washer that was 1 5/8 inches by 2 3/8 inches. That washer was the perfect size!
But you’re probably wondering how I was able to find the perfect washer for this project. To find the right washer, I brought the top of my solar light and the lid jar ring to Lowe’s with me. I dug through the washers until I found one that fit.
So, if you’re using different jars or different lights than the ones I used, I suggest taking a trip to your favorite home improvement store and doing the same thing.
Now that you have the perfect washer to fit on top of your solar light, it’s time to glue them together. For my mason jar lanterns, I used regular hot glue to attach my washer to my solar light. While this was an easy way to make the project, I’m not sure how well it will hold up outside. It may be a better idea to use Gorilla Glue or super glue to attach the pieces together.
Place a ring of glue around the edge of the lantern top, then press the washer ring onto the glue. Hold it in place until the glue dries to make sure it’s secure.
After the washer is secured to your lantern, it’s time to attach the mason jar lid to the washer. Simply use the same method to attach the lid ring to the washer. Place a line of glue around the edge of the washer and press the mason jar lid into the glue. Hold it in place until it dries to make sure it’s secure.
When the glue has dried, you can place the lid on top of your mason jar. To light up your mason jar, simply pull the tab off the bottom of the solar light and it will illuminate. Place the lights in a place that receives a moderate amount of sunlight each day and the lanterns will light up your porch all night long.
Solar Light Mason Jar Lanterns
Light up your porch with farmhouse style with these easy solar light mason jar lanterns.
Materials
- Pint-size mason jars
- Small solar lights
- 1 5/8 inches x 2 3/8 inches metal washers
Tools
- Hot glue gun or super glue
Instructions
- Remove the top of the solar light from the ground stake and lantern shade.
- Use the glue to attach the washer to the top of the solar light.
- Attach the mason jar lid ring to the top of the washer with glue.
- When the glue has dried, turn on the lantern and screw the lid on to the top of the jar.
More Fun Farmhouse Craft Ideas:
Simple Rustic Farmhouse Centerpiece
Easy DIY Farmhouse Candle Decor
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Emily is a midwestern mom of two boys. She loves all things DIY — from home renovations to kids birthday party planning. Whether she’s making a new farmhouse craft for her home or helping her kids with a cool activity, you can bet she’s in the middle of some kind of DIY project (or three) right now!
Whats not to love? super cute and easy!
Hi, Emily. I came over from Cindy’s page and her Friday link party. These are so adorable! What a great idea for the upcoming spring and summer months to adorn your patio or outdoor space. I’d love to share a link to these on my weekly roundup tomorrow.