creative jewish mom

Simple Embossed Tin Chanukah Symbols Craft

Friends, Chanukah is on its way and it is time to get crafting! These embossed tin shapes are so simple to make, and if you use the right colors, well they are quite simply fabulous! I made these but also tried this out with my boys crafting classes, and while it was a bit challenging for some, others really did a great job. So do follow the instructions for best results, and if you are lucky maybe you have some of that extra heavy duty aluminum foil used by some to cover counters on Pesach? That is what we used, and it works like a charm! You can use extra heavy duty recycled aluminum trays, or buy some sheets of aluminum at the craft store. The aluminum needs to be thin enough that you can write on it with a ball point pen and achieve an engraved look. Okay, lets do it!

DIY Cardboard Leaves Wall Hanging For The Succah

It is true, I made this DIY falling leaves wall hanging specially for our Succah, but truly it could be wonderful anywhere, or at the least as a party or wedding backdrop as well! The leaves I chose represent five of the seven holy species: olive, date, fig, pomegranite and grape, which actually is a nice selection of sizes, something to keep in mind! I'll admit, cutting out all the leaves, and then painting them with white oil based paint (for the water-resistant qualities in case of rain in the succah) took about two days, (check out my cardboard leaf cutouts here) with the assembly an additional few hours, but it was well worth the effort and set the stage for the rest of the Succah, which this year was neutral with touches of pink. Everything really looked so very wonderful and we enjoyed the succah maybe more than ever, and while I kept thinking about what I'll add next year, I was very very happy with the results. Last night a youngish boy came in to see the succah and he said it looked like a room set-up at IKEA, "where they show you what goes with what." So cute and truly a compliment! Okay, want some tips for making something similar? Lets do it!

Recycled Plastic Bottle Vase Craft For Kids

How do you make a vase to hold various paper flowers, pomegranite branches and Rosh HaShana symbols on skewers? Well, I've just come up with a really fun way that has great results and is so very enjoyable to make. The room was almost silent as my group of 9 year old boys got to work, meaning this was perfect for them. And I'll admit, I had fun making a few as well! For kids whose confidence level is low when it comes to crafting, something like this is perfect! I of course am against buying pre-made crafting elements to glue onto things as there is no creativity in that, but arranging pre-cut paper strips in a great range of colors is a few steps above that, and to encourage kids to craft sometimes you've got to encourage them with projects that are relatively easy! These vases got an extra boost of cuteness with a t-shirt yarn rim and a row or two of bobble yarn. Aren't they truly just the sweetest?

Fun DIY Plastic Bag Pom Pom Craft

Once again, I have made plastic bag pom poms, well rather my 9 year old students have made some plastic bag pom poms and the results are just so much fun! And of course with the crafty hoiday of Succot sneaking up on us, now is the time to get crafting, and these pom poms are truly wonderful! While plastic bags are outlawed in many places, they are still in use here is Israel (and honestly when you are fighting for your life, worrying about plastic bag use takes a back burner.....) and so I am doing my part to recycle them myself and raise awareness with local kids about what great crafting material plastic bags can be!

Recycle Plastic Bags and Make Yarn For Crafting!

Aren't these imperfect balls of "plarn" aka plastic bag yarn just the sweetest? They were made by a group of 8 to 9 year old boys, and truly it was a great activity for them, and nicely filled an hour plus crafting lesson. We secured the balls with a rubber band and each one added a tiny note with their name on it so as not to confuse them. Plastic bags are unfortunately used plentifully around here, as honestly we have more important issues as the moment, so at the very least I am trying to educate kids about re-use and not to just throw them away as they make great yarn for crafting!

I have often started a ball and added to it as the plastic bags came into our home, which is a great idea and satisfying to boot. Plus then no one can call me a bag lady, or accuse me of hoarding when all those bags are cut up and made into balls? Plastic bag yarn is a great activity for kids as young as even 6 or 7, with a bit of help, so make some today or use the tutorial to make yarn from loops of pantyhose or tights! Let's do it!

Cross Stitch on Cardboard Apple Craft

Pulling this one out of the archives from a mere two years ago, and now it is making me want to embroider, help!

I followed my own advice about making some cross stitch apple crafts (check out my first cross stitch apple craft here) for Rosh Hashana, and last night in the wee hours of the morning I made my son a birthday card featuring a slightly different cross stitch apple, and this time on cereal box cardboard. I'm happy with the results and wish I had time to do some more icons for Rosh HaShana, hmmm, maybe I do have the time? You'll be the first to see the results if I do, but in the mean time, think about how you can take this idea and use it for your upcoming celebration, whether it be a Fall birthday, a teacher appreciation gift, or, Rosh HaShana of course, coming up this Sunday night! Ah yes, and traditionally, the Jewish new year is the time to give cards, so if you need a special one, this could be perfect! Okay, time is of the essence, lets learn how I made this!

Fun Cardboard and Paper Collage Cut-Outs For Rosh HaShana

We are in the heart of our short summer vacation here in Israel, and with war and so much heartache looming over our heads, crafting and preparing for upcoming holidays and happy occassions is a wonderful way to spend a few hours. Get the whole family together or even take time for yourself, creativity is my solution to managing stress and it truly works! Now, if I could just bury my head in the art supplies around the clock! In the past I created lovely doodle apples and doodle bees, which still look great a few years down the road, but yesterday I decided to make a more younger child friendly version using cereal box cardboard, some colored paper and a glue stick! Of course my version does look a bit too perfect maybe, so can't wait to see the charm that the little crafters I'm working with will bring to this project. But in the mean time, get to work and start preparing for Rosh HaShana, it is quickly approaching and apples and pomegranites and honey and bees and fish all make great subjects for crafting, right?

TP Tube Vases With An Origami Butterfly & Flowers Craft For Kids

I've already shared with you the toilet paper tube vase and separately, the magazine flowers, that I made as an example for my students, and now it is time to share their work! This was truly a fun and successful project for 8 to 9 year old boys, who then proudly took their projects home with the instructions to give the vase to their mothers and say "Ima, thank you so much for everything!" I'm not sure how many actually followed through, though one mother reported that her son left the present on her pillow and the next day thanked her for something that he would ordinarily not. "Now I know it was because of you" she said.....and that of course totally made my day, and is just added proof that when you get together with a group of kids and talk to them about many things, not just the project at hand, you can truly make a difference in their lives! And yes, it is true that this group of 3rd graders are a handful, but loving every minute and it is so wonderful to hear back from their mothers (most of whom are friends of mine) how much they look forward to our crafting session. Okay, lets take a closer look at the results of the project!

Rebuilding The Beit HaMikdash Recycling Craft For Kids

I have pulled this post from the archives, as it is one of my all-time favorites for crafts for The Nine Days and for The 9th of Av, coming up on Monday night. Previously, I published this at the beginning of the three week mourning period, and this is what I wrote:

Today is the 17th of Tammuz, a solemn fast day on the Jewish calender, and certainly a perfect time to work on my "Rebuilding the Beit HaMikdash" recycling craft with kids of all ages! Of course one could certainly use this idea to also learn about the Kotel (The Wailing Wall) which stands today and was one of the outer walls of the courtyard of the Beit HaMikdash.

Starting today, we enter a period of mourning for the next three weeks— mourning for the destruction of the Beit HaMikdash, the Holy Temple in Jerusalem that was taken from us in 70 CE, (namely 1,943 years ago!) on the 9th of Av, the day which marks the end of this three week period of mourning. Of course our mourning has many facets, one of which is thinking about how each one of us can do his part to rebuild the temple.

Recycled TP Tube Designer Vases Craft

I have to say, when I came up with this recycling craft idea for making artful vases from tp tubes I wasn't expecting the results to be this wonderful! I have started crafting with small groups of boys twice a week, which means coming up with projects that will satisfy them, and the idea here was to create a present for their mothers in addition to coaching from me for saying "thank you for everything." So it turns out, that with tp tube/rolls and some glossy recycled cardboard in a bright color, one can really create something fun and unexpected! I will share the boy's projects in another post, and heads up that for younger kids these handles are too difficult to cut, at least from cardboard. You can also make mini magazine page flowers, or insert small shot glasses and fill the vases with some cuttings! Have you been saving tp tubes? Lets make some sweet vases!