[Craft] Handmade Planetarium Idea Book
A sky full of twinkling stars… Doesn’t just imagining it fill your heart with romance?
Light traveling from far, far away gathers to create a beautiful carpet of stars.
Here’s a suggestion: why not enjoy that breathtaking scene to your heart’s content right at home?
What we’re introducing today is a collection of DIY planetarium ideas!
Everything can be made with materials you can find at local shops, so anyone can give it a try with ease!
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[Craft] Handmade Planetarium Ideas (1–10)
Planetarium DetectiveNEW!
How about projecting a story in a planetarium where images are cast in a circular format? This “Planetarium Detective” is a story that makes use of familiar planetarium themes like stars and space stations.
You can project the story by combining photos and illustrations into a slideshow or a single video.
Like this story, it would be great to create and project an original tale that leverages starry and cosmic scenes.
We recommend making it something that encourages viewers to think as they watch.
Easy! Planetarium EnvelopeNEW!
An envelope planetarium that’s easy to carry around.
First, shape tracing paper into an envelope.
Next, use a needle or similar tool to punch lots of holes in dark-colored construction paper, like navy or black.
Once you’ve made the holes, assemble it into a bag shape and place it inside the tracing-paper envelope—that’s it! When you open the bag and peek inside, room light filters in to create a planetarium-like world.
If you make plenty in advance, lots of people can enjoy the starry sky at once as a self-serve planetarium!
A Planetarium with Paper PlatesNEW!
Amazingly, paper plates can project a beautiful starry sky! Prepare two deep paper plates and line the insides of both with aluminum foil.
Cut a square hole in the bottom of one plate.
In the other plate, use a pushpin to make lots of tiny holes in the bottom and sides.
Then evenly attach small pieces of colored cellophane over them.
Join and close the rims of the two plates, and decorate the outside as you like—that’s it! By placing your smartphone’s light at the square opening, countless stars will appear in a dark room with the lights off.
[Crafts] Handmade Planetarium Ideas (11–20)
Planetarium with cardboard and paper plates
It’s a pointed, triangular device that projects a starry sky, made by combining black construction paper, aluminum foil, and a paper plate.
Cut the construction paper into a half circle, mark the star positions, and punch holes.
Cut out the center of the paper plate so a light bulb can be set in, and wrap the entire plate in aluminum foil to reflect the light.
Then roll the construction paper into a cone and set it into the paper plate; attach a light on the inside, and you’re done.
You can punch holes at random to highlight the beauty of the night sky, or add lines to accurately recreate specific constellations—that could be fun too.
box-type planetarium
A cardboard planetarium—its key feature is that you can project a starry sky wherever you like.
The setup is simple: attach black paper with holes punched in the shapes of constellations to a cardboard box with one side cut out.
If you place a light inside the box, the constellations will be projected onto the walls of a dark room.
Or, hold the box up to a room light and peek inside to casually enjoy the feeling of visiting a planetarium.
Since only one side is used for projecting the stars, you can freely decorate the other sides to create your very own planetarium device.
Empty Bottle Planetarium
This is a planetarium that projects a starry sky by combining an empty bottle, a light, and black construction paper.
Because the light passes through the bottle material, it adds a gentle, warm quality to the glow.
The steps are very simple: cut the black paper to match the height of the bottle and the length of its interior, then punch holes according to your star layout.
Next, spread the paper along the inside of the bottle, close the lid with the light attached, and you’re done.
Place the untouched bottom on the desk so it projects light around the bottle, like a halo of stars.
A planetarium made with plastic cups and sheet material
This is an idea where you place a black-painted plastic cup over a board-mounted light so that the light leaking from the cup looks like a starry sky.
It’s a planetarium that prioritizes beauty over accurately projecting star positions, so let’s create it while thinking about what shapes to cast onto the ceiling.
Freely draw patterns such as stars, the moon, or simple circles on the cup, then paint the surrounding areas black, leaving those designs unpainted.
A key point is to paint the black thoroughly so the illustrations are clearly projected.
Arrange the illustrations as you like and create your ideal starry sky.