Lantern Basic
A four, six or eight-sided lantern with cut-out windows, a little door, a top lantern, a ring and, if you like, its table stand with a hook.
Four, six or eight panels slotted into the floor and the roof, with X-cross, railing or plain windows, and the front with cut-out text or a heart. A little door on pins, a top lantern, a ring and a straight or curved table stand with a hook.
How it goes together
The panels stand between the floor and the roof. Each one has tabs at the top and bottom that go into the slots of both plates. They are as wide as the side measured inside, so they meet at the inner edge and leave a V at every outside corner — on the square, a small groove. A dab of glue on each tab is enough.
The order: floor, panels, door, roof. The door is not glued: it stands with its bottom pin in the round hole in the floor, and the roof comes down with its hole over the top pin. The pins are square and the holes round, so it turns without catching and opens until it meets the next panel.
On top, the top lantern’s panels go into the slots of the roof and the cap, with the small lid above. The ring stands with its tab through the cap and the lid. The roof has an opening inside the top lantern to let the heat out.
Use LED candles. It is wood: a real candle, even a tealight, scorches the roof and can set it alight.
The stand is a single piece — post, arm and hook — standing on the base, with a crossed foot in a half-lap joint that keeps it from tipping sideways. The ring sits at right angles to the stand, like two links of a chain: that is how the hook goes through it. If you choose a stand, the ring is a must.
Text on the front is best in the stencil typeface, the default: with another, the “O” and the “A” lose their middles, and the template tells you.
Frequently asked questions
Lantern: what size can it be?
Every measurement is typed in millimetres and the drawing is redone as you type; the joints and the holes are worked out from whatever you put in.
Does it work for MDF, acrylic or plywood?
For any sheet your laser can cut: MDF, plywood, acrylic or thick card. Material thickness and kerf — what the beam eats away — are set in the panel, and the drawing is redone with them.
What format does it download in?
SVG or DXF, your choice, in millimetres and at 1:1 scale. It opens as is in LightBurn, RDWorks, LaserGRBL, Inkscape, Illustrator or CorelDRAW, with nothing to scale or convert. Cutting and engraving come on separate named layers — “Cut” in red and “Engrave” in blue — so you set the power for each without separating anything by hand.
Do I have to pay to use it?
Lantern is free to use and adjust: you can see exactly how your design will come out before deciding anything. Downloading the file needs the Pro plan, or one of the trial downloads that come with the free account.
Others you might need
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Slatted lamp A hanging lamp made of rings and slotted slats: cone, globe, bell or tulip, with the hole for the lamp holder. -
Cake topper A name with legs to stick into the cake, in one single piece so nothing falls off. -
Advent calendar The little house with twenty-four compartments, at whatever size you want: with doors that really swing or with drawers, the numbers engraved or cut out to glue on, and an attic under the roof for the lit scene.