This post may contain affiliate links. If you click and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. I only recommend products and services I use and love. Thanks for supporting The Little Frugal House!

Looking for a fun DIY craft project to make some new home decor or a craft to sell? Today, I’m showing you how to make a DIY rustic wood lantern!

I’ve been wanting to make a DIY rustic wood lantern for a while since I saw an idea on Pinterest. We found some old tobacco sticks and I knew they would be perfect for this project!

This was a fun DIY project, and didn’t take too long or require many tools – love that!

I’ll show you how I made this fun DIY rustic wood lantern, so you can make some yourself!

DIY Rustic Wood Lantern

Supplies & Tools Needed:

Tobacco sticks or similar wood (1″x 1″ stained pine wood would work great!)

Wood glue

Nail gun and 1 1/2″ finish nails

Drill and large drill bit

Chop saw (or other way to make cuts)

Thick Jute Rope

*Note: If you don’t have a nail gun or want to get too involved with tools, you could use a heavy duty hot glue gun instead. (I love our Dewalt one!)

Instructions:

1. Make cuts as listed below.

   4 pieces cut to 6″

   4 pieces cut to 3 3/4″

   and 4 pieces cut to 8″

2. Assemble your top and bottom squares.

   Use wood glue and the nail gun to make two squares for the top and bottom of the lantern. To do this, use 2 6″ pieces with 2 3 3/4″ pieces on the inside.

   If using hot glue instead of a nail gun, glue all pieces together and let dry.

3. Attach the 8″ pieces in the middle.

   To put your lantern together, place one of the squares you just made down flat. Use wood glue and your nail gun (or hot glue) to fasten the 4 8″ pieces vertically on top of the square.

   Once you have those 4 pieces attached, glue and nail the top square on. 

4. Drill holes for your rope.

   Using your drill and a large drill bit, drill two holes on opposite sides for your rope handle.

5. Add rope handle.

   Pull your rope through and knot to make a handle. 

Decorating with your DIY Rustic Wood Lantern

I made a different style lantern to decorate these in a pair. 

Since the lantern is wood, I wouldn’t recommend lighting a real candle in these. A flame less, battery powered candle would be perfect!

You could also place decorative seasonal items in the lantern. For fall, add small pumpkins and fake leaves. For Christmas, add pine cones, berries, and greenery.

Want to learn more about starting a craft business?

Make some extra cash and enjoy being creative! Check out these awesome posts:

15 Steps to Start a Craft Business & Make Some Extra Cash

13 Ways to Improve Your Craft Business

Selling at Craft Fairs: Tips & Tricks from an Expert

Need some inspiration about what crafts to make and sell?

Check out these craft ideas!

115+ Craft Ideas to Make and Sell

7 Popular Things to Make and Sell

The 70 Best Dollar Tree Craft Supplies

You might also enjoy… 

Want more crafting and DIY inspiration?

If you love crafting and DIY as much as me, you will want to check out all of the amazing craft classes from Creativebug, my favorite place to learn a new craft or get instructions for a new project!

Creativebug has so many step by step videos and classes to learn a new craft, or follow along to make a new project. Take classes in art + design, sewing, quilting, papercrafting, knitting, crochect, food + home, jewelry, holiday + party, and kids projects. They have so many beautiful and unique classes and projects to pick from.

You can learn more about Creativebug here and sign up for your free trial. 

And if you want full monthly access to all the craft classes, get 50% off your subscription here!