creative jewish mom

Wall Decor Ideas for Boosting Blank Spaces

Wall art and wall decor has a place in every room. Your creativity is the only limit to decorating your walls, and you certainly shouldn’t leave them blank, because truly there are so many simple decorating ideas that anyone can do. So, to get you started, here are some amazing ideas for filling those blank spaces and walls. Why? Because wall art brings out character, creates a fresh look and sets any mood you desire, with pops of your favorite colors. In essence it makes your house a home. Okay, lets fill those walls!

Ten Plagues Craft For The Passover Seder

A reader just asked me about this craft, and I revisited it, and i see that it has actually been five years since I've shared it and almost 12 or 13 years since I actually made it. Wow, it must be time to make it again! Okay, maybe next year, in the mean time, there are plenty of days before Passover to get crafting, or keep the family busy with crafts, and this one is a keeper. Here is what I wrote in 2018:

I made these ten plagues placards for my kids for our seder eight whole years ago, and since they are still looking good (in the photos that is) I thought I'd pull them out of the archives to share them with you, as truly this a craft that will make memories for the kids (and fun loving adults) at your Passover seder table! Truthfully, while I love these ten plagues placards, they are on the large size and so I did a smaller version of this craft with some of the neighborhood boys, using skewers instead of dowels, and you can take a look at that craft here. Regardless of what size works for your family, do take the time to make some of these ten plagues placards, you won't regret it, promise!

In the photo above, from left to right I have depicted the first four plagues: Blood, Frogs, Lice, and Wild Animals. Keep on reading to see most of the other plagues.......

Cross-Stitch Mountain Scene Hoop Art

This past summer we stayed in a vacation rental on Kibbutz Harduf that was packed with crafts and creativity. One of the things that caught my eye was this sweet cross stitch mountain scene that looked really great hanging in one of the children's room. I would usually think about creating a scene like this in needlepoint, so I love the idea that it is cross stitch! Embroidery is such a wonderful craft to have on hand as a take-along project any time or to work on every day for just 10 minutes or so, love that idea! So while I don't have any resources for this project, you can certainly find them yourself, and of course any grid design that is meant to be used for needlepoint can certainly be used for cross stitch! Another wonderful thing that I discovered about this piece is how the back was treated (namely how to hide all the mess) so keep on reading to see that!

Origami Horse Cake Toppers Are Cute As Can Be!

Ever seen a cake topper that is a horse dressed up as a unicorn? Me neither but it just seemed perfect for a four year old!

Right now I'm in the process of using up all the flour in the house as we prepare for Passover, and the first step for me is to bake challahs and a few deserts, and freeze everything we'll need for the next 2 shabbats, or more or less anyway, we can always, gasp, buy any challah we need for the shabbat before Passover! Since cake is the topic in my kitchen right now, I thought I'd share wtih you these fun origami horse cake toppers that I used for a birthday cake this past shabbat, and together with sprinkles, and large white gumdrops, a fun cake was born! Ah yes, and around the bottom of the cake I took colorful cupcake liners, folded them in half and placed them like petals, which gave the bundt cake a lovely finished look, phew! So friends, as I always say, cute cake decorations can be easily made with paper and some glue, and this is one more example. You can of course use these horses as part of a dessert scene, or a merry-go-round or even place them around the bottom of the cake, get creative! Okay, shall we make some?

Welcome To Craft Schooling Sunday!

Welcome to Craft Schooling Sunday, thanks so much for joining me here. With Passover quickly approaching, and just 2 1/2 weeks for our yearly top to bottom house cleaning, I need to put aside the craft supplies, or rather organize them, rather than use them, though I am thinking about how I'll count the Omer this year, and do need to prepare for that , ah yes and then there are all the metallic silver pyramids I'm planning on making from the cardboard/metallic covers from aluminum pans that I always set aside as I never use them. So yes I will be cleaning and organizing, but of course I have to honor the holiday with creativity as well! Okay, lets take a look at the features from last week's party!

Cardboard Passover Pyramid Craft

 

Hoping to make a bunch of cardboard and recycled cardboard pyramids this year, but for now, reposting this from the archives to give you a head start!

With Passover arriving this coming Saturday night, now is the time to fit in some last minute crafting in anticipation of this wonderful holiday, and possibly keep the kids busy with a crafting station so you can finish, or continue all the holiday preparations! The essence of the holiday is to tell the story of the Jews deliverance from Egypt to the children, so getting kids involved with decorations and hand made items to celebrate and absorb this game changing history of the Jewish people is really really important!

I have been wanting to make cardboard pyramids for a few years, and while I didn't quite realize my dreams this year, I did at least make one artful cereal box pyramid, which by the way depicts the plague of hail, which was both fire and ice, so hail can certainly be pink! I love the results (though it was questionable at first) and I wish I had time to make more. Next year I'll have to make them in January! Nothing says Egypt and slavery like the pyramids, so be sure to include them in your holiday decor. A line of pyramids running down the table would be stunning! Okay, time is of the essence, lets learn how to make some of these, pronto!

Watercolor Cut-Out Poppies Centerpiece For Passover!

I have pulled this one out of the archives, because there is no time like the present to get crafting for Passover, and this one is a keeper! And since the red native anemones are now in bloom in our meadows, this is timely! I know I've referred to them as poppies, as that is what most people know, and we do have red poppies as well, just in another month or so after the anemones finish their show!  One of the things I love about this craft is that you can simply disassemble the centerpiece when the holiday is over, and store the flowers, flat, for future use, they are always great to have on hand in a pinch! Enjoy!

I originally shared this for shavuos, but covered the shelves in my kitchen with paintings of these guys, so it feels like Passover to me, nonetheless, here is what I wrote then:
I am totally in love with the watercolor poppies in a pot centerpiece, well one-sided centerpiece really, and I have already made two more! This idea, is something that you can play around with depending on your own needs, and there are so many ways to go! I actually made a small one using a small round plastic peanut butter tub, which would make an adorable teacher appreciation gift or a token of appreciaion for a neighbor, for example. Then again, making larger pots of poppies really doesn't take that much more time, so go for it, as this burst of festive and artful color is a joyful addition anywhere or anytime! The Jewish holiday of Shavuos is on Thursday night, so we'll be enjoying all the watercolor poppies as we celebrate the giving of the Torah, and then they will likely be used as centerpieces for any number of occassions. I'll admit, I can't wait to try this idea out with other flowers, but with the holiday approaching, together with houseguests, that will just have to wait. Okay, lets make some of these pots of blooming flowers, shall we?

Welcome To Craft Schooling Sunday!

Welcome to Craft Schooling Sunday thanks so much for joining me here! Whew, what a week it was with Purim preparation and then recovery, and now the gnawing idea that Passover is less than a month a way, and that means a top to bottom house cleaning and organizing! Of course one does not have to do all that, but my house always needs it and without putting in the work i could never feel like I've been delivered from slavery in Egypt! As always, hoping for a nice fresh and organized look for my studio, which means maybe making a plan of working in there an hour or so a day to actually get there, while I also tackle other projects both work, and house organizing. Sure would be nice to have all those art supplies nicely organized so I know where everything is! Okay, enough about that, enjoy the features from last week's party!

A Fun Origami Horse To Make In A Bunch Of Sizes!

While origami butterflies were truly the theme this Purim, I did sneak in a bunch of origami horses which I ended up using in the festive food baskets for friends and neighbors, called mishloach manot. And yes, I did dress my horses up a bit, but keeping that to myself for the moment as who knows maybe I will get around to those Jewish craft books afterall and I need some unpublished material! That said, this horse, while involving many folds is just adorable, and looks especially great when done using origami paper or wrapping paper or large sheets of craft paper that are color on one side and white on the other. Also, because of the many folds, using wrapping paper, namely a square made out of the whole width of the wrapping paper, results in quite a sturdy horse, so use what you have on hand! While I was thinking that the horse is a great symbol for Passover, as it does represent freedom, the horses mentioned in the Passover story did not survive the crossing of Red Sea together with the Egyptians, so never mind that, horses can just be a fun party decor theme anytime and would be great cake toppers as well. So enjoy! Okay, lets get folding.....

Recycled Cereal Box Gift Bag

It has been quite a while since I made gift bags from cereal boxes, but somehow after all the crafting I did this year for Tu B'Shevat and then Purim, it just seemed natural to go with the flow! So this year, rather than giving neighbors a nice selection of Morocan salads for our Mishloach Manot on Purim, I actually gave much less in the food department and more in the creativity department, including a large origami horse, which was the star of the show. I will share smaller versions of this horse shortly, but keeping him out of the public eye for the time being, because who knows, maybe just maybe that book of mine will happen and I'll need some projects that were never seen.......or maybe next year I'll be less into the crafts and will need something to share for Purim? Who knows the main thing is to fill life with creativity and bring joy to others! Okay, back to the idea of using a cereal box to make, in this case, two gift bags which are just great looking and all around wonderful in my book. Lets make some!