creative jewish mom

The Wooden Horse Factory In Nusnas, Sweden

Few symbols of Sweden are more famous than the painted wooden horses from the province of Dalarna, in the Swedish heartland. I actually have a vintage Swedish wooden horse that was in my parent's home growing up, so I have my own association with this very loveable symbol as well. Fast forward to our summer trip to Sweden, I booked a place in Mora, without really knowing we'd be just next to Nusnäs the main town where the wooden horses are made today.

I resisted buying any souvenirs before arriving in Mora, knowing that wooden horses would be the thing to bring back home, and I was not dissappointed, the only challenge was trying to decide how many horses to buy, and what colors! One can purchase raw wooden horses (I bought one largish one) as well as horses painted in a solid color but not with decorations, so the choices are a bit overwhelming for someone like myself. I suggest you prepare yourself ahead of time, namely just decide how much you'll spend and stick to that!

Paper Quilling Crafts For Hanukkah: A House Shaped Gift Box

  This is the last quilling for Hanukkah craft that I'm reposting, I hope you've enjoyed this little series, I'm inspired myself to revisit quilling, or at least turn square boxes into houses with my simple trick! Hmmm, then again just a bit more effort results in something amazing, so I may just have to add quilling to my list for this year's Hanukkah crafts. In the mean time, here is my previous post:

A house shaped gift box is so simple to make using a recycled packing box, and looks great for so many occassions! Who wouldn't wan't to make a gift box that is also a really great looking decoration, and if you like forget about the gift and just use the box to make this fun house shaped box with quilled medallion. I made this as part of a quilled Hanukkah craft series, but I could easily see it working for a baby shower, a bat mitzvah, wedding decor or how about a house warming gift?

I happen to love house shaped everything, so I can't wait to make some more of these in the future, plus it so soooooo simple! 

Quilling Crafts For Hanukkah: A Dreidel Wall Hanging

I am reposting this Hanukkah quilling craft as now is the time to delve into something new! And as a result of my computer still living in the repair shop I am unable to share with you all the creative results of not having a computer to work on! Okay, it is true I am typing this on a laptop, but one without my programs etc. I am in the middle of a huge storm of creativity and looking forward to sharing some of that with you soon, in the mean time, give quilling a try!

As you can see, I really had a great time creating a series of quilled Hanukkah crafts this year......and our house is looking more festive than ever! I'm expecting a huge crowd at our table this Shabbos, so I'm really happy to say that my house looks ready to party! Of course, I have many more decorations than you see here, but these guys did set the stage for everything else, and I can't wait to make more. Ahh yes, I did actually make more, in fact I made a large piece of quilled art for my husband's birthday, the first night of Chanukah, and it is already hanging in his office and getting rave reviews.....no one believes it is just paper! One guy even took it off the wall and took it home to show his wife (next door)....so I guess this quilling venture is going to be around for a while!

Quilled Paper Craft For Hanukkah: A Festive Menorah

It is true, my quilled paper crafts for Hanukkah were created a few years ago, but since my computer is still in the sick ward a good hour's drive from home, and quilling is still timely, I thought I'd share these fun projects with you once again, so enjoy! Ah yes and now is a great time to try something new: longer nights perfect for crafting and with the holiday on the distant horizon you can truly indulge yourself! 

Hanukkah is eight glorious days long, which means one can still find some time to get crafting, right? This year I tried quilled paper for the first time, and I just love the results, especially when one uses colored paper, so bright and fun. Quilling doesn't have to be super time consuming if you choose to do something simple without filling in the background, and in any case, the results are truly worth the effort.

Quilling, the art of rolling little strips of paper has been around for hundreds of years, and may even date back to Egypt! There is something about taking little strips of paper and rolling them that is pure enjoyment, so give it a try yourself!

Welcome To Craft Schooling Sunday!

Welcome back to Craft Schooling Sunday, thanks so much for joining me here! My computer is still not up and running, but by using a bit of free online software and the capabilities of my blog platform, I have managed to pull together the features from the last party, and phew, the party is back on, so thanks so much for joining me here! Fall has arrived in Northern Israel and I feel like crocheting, and in fact I whipped up a few potholders after posting about my Swedish kitchen adventures, and now, well I just want to make some more. So, the fact is my list of creative desires is way too long but the longer evenings are conducive to creativity for me, so gotta run! And now for the features from the party two weeks ago, enjoy!

Swedish Wild Flower Birthday Bouquet

If you are having a birthday in Sweden in the summer, maybe you too will be the recipient of a lovely Swedish wildflower birthday bouquet! Of course we are. blessed with wild flowers in so many wonderful spots in the world, but the Swedish wildflowers are particularly perfect for making a bouquet, as you can see here. Plus for someone like me who is not familiar with the wild flowers Sweden has to offer, finding flowers like these simply growing in the yard was such a joy! The only thing more perfect than this bouquet would be to create a painting from this photo as a gift for the next birthday!

Vintage Swedish Cottage Kitchen Style

Admittedly, one of the reasons I wanted to visit Sweden (which we did this past summer, check out the many posts here) in the first place was to experience the innate sense of simple design found also in Scandinavia in general, and I was not disappointed! Our first stop was a lovely 1950's Stockholm archipelago cottage that has been in the owner's family, and the simple yet oh so lovely renovation that was done to make it rentable was really just jaw dropping, for me anyway. The effortless mix of vintage and modern, the overall clean white walls mixed with touches of color and rustic accessories, what can I say, it takes a lot to impress me, honestly, and I was impressed! While I didn't get amazing interior photos of this simple cottage I do want to share with you tips for creating something similar where ever in the world you may be! So presenting Six Simple Ways To Add Swedish Style To Your Kitchen!

Crocheted Cotton Potholders Add Swedish Style To Your Kitchen

A Swedish cottage is not a Swedish cottage without the addition of some rustic crocheted potholders! Okay, admittedly I am no expert having only visited Sweden once, this past summer, but we did rent five different properties and the two that had crocheted potholders proudly displayed happened to be the lovliest kitchens to boot! So, if you have already tried your hand at a ribbed crocheted potholder, maybe it is time to try something a bit more adventurous, namely a checkerboard potholder or a basket weave potholder! I am not providing the patterns for either of these, but rather photos to inspire you to create your own rustic crcoheted potholders that will certainly delight this holiday season, if you can part with them that is! So keep on reading for a few tips and a closer look......

Crocheted Ribbed Potholder Stash Buster

One of the things I enjoyed during our visit to Sweden this past summer was the lovely touch of crocheted potholders hung in the kitchen! This was the case in two of the rentals we stayed in, so I can safely assume that it is a rustic Swedish touch, and I love it! These particular ribbed cotton potholders were crocheted with marled yarn (multi strands in different colors) so the effect is a lovely speckled color, which also hides the imperfections and gives a nice rustic feel. I'm sold! This is a perfect little handmade gift to give alongside some kitchen treats or even a set of fun utenslls, , so lets make some now to have on hand for holiday gift giving, shall we? This is also a great beginner project, and as you can see, the handmade look of uneven sides doesn't ditract from th eoverall wonderfulness of these potholders, so keep that in mind, please! Okay, lets make some ribbed potholders.......

Craft Schooling Sunday Postponed Until Next Week

So sorry to have to postpone our creative get together dear friends. My computer is unfortunately unable to help me do anything at the moment as he is just plain tuckered out, sigh. I could post the party without any features, but that seems a bit too sad, so until next week, keep on creating!