Lightning Bug Firefly Jar Centerpiece Favor - Yokozuna Righteous Jar of De Lite

Look ma, no microprocessors involved.   Make this easy, rather easy. well, easy if you know how to solder and know a little about electronics, firefly jar hacked from a few simple parts.

Wedding favors should express something about capturing the essence of life,  both good and bad, happy and sad...

But imagine the poor little critter, back against the wall, suffocating in the jar, a glowing rage of being suppressed by the man...but that is Instructables member Yokozuna's story....

Oh, back to this...

It is a lot of work to catch a real lightning bug. You have to stalk out a place where there are fireflies. Then you are responsible for the care of your new pet.  As a kid, catching a firefly in a jar( make sure you punch some tiny air holes in the cap ) rates up there with flying a kite. There are hours of enjoyment and wonder to be had just watching it do it its thang.

So, is there something about a simple flickering light?

Romantic yes.

What does it mean to you, a glimmer of hope for the future that will never fade?

Will this couple be entwined forever?  Will one extinguish before the other?  Will they both burn brightly together?

That's the mystery of life.

 

Step 1 Hunt for supplies...

When you are thinking about party favors, you have to think about how production costs will impact what you will hand out.  It still has to be classy yet affordable.  If you have many guests or tables, production costs can rise exponentially.

Luckily, this project just takes a few resources over time that can minimize the cost of this project if you plan ahead.

You will need:

Flickering tea-light LED candles
( I had found them being dumped in a dollar store but I just saw them in 24 packs at the wholesale club store.  Maybe you can get them end-of-Halloween-season cheap as they are used for jack-o-lantern lights)

1K-ohm Resistors
(more on this later)

Clean empty jars with lids - clear is preferred
(mason jars with lids are probably best, but you can use all the recycled pasta sauce jars, etc.  thick heavy glass jars with molded details are nice)

some insulated hookup wire

scraps of fabric - tulle, toille, crepe paper or other unpronounceable wedding sheet goods

some spare foilage or chunks of branches/twigs/rose/plant cuttings

can of spray paint  "Frosting" for glass
(used to diffuse the interior of the clear jar - etching and sandblasting are alternatives if you are up for that

basic soldering skills and soldering/electronics tools

hot glue gun and hot gun glue

CAUTION: Lean how to solder properly and safely.  Soldering irons can burn as can hot glue guns.  Operation of such is not recommended on your wedding day.

Comments

[embochner]

come inside the shows about to start, guaranteed to blow your head apart

[ChrysN]

It's so sweet!

[SHIFT!]

Wow, so beautiful! SO much better than the real thing, since all you have to deal with is replacing a dead battery as opposed to a dead insect.

[sunshiine]

I love this! Very creative! Thanks for sharing.