creative jewish mom

Pom Pom Flowers For Fall

Pom pom flowers made from variegated or space dyed fall-color yarn with natural branch stems look great right now. And you can do something just a bit different and tie the branches together with some gold ribbon as a fun element on your fall table.

Okay, it's not exactly fall yet in most of the world, and I have to say, I prefer a gentle transition from the brights of summer to the rich colors of fall, which is what I've tried to do in this photo. My eye really isn't ready for the deep burgandy and reds that we generally associate with Rosh HaShana here is Israel, and certainly not for the orange/brown black palatte seen across the United States. 

I'd say start gathering some items from around your home, touches of wood, some metallic gold, and mix them with some brights here and there. Nothing drastic, just a slight soothing change in the colors we choose to use on our tables and around our homes. 

And if you haven't yet discovered the joy of pom pom flowers (which you can always pull out at a moment's notice to make a festive centerpiece) I highly suggest that you make some! Stored in a dust free spot, they'll last for years and are so much fun, believe me! See my post from last year for more information regarding pom pom flowers. Perfect any time of year, just switch the yarn colors to suit the season. Metallic gold and silver ones would be great too! And while you're at it, make a bunch so you can lend some to the neighbors when they need a festive centerpiece in a pinch- as I always say, nothing beats using our crafting skills to do acts of kindness!

Make Festive Napkin Rings From Recycled Plastic Bottles!

 

Since we're on the topic of crafting with recycled plastic bottles and yarn, I bring you yet another simple idea: make napkin rings from pieces of plastic soda bottles that you've wrapped with yarn! So fun and colorful and perfect for the Mexican fiesta theme that I'm building on here. Or actually perfect for any casual table setting, since you can pick yarn colors that work with your scheme and have fun!

You'll Need:

• recycled plastic soda bottles
• yarn scraps
• a hot glue gun
• packing tape or any strong tape

How To:

1. Cut off top and bottom of bottle, leaving just the straight middle portion.
2. Decide how tall you'd like your rings to be, and with a scissors, cut a ring off the plastic bottle. You do not need an intact ring, so first cut down the bottle and then around.
3. Curl the plastic bottle onto itself so that's it's almost a double layer, and secure with tape. If you're using cloth napkins, check to see the size you'll need.
4. Starting from the inside, attach the first end of yarn with hot glue, and start wrapping yarn around the height of the napkin ring, securing with hot glue where necessary on the inside, and joining new pieces where desired.
5. If these directions aren't clear, you'll have to excuse me, as I'm literally writing this on the run with a few children calling "mommy" and another in the kitchen asking for another serving of our Friday afternoon meal, Moroccan Hummus, today served with whole wheat couscous, yumm!

Recycle A Bleach Bottle & Make A Festive Yarn Wrapped Vase!

As you know, I love recycling crafts, so when I realized that by cutting down a recycled bleach bottle I could make a festive vase for my Mexican-style paper flowers, well I just had to give it a try!  And guess what, it's so very simple, looks great and is a wonderful way to use up all those yarn odds and ends. I will definitely make some more before Purim if I can. And it also occurs to me that this would make a great basket for mishloach manot too. You probably don't have access to enough empty bleach bottles to make them for everyone on your list, but a few would be fun! And in case you're paying attention, yes, the small vase is actually a can, making a guest appearance from my previous post here, where it was actually a luminary!

You'll Need:

• an empty bleach container, or really any large plastic bottle (like fabric softener or other household cleaning fluids), and it certainly doesn't have to be round
• a fun combo of yarn in a variety of thicknesses and colors
• a hot glue gun

How To:

1. Cut off the top of your bleach bottle with a large sharp knife, and then use a pair of sharp scissors to trim the bottom section such that it's an even height all around. (Make sure to wash out the bottle!)
2. Attach the first piece of yarn with a dab of hot glue at the end and start wrapping, adding very small dots of hot glue along the way. Change colors as desired, wrapping the whole height of the bottle.
3. That's it! If you'd like to use this as a basket as opposed to a vase, you might want to finish the top edge with a strip of felt that's glued to both the outside and the inside in order to hide the upper rim.
4. Have fun wrapping all the cans and bottles you can get your hands on, and create a stunning table with groupings of them, or a long line of them running down the middle of the table.
5. Oh, and I almost forget to mention, these are perfect centerpieces for your next Mexican fiesta!

DIY Luminaries from Recycled Cans: Wrap Them With Yarn!

Make some simple DIY luminairies to light up your darkest corners! Look at that gorgeous glow, and it's just a recycled can wrapped in yarn! Can't get much simpler than that. Right, my friends?

Use your yarn scraps, a little glue here and there and wrap. If you want some variety in texture, crochet a simple chain and wrap that, or if you don't know how to crochet, make a braid and wrap that! Make sure your cans are metallic on the inside, not white, and when you're done with the party, use them for desk organizers! A great project for all ages, and good containers for giving small gifts of home baked goodness too! And if you still have a few blooms hanging around in the garden, well, these make lovely vases too!

Wishing you all the very best! I really think that some bright color this winter is exactly right. Think neon 70's and you'll be right on target. And if you have no idea what I'm talking about, so just ignore my ramblings, they're just an effort to end this post with a few words!

I am linking this project to the linking party over at Tea Rose Home.

Winter Craft For Kids: Make Snowflakes From Recycled Cardboard and Yarn!

Yes, a continuation of the snowflake theme! After all, what exactly should a Jewish crafter do this time of year? Winter crafts (for those of us in the Northern hemisphere) sounds good, which means snow, right? How about making some artful snowflakes from cereal boxes and yarn? I like the simplicity of these, but of course you can add a little glitter, some sequins, pipe cleaner details, or just about anything you have in your craft odds and ends box! If you use cardboard that's blank on both sides, so make a mobile or hang these in a doorway.....a fun decoration to hold us over until spring! (Well, actually until Tu B'Shevat, the new year for the trees, projects coming soon!)

You'll Need:

• cereal box cardboard
• yarn
• kid's washable glue (I love Elmers blue gel, it's so easy to use, no clogging of the point!)

How To:

1. Make some snowflakes from squares of paper. Pick the ones you like best, and trace those onto cardboard.
2. Cut out the shapes, together with the small details using tiny manicure scissors, or a craft knife. It's nice to cut out the details, but if it's too difficult so it's not mandatory! Just note the differences between my example on the upper right of the photo, with no cut out interior details, and the other two.
3. Squeeze glue directly from the bottle onto the carboard snowflake, in the pattern you'd like to place your yarn. Namely outline the whole shape, or outline the cut-outs etc.
4. Carefully lay the yarn down into the glue and add additional glue and details as desired.
5. Hang and enjoy!

Whoops almost forgot— on the largest snowflake i actually made the outer-most line with a large yarn needle and yarn....which could be enjoyable depending on the type of cardboard you're using. I love the results, but it was a bit to difficult to actually encourage, because poking the needle through the cardboard each time  was potentially dangerous...but with a thimble it might tbe worth it! One could also pre-punch holes in the cardboard snowflakes and use them as sewing cards for little ones. Or add sewn details on your sewing machine! Or.........

A Pom Pom Mobile Kids Can Make!

Last week while mom was busy making the pom pom arrangements that I shared with you here, my eight year old daughter just couldn't resist joining in on the fun! So while I was busy with my own project, she whipped up this sweet mobile all by herself!

You'll Need:

• yarn,
• a Clover Extra Small Pom-Pom Maker (3/4'' x 1''), 2/pkgfor $4.50, worth it I'd say..... My daughter enjoyed using it, and my five year old was begging for a turn to wrap the yarn!
• a straight stick
• glue to attach the pom poms to the ends of the stic
• a place to hang the results, ours was hanging from the dining room chandelier until I took it down to photograph......!

Make An Adorable Bouquet With Pom Poms!

Aren't these sweet? There's even a story and it goes like this: I had just finished making some yellow pom poms to satisfy my desire for those little yellow ball flowers that floral designers have been mixing with succulents and using in boutineers for wedding flowers.........then, the phone rang. It was a dear sweet friend and neighbor who said that she and her husband were wondering if I could show them how to set beautiful tables for the meal after their newborn son's Bris on Shabbos— a meal for just the immediate family, oh around 100 people!

Now, first of all, one should never turn down the request of any mother after birth, and certainly not one after the birth of her 7th, who sounds like she has more energy than you do on any given day!
So while they didn't exactly ask for centerpieces, that is my speciality, and so I promised to come up with something from whatever I could find around the house, which isn't exactly slim pickings, if you know what I mean......I gathered together the yellow pom poms, aqua yarn, sticks, my stash of interesting recycled bottles, (I thought I might paint them, but they looked great as is, saving me valuable time) and the arrangements were born. The results were so very joyful and yet simple. My favorite combination!

You'll Need:

• pom poms, I made mine with a Clover Extra Small Pom-Pom Maker (3/4'' x 1''), 2/pkgworth the $4.50 (for two sizes) investment in if you plan to make a bunch of pom poms, which you will if you have a pom pom maker!
• sticks, you know from the park, your back yard, the vacant lot......
• vases, or recycled bottles in a variety of shapes and sizes
• hot glue

How To:

Pretty self explanatory, right? Make the pom poms, trim them so they're nice and fluffy, and glue them to the end of the sticks. The pom poms look best in small groups, though do take note that the arrangements made with two recycled bottles are quite delicate. One would look nice sitting in the middle of a tiny table for two, but a large dining table would need at least three arrangements. For one larger centerpiece, consider tying together four bottles.

Note: I always give credit where credit is due, so while I don't know who inspired me exactly, I did see some photos of gorgeous crafts made with pom poms at JoAnnes a few years ago, and also at some point saw this lovely post from 2008 about making Alium flowers from pom poms by Kristen at domestifluff.com

Adventures In Needle Felting Part 1: How To Felt With Wool Yarn

Isn't this fun? I'm happy to say that I've had this idea (or something similar) in my head for a few years now, and it's finally made its way into the physical world!  I treated myself to the basic supplies for needle felting on a trip to the US a full year ago, and today I finally had a chance to open the packages and give those felting needles a try. Yippee!

Now I'm no expert, having tried this exactly once, but I'd say that this technique is best used for decorative items that will receive little or no wear and tear. (Monograms, baby name art work, heartfelt messages....) Yes the yarn is felted onto the base, but if some little fingers really wanted to, they could probably pull the whole thing off, which sure would be a shame, since this is a bit labor intensive. At this point I think I may just have to toss my dreams of doing a blanket in this style, though I'm not giving up just yet. I'm quite sure that  the results vary greatly depending on the weight/type of base material, so I've still got some experimenting to do! Anyone have any experience to share? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

You'll Need:

• a wool base, fabric or knit, I used a sleeve from a felted recycled sweater
• wool yarn
• a pen style needle felting tool, for felting small details and yarn only (all felting tools available at fabric.com, which is where I purchased mine)
• regular needle felting tool: can be used for yarn but is designed for use with wool applique and roving
• a needle felting mat, a large one is the best I think

How To:

The needle felting tools come with complete instructions, but I'll give you a quick summary. Simply lay your yarn on the base fabric and start poking with the felting tool to push the fibers of the yarn into the base. (The idea is to meld the two, which takes some patience.) I used a pen style tool with two needles and worked with the pen such that the needles were parallel with the direction of the yarn. Examine the back of the work to see that the yarn has been evenly felted.

Yarn Pictures For Rosh HaShana Make Nice Succah Decor Too!

Okay friends, Rosh HaShana, the Jewish New Year is in just three weeks, so guess what that means? It's time to get even busier! Bring in the New Year with a blast of crafting, and may your whole year be infused with creativity! Okay, you're right, I'm only half serious, but for those of us in the know, doing crafts with your kids and with yourself can add a whole new important dimension to everyday life. (And that happens to be one of the major messages of this blog, in case you hadn't noticed!)

I just love these simple yarn pictures, which you can hang with a ribbon, use to adorn a sign for your door, or to embellish a gift or New Year's card. And I think they'd make great gift tags for a bottle of wine or a homemade honey cake. And to top it off, once Rosh HaShana is over you can use them in the Succah, just fourteen days later! How's that for crafting efficiency?

You'll Need:

• yarn, chunky is the easiest for little fingers to work with and gives nice quick results
• white glue
• cardboard, I used a cereal box
• some basic Rosh HaShana shapes like: apples, bee's, honey jars, pomegranites, carrots, fish, a shofar, just to give you a few ideas.......
• a thick black marker

How To:

1. Draw shapes on cardboard for younger children, encourage older children to draw their own.
2. Shapes can be cut out either before you decorate them or after, but I think it's more exciting to decorate the shape once it's been cut out.
3. Apply glue to shape and lay yarn on glue. Set aside to dry.
4. Encourage kids to fill in their shapes completely with yarn. As you can see I wasn't able to impart that message to everyone successfully, but the results are still sweet, just as I hope your New Year will be!