creative jewish mom

Woven Recycled Bleach Bottle Basket

You can use a recycled bleach bottle to make a really fun woven basket. And when you add a little felt liner, your recycled bottle basket suddenly becomes really amazingly cute. If I do say so myself. Now, I must admit, I made this basket over two years ago, and for some reason never quite fit it into my schedule to take some photos. So in a way this little woven basket craft is new to me too! But now that I'm revisiting this one, I can't wait to make more, and I may even make some to use for gift baskets for Purim......you know for the special people like teachers and such who deserve (and in my case, will expect) something just a bit special.

Here's another similar photo for those of you who love to study things and needed a slightly lower shot.

You'll Need:

• a large opaque bottle, like a bleach or floor cleaner bottle
• colorful yarn, the thicker the better, but a variety of thicknesses is good too
• good scissors
• masking tape

How To:

1. With a kitchen knife, cut the top off your bottle. Thoroughly wash out the piece you'll be using. Trim the remaining basket portion to the desired height with scissors.
2. Wrap a piece of masking tape around the top circumference, and mark off even increments of about 2 cm , or just a bit larger, on the tape. Make sure that you'll have an odd number of pieces so that the over and under process will work out at the end of the round! Place another piece of tape around the bottom of the basket as a guide for where to stop cutting.
3. Cut slits in your basket all the way around, making sure not to cut beyond the bottom guide. (If you take a good look at my photo, you may notice that I cut without marking anything off which is fine if you're just anxious to get going, and aren't a perfectionist, but then you may have to fudge things a bit as I apparently did as I actually cut an even number of pieces, but go figure, this was a million projects ago!)
4. Tie a piece of yarn to one of the pieces from the inside. Start weaving!
5. Make a felt sleeve using a sewing machine and two colors of felt. You could also quite simply glue fabric or felt to the edge to conceal it. Or glue a piece of fabric to the bottom and sides, and then cover the rim with a felt or ribbon edge that covers both the inside and outside rim.

And just for the record, the ever creative Gail over at that artist woman, had a very similar idea which she posted here to my great surprise after I made my basket. I love her version with sections of different sizes and she used foam cups I believe, decoupaged with recycled paper, adding another dimension to this project. So now that you have two source for this wonderful project, collect those bleach bottles and  recycled containers, and lets get started!

Purim Decorations From December Closeouts

It is not too soon to be thinking about Purim dear readers, and especially since it has just recently come to my attention that in the month of January, when all the December holiday decorations are marked down to almost nothing, one can find some great things for Purim! 

And so, for those of you who live in the United States, or just about anywhere other than Israel, raid your local craft supply store, in my case it was a Michaels, for some colorful and glittery stuff that's perfect for Purim. Some of the things here in the photo were around 30 cents each, and I bought some smaller things that were marked down to as little as 11cents! So run, don't walk and get yourself a head start on Purim, I'm certainly happy that I did!

Yes, this is snow in the background, so I'll let you in on a little secret, I was in New York for the last two weeks, which is where I purchased and photographed these little gems. Great to be back and now after a two week blogging/crafting break, it's on to Tu B'Shevat and Purim crafting! See ya around.

DIY Drink Charms For Summer Entertaining

These festive DIY drink or wine charms are an example of one of the those projects that are so simple and yet add so much. And they are practical I might add, especially if you're entertaining informally where guests might be prone to walk around with wine glasses, or any glass that has either a handle or a thin stem. I was inspired to make my own version of this original project, which I found on Craft Schooling Sunday this week, posted by the Italian site, Alessia, scrap and craft.

And what are they made from you ask-well my crafty friends the answer is craft foam! So, if you don't have some on hand, pick some up and make some festive drink charms for your next get together or even just for yourself to add a bit of simple color and design to your life!

For complete instructions continue reading below:

A Fun Name Tag From A Recycled Jar Lid!

I've been saving metal jar lids as they seem like great little frames for crafting, and now at last I actually put one to use as the perfect little name tag for my 5 year old's Purim costume! And the red taster's choice lid was just right for his costume—not to mention that anything upcycled or recycled always gets extra points in my book! For those of you who don't read Hebrew, it says "Yosef HaTzaddik" as in the original Joseph who had a special striped coat!  Lucky for me I picked up this vintage coat years ago because I loved the colors and when I realized it would be a great Purim costume, well I just had to save it. And on a side note, if you make your own costumes it's much easier to convince your kids to be an important figure in history versus say a policeman or soldier like everyone else.

So there you have it, if you save coffee jar lids and vintage clothing they may very well come in handy! Not that I'm trying to make you into a pack rat, just sayin', as they say!

You'll Need:

• a metal jar lid
• a pin back
• a hot glue gun
• a message or name printed out on your printed or handwritten, a photo would be great too!

How To: Pretty self explanatory, right? You could also use your lids as bases for collages or small paintings. And they really don't take up much room, so go for it and be sure to send your ideas on over! All the very best and wishing you all a wonderful Purim!

 

Embellish A Crocheted Beanie With Raised Stripes!

Did you know that you can transform a plain crocheted beanie into something super fun and even costume worthy (in this case) by simply crocheting rows of single crochet onto the surface of the existing hat? In its previous life this purple beanie was a cast off from last year's Purim costume making, and I just came across it as I was searching for some yarn to crochet my five year old a new hat for his costume. Lucky for me, I saved a bit of time with this solution and the results are great. Phew, another thing to cross off my list today, don't feel bad if you're still working on costumes for tomorrow or for Sunday, I'm with you!

And another interesting discovery is that the beanie could even work as a pill box for a small head! And you probably thought of this, but this embellishment technique could work for any knit or crocheted item, just imagine! I think stripes of color are a great way to say hello to Spring. And speaking of hello, I must say goodbye for the day as I've got a huge list of things to accomplish before Sunday. All the best!

A Mexican Costume For Our Purim Fiesta!

We love classic Mexican style— and after this year's Mexican Purim Fiesta crafts which I shared with you a few weeks ago, it only seemed natural for my daughter to dress up as a Mexican girl. (The girl's schools are doing their Purim costume party today.) And fortunately for this very busy mom, we had all the items on hand, and the results this morning were fabulous!

The painted fruit which I posted about previously, were strung around a sombrero together with a few crepe paper flowers, which I also used to fill a Mexican basket. A Mexican tunic and skirt  were paired with some black boots, a wide woven Mexican belt, appropriate jewelry and braids.

The decorated hat gave the costume that extra punch, and one eight year old girl (with hot peppers painted on her cheeks courtesy of a neighbor) left the house very happy this morning and proud of her costume.

Phew. Now I think I'll go collapse. Oh wait, there's still a long list of things to do, so that will have to be put on hold for now. Enjoy your preparations, and as I figure it, a little loss of sleep is worth it to bring joy to your family and honor one of our most joyful holidays!

A Treasure Chest Gift Box From Recycled Plastic Containers!

Recycle those plastic containers that often hold sprouts or other fruits and vegetables, and make adorable gift boxes in just a few steps! I came up with this idea because we've been eating lots of sprouts lately, including soy bean sprouts (among others) that come in plastic containers like these. And of course I just couldn't throw them out! At the least I thought my kids could use them for making mishloach manot for their friends, but then this fun idea came along, and now I can't wait to make some more! And of course you could use this same idea to make a container from any two plastic boxes, no matter what the dimensions. And if your boxes are clear, so wrap your gifts or treats in some colorful tissue paper that compliments the colors of felt you've chosen. And you could make yours look a little bit more treasure chest like, and get some pirates to deliver them for you on Purim! And if you like my cute painted fruit, you can learn more about them here.

You'll Need:

• recycled plastic produce containers, or even a shoe box could be great too!
• felt
• fabric puff paint, in two colors to compliment the felt colors you'll use
• velcro strips or dots
• freezer paper (for making multiples)
• a hot glue gun

How To:

1. Cut felt "straps" to the width and length necessary for the size of your box
2. Hot glue straps to box such that box opens hinge style according to photo above
3. Now design your buckle, taking into consideration the width of the strap, and hot glue it to your strap. Note: I just discovered another great use for freezer paper! Draw your buckle on the computer, fill a whole page with them (to make multiple treasure chests) and print directly onto the freezer paper by running a sheet through your printer! (make sure waxed side is the side that won't be printed on) Then simply iron freezer paper to your felt and cut out your buckles. So easy with great results!
4. Add details with fabric puff paint. This can also be done before you attach your felt to the box, and would be a good idea if you're making multiples, since it's preferable for the paint to dry in a flat position. Set aside to dry, overnight is recommended, and keep away from little hands as this point!
5. Design a luggage tag (for your greeting) to attach to the handle, or a little pirates map would be great too!
6. Fill with something fun and make your friends happy!

 

Purim Decorations.......Crepe Paper Flowers & Clowns Galore!

Purim decorations are a great reason to fill the house with colorful crafts— not that one needs an excuse, but at least you won't have to explain yourself! I had planned to share some mishloach manot crafts with you today, but my photo studio (aka the great outdoors) was drenched so when the clouds parted for a minute I quickly snapped these photos indoors to share with you. I mentioned that I'd been filling frames and chandeliers with crepe paper flowers, and a kind reader asked if I'd share that with you.

I love the bright balls of color on my chandelier, which is always decorated according to the season/occasion. Yes, our house looks like a perpetual birthday party sometimes—don't you think that sounds good?

And just in case you may have missed the crepe paper flowers, well we've got a wall of jolly clowns adorning a long wall in the dining room. Yes, my friends, there's no mistaking it, Purim is on its way!

Make A Festive Spring Bouquet With Crepe Paper Flowers!



Mexican-style crepe paper flowers are simple to make, and look great as a festive spring bouquet. If you weren't convinced by my previous post, maybe you will be now? Find the right container (my footed urn works really well) fill it with marbles and/or small rocks, and simply poke the stems of your flowers into the container. A bunch of these as centerpieces, or one large one on a buffet is perfect for any festive occasion, and of course given the colors you choose you can make something either elegant or playful. These flowers were all made with at least 6 rectangles of crepe paper, and I had fun combining some spring colors.

The visual success of this bouquet is that most of the flowers are blue and green with just two larger flowers (10 layers each) with brighter combinations. You can find my tutorial here, and go to town! I've covered the chandelier over the dining room table and inserted some into some of my wrought iron frames, and would love to make some more, time permitting! Of course I've got a list of projects to complete a mile long so it's time to move on. Just take my word for it, make some of these flowers and they'll make you happy, which is exactly how we want to be feeling right now as we get ready to begin the second month of Adar, and get in high gear for Purim, which is just two weeks away. Yikes, see ya later!

A Kid's Craft With Glittered Craft Foam: Fun Fashion Accessories!

You can buy glittered craft foam in lots of great colors and use it for so many things! Of course you know me, I try not to buy anything, and in fact have resisted buying some of this craft foam too, but maybe just this once, since you can get glitter without the mess! My eight year old daughter made these headbands and pins (using safety pins) for a school skit with absolutely no input from her mom, and of course mom was so very proud, and glad to have a little help here on the blog! And I do think that this foam would be perfect for making accessories for costumes, fun gift tags and even napkin rings. So go ahead, treat yourself and have some fun, oh and give a bunch to the kids to create some wonderful things on their own.

Here in Israel I found this foam in my local craft store (try the kind that sells the supplies for school projects) being sold as letter sized sheets and also poster board size. and for the rest of you, well if I can find it here in my little town in the Middle East, well I'm quite certain you can find it too!