For my lantern design, the four faces will have the design shown below. I made the design in Clip Studio Paint. Normally, I’d just laser cut the cardboard, but it’ll be difficult for me to travel all the way to Boulder, and I don’t have access to a laser cutter where I live, so I’m just going to have to cut everything by hand. Additionally, while the design will only be one layer of cardboard to make sure that the lamp is bright enough, the joints, or otherwise places where the pieces connect, will be made of multiple layers of cardboard; and I will use joinery and glue to construct the lamp (Cardboard joinery examples here)
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This is a very cool project, is it going to act as a functional piece or more of an art piece? Also how many sides are you going to include the pattern on?
Hi Josh, I really like the design! The carboard joinery you linked is also very interesting. Are you planning on just reinforcing the edges of the cardboard so that you can use the joinery techniques? Also, do you plan to integrate the joinery as part of your design or do you plan to leave it hidden? I think as Perry mentioned above that adding a piece of paper over the cardboard could add a very interesting element, though it may not be the aesthetic that you were initially targeting. I am excited to see your final result, this is a really interesting project!
1. Yes, I do plan on reinforcing the edges by gluing together more layers of cardboard. I could do those joinery techniques without it, but for structural purposes, I think it’s best to use multiple layers of cardboard instead of one.
2. I will expose the joinery to add to the aesthetic, and yes, I was thinking of adding paper either on top or below the cardboard.
I really love the design you’ve come up with for the lantern faces! I’ve experimented with creating paper lanterns in the past, and one trick I discovered, is to put the paper on top of the cardboard. This way, the pattern only shines through when the lamp is lit. I would use a heavier cardstock or thin posterboard available at Michael’s, it’ll block the shadows of the cardboard hidden behind without compromising the lantern’s light when it’s turned on.
I was originally thinking of adding the cardboard below the design, but I will try to add it on top as well, and compare the two.