creative jewish mom

Best Way To Maintain and Clean a Rug at Home

If you have purchased a high-quality rug you will want to take good care of it, and even if you've purchased an inexpensive rug, why be wasteful? A quality rug is an investment that can be passed on to future generations, and certainly this requires proper care. Or maybe you've purchased an antique rug that you treasure and you are wondering how to make sure that rug does not get damaged? The good news is taking care of your rug at home is easier than you think. Whether we are talking about hand loomed or woven woolen rugs or even those gorgeous neutral beige rugs, lets learn how to go about making sure our rugs will stand the test of time! From weekly cleaning, to spot stain removal, to over all deep cleaning, you can learn to do it all. What a great feeling, right? Okay, lets delve into this topic and become experts!

Welcome To Craft Schooling Sunday!

Welcome to Craft Schooling Sunday, thanks for joining me here! Oh my, Chanukah is in just 2 weeks and that means it is now seriously time to get decorating, if not my family will wonder what has happened to my holiday spirit! Telling them that I'm too focused on drawing and painting will certainly not do it, and fortunately I do have decorations in boxes somewhere, and hoping to bring out the stand up polar bears and huskies from two years ago, and at least paint some clothes pin dolls to ride them! That and white pom poms on the new chandelier over our dining room table will be a good start! Ah yes, and the origami for chanukah hat I made a ton of last year will be perfect as well, just hung differently to make it seem like I've done something new. Gotta do what you gotta do! And here we are in the middle of November, and time to get cozy with the crafting, so crocheting would be my go-to craft (if not for the aforementioned painting etc.) which is especially great for holiday gift giving. As always, this party is full of wonderful crocheters, so the features have lots to inspire, together with a great dream catcher, some fun bobbles and a few things to sew, Okay, lets get to it!

Felted Wool Mug Cozies For Chanukah!

Another project I'm pulling from the archives because this one is so much fun, and makes a great holiday gift!

Wool felt is a truly wonderful material available in a nice range of luscious rich colors, can be purchased in 12"x12" squares, and since it doesn't unravel, you can craft away to your heart's content without the need for glue or sewing, if you so desire. This DIY felt mug cozy is quick and would make a wonderful gift this holiday season, together of course with some lovely mugs! I have added the Hanukkah themed details to my mug cozies using felting, with a multiple needle felting tool and a felting pad, though one can also of course add embroidery, or attach shapes with embroidery, or even add a few lovely beads or buttons.

A coffee cup cozy for paper coffee cups would be made in exactly the same way, and even if you don't know the exact size of the cup you could make your cozy on the small side and use an elastic chord loop instead of a button hole. Got it? Now go make a bunch, maybe even with the felted initials of the recipient, as these work up really quickly!

DIY Felted Wool Chanukah Wall Hanging

 

Pulling this out of the archives and dusting it off, because it is so much fun to make, and can become a family heirloom!

This is one of my favorite Hanukkah DIY crafts, and it is so much fun to make! I made this last year and am looking forward to enjoying it again this year. And now, if I can just figure out where my sheets of wool felt are, some more felted Hanukkah decorations would be right up my alley right about now!

Looking for a fun Hanukkah craft to make this year? Hanukkah decorations made with wool felt and wool felt only are satisfying to make, work up quickly, and look amazing! This Hanukkah menorah wall hanging makes a great keep sake project that you'll enjoy taking out each year, and would also be wonderful as a special gift to loved ones. Ah yes, and I should mention, this wall hanging was made with no glue whatsoever, and so sewing either, just using the simple technique of felting. Wool felt is available at your local crafts supply store in a range of delicious colors and in 12"x12" sheets, so treat yourself to some creativity this holiday season, and believe me, you'll be really really happy about it!

DIY Hanukkah Menorah Digital Craft

With Hanukkah starting on the night of November 28, which is very early on the gregorian calendar, now is the time to set aside some time for some serious crafting! To make the most of your time and get off to a roaring start, I'd recommend purchasing one or two of my Hanukkah digital craft kits to make your life just a bit easier! Plus the results are just too adorable, with so many options to make these digital kits kid friendly as well.

I'll admit, I still have bunch of these cardboard menorahs that I made last year as centerpieces for a large Hanukkah party, and if packed away nicely, they certainly can be used for a few years! Now is crunch time for me, as not only do I have commitments for work outside this lovely blog, and a husband and family to care for, as well as a bunch of guests each week, ah yes and a garden to tend to, I really want to fill the house with something new this year. Of course these stand up menorahs look great and I'll certainly be including some in my home......maybe with a twist like made from fabric, stiffened that is!

Now of course, you don't have to go crazy like I do, but certainly filling the house with as many decorations as you can is always a great idea, and generally speaking quantity over quality is the way to go, which is where my hanukkah digital craft kits will certainly come in handy, just saying.

Welcome To Craft Schooling Sunday

Welcome to Craft schooling Sunday, thanks for joining me here! So sorry about any inconvenience from last week's mistake of closing the party within hours, big whoops, though eye love knots managed to get some links in there, and consequently much of the party features are her contributions, and so it goes. Not complaining, I love crochet and now is the perfect time to pick up that crochet hook, unless you are filling up your journal with sketches/paintings and obsessed with improving, as I am? Okay great, the main thing is to show up daily for that creative time, whether it be 15 minutes or more, if you are lucky, just make the effort! Okay, lets get to those features, and once again add some creativity to your everyday, you will be so happy you took my advice!

Tips on How to Be a Good Mom

As mothers we tend to ask ourselves questions like, "Am I a good mother?" or "How can I become a better mother?" Of course, I have no doubt that you are already a great mom, but we can all use improvement because no one is perfect, and being open to stepping up your mom game is so important! Truly exceptional mothers generally raise a great children and position them for the most success later in life. Our children are truly our greatest gift, so taking the time and effort to helping them succeed, and most importantly acting as role models is the greatest use of our time. Let's have a look at some tips on how to be a good mom, meaning how to be the best version of yourself in order to give your children the best possible upbringing. We do the best with what we have and then we work on ourselves to make it even better, right?

Chanukah Dreidel Craft With Drinking Straws

Plastic drinking straws have been outlawed in California indicating that they are not a good thing for our environment, and they are not available at our IKEA in Israel, which means not at any IKEA? Hopefully that is the case! So friends, if you don't have any on hand for this Hanukkah craft, PLEASE use paper instead. I happen to have many many bags of plastic drinking straws from IKEA so stay tuned for a bunch of crafts as I attempt to put a little dent in this collection by using them to make some festive decorations for Hanukkah! 

For starters, you can make drinking straw dreidels in any size you desire, to be used in a mobile, hung in a doorway, or on a wall, you decide! I have made dreidels from drinking straws in the past, check that drinking straw dreidel craft here, but those were only suitable for hanging on the wall as the straws were glued onto a cardboard backing. (This is preferable for little kids.) This new improved version has all the flexibility you may love, especially since you can save them for years to come and use them in a different way each year.

Okay, lets make some drinking straw dreidels!

Drinking Straw Hanukkah Menorah Craft

I am re-posting this adorable craft from the archives, and since plastic drinking straws are no longer something one should purchase due to ecological havoc, please do the same craft with paper straws!

Hanukkah crafts made from plastic drinking straws are so much fun and a great way to recycle! I have already share with you my Hanukkah drinking straw wall hanging, or why not call it a Hanukkah mobile? And now, for one of the favorite results of playing around with drinking straws, I present to you the drinking straw menorah, with Q-tip to boot! This little menorah is cute as can be, and a great gift, so make a bunch. Kids can enjoy "lighting" a new candle each day of Hanukkah, while I on the other hand love seeing them with all the candles lit. This little menorah isn't large, but its cuteness makes up for that, and you can tuck one of these in every little corner of your home, or use it as a gift topper. So many ways to go, so lets get started!