creative jewish mom

Kids Crafts For Lag B'Omer —A Round Up From The Archives

Above: Make a little bonfire lag bomer craft with wine cork people, using sticks and other craft supplies you happen to have on hand.

The joyful Jewish holiday of Lag B'Omer, in which we take a break from the period of mourning that falls between Passover and Shavuos, is coming up next week, so it is truly time to get crafting with the kids! I'll admit that we haven't found the time just yet, so here is a little round up from the archives to get you inspired.

Above: A bow and arrow collage craft for Lag B'Omer

They DIY arrows look fantastic and are so simple to make, and also check out my little arrows centerpiece for some inspiration for using those arrows!

Bows and arrows are the perfect craft for Lag Bomer, so give this popsicle stick bow and arrow craft a try!

And a little idea to keep in mind for next year's omer, an abstract omer counting calendar made from punched paper scalloped circles, so simple! Enjoy!

 

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Welcome To Craft Schooling Sunday!

Welcome to Craft Schooling Sunday! Last week's party was full of so many inspiring crafts from around the world, so let's cut to the chase and take a look at the features:

Biszozo (Greece) added tassels to an existing purse with fantastic results, and Aunt Peaches (USA) painted over a ticket stub collage she'd made years earlier, and just love it!

 

Crocheted veggetable bags from mara haakt (The Netherlands) and gorgeous DIY soap from sew can do (USA)

A sweet little crocheted baby cardigan from Lanas De Ana (Guatemala) and cute and simple crocheted butterflies from Anne Marie (The Netherlands)

Great looking knit baby booties from Ginx Craft (United Kingdom) and a fun felt popsicle garland from howling at the moon (The Netherlands.)

A crocheted mandala from my world of crochet (Germany) and adorable crocheted balloons from howling at the moon (The Netherlands)

 

Wine corks decoupaged with circles of fabric becomes wonderful wall art, from my home is my castle (Sweden) and a recycled plastic jug becomes a fun fairy house, from the gingerbread house (United Kingdom)

 

A DIY charm holder from jewelry making journal (USA) and pounded wire clasp from artistic endeavors (USA) That is it for the features, what have you been up to?

Wildflowers In Northern Israel Are Delightful!

Spring in Northern Israel is a glorious season indeed, as there are wildflowers both large and small everywhere you look! Here are just a few photos that I took during our Passover outings, and I can assure you that there are many many fields filled to the brim with much more stunning examples, I just haven't had the time to get there!

Love these little pink beauties.....

Even simple little daisies look great.......

As does a single ranunculus, or is it a poppy, not quite sure.......we have two breeds of red flowers that look similar, and one of them is on the endangered flower list.

Ah, and that is Queen Anne's lace I believe? She looks very lovely also next to all the purple thistle that is also blooming right about now. So, If you decide to drop by my little country for a visit, do consider coming in the spring, and of course do let me know, I'll be happy to recommend sites to visit, and even find time to meet you, if you come up North, that is! I did have a reader from Chicago that actually dropped by to meet me a few years ago, and it was so much fun! All the best and wishing you a wonderful spring, where ever you may be!

A Free-Form Hama Bead Cloud Mobile Craft For Kids

How about giving your kids some hama (perler) beads and teaching them how to make a free form hama bead cloud and raindrops mobile? This project does require an iron, so adult or young adult supervision is required, but the results are truly wonderful, and the few minutes that you'll need to help with the ironing is surely worth it! For detailed instructions and even a template, check out the post that inspired us over at my poppet.

Abstract shapes can't really be made on a hama bead form, so one just arranges the beads on a sheet of baking paper in the desired shape and then places another sheet of baking paper on top and gently presses down with the iron to melt the beads and adhere them in a clump. Of course a template is a good idea, and one can also trim the shapes with scissors afterwards, which we did not do.

Holes can be made while the shapes are still hot, using a large needle. And that is it! Hang your raindrops from your cloud, (I'd suggest making many more than my daughter did) using fishing line or thread, and a fabulous little mobile will grace your home this spring!

A Super Simple Crocheted Necklace That Even Kids Can Make!

Colorful jewelry is certainly all the rage, and I love the idea of matching jewelry to an outfit, so knowing how to make some super simple crocheted beaded necklaces certainly comes in handy right about now! Just grab some beads, yarn or string, and a crochet hook, and you're good to go!

Today Is The Day Israel Mourns Its Fallen Soldiers

if you ever become a head of state or have some high position in your country, I would truly recommend looking to Israel for a supreme example of how to honor your fallen soldiers. Here in Israel Yom HaZikaron, "the day to remember" isn't a joyful holiday or a three day weekend, nor does it mark the beginning of summer. It marks the day in which we, the whole country, remember our fallen soldiers. Period.

There are strict government laws regarding business operation, and last night, the start of the holiday, all stores, restaurants and even gas stations were closed. Today, once again all businesses will close at around 2 pm. Two sirens are sounded in every city in the country, one last night and one this morning, in which a minute of silence is dedicated to the soldiers. Much of the country stands for this minute, while others sit and say prayers for the soldiers. Traffic on the highways literally stops and drivers get out of their cars. I was on a bus last night, on a highway near Tel Aviv, and to witness this was truly moving!

Now it is true that in almost any other country, making all these laws and observing memorial day as we do here in Israel wouldn't quite have the same effect. Why? Because regardless of our divide as a people, between those who observe Jewish law and those who don't, we are still one big family, and we always will be. Every fallen soldier is our son, our brother, our father.......and we mourn collectively and pray for a brighter future for each and every one of our young men — a future in which there is peace with our neighbors, and a future in which the whole world will stop pointing fingers so that we can quietly go about our business as the Jewish people.

Welcome To Craft Schooling Sunday!

Welcome to Craft Schooling Sunday, a inspiration filled linky party with wonderful contributors from around the world, thanks to you all! And now for the features from last week's party:

 A striking crocheted poncho from Chris In De Haak (The Netherlands) and gorgeous hand painted and over baked china from letitia tibia (Slovakia)

 Love love love this crocheted blanket from ellebel (The Netherlands)

An adorable crocheted bunny with a hoodie from howling at the moon (the Netherlands) and a great looking crocheted flower that you could use as a bookmark from my crochet projects (Germany.)

A delicate and beautiful tulip stitch crocheted vase cover by ellebel  (the Netherlands), and a fun crocheted triangular bunting by howling at the moon (The Netherlands.)

Love this crocheted doily wall art from mara haakt (the Netherlands) and a lovely simple doily from my crochet projects (Germany.)

 A great looking mandala from my world of crochet (Germany) and a fabulous tip for never loosing socks from multi tasking maven (USA.)

 

Fun and sweet plastic canvas hearts from eye love knots (USA), and a wonderful high school memories board from homemade interest (USA.)

A recycled magazine page butterfly from there's just one mommy (USA) , and simple flower vases from recycled containers by moms and crafters (USA)

 

Easy to make sensory foam for kids from simply living (USA) and a delightful painting with flowers craft for little ones from there's just one mommy (USA.)

A vegetable flower tutorial from grandparents plus (USA) and lemon shortbread cookies from homemade interest. (USA)

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

Today Is The Day To Bake Schlissel Challah!

Today is the day to observe the special Jewish tradition of baking key-shaped challahs the first Shabbos after Passover. Last shabbos was technically after Passover, but we were observing back to back holiday with shabbos, so no baking was allowed. I am now running to get ready for shabbos, so here is a photo to inspire you to make your own key shaped challahs this week! These are half whole wheat, so they maintain their shape quite a bit better than white challahs. You can read more about this tradition and see examples of my key shaped challahs (both before and after baking) from previous years here and here and here.

Note: This photo was taken before baking, and admittedly they don't look quite as nice after the dough rises, but if you use 100% whole wheat dough, as opposed to my 50% whole wheat, certainly the dough will rise less and the end results will be more beautiful.  The pieces of aluminum foil were placed in the holes in the hopes of maintaining the holes, but it didn't really work, as the foil wasn't heavy enough and just rose with the dough. I was thinking that for really professional results one could make a key shaped form from heavy aluminum.....maybe I'll give that a try next year!

Crocheted Granny Kerchief Scarf

In case you may wonder whether there has been any crocheting going on around here, well there has indeed, just never quite enough time to get the items totally finished and photographed. Today I finally finished this granny kerchief scarf, which is really just another name for a triangular granny scarf or shawl, and with the crazy cold weather going on around here, I may even get to wear it!

Wooden Clothespin And Popsicle Stick Rocking Chair Craft!

Isn't this clothespin and popsicle stick rocking chair craft just the cutest? My daughter made this in school, and it was one of those projects that everyone just copies a sample (sigh) so I can't really give you specific instructions, but I thought I'd share it with you as at the very least you'll be inspired to make those adorable little knitting needles from toothpicks and polymer clay sometime!

The seat was made from foam tubing of some kind wrapped in in twine, and the construction is fairly evident from the photo, hopefully. But most of all, those little balls of yarn and knitting needles would look great as an embellishment, say for example as a gift topper, a cupcake topper, or even a little place marker at a crafty get together. Enjoy!