DIY Medieval Torches, Chandeliers, and Banners

Our church hosted a "Kingdom Chronicles" VBS this year so I needed to come up with some simple and inexpensive medieval decorations. Here's what I made...


Poster board torches (Yield 10)

• 3 sheets of each red, orange, and yellow tissue paper
• 2 sheets of black poster board (you can get 5 cones from each sheet)
• staples
• hot glue gun



11" quarter circle made using a measuring tape and pencil like a compass

• sticky tack or pushpins to hand the torches with

Roll your quarter circle into a cone

Add one staple at the outside upper corner

1. Take one sheet of each color tissue paper (red, orange, and yellow)
2. Lay them on top of each other and cut into quarters
3. Bunch the centers together and staple

Hot glue the stapled tip of the tissue paper to the inside of the poster board cone

Toilet paper roll chandelier (Yields 2)

• 1 sheet of each red, orange, and yellow tissue paper, each cut into 16 rectangles
• 1 sheet of black poster board
• 12 toilet paper tubes
• 4 large cardboard circles (14"-16" diameter) like the ones pictured below
• staples
• hot glue gun

1.  Glue 2 circles together (for strength)

2.  Makes 1/2" cuts around the bottom of every toilet paper tube

3.  Open up the slits and hot glue the tubes evenly around the outer edge of your circles

4.  Spray paint your chandeliers from top to bottom with black spray paint

5.  Make "flame" tufts out of your tissue paper and staple them at the bottom (like the torches above)

6.  Stuff tissue paper "flames" into each toilet paper tube

7.  Cut poster board into 1" x 6 1/4" strips (you should be able to get at least 90 strips of paper)

8.  Make 6 separate paper chains of 13-15 links each (depending on how long you want them)

9.  Glue 3 paper chains to each chandelier

10. Connect your three chains together with one final link.

11. Hang your chandeliers using fishing line and ceiling hooks. 

Dollar store tablecloth banners

• 2 different color dollar store tablecloths for each banner
• 16"-20" piece of ribbon to tie each banner
• fishing line or yarn to tie the two tablecloths together at the top corners
• duct tape or ceiling hooks to hang the banners from the ceiling

The finished product - teaching section up front, craft and coloring station at the back.

Display area for our week's verses