creative jewish mom

DIY Glitter Snowflakes From Upcycled Plastic Baskets

There is something just irresistable about glitter and I have to say it has been way too long since I've ventured into the glitter department, and now I can't wait to use up the rest of the bags waiting in that plastic bin labeled glitter! For my first glitter project of the season I choose to make glitter snowflakes using the plastic berry basket snowflakes that were patiently awaiting their fate for a good few weeks, and the results are truly wonderful. Yes, it is true, glitter does make a bit of mess, but I think it is a good thing as long as the glitter stays out of your food, so do avoid placing glitter covered crafts on near your table of food preparation area. Other than that, go to town, and maybe you'll decide to make some of these gorgeous snowflakes for starters?

Recycled Berry Basket Snowflakes!

Okay dear readers, let the Chanukah crafting begin! Due to my computer still not back home from the repair shop, I've been crafting like I used to, and wow, it is so rewarding to come up with all kinds of ideas, some of which actually make it to the finish line, and others, well......Making snowflakes from the bottom of plastic berry baskets is not my idea, I found an unattributed photo somewhere, but I realised yesterday that this is basically an eco-conscious way of making snowflakes from plastic canvas, which is totally a "thing." Plastic canvas snowflakes are often embroidered, which one could also do with these berry basket snowflakes, and I believe they are also covered in glitter at times, which I will share with you soon!

Now that I've realised that the bottom of the berry basket is like plastic canvas (though with cross bars that do limit the design) the gears are turning! Or maybe I need to get out the plastic canvas once again and use it all up? Check out my plastic canvas Chanukah star ornaments, my plastic canvas Hanukah menorah, and my plastic canvas dreidels, if you are in the mood for some embroidery. Then again rather than buy supplies, use recyclable to create fun decorations for your home, it feels great! Okay, lets make some plastic basket snowflakes, shall we?

Plastic Berry Baskets Woven With T-Shirt Yarn

We eat lots of mushrooms, and I just can't resist saving those plastic baskets! The last bunch I sent off to a nursery school, and now I have a few more that need a creative solution. So dear readers, introducing a fun summer recycling craft that looks amazing and could be used to hold little treasures: woven plastic berry baskets, or maybe you'd prefer to call them embroidered plastic baskets. or plastic basket needlepoint with t-shirt yarn? This is actually the third plastic basket craft I'm sharing with you, the first was a crocheted t-shirt yarn berry basket, the second was a simple t-shirt yarn woven berry basket, and now, ta da, this one! This fun recycling craft uses t-shirt yarn which gives the basket a contemporary look, and of course any project using t-shirt yarn always looks great, so go for it. If you have some very chunky yarn you'd like to use, that could work too, as could light weight rope, so have fun experimenting, just be aware that the baskets themselves are not so sturdy, so too much experimenting or trying to use something too thick can result in breakage of the gridded plastic. Ah yes, I just realized that for those out there where plastic bags are still a part of life, using plastic bag yarn, or plarn, could also be fun. At the end of the day thought, the smooth graphic results with the t-shirt yarn just don't compare, then again maybe I'm wrong, surprise me! Okay, lets get started....

Rosh HaShana Basket Of Blessings Craft For Kids (Or Anyone!)

Rosh HaShana, the Jewish New Year is in just a few days, so now is the time to dedicate a few hours to making wonderful cards to wish our family, friends and neighbors a wonderful new year, filled with blessings. And since the standard card may produce a bit of a yawn from the crafters in your home, why not do something special and make a Rosh HaShana basket of blessings? It is like a card, only a much more unique experience, since the pieces are removed from the basket in order to read them......and then of course the basket can be displayed as a decoration for the holiday!

I held a little crafting session with some 4th grade boys from the neighborhood, which was such a pleasure, and this little basket of blessings was the result of two crafting sessions that were roughly 1.5 hours each.

If you are looking for a craft that could easily be done in just one session, take a look at my Rosh HaShana Fish cards, which are one of the elements in the basket, but are great as a stand alone craft as well.