creative jewish mom

Modular Origami Stars

 

We have been making lots of origami lately, the origami hearts wall hanging, and the origami pull out drawers, for example, and now I'd like to introduce you to another kind or origami altogether, modular origami.Modular or 3D origami is made from lots of little double pointed pieces that fit into one another, and some really truly amazing things have been made with this technique, by people from around the world, with a concentration in Russia, so it appears to me from my research. Here is Israel, I have seen modular origami swans next to the bank teller and in the post office for years, but I never really knew what they were exactly. (Okay, I could see they were constructed from lots and lots of little pieces and I was reminded of the gum wrapper bracelets we used to make, but that was the extent of it, as these swans weren't exactly something I aspired to make.) Fast forward to a moment on pinterest when I spied a similar project, only it was a lovely peacock, and then my daughter told me about a girl in her class who was making a modular origami swan, and thus my investigation began!

Adirondack Style Twig Sign Craft: Perfect For Summer Camp Or Staycation!

Isn't this handmade Adirondack-style twig sign fantastic? I can't take credit for it, other than having the nerve to wander over to the neighbor's yard one afternoon while on our Connecticut lake vacation! And don't go imagining that I climbed over any stone walls or anything, I just wandered across the lawn knowing that they were on their way to Florida, and discovered this twig sign, as well as some great views and perennial beds to photograph.

If you want to make a sign like this one, simply plan your sign first, actual size, on a large piece of paper, and then use that as a template to cut the sticks exactly the right size. You can use nails or even wood glue to join all the pieces, and then add some fun details with willow branches, or any branches that can bend without breaking. I'd love to have another opportunity for enough time on the lake to make a sign like this myself, but in the meantime maybe one of you will give it a try? Enjoy!

Summer Crafts For Kids: A Recyled Milk Carton Roof Garden!

Spring and especially summer are the perfect time to work on fun crafting projects that you may not have time for during the school year! And whether or not camp is a part of your kid's summer experience, you can certainly have fun doing the kind of projects that one might very likely do in camp in your home. For this project, A Recycled Milk Carton Roof Garden, I’ve combined two of my favorite hobbies, container gardening and recycled crafting, and I hope you’ll have as much fun as I did! And while you’re at it, why not get a bunch of friends together and make a whole city?

You’ll Need:

• recycled milk or juice cartons
• acrylic craft paint and paint brushes
• a pencil
• black markers, both fine and medium weight
• spider plant babies, or succulent cuttings or small plants of some kind
• soil

How To:

Step 1: Cut the tops off of your used milk or juice cartons with scissors, or get an adult to do it with a knife. Wash out the cartons with warm water and soap. Paint your milk cartons using acrylic paint, first applying a base coat through which the printing will still show, and then applying a second coat to completely cover the graphics on the carton.

Step 2: Set aside to dry, and then cut your cartons to the desired height. Cut slanted rooves to make house shapes. Using a pencil lightly draw doors, windows and other details on your cartons.

Step 3: Using black markers in several weights, go over your pencil drawings.

Step 4: Fill your cartons with soil, but not to the top. If you will be using these cartons for large plants, you will need to first poke holes in the bottom as drainage will be necessary. Have an adult do this for you with a knife.

Step 5: Gently place your plants into the soil (in this case spider plant babies). Keep the soil evenly moist, and soon your plants will begin to grow. Depending on the kind of plant you have planted, you may or may not have to replant in a larger container. Succulents would also be perfect for this project, and cuttings can simply be stuck into moist soil to root.

Enjoy your new garden!

Save

Learning About Inukshuk, First Nation rock sculptures in Vancouver, BC

My very first vision of these miniature inukshuk rock sculptures, that I knew nothing about at the time, was as we were completing our walk around the sea wall in Vancouver's Stanley Park on the Northshore/ English Bay side. The sun was going down, there were many folks out enjoying the serenity of a summer evening and all of a sudden there they were, little rock sculptures perched atop large boulders as you see in the photo above! At the time, my camera battery had run out, so I returned another day to capture some of the magic!

Simple Origami Birds For Kids

Yippee, I at long last was able to catch a few kids and get them to sit down and learn to fold some simple origami birds, just in time to hang some around our house for this shabbat, which is called "shabbat shira" and in which we give thanks to the birds for some help they gave us, the Jewish people, more than a few years back when we were living in the dessert after our deliverance from Egypt!

Fingernail Polish Craft Failure!

I've been wanting to try crafting with finger nail polish for months, and after picking up some bottles at the dollar store, we were all set to go at long last. Unfortunately however, things didn't go quite as we had expected them to go......which also happens to every crafter, and is certainly a possibility any time one tries something new!

I had shown my daughter a really great little fingernail polish marbelizing DIY on You Tube, and it looked so simple! So when we dropped drops of the polish into a cup filled with filtered water we were quite surprised that the polish didn't spread as it did in the video and seemed to dry too quickly to create the marbled effects with a toothpick. Oh dear. Now what?

I really don't use fingernail polish, so I didn't know whether we could add acetone to the bottles to make the polish a little runnier, in any case, I just used up my acetone to clean some contact paper residue off my tile walls outside, sigh. 

We dipped a few rocks into the cups to catch the polish designs, and also realized that it only works on very smooth rocks, not on anything with rough texture. So much for this little project, that also happens to be very toxic, and maybe not worth it for health reasons! Do people really breathe all those fumes every time they paint their nails? Worse than airplane glue!

There is however a happy end to the story, which is that I did come up with a little craft project using nail polish, with great results, and I'll be sharing that with you soon! 

Crocheted Hearts Wall Hanging On A Limb!

How about making a crocheted hearts wall hanging to remind someone that you love them? I made this crocheted hearts and leaves wall hanging using a real branch, to hang over my daughter's bed. Our drill is broken, so the wall hanging has been hanging out in the hall outside her bedroom, for the whole family to enjoy! Ahem.

Melted Crayon Art On Rocks

Here's a great little craft activity that my kids loved — drawing with crayons on hot rocks! Yes, not recommended for little ones, but so much fun! I had my kids hold a crayon in one hand and  a spoon in the other so that they'd use the spoon for turning the rock if necessary!

It's not so simple to draw anything complicated on small rocks that we had, so I'd recommend using the biggest rocks you can find and creating some really special works of art!

You'll Need:

• rocks, with at least one flat surface preferably
• crayons
• an oven or possibly some strong hot summer sun

How To:

Heat up your rocks in an oven set to say 350F or 200C. Carefully remove the hot rocks from the oven and place them in a tray of some kind that was not in the oven, at least the tray won't be hot and dangerous for the little ones! You do want the rocks to be good and hot so they'll stay hot, and an oven does the job well, but if you work quickly stones heated in the hot mid-day sun could work well too. (Let me know if you try it!) Draw simple designs on the rocks with the crayons, and enjoy, it's really so much !

Thanks so much to The Artful Parent for this great idea, which Jean posted about here.

Paper Mosaic With Rose Petal Tinted Paper

 

What is paper mosaic with rose petal tinted paper you ask? Well, of course, the paper mosaic part is clear, but what is rose petal tinted paper? I really couldn't think of any other name for paper that is tinted by coloring with rose petals! How do you color with rose petals? You quite simply drag a small stack of them across the paper while applying pressure in order to transfer their pigment to the paper. And the green squares? Why of course, those were made by "coloring" with rose leaves. I did try some other flowers, but none resulted in the deep color that the red rose leaves on the paper. And the other surprise was, that after I cut my paper into little squares I realized that it actually resembles glass mosaic tile, a fun coincidence.

And so now my friends, I don't know about you, but I will never throw a tired red rose in the garbage until I've transferred it's pigment to some paper! Make sure to "color" with the top side of the petal touching the paper and have fun. 

Vacation Crafts- Nature Crafts With Rosebuds

Here's another super simple vacation or any time craft, courtesy of my eight year old daughter! I'll have to admit, I was eyeing the plate of rose petals that my mother had put aside to add to her "organic" recycling bin, as they were just so lovely. And sure enough, when I got up the next morning, my daughter had already figured out that with just a stapler and some rose petals and leaves, one can make some beautiful artful roses! So my friends, add a stapler and some staples to your traveling craft kit and let the kids go to town stapling leaves and petals, either to paper or just to themselves, and sit back and watch what they come up with! And on the afternoon just before the holiday of Shavuos when many children love to decorate the house with leaves and flowers collected in nearby fields (if you are fortunate to have some....) well, a stapler might just come in handy this year!