creative jewish mom

Moroccan Mosaic Tables and More

Last week I found myself in Rosh Pina, which is just down the highway from my favorite Moroccan Bazaar, so I had to hop on over there for a little refresher course in Moroccan style. This time around I found myself attracted to clean and simple designs, as opposed to the painted Moroccan furniture I posted about previously here. I do love this Moroccan table top....gorgeous right?

 The little table tops are wonderful too, but I now have my eye on those pots in the background.....

A Moroccan table top mosaic detail, love the blues......

A Moroccan leather pouf, 22o shekels, which means you could get it for less than say 200 shekels, which translates to fifty two dollars, just in case you were wondering.......I'm sure they're quite inexpensive in Morocco!

 Ahhhh, white pottery with chrome details.

I'm loving this painted Moroccan pottery style.......

And I have my eye on these natural wood Moroccan stools, I think I'm gonna grab two next time, 50 shekels each (13 dollars) before bargaining......and by the way, this wouldn't be a real Moroccan store if the prices marked were really the prices, I mean who pays the full price in a place like this? Certainly not someone like me who knows better from previous purchasing experiences! And of course the element of mystery as to what the price really should be, makes the place seem all that much more like a real Moroccan souk! And since you asked, the store is in the industrial section of Chatzor HaGlilit. See ya there!

Crocheted Medallion Stash Buster Potholder

Yesterday I made some fun crocheted medallion potholders and used up a bunch of little odds and ends from some Lion Brand cotton yarn I'd been saving. When trying to use up the odds and ends, one may end up trying out color combinations that you'd never normally think of, but that's part of the fun! And after all, these are potholders, not works of art, and maybe the less perfect they are the more likely they'll actually get used?

Melted Plastic Hama Bead Bowls

Yesterday as we were recovering from a wonderful Shavous holiday weekend, we made some melted hama (perler) bead bowls! You see, a good friend who stayed with us for the holiday just couldn't resist mopping my floors and doing some general cleaning, so when she suggested that maybe the kids could do a project, I most certainly had to step up to the plate! (I'm more than happy to trade crafting for house cleaning any time!) And fortunately, this hama bead project, that's all over the web right now, was the perfect little project that kept four kids busy with minimal clean up, and they happily listened to some music while waiting for the results.

A great project all around, and especially for those kids who prefer process oriented projects over personal expression or pure creativity, alack alas.

You'll Need: 

• plastic perler or hama beads
• over proof bowls  (I used something not technically oven proof, but I know from experience that a heavy ceramic bowl will be fine in the oven for a limited period of time. Though only take my advice with something that isn't precious!)
• an oven
• some kids of all ages in need of a good project

How To: Pre heat the oven to 350F or 200C. Choose either oven proof or sturdy ceramic bowls, and grease the bowls with cooking spray or simply take a piece of paper towel and rub the oil over the entire inside of the bowl. The oil actually helps the little beads stick to the sides so don't worry about applying too much oil.

Starting at the bottom of the bowl, spread the beads in one layer and then work up the sides of the bowl. Once certainly could make patterns with the beads as opposed to doing what we did. (Next time!) Placing the beads around the sides of the bowl is a bit more challenging, but worth the effort! Place the bowls in the oven for about ten minutes or however long it takes for the top row of beads to melt enough that they start to sag a bit, indicating that the rest of the beads have also melted sufficiently I think?

Remove bowls from oven and set aside to cool. If you just can't wait, so place the bowls in the freezer, and after about ten more minutes, pop them out of the bowl base, and wow!

The underside of the bowl has that lovely melted look, and all in all I think we'll be making some of these little bowls again. Maybe they'd make great little bowls to hold a gift, or as catchalls for spare change. In any case, this is a simple craft idea to have on hand this summer!

Merry Go Round Birthday Cake

Last week I made a merry-g0-round birthday cake for my seven year old with just a few simple supplies, and now you can make one too!  Now of course one could get really fancy with this theme, but quite honestly sometimes simplicity takes the cake!

Welcome To Craft Schooling Sunday!

Welcome to Craft Schooling Sunday! As you read this, I am NOT on the computer, this post was scheduled to appear automatically at this time, while I on the other hand am celebrating the wonderful Jewish holiday of Shavous with family and friends. Two whole days of celebrations, rest, relaxation, a little bit of cheesecake here and there, and thankfully time spent "unplugged", but plugged into something much greater! Thanks so much for stopping by, here are some of the projects that inspired me from last week's party:

Love these simple crochet coasters from Anne Marie, and this super fun crocheted lamp shade cover from Haakensmaak. Oh and that bunny night light is on my wish list too, hint hint.

Mich in L.A. was particularly brilliant this week with her faux bamboo vases made from pill boxes, gotta love it! And family chic used jean legs to make a great little catch all that you can hang on the wall!

Carolyn's homework got busy with this fabulous security envelope butterfly wreath, and mod podge rocks made a simply great key chain holder, a great gift for Dad!

A creative cookie shows you how to make a sweet spool necklace in minutes, and I just love how Pysselbolaget decorated these wooden hangers with her daughter.

Se7en is brilliant as usual with this fab collage chicken inspired by Chagall, and you can't get much cuter than this simple little crocheted owl by Kirvei.

Thats all for now, looking forward to another week of inspiration from you!

 

Purple Thistle Balls In Bloom!

In the early Spring when I visited the dentist in Rosh Pina, this very same field was filled with gorgeous wild flowers, and now it's filled with purple thistle balls, or at least that's what I call them! And let me tell you, a field packed with them is just stunning!

Decoupaged Tissue Paper Candle Jars

Recycle glass jars and make some festive decoupaged candle holders for your holiday table! This decoupage with tissue paper is a great project for all ages with gorgeous results, and if you have the supplies on hand, well, you're in luck, since there's still time to grace your table with these for the upcoming holiday!

I used floating candles instead of the usual tea lights, and I just love how it looks, don't you? 

You'll Need:

• tissue paper
• mod podge or a mix of half water half white glue
• flower or scalloped circle punches, in a few sizes, including tiny ones too!
• a large paint brush

How To:

Punch several layers of tissue paper at one time for the best results in punching the desired shapes. If you don't have any punches, of course good old scissors certainly can do the trick! Apply a little mod podge to your jar with a brush and carefully place the tissue paper shapes on the mod podge. Smooth very carefully with fingers and after all the shapes are in place, brush another coat of mod podge on top, again working very carefully so as not to tear the tissue paper. Set aside to dry and enjoy. And of course, these little jars would be adorable vases to hold wild flowers or greenery, so make a bunch!

 

Birthday Shavuos Cupcakes In A Pinch, With A Cherry On Top!

Making cute cupcakes in a pinch is something anyone can do, like for a birthday party in school, or in my case for a birthday party in school just before Shavous! There is of course one other very important element involved in this idea, and that is, are you ready for this......the cupcakes just have to be cute, they don't have to be works of art that took you hours, or that will make other kids jealous, or their mother's panic when it's their turn! Got it? It's really all about ditching the perfection and just doing something that will make everyone smile, not break out into a sweat. 

Special Challah For Shavuos!

The very special Jewish holiday of Shavuos starts on Saturday night, so it's time to get serious about our holiday preparations. Well, at least I'd recommend that you get serious, I'm swamped with work from a design project and am not surprisingly a bit behind.......fortunately I have a few projects up my sleeve just ready and waiting to be photographed. Nonetheless, when a reader Tanya from Sydney, Australia sent these adorable photos of her daughters with luchot habrit (tablets) challahs, I was certainly thrilled for the help in bringing you some Shavuos inspiration here, and I just had to share them! 

Simply fabulous right? Thanks so much Tanya for sharing your creativity from across the world!

For another nice challah idea that's perfect for Shavous, check 0ut my decorated challahs. Either way, your family will be so proud of your amazing efforts when you put special challahs on your table this Shavous!

Recycled Plastic Cup Flowers For Shavuos!

Shavuos is on this coming Saturday night so it's time to do some simple shavuos crafts to fill the house with excitement for the coming holiday!  And these recycled plastic cup flowers are perfect right about now, since they are really simple to make and look great in numbers. I'll admit, I actually made these as last minute birthday party decorations last week, but I'm leaving them up for Shavous as they're really so much fun!

Now I have to tell you, the idea of making flowers from cups is not a new one, though all the versions I've seen in the past never quite inspired me, most likely because of the colors or the fact that only a few were made. So choose bright colors and cups that are the same color throughout, and make a ton! Add some adhesive back jewels, and hang them from your chandelier with wire, and wow!

You'll Need:

• recycled (or not) plastic cups
• adhesive back craft jewels, mine are courtesy of craftprojectideas.com
• wire or string for hanging

How To:

Cut slits in cup, start with one slit, and cut the second exactly opposite it on the other side of the cup. Then make two cuts on each side (between the initial two cuts which basically divided the cup in half) for a total of six petals. Decorate with adhesive backed jewels or use glue to apply just about anything colorful or sparkly! Hang from a chandelier, affix to the perimeter of a mirror or a large frame, make a mobile or a garland and you've got yourself some great decorations in a pinch. Enjoy!