creative jewish mom

DIY Floral Chandelier With Faux Flowers In Just Five Minutes!

Ever seen those stunning floral arrangements hung over tables for rustic weddings or other special occasions? Floral arrangements assembled to hang over a table might be oblong and arranged on a long rectangular wire base, or circular and arranged on a large hoop, that is then hung from the ceiling. These ideas work well in party tents or wedding halls with high ceilings and are of course quite costly. We can create something lovely and budget friendly for our own homes by using faux florals and greenery (or the real flowers combined with faux vines) to create something quite a bit smaller and more appropriate to hang over our dining room tables! And if like me, you had forethought and purchased a chandelier that can actually act as the base, (for a myriad of decorations, of course) then this project can come together literally in minutes!

I assembled this beauty for the Jewish holiday of Shavuot, and am still enjoying it. I am having a debate in my head as to how long I'll leave the florals there, and I'm sure my daughter will have input on that when she comes home for shabbos, but for now, the floral chandelier lives on! Want to know the 5 minute process involved and what I used? Keep on reading!

Blooming Cactus Craft With Cupcake Liner Flowers

Sometimes the cutest idea ever just happens all on its own, and in this case left me with my own jaw dropping at the combo! I was left with a bunch of cupcake liner flowers after crafting with my students for the Jewish holiday of Shavuot. I had already arranged a smallish collection of both ceramic and plastic cacti to set the stage for the giving of the Torah, which happened on a lush mountain in the middle of the Sinai Dessert. (Never mind that cacti are not native to the middle east, and even the prickly pear cactus (sabris) seen growing everywhere in Israel is from Mexico or the West Indies!) All of a sudden I had the idea of placing a cupcake liner flower on top of a cactus, and voila, a fun blooming cactus was born, and made my holiday presentation so much more festive! So if you own some cacti, where ceramic from Ikea or resin or plastic, take my lead and give them a giant bloom on top! So simple and festive!

Cupcake Liner Flowers Bouquet With Floral Paper Is Beyond Adorable!

Introducing a cuter than cute craft that can be easily made in multiples and in any size you like, with out a huge time investment. My crafting students made a bunch of cupcake liner flowers for a Shavuot project and those that had between three to five left over were able to make a bouquet of flowers to bring home as well as the main project. They added a sweet note to Mom to thank her for everything, and one boy thanked her for letting him come to the crafting class, awhhhhh. These came out so well that I'm going to hopefully whip up a few myself for two neighbors who will greatly appreciate it, and one for myself maybe to put on the front door for Shavuos, yes! Okay, lets do it!

DIY Bouquet From Paper Flowers And Quilling

It has been quite a few years since I delved into quilling, and thought I'd give it a try with my students to make some lovely paper bouquets for the upcoming Jewish holiday of Shavuot. I decided to combine paper flowers with quilling for the best results, as quilling requires a level of acuracy that many 11 year olds don't quite have. That said, with this piece as an example, the boys have actually created lovely bouquets, with quite a bit of help (sigh).

The main thing, I've realized, is that they feel proud of what they've made and have learned something in the progress. If they feel unable to arrange the flowers, okay, so be it, I'm there to make sure it goes right and that the end result will be a success. There are so many important areas of growth for kids who engage in crafts, and it isn't always just about them doing it all themselves, especially for those lacking confidence. Of course anything requiring drawing must be done with their hand, otherwise it looks like I did it, and with each project there is a give and take. Children who aren't happy with the end result, and don't receive good honest feedback at home might be inclined to quit, so forcing the idea of "do it all yourself" might not always be the best route. Proceed gently and when you do things for the child get them to at least try themselves first, or help make any design decisions.

Okay, back to the specifics of this project! I introduced the boys to the idea of quilling with the purple stalk flowers and various leaves and the rest of the flowers were made with simple paper flower techniques that can be done in felt as well. Okay, lets do it!

DIY Bouquet Of Paper Roses Wall Art

With the festive Jewish holiday of Shavuot coming up in a week and a half-ish, now is the time to get crafting, and specifically all things flowers and botanica to remind us of the lush Mt. Sinai where the Torah was given. It has been a while since I've done any quilling, and while this isn't quilling, the idea started as doing quilled bouquets of flowers with my crafting students, and then transitioned into a combination of quilling and paper flowers, and then this version, the simplest of all. Only one of my students choose this version the others choose the harder combo, which I'll share soon. The wonderful part about this paper bouquet is that is isn't holiday specific and can be made or enjoyed year round! Okay, want to make a colorful bouquet of paper roses as a gift, a card, or holiday decor? (How about a whole gallery full? And yes, of course, framed with cardboard frames, which I've started doing and will share shortly as well.) Okay, time is of the essence!

Simple Cupcake Liner Chrysanthemums For Shavuos!

With the Jewish holiday of Shavuos and all things floral and greenery coming up in just two weeks, now is the time to get crafting! And delving into the kitchen cabinets for art supplies is often a truly great idea, especially for me and the box of Kath Kidston cupcake liners I've had on hand for a good ten years! Now I'm going to use them all up with my crafting students, and the box, well couldn't toss it as it is too cute, and perfect as a closet for one of my future dollhouse creations. So yes, the box is out of the kitchen, and festive flowers will be created, but now it is in a closet in my craft room waiting for its next incarnation, and so it goes! I've combined the colorful cupcake liners with white cupcake liners (also onhand) for a very nice result, and flowers that will be part of a larger craft ensemble, yet to be decided.

These cupcake liner flowers are great in so many ways, whether as bouquets, cake toppers, garlands or simply scattered on hour holiday or festive celebration table! Okay, lets make some!

Mini Magazine Page Flowers Craft

Mini recycled magazine page chrysanthemums are just the sweetest and great anytime or for a special occasion! I could have sworn that i made larger versions of these a good ten years ago, but the only thing I found on my blog is a felt version of these, also wonderful! I had totally forgotten about my felt flower stint, hmmmm, maybe time to revisit that, but in the mean time, lets make some magazine page flowers, in this case mini versions that I think I'm going to use as napkin decor for my daughter's birthday party this Shabbat (shhhh, its a surprise!) Magazine pages can be a great source of colorful and patterned paper, so before you recycled any lightweight paper items, check them out to see if indeed there are pages that are mostly one color, or a combination of pleasing colors that could be used for crafting! I save these pages in a shoe box or in a nice pile, as there are many many craft projects that call for recycled magazine pages, and the look that is achieved is unmatched with solid colored paper of any kind. Of course, there is nothing quite like real flowers, so why not buy some flowers online Sydney to enjoy as well. Okay, lets get started.....

Watercolor Hyacinth Cut-Outs Look Amazing Anytime Of Year

It is true, here in the Northern Hemisphere we don't usually think about hyacinths right about now, but in Australia now is the time! And truthfully, hyacinths are such amazing flowers, whether planted (which one should start thinking about now) or forced (which could start happening around November) so why not give it a try with some watercolors? I painted these hyacinths to use in a watercolor art journal that I'm making, and I just love the results. And friends, when you cut out your watercolor florals you can of course make the stems thinner and shape the flowers!

A Recycled Wine Bottle Carrying Box Becomes A No-Pressure Canvas

A few weeks ago a shabbat guest brought us a bottle of wine, as many do, though rather than in a gift box, the bottle was in a carrying box made for two bottles. We have lots of guests, so I save lots of wine bags and even nice boxes, but this was the first box of its kind to find its way to me, and I just knew i had to paint it! After a few weeks painting on only paper I was just itching to do something lower pressure and just for fun, using left over paint from other paintings of course. And for a moment I thought I'd be tossing the box, in the end it all worked out and I actually love this litte painting on a wine box! Of course it did have many steps and sections got repainted entirely, but the lesson here is patience! And truthfully, just like watercolor paper, a box like this could sure take quite a few coats of paint, so if the first try fails, paint over it and start again! I'm not sure if I'll be using this as a gift box or not, (still need to finish the other side) but if I do I think I'll seal it with a coat of varnish. Then again, I think I need to hang onto it, as when the painted milk cartons come out again in the winter, I do believe this vase of flowers would be a nice addition!

Watercolor Flowers And Leaves Painted Within A Circle, To Use In An Art Journal Or Just Because!

Take my word for it, once you paint one watercolor floral or leaf pattern within a circle, you won't want to stop! In my case, as I'm thinking that these will be glued into an art journal that I'm making as a gift, I used mixed media paper which is much lighter weight than watercolor paper and does not quite soak up the color like watercolor paper, but it works. In the mean time I think I'm going to hang these circles on a little clothesline gallery in my kitchen, or tape them to the wall with a loop of tape on the back. My gallery shelves currently filled only with wooden items (cutting boards, a horse, plates, a wooden shoe) could use a little something to make them look more cheerful and I think this just might be the answer, at least this week. Ready to have some fun with watercolor, keep on reading for a few tips!