creative jewish mom

Crocheted Heart Shaped Basket Using T-Shirt Yarn!

Even though there aren't any Jewish holidays that celebrate hearts, I certainly am not immune to all the heart shaped cuteness going on out there, and so I just had to indulge myself and have a go at this little heart shaped crocheted basket that I've had my eye on for some time. (Especially since on account of jet lag and being on a clock that is seven hours behind ours here in Israel I had a long long night in which to crochet!) The results you see here are 100% inspired by this fantastic crocheted heart basket, though I did add my own touch, and I did play around with the pattern just a bit which I'll explain to you below.

I will admit, this was actually the second heart basket that I made last night, the first one did not make the cut on account of its not stiff enough shape and the fact that I initially thought that dark blue and bright yellow might work....wrong. Fortunately the second try is a winner, and I can't wait to make some more!

Crocheted Granny Square Scarf Is Fun And Stylish!

Presenting my most favorite crocheted winter accessory this year: a long and chunky granny square scarf in black, white and gray, to wrap around several times, for a very cozy and stylish look! I wore this scarf in NYC (yes, I was there briefly!) last week and was so glad I took it along!

An Imaginary iPhone Kid's Craft, Designed By A Kid!

 My nine year old has been creating electronic devices from paper for years, and now introducing his latest creation: a play iPhone, made from paper, kleenex, string and tape! Not to mention that it was created totally from memory, as there weren't any iPhones anywhere in sight!

His little illustrations of icons are just the cutest and his earwires made from yarn and tape are truly lifesize, I had to take this little creation out of his ears in order to photograph it! And I guess I should mention that this phone is padded with a layer of kleenex to give it some thickness.

Oh, and check out that apple logo on the back of the phone......truly adorable!

So dear readers, while I can't take any credit whatsoever for this little paper iPhone, do encourage your kids to make the electronic gadgets of their dreams from paper, my son was so very proud of his little creation. And one last note to my dear mother who worries that my kids, won't be able to function in the "modern world" as they aren't currently exposed to computers.....know any kids that are exposed to computers that would have the patience and creativity to make a little iPhone like this one? Point made, sorry mom, and hopefully some inspiration for the rest of you out there to encourage lots more crafting and creative play and lots less computer and TV time!

Welcome To Craft Schooling Sunday!

Welcome to craft schooling Sunday! Thanks so much to you all for joining me here! Last week's party was full of fantastic projects as always, though I could only consider roughly the first half of the contributions for features on account of needing to prepare this post way in advance. but not to worry, I'll look at the rest for consideration next week. One remarkable thing to note about the features, there are no crochet projects! Hard to believe as sometimes the features have been nearly all crochet projects, but I guess the crocheters are coming to the party a bit late as they're all too busy crocheting, which I can certainly understand! And now for the features, enjoy:

Love this yarn heart ornament to make anytime, from Aunt Peaches, and this fantastic dip dyed lampshade also from Aunt Peaches.

Pysselbolaget made these adorable little necklaces, love love love!

A gorgeous little fabric crown from kinoko, and tp tube binoculars from pysselbolaget.

A super fun tassel necklace DIY tutorial from jewelry making journal and a fun knit ruffled scarf called the potato chip scarf (because you'll want to keep making more!) from Ginx crafts, who did make several already with plans to knit more!

Threading my way shared a post about spool knitting which apparantly is called "french knitting" in Australia, on the very same day that I also posted about spool knitting, amazing crafting energy that influenced us both though we are literally on opposite sides of the world! And love this little drawstring bag that threading my way made to hold the spool, just a coincidence that it has hearts on it as it was made in November!

A fantastic post on hand exercises and massage for knitters and crocheters who may have some hand pain, (or not, preventive exercises are good too!) from eye love knots.

That is it for the features, what have you been up to?

Simple Crocheted Cap-sleeved Cardigan For Girls

Looking for a crochet sweater pattern for a sweet girl in your life? A crochet sweater pattern that perhaps is made in one piece, has simple enough instructions and results in a cozy sweater that also has lots of style? Oh and don't forget can be made relatively quickly! Look no further, I found a great pattern that you can crochet as is, or adapt, as I did for a slightly different look.

Winter Craft For Kids: Simple Paper Mittens!

Have any little kittens that have lost their mittens? How about whipping out some paper and string and making this fun paper mittens winter craft with your little ones? For younger kids you can cut out the mittens and give them to the child to decorate, for older kids, how about decorating them with some fair isle patterns, or granny square patterns or the mitten patterns of your dreams?

This little pair of mittens was decorated very simply with some stickers by a two year old, but I'm sure you can have a lot more fun with this one. I was very tempted myselt to make some with fair isle patterns drawn on the mittens, or maybe a cross stitch pattern, but with so many other things on my list of to-dos, I decided that for the time being I'd share this with you in its simplest form, which is cute too!

Enjoy!

Sailboat Fabric Art, Inspiration For Your Own Creation?

Of all the school "art" projects that my daughter has brought home, I must say this one takes the prize for most inventive and most likely to have been made in the 70's. Nonetheless, though my daughter was totally baffled that the teacher thought that the girls should hang their "masterpieces" in the entryway, the technique used here is so very interesting that I just had to share it with you.

And truthfully this fabric sailboat art is starting to grow on me, but I keep wanting to see it framed in rope or something! I was thinking that maybe there is a brave crafter out there who would like the challenge of using this technique to create something different, whether it be as simple as say a heart, or maybe a bit more complicated like a letter? Here's how it is done, let me know if this inspires you!

You'll Need:

• styrofoam, about 1"- 2" thick
• lightweight fabric, disposable tablecloth material was use here
• a craft knife
• a metal ruler
• a line drawing printed or drawn on paper to size

How To:

Pin your drawing to the piece of styrofoam, and using a ruler where necessary, cut along the lines of the drawing such that the design is cut into the styrofoam as deep as possible. Remove the paper and working on each section at a time, cut fabric that is roughly the size of that section and then using a metal ruler, push the fabric down into the slits, and trim off excess. To go around curves one will need to cut slits in the fabric to ease it around the curve. That is basically it, now go make something a bit kitschy, and don't say I didn't warn you!