creative jewish mom

Welcome To Craft Schooling Sunday!

 

Welcome to Craft Schooling Sunday! The post Passover edition, prepared on Passover, very quickly on account of a huge crowd coming for the last days of the holiday. So please excuse me for not commenting on your contributions, or if I skipped over your great project, sometimes life just doesn't allow me to be the very best virtual hostess I can be, as those guests that will be literally knocking at my door have real physical needs that I just can't ignore, especially since five of them are my nieces and nephews, yippee! So enjoy the features from last week's party, and get inspired to create! Hope you had a wonderful Passover holiday!

 

 Check out this upcycled dresser planter, so much fun, from the summery umbrella, and this laser cut USA wood wall art from the crafty blog stalker.

A seed packet wreath is just adorable this time of year, from worthing court, and love this burlap purse tutorial from tea and a sewing machine.

The Idra Raba Cave Of Rebbe Shimon Bar Yochai Near Meron

This Passover holiday I have the personal goal of visiting some of the many holy sites that are very close to our home and that I have visited many years ago, but never with my family! We pass the Idra Raba Cave every time we visit Meron, and yet I have never been successful at getting my husband to stop the car for a visit. Until yesterday that is, when this very special historical spot was actually our destination!  The Idra Raba Cave can be found on the Tsfat-Meron road, around 10 minutes west of Tsfat, and was discovered by the Ari HaKodesh, Rabbi Yitzchak Luria in the 16th century!

In this cave sometime around 70 CE, Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai and his 9 students studied the Kabbalistic secrets that were incorporated in the Zohar, especially the part called “Idra Rabba” [the Great Idra]. The Ari HaKadosh and his students also gathered in this spot, and it was here that the Ari also revealed to his students deep and hidden secrets. A stone structure was built over the cave to mark its location and to identify the spot as well as make it accessible.

Migrating Storks (And A Few Egret) In Northern Israel

There is truly no sight quite as breathtaking as a flock of migrating white storks flying overhead! We saw a few of these twice yearly visitors on Shabbat, over our home, and today when we were on a small road trip in the area we witnessed several large flocks of white storks, and it was truly exciting, as always. I don't think I'll ever tire of spotting these migrating storks as they make their way home for nesting in Northern Europe, (in the Spring) or as they head down to Africa for the winter. There is just something so truly amazing about them, especially since they are quite large!

We often see them circling, (either as a way of resting in flight, or attempting to find a resting spot on land) or flying on a path as you can see in these photos, which is as close as I could get with my lens. Time to invest in something with a bit more range I do think!

Welcome To Craft Schooling Sunday!

Welcome to Craft Schooling Sunday and wishing everyone a joyful and meaningful Passover! I am writing this on Friday, and need to still finish up a bunch of things before the holiday, some cooking to do, some laundry to do, some putting boxes up in the attic, and maybe even a little last minute origami for the seder table, we will see! There is so much excitement in the air as we live in a little neighborhood where everyone is doing the same thing at the same time (well, most of my neighbors finished their cleaning before I did, but they're are not crafters!) and there is such a wonderful feeling of anticipation after all the hard work. Plus everything (well almost everything) in the house is sparkling clean, which is such a great feeling! Now if I just had an extra day to go crazy with the crafting, such is life! So that is all for now, enjoy the fun spring features from last week's party:

 

 A wonderful vintage sheet quilt from busy being Jennifer (USA) and a lovely vintage silverware box re-haul from the navage patch (USA.)

A simple air plant stand from a gorgeous vintage electrical thing (sorry no time to go back and check what it is exactly) from the log book (USA) and a DIY geometric globe light from atta girl says (USA.)

What Is The Meaning Of "Next Year In Jerusalem"?

Above: A beautiful remember Jerusalem wall hanging one of just many other Judaic items with references to Jerusalem that one can purchased at judaica webstore.

What is the meaning of the phrase "Next year in Jerusalem" or in Hebrew, shana habaa b'Yerushalayim that we say at the end of the Passover seder?  "Next year in Jerusalem" means that all Jews should actually be living in their homeland of Israel where they can come to Jerusalem. It is of course very important to note though that the Jerusalem we are referring to is Jerusalem as it is ideally meant to be — with the Temple, the Sanhedrin and a Jewish Monarch! Even we here in Israel and in Jerusalem say "Next year in Jerusalem!"  

Okay, you say, but with the world as it is right now, how can we possibly think that Jerusalem can return to what it once was thousands of years ago? The answer to this question is rather deep and something better left to others, but I can tell you that this longing and the belief that we can return to this ideal is one of the foundations of Judaism, and one of the reasons why the Jewish people have survived over thousands of years. And just by the way, this idea of never giving up hope on the human race, and always striving for peace is one of the gifts that the Jewish people have actually bestowed upon the world.

Connected to the idea of "next year in Jerusalem" is the phrase "remember Jerusalem" , seen in the remember Jerusalem wall hanging above, which is really the same concept, only something that we think about every day, as opposed to at the end of the seder.  Okay, then so what does "remember Jerusalem" mean? The words, are taken from tehillim (psalms) written by King David and refer to the purpose of Jerusalem's existence, namely as a spiritual capital of the world.

It is true, the hebrew words on the plaque don't actually say "remember Jersualem", they say "if you forget Jerusalem" but for some reason that is how it is translated, I guess just to be positive about it, which is certainly legitimate.  What else does the plaque say? Happy to tell you, just keep on reading!

Make Fun Beach Toys From Recycled Bottles

With Passover just a few days away, we are frantically cleaning our house from top to bottom, which means lots of cleaning products, which means lots of cleaning product bottles that I can't help but eye for some fun recycling craft! I figured out a great use for the bottom portion of the floor soap bottles that we are going through like crazy, (more on that later) and as I was cutting off the tops, I realized that they would make perfect beach toys for all ages. Perfect for scooping sand and water, and one can unscrew the top to let the sand out of the other end, so much fun for little ones. And of course bottle tops with handles are great for making a set of catch!

I've now got about six of these waiting for our next trip to the beach, and in the mean time I've figured out that for this particular bottle I need to make a little adjustment for it to actually function well as a catch toy.

MIni Bouquets For The Passover Table

Mini bouquets for the Passover table are so very sweet and especially so if there are children at the table. And since the Passover seder is truly to pass on Jewish tradition to our children, making the table a delight for the little ones should truly be a priority! Yes, it is true, that our Passover table should be the most elegant and gorgeous or any holiday table, and we should save our best dishes for this holiday, so these little bouquets while cute and little, can certainly look great on any table, no matter how elegant.

Maybe you have figured out what i used to make these little arrangements, but the photos are artuflly blurry, so it might be a bit difficult for those not familiar with all the kid stuff associated with Passover?

Passover Craft For Kids: A Clay Seder Plate

A clay Passover seder plate is a sweet little craft that you can make with air drying clay, polymer clay or classic clay that requires kiln firing. Given that Passover is just six days away, I'd go for the polymer clay idea which is the quickest and won't require any firing. Plus then kids can also make the various items that are placed on the plate as well......hmmm that sounds so cute maybe I'll try to squeeze that into my kid's schedules this week!

Then again, air drying clay could also work if you're not pressed for time, and the results can look very close to the example I've shown here. Air drying clay comes in both white and terra cotta color as far as I know, so if you prefer bright colors, do choose the white air drying clay, and follow the simple steps I've outlined for you, because I know, a week before Pesach keeping things as simple as possible is certainly a good idea!

Welcome To Craft Schooling Sunday!

Welcome to Craft Schooling Sunday! Thanks so much for joining me here for this wonderful international get together! With Passover starting on Friday night, we are in serious crunch mode to get everything done for the holiday though what i really want to be doing is crafting! Unfortunately all that crafting and hoarding possible materials for crafting has made the job of getting the house in order so much more difficult, so the crafting (except for a few small projects i hope to squeeze in) is just going to have to wait until after Passover, sigh.

And just by the way, for those of you not familiar with the pre-passover cleaning craze that brings out the OCD in most of us, the general phrase used at this time of year is: "there is a difference between spring cleaning and cleaning for Passover" and "dust is not chametz (leavened products traces of whom we banish from our homes). But truthfully, I have a feeling that those phrases were made up by the people generally not responsible for keeping the house in order (or those whose help we seek), as truthfully I don't think there are many people that would feel good sitting down to the Passover seder with a dirty messy home, right?

That is all for now, here are the features from last week's party:

Love these sunglass cases sitffened with plastic canvas from nap time creations, and these pyramid gift boxes are perfect for Passover, from summer scraps.

A vintage window becomes a window sill herb garden from pillar box blue (United Kingdom) and a fun felt wall hanging from the log book (USA.)

Chocolate Spoons With Sprinkles

Chocolate spoons with sprinkles made using silicone molds are a fun way for kids to get involved in the kitchen, and they are amazing way to finish off a delicious meal or as a part of a dessert bar. Plus they are one of those things that are simple to make but look really impressive. Adding the sprinkles was my idea as a simple way to make them look more festive, and I just love the results! My daughter actually made about 40 of these for a sheva brachas that i made just before Purim, and I had put aside a few in the freezer to photograph. Now a month later I unearthed them as I was cleaning out the freezer for Passover!

Speaking of Passover, these would be fun to make for Passover, and if you can't find kosher for Passover sprinkles, so improvise with some chopped nuts!