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FREE STANDARD UK DELIVERY OVER £50

Sustainable Materials Fairly Traded Designed to Last

Our Story

Handmade. Natural. Magical

Love and Light Since 1996

Who We Are

We specialise in traditional handmade paper star lanterns and have been sharing the light since 1996. We’re a collaboration of 2 family businesses from India and the UK with a story that spans 2 generations and 3 decades of friendship.  We believe in the magic and happiness our starlights bring. And it’s our mission to share it – from the workshop to your home. 

Over 25 years ago our first consignment of starlight lanterns arrived in the UK in an old aluminium trunk from India. They were an instant hit at UK music festivals before we embarked on a journey to wholesale them to small indie shops around the UK. We travelled the length and breadth of the country, sleeping in a beat-up Ford Sierra 1.6 GLX Estate - and very quickly the repeat orders were coming in. It seemed people just loved Paper Starlights – and are still loving them today. Our company is still guided by the stars and our paper lanterns sold across the world.

Now based in the market town of Chesterfield, Derbyshire, UK, we continue to be defined by our trading principles and a desire to use trade to improve life and lives.

We are designers, retailers, wholesalers, location and event decorators. 

Artisan-crafted star light lanterns in limited runs, prioritising quality.

Beautifully Handmade

Story Behind Our Stars

Whether used as Christmas lights, a feature lampshade or party decor, Paper Star Lights produce an ambient glow in an array of colours which softens the light, creates a gentle radiance and subtly transforms a space.

Living and working so close to the beauty of the Peak District National Park, we love the natural environment. We want to create love and light without a dependence on unsustainable materials or environmentally damaging manufacturing processes - so we always use responsibly sourced paper and natural dyes. 

Each starlight is hand screen-printed using a wooden printing frame and plant-based pigments, a traditional process creating unrivalled depth and richness of tone. Colour balancing is performed by eye, and after years of experimentation with multilayering & overprinting, our partnership has refined the screen-printing process to create increasingly complex designs which can’t be reproduced by machine.

Each paper lantern is hand punched with intricate pin holes to release the light in a myriad of decorative effects, and tissue inserts positioned by hand create an atmospheric stained glass glow. 

Each part of the making process is still performed by hand, making each star unique. And will always begin in the time-honoured way - a hand-drawn sketch.

Our World

How we Trade

Older, younger, or somewhere in between - people love Paper Starlights. Whoever we are, a twinkling star in a clear night sky brings light and comfort.

We practise Share Trade – trade which is fair, sharing and supportive - and believe quality is the consequence of a fair, creative and collaborative approach. We aim to trade decently from production to point of sale, and to use work and trade to build community and bring people together.

We believe trade is a forum for creative dialogue and collective experience. It’s a creative process which connects, celebrates, inspires - and acts as a catalyst for change. It brings people together in a spirit of fair exchange and has the power to break down barriers between generations, cultures, and demographics.

Our organisation has grown in strength by collaborating throughout our business to explore sustainable, creative and co-operative models of trading. We aim for a business that’s sustainable for everyone involved, and to understand our supply chain as an interdependent, creative community. 

Through our trading activities we seek to harness the creative power of collaboration and highlight the nature of co-operation, mutual value and human interaction.

For 25+ years, our paper star lanterns have spread love and light.

Our Guiding Star

Through the years, we've connected with diverse people worldwide—customers, shop owners, and artisans. At Paper Starlights, we lead in crafting exceptional paper star lanterns and lighting accessories, guided by sustainability, not trends. Our mantra: Quality over quantity.