creative jewish mom

Painted Knit MItten Winter Greeting Card Craft

Continuing with my fun artufl and a bit painterly winter clothing themed greeting cards that can also be mini works of art, presenting the kaleidoscope knit winter mitten! After painting an ugly Chanukah sweater, and a graffiti knit cap, mittens were certainly in order! First I painted a gift box with pom pom mittens, but then I saw a tiny bit of clip art in an ad, which lead to drawing mittens and hats with cables and a bit of knit detail in my sketchbook, here, and that led to this kaleidoscope knit mitten greeting card! Now you can't say I haven't been letting you in on what goes on around here, well sort of! Ah yes, and maybe I should also reveal that some of my clothes now have little bits of paint on them and are designated "painting clothes", sigh, par for the course! Okay, so put on some old clothes and lets get painting!

Graffiti Mittens Recycled Gift Box Craft

Ready to practice your painting and drawing skills and make the funnest winter themed gift box ever? What can I tell you, this one is a winner, not just the color combo, but the fun artful style, and the fact that it looks much more complicated than it really is! This winter clothes theme came about because I painted an ugly sweater for Chanukah, and then a graffiti ski cap, so mittens were a natural fit for my theme, and mittens with pom poms, is there anything cuter? So whether you follow my technique or not, do think about packaging your gifts this year in recycled containers that you've repurposed, or painted or made yourself, it makes gift giving that much more meaningful! Okay, lets get started!

A Peek In My Sketchbook: How To Draw Knit Hats and Mittens

With cooler weather and lots of rain to boot at last a reality in my little corner of the world, my winter clothing themed crafts this year at last make a bit more sense decorating our home! I recently saw a tiny bit of clip art in a local ad that lead to this page in my sketchbook, in which I figured out how to draw adorable knit hats and mittens, with ribs and cables to boot! I do knit a bit, so it does help to know what knits actually look like. If you do not knit and you want to have a go at drawing some of these winter items yourself, I recommend taking a look at what knits actually look like! I have been doing lots and lots of painting in this large A4 sized sketchbook, so a page filled with simple drawings was quite honestly such a relief! Drawing these items is really quite simple, but if you must start by using a pencil to draw the shape, and then go over that with a pen and add the details with a pen, got it? Curios to know what is on the opposite page of these knits, hmmm, it might just be the theme for next week on the blog, or so it seems to be!

Pine Cone Owl Craft With An Artful Twist

Since this week has been all about owls and owl crafts and painted owls, I just had to try making a pine cone owl because pine cones are the perfect shape, right? Not to mention that natural look of belly feathers! Of course I couldn't just whip out the felt and copy someone else's owl pine cone, I had to come up with something just a bit original, realistically because i have no idea where my felt is at the moment, nor if I have anything more than brown and green.....So introducing a pine cone owl with an artful twist, meaning some painted paper scraps and a few little doodads to make it truly original. And while you are at it, make a bunch in all sizes and look into making a whole range of forest creatures such as foxes, porcupines/hedge hogs, mice and more. But first things first, lets make a pine cone owl. And if you are lucky enough to have access to those giant pine cones I grew up with, well make a giant pine cone owl!

A Mixed Media Stand Up Owl Is Perfect For Your Woodland Decorating Theme?

Owl themed crafts are so much fun, and can be done in so many ways, depending on how much time you have to spend and just how many owls you want to make! I am trying to increase my painting skills, so another painted owl, this time a bit more woodsy than my stand up owl with wine cork feet, is what came to be. The only thing I actually planned was that it would be a cut out stand up owl, so I painted it on the back of a piece of cereal box cardboard, and while I am very critical of my own work, I actually really love this gal, she looks to me like a children's book illustration. I do need to paint some big mushrooms to complete the scene, but for now presenting my mixed media cereal box owl! Ah yes, and just by the way, an owl like this could be great for a woodland themed baby shower, birthday party or any fall/winter occasion, plus he is easy to store and enjoy for years to come!

A Fun Graffiti Ski Hat Holiday Craft Idea

After creating my DIY ugly holiday sweater gift card craft, I realized that I ought to try creating some other cozy winter wardrobe items using the same technique, and since my experiment was a success, I now present you with my DIY Graffiti Ski Hat holiday gift card that can certainly double as holiday decor, a gift tag, or a fun craft project to do with the whole family! I have to admit I just love how this graffiti ski hat turned out, and am quite surprised myself. Even the pom pom looks like I know what I'm doing illustration wise, and well, now I know how to paint a pom pom with success, but this was a first. I also realized that I just love the combination of pink, green and aqua, with white accents, and so looking at this graffiti ski hat just makes me happy! So dear readers, create some whimsical holiday cards this year, or top your presents with whimsical and artful gift tags, or paint some pieces of winter clothing because you feel like it and it makes you happy!

I will let you in on a little secret, I've actually already tried mittens using this same technique and color scheme, and they are as cute as can be, so I'm sold, Okay lets get crafty shall we?

DIY Ugly Holiday Sweater Cards To Make Now!

When I shared with you the splattered paint paper that I made to use for holiday crafting projects, I had no idea that I would be making an ugly holiday sweater card from my favorite piece! And that is one of the best parts of letting the art tell you what it wants to be, and the results of having a pile of abstract patterned paper to work with. I have been wanting to make an ugly chanukah sweater craft for a few years now, and last year while my holiday sweaters weren't ugly, they were HUGE, made from cardboard and pom poms and strung on a clothesline! So this year, since I am into the painting, the sweaters will hopefully be like this one, only quite a bit larger, and of course I'll let you in on all the fun that happens trying to make this idea reality!

In the mean time, with Chanukah roughly seven weeks away, now is a great time to make cards to send in the snail mail, as who wouldn't appreciate a little whimsical work of art to brighten their days right about now? So get out the paint and some heavy weight paper, or light weight cardboard, and lets make some fun and creative holiday sweater cards. Ready?

DIY Tree Branch With Colorful Leaves Wall Art

We are now on the third day (of seven) of the wonderful Jewish holiday of Succot, and while I am not doing any crafting, I can stop by here to share my favorite succah decoration with you! And, unlike some Succah decorations, this one is truly a work of art, and can be used year round indoors, or for a special event or to mark a new season. You decide, but if you are anything like me, you won't want to stop at just one, which I did not! After making the first version, a tree of life with gold leaves, I just had to make another colorful version with a gold trunk (previously the gold spray paint was not to be found) to fill a huge blank area in our Succah. And despite some scepticism from the peanut gallery, it turned out even more beautiful than the first one, and there is a very funny story that goes with it, which I'll share soon. The main thing is to find a really great looking dead branch with lots of character as well as bunches of tiny branches, as that variety is what truly makes this piece special. Okay, want to make one yourself? Lets learn how!

DIY Stand-Up Cardboard Polar Bear Centerpiece

Looking for a fun winter-themed centerpiece to whip up for an upcoming birthday party or winter themed celebration? Give this DIY cardboard stand-up polar bear a try, and you'll put smiles on every face! Of course, you can make this polar bear any size that suits your table, but if you go big, well that certainly fills more space and makes more of a statement— more bang for the buck if you will! While you can certainly make a whole family of polar bears in different sizes, which could be just adorable, you can also choose to make some cardboard huskies, which is also super adorable and a great contrast is size: namely little dog meets huge polar bear! Both of these animals are courtesy of Mr. Printables, and I've been wanting to make them for years. Fortunately I at last found an excuse: our winter/snow themed Chanukah birthday party, yippee! Keep on reading for some tips and more photos.

DIY Stand-Up Cardboard Huskies For Your Winter Table

At long last I have finally found the time to share with you one of the favorite crafts I made for our family Chanukah birthday party: stand-up cardboard huskies, courtesy of Mr. Printables! And at the birthday party when the huskies made their debut, they were actually pulling the birthday cake! Yes, that birthday cake with the sparkly red flags that I shared a while back. (Note to self and everyone else: try to have everything ready the day before, even the cake, so you'll have time to photograph it all nicely!) Now it is too late to photograph the huskies pulling the cake and I do have a photo that is nice enough for the family photo album, but not quite nice enough for this blog. So maybe I'll just have to do it again next year? The good news is that these adorable recycled cardboard box huskies come apart and can be stored flat, so saving them is certainly a must, and they truly are adorable, so we may just have to use them through out the year as well! Okay, lets take a closer look and learn how to make them!