Winter Wednesday: DIY Ice Luminaries for Kids!

Well, it was still winter last time I checked. I'm a little frustrated with all of this snow - especially since I am still stuck in the house after surgery. I'm going on my third week of not being able to wear regular clothes still and having to do pretty much nothing! UGH! Thank goodness I have had a whole mess of help. One of my BFF's flew up from NC and took care of me for almost 2 weeks. And now my in-laws are here from PA and are helping me again!



But, I am trying to make the most of it since the kiddos are off from school this week. We have been doing some projects and this one was a big hit!  If you are bored or even just want to make a pretty path or decoration along your walkway, this one is SO easy and fun!

Here is what we used:

*Regular balloons from Walmart
*Food coloring or colored drink mix like Koolaid
*Click-light from Target on clearance for .50/pack of 3! :)

All we did was put about 5 drops of food coloring into the balloon before filling them with water in the bathroom sink. That was the only faucet that the balloons would fit on. Darn innovation! :)

The key to filling the balloons is that you need to fill them and pinch them off so that there is NO air in them when you tie them. I made one with an air bubble and it cracked and broke before it was even done. 

You also need to shake the balloon up so that the color mixes well. If you are using drink mix, make sure you shake as well. The color crystals will settle in one place if you don't.

See the air? Get rid of it before you tie it!



 





When you have tied the balloon, set it somewhere to freeze. You can put it outside if you have snow, but it will NOT freeze as well if you put it deep IN the snow. The snow will act as an insulator and keep it warmer than if you had it on top of the snow. Yup, I made that mistake! :)

Once the balloons have frozen completely, tear or cut them open. It peels away easily from the ice.

Here are three of our iced balloons. The green and blue are food coloring and the red is from Koolaid. I thought I would try it since I was out of red coloring. You can see how the red is more uniform and the food coloring is a bit dispersed. The food coloring lets a bit more light through when you light them up outside. The red "glows" a bit more.  Both are pretty cool!

Now, take your click lights or battery operated tea lights and put them outside. Here is what our looks like lit up inside. It was easier to see than my outside pic.

Place them gently on the snow as the weight of the ice will push them down a bit more. You don't want the ice to sink to the bottom, so do it gently. Here is what they look like all lit up!

How cool would it be to do your walkway for a party like this? The kids were fascinated with these, they just look so pretty at night!

You can also put them in a big glass bowl with the lights under the bowl, that would look funky and fun, too!

Have you made these before? How did they come out and what kind of coloring did you use? Let me know by commenting below!

Also, I am looking for some more fun projects to keep my kids busy this week! Any ideas?

Don't forget to share me on FB to save to your timeline. Also, tweet and pin for later if you like this idea! Thanks and God bless!

Here are a bunch of other DIY and Kid Craft tutorials to look at!