creative jewish mom

Summer Camp Crafts: How To Make An Acrylic Pour Painting

Summer is here, which means whether or not summer camp is a part of your summer, you can still do messy, activity oriented crafts (outdoors?) that one might do in summer camp. Acrylic pour painting fits right into that category perfectly, so lets take a look at this trendy painting process.

If you are like me, you are slightly familiar with acrylic pour painting, but have not yet actually thought about trying it, as you've got so many other projects on your to-do list or a whole closet of craft supplies yet to be used? When I was asked to write an article about pour painting I was really excited to do the research and find out exactly how those dazzling multi-color paintings are made, and whether it would be something I'd consider trying. This article is a brief guide to help you determine whether indeed you'll spend the time and money to make some acrylic pour paintings or whether you'll pass. For a really great and in-depth article on acrylic pour paintings with how-to photos, and everything you need to know check out the post: Learn Everything About Acrylic Pouring. Just a guess, since I've discovered that one can actually make pour paintings with some inexpensive supplies, I think you'll be tempted to try, I know I am! Plus, one can do pour paintings on paper that has been coated with gesso, meaning you could even use those pour paintings as art journal backgrounds, or for something less precious than dictated by doing art on a canvas or wooden cradle board, not to mention that practicing on paper is a good idea. Ah yes, and since acrylic pour painting does not require any drawing or painting skills is it a fun craft/art activity that can be enjoyed by just about anyone over the age of around eight, so get a group together and enjoy! Okay, lets get into the specifics of acrylic pour painting.

Welcome To Craft Schooling Sunday!

Welcome to Craft Schooling Sunday, thanks so much for joining me here! Summer is here, and that means hot days and fortunately generally cool nights here in our mountaintop location. While the surrounding fields and meadows are mostly gold with pops of purple thistles, my container garden is just getting started! This year I have planted morning glory from seed, as well as some cherry tomato seedlings, so I am very excited to see what grows over the next few months. Yes indeed, my teens are all still schooling from home, which has become the new normal and is keeping me extra busy. In the middle of it all, two of my kids are starting new schools next year and they both have their sights set on places that are very difficult to get into, so sigh, we are a bit on the edges of our chairs with that.......all the more reason to take nature walks and do lots of creative activities, right? Speaking of which, lets take a look at all the wonderful features from last week's party, more than enough for everyone to get inspired! Wishing everyone good health!

A Peek In My Sketchbook: Learning To Draw Simple Botanicals

I am happy to say that my sketchbook endeavors are consistent, and I am slowly but surely filling up a sketchbook that has been sitting half empty for 20 plus years! I started on May 18th and have now completed 46 pages, phew! Okay the pages aren't filled with brilliant art, but rather simple botanical sketches and lately some botanical doodles, but I'm really enjoying all the drawing. Because the sketchbook is not heavy paper and I don't want to end up gluing together pages, I am sticking to light weight pen drawings mostly, though I did recently do a drawing that I colored with a bit of gouche which worked fine as long as the paint was applied very lightly. I am sharing these pages with you to encourage your creative journey, which can be so many things! The main thing is to start and start again and keep on going down that winding road, as the joys of creating, even for just 15 or 20 minutes a day are life enhancing, truly! In the pages I'm sharing here you'll see a bunch of sweet botanicals that could be inspiration for so many things, so whip out your pen and give it a try as well!

Learning How To Use An Airbrush

Above: Photos courtesy of airbrushboston.com

The world of airbrushing is interesting and exciting, but takes some knowledge and practice. If you want to learn how to use an airbrush, and become familiar with what might be involved, you have come to the right place. My teen daughter has been hand drawing and using a spray bottle to apply paint to her graffiti sweatshirts, so an airbrush is certainly on her list of must haves! (Mom will have to learn more first, so let's dive into this together, shall we?)

Origins of the airbrush gun
The first patent for an airbrush gun, the so-called "atomizer", goes back to Francis Edgar Stanley and was registered in 1876. A similar model was patented by the physician Allen De Vilbiss in 1890 in the US state of Ohio. The compressed air spray gun, later developed by his son Tom, was intended to make it easier to administer fluids to patients with respiratory diseases by simply spraying the medication into the throat. Tom's update, on the other hand, opened the possibility of using atomizer for painting work. To this day, the airbrush technique is used to commercially paint cars non-stop using spray paint. Thanks to the short drying time and simple processing, the airbrush technique today often replaces working with brush and paint - also in the artistic and home decor field.

Advantages of the airbrush technique
Airbrushing is particularly popular with some artists because the technique allows fine transitions within an illustration, and larger areas can be filled with paint in no time at all. While many graffiti artists use aerosol paint cans (which are like airbrushes, just not controllable) professional artists with graffiti or street art style of course opt for an airbrush gun. It is true, airbrush style isn't exactly what most of us would call "art" but it can be great on t-shirts and fun accessories, meaning perfect for summer or casual events anytime.

As more and more artists and DIY enthusiasts are learning to use the airbrush to apply images to every conceivable surface, from walls and human skin to canvas, those of us who love crafting might find an airbrush to be a very useful tool, (think huge brush lettering!) so lets learn a bit more about how to actually use an airbrush.

Summer Camp Crafts: A Graffiti Logo Sweatshirt With Splashes Of Color

1. 
   I am so grateful that my teen daughter loves crafting, as with no school for months now due to Covid-19, she has had lots of time to delve into creative activities that she loves, the latest being grafitti sweatshirts! Her friends are begging her to make some for them, and while I was just thinking she could do a class, maybe just buying an airbrush and semi-mass producing them would be a better idea? Just to be clear, my daughter isn't wearing this sweatshirt out and about, but she certainly has fun wearing it as pajamas! The graffit sweatshirt idea all started with a Purim costume which led to a black and white graffiti sweatshirt, which then led to this colorful creation, all done by aforementioned teen daughter on the floor of her tiny Israeli sized bedroom......of course the bedroom is a cute as can be, complete with tiny lights and dreamy decor, so it is actually a nice sanctuary for creativity. This project is perfect for summer as a whole family or group of kids could make them together and even make each shirt or sweatshirt together to reflect the group as a whole, which could be a really great memento of time spent creating together. The instructions for this project are quite loose, so you'll really have to rev up the creative gears, but if you start with a word or a logo in the middle and then go from there, you really can't go wrong. And if you do, just pour some paint over the areas that weren't so successful and keep on going! Okay, lets take a look at the supplies we used for this graffiti sweatshirt......

Summer Camp Crafts: A Simple Graffiti Sweatshirt In Black And White

Summer is here, and yet this summer is not like other summers, sigh. Here at CJM central we seem be in the middle of eternal vacation, well sort of, with the future of schooling this year very uncertain. Rather than dwell on that, and whether some of my kids will actually get "summer vacation" when and if school starts, lets get busy making summer camp crafts, as there is something about messy or process oriented or outdoor type crafts that just makes many of us happy, not to mention busy and creative! Speaking of busy, this graffiti sweatshirt project could keep someone busy for hours and hours, and when my daughter disappeared into her room for long periods it dawned on me that she must be working on a graffiti sweatshirt! This graffiti sweatshirt idea was born when my teen daughter wrote all over one of her brother's old white shirts as  Purim costume (keep on reading for photo) and realized that she'd like to create a sweatshirt in the same style to wear as pajamas......and voila, a graffiti sweatshirt was born. And then another for a friend, and then another, but with color added! So, if you love to doodle, and love lettering, and/or drawing little items, this is the project for you, or your kids, so get a cheap sweatshirt, some permanent and/or fabric markers and enjoy. If some areas don't turn out wonderfully, just get some dark fabric paint and pour splatters over the areas you'd like to cover, ah yes, this is where the outdoor crafting part comes into the picture! Enjoy this one, and actually if you want to keep yourself and/or the family really busy, you could do a comforter cover, or a set of sheets using this graffiti sweatshirt as inspiration...........

Welcome To Craft Schooling Sunday!

Welcome to Craft Schooling Sunday, thanks so much for joining me here! Time is just flying by, and with my three teens still not back in school. Maybe it is because life is just much busier with day to day family obligations! With much of the country back in school there was a significant rise in new Coronoa cases, meaning some schools have shut down again, and my kids will not be returning in the near future. More time to fill them with good healthy food! There are so many projects and ideas that I'd love to delve into but just can't seem to get there, and I'm not sure why, sigh. Tonight rather than cooking and doing dishes I forced myself to do some sketching exercises in my sketchbook as a whole week has gone by with no actual drawing/painting etc. and hat feeling of I NEED to do something creative was gnawing at me, if you know what I mean? Yes, I did cut up a whole bunch of old candles this week, and yes I did spend a full day designing a wedding invitation for an upcoming wedding in which two old friends are marrying their kids to one another (wow!) but nothing beats drawing and painting, so hopefully next week I'll just have to find the time! And yes, I did go for an evening exercise nature walk four times this week, and yes today I did about four loads of laundry.......such is life!

With no major Jewish holiday is sight, I am thinking it is time to do "summer camp" crafting, so all that candle wax is gonna come in handy next week when I wrangle up my kids for a family activity! Okay, that is all for now, enjoy the features from last week's party!

Enhancing Your Children’s Creativity Through Connecting To Nature

Above: Pomegranite tree in bloom in Northern Israel on June 4th, 2020

Fostering your children's creativity is something that starts at home. Online classes and art books can definitely help boost your child's creativity, but at the end of the day there's nothing like getting in touch with nature to really get creativity flowing. I can say personally that since I've been taking nature walks roughly four times a week my creativity is bursting at the seams, and even though I've been taking exactly the same walk over and over there is always so much to see if you just open your eyes to the beauty of nature.

With that in mind, below are a few pointers on getting your kids in touch with their creativity through their relationship with nature.

When Life Gives You Art Supplies: Upcycle Old Candles To Make More Candles

There is something about me that you may not know: I hate waste, and I have a problem throwing out things that have great crafting potential. That of course is one of the reasons I love recycling crafts, together with of course the creative challenge that goes hand in hand with being resourceful! Someone like me might be labeled a pack rat or a hoarder, but let them talk, because freedom from possessions isn't always what it is cracked up to be, especially if those possessions are art supplies or potential art supplies! Truthfully it all boils down to whether you have a place to store all this potential, and I, unlike most Israelis, thankfully do (to the dislike of my family, sigh.) Okay, enough babble, but first I should also add that I am often the address for people wanting to get rid of stuff but not wanting to throw it in the garbage, and that can have its pluses and minuses of course because then their burden becomes mine, on the other hand, knowing what to toss and what to label and pack away is a great skill to have. I'm babbling again. What I really wanted to say is that I believe it is important to always be thinking about how to use things that show up in your life in creative ways rather than adding them to the landfill!

So, when a huge bag of literally the most unsightly candles (likely from the 1970s) you may have seen showed up at our house by "accident," I thought ugh, and at first tried to send this bag back to its owners, but then I realized that with all this potential wax we can have a family candle making night! I had in any case been wanting to make candles, so here was our chance, wow!

And that my friends is called being open to using your resourceful instincts! I am planning to use the colored wax, sorted and cut down by yours truly, to make fun havdalah candles, and of course there will be so many I think we'll give some as gifts to neighbors! Keep on reading to see a photo of what some of the candles looked like before being transformed into art supplies!

A Peek In My Sketchbook: Learning To Draw Simple Flowers

My sketchbook practice has been neither consistent nor significant, and yet time and time again I find myself wishing that I could just start a daily creative practice in a sketchbook or art journal. On May 18th, 2020, not sure what happened exactly, but the planets apparently shifted and I started sketching in sketchbook that I had started many many years ago is grad schooi in NYC! Looking back I can't understand why I didn't spend more time drawing, as my little sketches from years ago are actually quite cute and even good! Big SIGH, though regrets won't get anyone anywhere, action is required! So I did spend a few days filling the pages of this old sketchbook with simple flowers and botanicals, that I mostly learned from Peggy Dean and one of her skillshare courses.and let me tell you, it was so enjoyable and relaxing, and I would have done more and more though other obligations dragged me away........

I love skillshare by the way and there is a free trial, totally amazing and life changing truly! So no, most of these sketches are not from my head, but rather a result of instruction, but one needs to start somewhere! Once you get familiar with drawing flowers then you can start to draw your own versions, and go to town. Just by the way, all he sketches here were done with pen, no pencil first my friends, which is the best way to go, after all who has time to erase? Okay, lets take a look at some more pages, shall we?