creative jewish mom

Craft Schooling Sunday Will Be Back Next Week

dear readers, thanks for your patience as I drag my little blog vacation on for just another three or four days. Except for a bit of time on a iPad, like right now, I have been unplugged for an entire month! so you see it really is possible to step away from the virtual world that we all spend a bit too much time visiting and instead get more sleep and spend precious moments with loved ones. I truly recommend it! That said, I look forward to reconnecting with you all and to sharing some of my adventures with you. See you soon.t

Tin Can Robots Recycling Craft!

Here's a super fun recycling craft for the kids (or for the kid in you) that is a great way to encourage creativity: a tin can robot character made not just from tin cans but from a wide assortment of recyclables.
Yes, I did use batteries, but PLEASE DON'T when you make your robots, as in retrospect I have no idea if it is safe. Truthfully, the batteries that are truly a hazard are the 4 volt square batteries, like the kind found in the smoke detector, so absolutely do not use those for crafting. (And when you set them aside to bring to the appopriate battery disposal sight, put some electric tape over the ends for safety purposes.)

Now as far as my cute robots go, Mr. Bandito Robot and The Tin Can Bird Robot, I had so much fun making them, and I hope you'll come up with some of your own characters!

You'll Need:

• tin cans
• recycled materials, especially lids of all sizes, corks, bottle caps
• colored cover stock paper
• a fine black marker
• hot glue

 Step 1: Gather your materials, the more the better!

 Step 2: Using hot glue assemble your robots.

 Step 3: Draw facial features and control panels on colored stock, cut out and glue to tin cans.

And that is it! Now go and make a bunch of adorable tin can robots yourself. Even better make enough to display as a collection on a shelf in your home, that is what I'd like to do! Enjoy.

 

Park Sculptures Made By Kids To Encourage Recycling!

Last summer during our 4 days on the Sunshine Coast in British Columbia, Canada, we went to a very nice park called Shirley May Park, that had a frizbee golf course in the middle of a redwood forrest! It was very beautiful and I was truly caught by surprise when we came across this bottle cap and container tops sculpture made by kids during summer camp, I'm assuming, and a great reminder to keep the park clean and use the recycling bins!

And I just love the flowers made from tin can tops to adorn this "Respect our Park" sign, don't you? So if you're looking for some projects to do at camp or a family staycation this summer, do keep this inspiration in mind and use it to create something of your own with recycled objects!

 

Craft Schooling Sunday Has Gone Fishing!

Dear crafty friends, I am currently without computer access and unable to host you all this week. looking forward to reconnecting soon!

Crepe Paper Flowers With Pom Pom Centers (Perfect For Shavous!)

Here is a fun crepe paper flower craft that is done in two steps, and produces great results. Make these flowers in a bunch of sizes, and affix them to a large board, or hot glue a string to the back for hanging. Or how about some on your front door? Whatever you decide to do with them, they'll add a splash of color to your home, and make your kids very proud of their efforts, which is certainly a good way to encourage future crafting, right?

Crafts For Kids: Gorgeous Flowers From Recycled Materials!

Egg carton flowers are so much fun to make and can be used to decorate so many things.

With the holiday of Shavuos coming up, now is a great time to start filling the house with flowers and greenery to remind us of Mt. Sinai (where the Torah was given), and what better way than with lots of flowers made from recycled materials? I've put together this post with a bunch of tutorials from the archives to get you started, and hopefully you'll come up with some creative ideas for using your flowers. But if not here is a hint: crafted flowers of all kinds look fantastic simply hot glued to a large board and hung on the wall as art. Any takers?

Recycled soda bottle bottom flowers look like pop art or blown glass, perfect for making a great piece of wall art!

 Delicate little rolled paper rose buds are sweet any which way, and a great craft for all ages.

Use this giant newsprint paper flower tutorial to make flowers from even printed newspaper, or any scraps of wrapping paper that find their way into your life!

Recycled soda bottle tulips, or crocuses, you decide, look great hung as mobiles or assembled into a bouquet.

And for the simplest flower craft of all, that happens to be truly enjoyable: simply open up some recycled cardboard boxes, get out the paints, and paint flowers on cardboard, and don't exclude the boys, I did this with a group of boys and they love it!

Hope you are inspired to get crafting, and would love to see your results!

Welcome To Craft Schooling Sunday!

Welcome to Craft Schooling Sunday! With Spring in full force, crafting inspiration is everywhere, not to mention right here, thanks to all the talented contributors from around the world! And now, for the features from last week's party:

 Love this collage resin tray from Aunt Peaches, and these fun pasta necklaces from Pysselbolaget.

A gorgeous way to make a monogrammed floral display from urbanic paper, and a great homemade paper tutorial from my poppet.

 

A sweet crocheted baby boy cardigan from Lanas de Ana, and love the color palette in these crocheted blankets from coco rose diaries.

Sweet little crocheted bracelet party favors from hip met haaken.

 

A lovely little embroidered work of art from Audrey B. and a great blackberry fizz drink to enjoy in that garden from homemade interest.

Bisozozo shares her ideas for organizing a super small kitchen, and pysselbolaget has a great tutorial for making a peg board for organizing your creativity!

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

An InLinkz Link-up

Summer Crafts For Kids: A Recyled Milk Carton Roof Garden!

Spring and especially summer are the perfect time to work on fun crafting projects that you may not have time for during the school year! And whether or not camp is a part of your kid's summer experience, you can certainly have fun doing the kind of projects that one might very likely do in camp in your home. For this project, A Recycled Milk Carton Roof Garden, I’ve combined two of my favorite hobbies, container gardening and recycled crafting, and I hope you’ll have as much fun as I did! And while you’re at it, why not get a bunch of friends together and make a whole city?

You’ll Need:

• recycled milk or juice cartons
• acrylic craft paint and paint brushes
• a pencil
• black markers, both fine and medium weight
• spider plant babies, or succulent cuttings or small plants of some kind
• soil

How To:

Step 1: Cut the tops off of your used milk or juice cartons with scissors, or get an adult to do it with a knife. Wash out the cartons with warm water and soap. Paint your milk cartons using acrylic paint, first applying a base coat through which the printing will still show, and then applying a second coat to completely cover the graphics on the carton.

Step 2: Set aside to dry, and then cut your cartons to the desired height. Cut slanted rooves to make house shapes. Using a pencil lightly draw doors, windows and other details on your cartons.

Step 3: Using black markers in several weights, go over your pencil drawings.

Step 4: Fill your cartons with soil, but not to the top. If you will be using these cartons for large plants, you will need to first poke holes in the bottom as drainage will be necessary. Have an adult do this for you with a knife.

Step 5: Gently place your plants into the soil (in this case spider plant babies). Keep the soil evenly moist, and soon your plants will begin to grow. Depending on the kind of plant you have planted, you may or may not have to replant in a larger container. Succulents would also be perfect for this project, and cuttings can simply be stuck into moist soil to root.

Enjoy your new garden!

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Propagating And Caring For Spider Plants, A Cycle That Keeps Repeating Itself!

I don't know about you, but I just love spider plants! Maybe because they remind me of my childhood and my mother's plant collection, or maybe because it is just so fun to watch them produce their babies! And I'm not talking about just a few babies, but in the right conditions the plant can look like a chandelier or fountain of sorts on account of stalks laden with new little plants!

So, in case you are not familiar with spider plants, lets learn a little bit about spider plants and how they propagate! Find a spider plant, they are a common house plant, so maybe you know someone that has one? Spider plants propagate by growing “babies” on long stalks that grow from the mother plant. The spider plant babies do not need soil while still attached to the mother, and are actually already tiny plants just waiting to be planted in soil, or placed in water to root.

Separate the spider plant babies from their mother by gently cutting a stalk, and examine each baby to find the brown nodule from which the leaves are growing, (see photo above) and from which the roots will grow.Place your plants in soil or water.  Keep the soil evenly moist, and soon your spider plant babies will form roots. Once the plants start to grow, they will likely need to be replanted in a larger container. And before you know it, your baby spider plants will become mothers themselves and you can start this wonderful cycle all over again!

Spider plants can be used as hanging plants or placed on plant stands, and they enjoy being outside in the shade. When they have been under-watered they start to look pale green, but will recover once watered. I keep my spider plants outdoors year round and bring inside only if the temperatures will reach freezing.

Note: This post is for those living outside of Israel, as we are not buying plants or propagating anything until the end of this Jewish year, which is the shemittah year.

Welcome To Craft Schooling Sunday!

Welcome to Craft Schooling Sunday! Last week's party was packed with fantastic inspiration, so take a look at the features and get inspired!

Love this beaded wreath made from an old necklace by bisozozo (Greece) and these fantastic tissue paper feathers/leaves from pysselbolaget (Sweden)

Glittered play dough from homemade interest (USA) and a beaded collage frame for kids to make for Dad from aunt peaches (USA.)

A recycled bottle bird feeder from Aunt Peaches (USA) and a DIY class ring from jewelry making journal (USA.)

 

A four sifter planter from life in our nomad (USA) and a fun crocheted kitchen window garland from my world of crochet (Germany.)

 A wonderful tapestry crochet bunny pouch from howling at the moon (The Netherlands) and fun crocheted coasters from my world of crochet (Germany.)

 Crocheted granny patchwork blanket from homemade at my place (Mozambique) and a crocheted flower headband or bracelet from hip met haken (the Netherlands.)

 

A very festive ice cream slush from homemade interest, and chocolate cookies from life in our nomad (USA)

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

An InLinkz Link-up