creative jewish mom

American Impressionist Painter: Childe Hassam 1859-1935

I have to be honest, I have a minor's degree in Art History, and I really don't recall learning about the amazing painter Childe Hassam. I have a feeling we just skipped over American Impressionism, and that sure is sad, because on my Washington DC museum extravaganza this past August I saw a few Childe Hassam paintings that were just truly captivating. You know the kind of paintings that make someone like me actually stop and take a closer look when I'm speed walking through the museum in order to see it all! It turns out Childe Hassam was quite prolific, so there are many many of his works that one can see online. Better yet, get to a museum that has some of his originals and take a look, truly lovely. And now, I'll share with you the three paintings that made me stop and take a closer look.........

Luncheon Of The Boating Party, Seeing The Real Deal In Washington DC

This Chanukah has been so packed I haven't even had a moment to wish all my dear readers a wonderful light-filled Chanukah! Now, on this eighth night of Chanukah, called Zot Chanukah, I have realized that it is high time I start sharing photos from our summer adventures, and boy do I have a lot to share! Having written an article about the Hamptons this week, and given that the Hamptons was home to several well known Impressionists, I thought I'd start by sharing with you some of the really great Impressionist art I had the pleasure of seeing in Washington DC this past August. And, since Impressionist painters were all about capturing the light, Chanukah is the perfect time to share their work!

I thought I'd start by sharing with you one of the most famous Impressionist paintings of all times, Renoir's Luncheon Of The Boating Party! This painting was actually a favorite of mine way back when, though not sure when exactly! I'm sure you know how that goes, but when I saw a museum by the name of The Phillips Collection on the list of museums in Washington DC it sure did sound familiar, and sure enough it sounded familiar because that is the home of Luncheon Of The Boating Party.

I have to say, one can certainly enjoy art by looking at prints, but there is nothing like seeing the real deal, and I certainly never would have noticed all the amazing details just looking at the print of Luncheon Of The Boating Party. As you can see here, I made sure to take a few close ups to share with you! And honestly I'm still pinching myself!

Ten Things To Do In The Hamptons With Kids

It is true, beach season isn't for another six months, but I encourage you to start thinking about your summer vacation plans now, when most properties have not yet been booked! Yes indeed, now is time to find the vacation rental that suits you perfectly rather than having to choose from what is available by the time you actually get around to planning that vacation. (I've certainly been there.) And if you have a special occasion you'd like to celebrate or a family get together is long overdue, all the more reason to start planning early.

I love vacation destinations that include the ocean, and I also jump at every opportunity to visit art museums and galleries. Guess what? As it turns out, the The Hamptons isn't just a summer play ground for the Upper East Side, it also has a very large art scene, and a really interesting history as a home to many famous artists. Any place that artists have chosen to call home will always be up my alley, as it means inspiration, beautiful nature or gritty city, great light, you know, all the things that help artists produce their best work. Now I'm dreaming about  Hamptons rentals for our yearly family get together, and I thought I'd do a little research about the area to figure out just where in the Hamptons would be our ideal spot, and what exactly we will do with all the cousins during our stay.

The Hamptons, namely part of the East End of Long Island, New York comprise a group of villages and hamlets in the towns of South Hampton and East Hampton, which together form the South Fork of Long Island. The Hamptons are a popular seaside resort and one of the historical summer colonies of the Northeastern United States. Because of its proximity to Connecticut and Rhode Island, much of the older architecture and aesthetics of the villages in the Hamptons resemble New England. New England charm, an art scene, lots of trails for hiking, dramatic sand dunes, great sunsets? I'll see you there! But first lets delve just a bit into some of the places I'd like to visit, with kids in tow. Introducing Ten Things To Do In The Hamptons With Kids.

Mini Tassels From T-Shirt Yarn Scraps

If you are like me and hate wasting just about anything, these mini tassels from yarn scraps will be right up your alley! Now of course you could make mini tassels from yarn that isn't scraps, but using up those little scraps that result after weaving in the ends is oh so satisfying, especially when the result is something as sweet at these multi-color t-shirt yarn tassels! No you won't have to sigh over leaving ends that are much too long, you can make use of them, and use the resulting tassels for keychains, wall hangings, and even gorgeous gift wrap. Next time you knit or crochet, and especially if it is with t-shirt yarn or bulky yarn, save those little scraps and you'll be so glad you did! Ready for a tiny tutorial? Okay, lets do it........

Granny Square Trivet With T-Shirt Yarn

• Looking for a quick handmade touch to add to your holiday gift giving? This t-shirt yarn granny square trivet is perfect! Quick to make, useful and even easily re-purposed as a tiny crocheted wall hanging (that is my real plan for this one, if I can find the time to pull it off.) Depending on the content of the t-shirt yarn you use, and the thickness of the yarn, a little beauty like this one can also be a pot holder. Add a little loop at the corner and maybe it is a decorative crocheted pot holder? And trivets are great for protecting furniture, or using as a giant coaster to catch drips. Ah yes, you can also make a bunch and sew them together to make a granny square rug, or just make an extra large "trivet" to use as a granny square chair pad which looked great in my kitchen for years. Enough babble, let's get crocheting, shall we?

Craft Schooling Sunday Is On Vacation!

Thanks so much for dropping by. Craft Schooling Sunday is now taking its customary vacation for the month of December. As it turns out most of the crafts that are shared during this month aren't things I can feature on a Jewish blog, so I realized years ago the best thing to do is simply take a break. So dear contributors, thanks so much for sharing on this little linky party in 2018, and looking forward to reconnecting in 2019, on January 5th/6th.

Wishing you all a very light filled Chanukah, filled with joy and family time. Ah yes, and some creativity in there too, right? Gotta run, I'm trying to paint something tonight to give to my husband tomorrow night for his birthday......a bit last minute as usual, so wish me luck. And then there are all the Chanukah decorations to put up and a double birthday party to pull off. Fortunately I took a nap on shabbat and now I'm off and running!

DIY Tassels From T-Shirt Yarn Scraps

Who doesn't love a good tassel? And especially one made from those pesky yarn scraps that generally result after weaving in ends! That is right my friends, when you crochet with t-shirt yarn those project scraps are perfect for making DIY tassels because the yarn itself is so thick that not that much is required to make one tassel, especially if you want to make small tassels. So what are you waiting for, get crocheting so you'll have some scraps and then use them to make festive tassels. What should you do with those tassels? Well how about using them on gifts, or as napkin rings, or as part of a wall hanging? Or tie them to cabinet knobs or door knobs or to a wine bottle gift. A few fun tassels can certainly come in handy around holiday time, so lets get crafting!

A Meaningful Gift For A New Baby

This is a sponsored post published in order to do my small part to help Yad Sarah, an amazing Israeli Non-profit organization.

Have you ever heard of Yad Sarah? I can say that I certainly have, and have even been on the receiving end of their amazing organization. The little newborn bassinet on wheels was borrowed from Yad Sarah several times, and we have also borrowed crutches, and even canes from Yad Sarah over the years for various injuries in the family. These are just small examples of the things this amazing organization does, as Yad Sarah is in fact Israel's leading volunteer-staffed organization, providing a vital array of compassionate health and home care services for people of all ages. Yad Sarah's free services are delivered by over 6,000 volunteers in more than 100 branches, and bring hope and help to the frail elderly, the homebound, the injured and children with special needs.

This holiday season, or whenever a new baby gift might be a thoughtful touch, why not support Yad Sarah and purchase a baby quilt from the Friends Of Yad Sarah gift shop? While the baby quilts are sewn by volunteers in Jerusalem, Friends Of Yad Sarah offices are actually located in New York City, so your purchases will be shipped from there. Every baby quilt purchase will support Yad Sarah's programs for mothers and babies, enabling Israeli children to have the very best start in life. Truly a gift with meaning, and sewn with love.

Picture Ledges For Displaying Art In Progress

Since I have now officially been brave enough to share my floral paintings,  I thought I'd show you where they sit in our home. Well at least the current favorites, as there is only so much space. I just love these picture ledges from Ikea, and they are great for displaying not just pictures or art works in progress but also little items of interest. If you want to know what holiday is coming up, generally these shelves will clue you in, well except for this year as I've been busy learning to paint rather than making Chanukah decorations, which I'm actually really happy about, as i've been wanting to do this for so many years and never quite got there.

These shelves sit over the kitchen table at the end of our kitchen, so while I'm cooking up a storm or washing dishes I can look at my work and decide what changes to make. Or not to make. The paintings shown here are mostly done, namely I'm not going to touch them anymore as they'll likely end up getting worse not better. And some of them are already the third painting done on the same sheet of paper, for the sake of not being wasteful as art supplies here in Israel tend to be pricey.

Painting Loose Florals With A Mystery Underlayer

Yes indeed, the secret in now out as to why there is a serious lack of new Hanukkah crafts here on CJM: I have been painting loose florals for the past month, and that together with a ton of graphic design work has left no time for Hanukkah crafting. Of course I plan to remedy that this week with some large paper decorations, and re-using some of the best projects from previous years, but truthfully I really feel like just concentrating on painting, as at long last I'm getting into it and getting better, yippee!

For years I have dreamed of painting large canvases of loose or abstract florals, and while I won't get there for quite some time, I have at least begun the process, and this is really thanks to the amazing Amanda Evanston and her online painting class called The Secret Garden. Totally recommend it to anyone itching to paint in a creative way, and you can watch the videos over and over and over (as I have) and learn something new every time. I have heard that to master anything one must spend 10,000 hours doing it, or paint 500 paintings, so that is where I'm headed, right not I'm on #32, which is a good start. The paintings here are mostly #28 and higher, as the previous ones are just at this point too bad to actually share, Can't wait to see what the future brings!