creative jewish mom

Embroidered Geometric Stars On A Recycled Styrofoam Tray, Festive And Fun Anytime!

After sharing the cross stitch apple styrofoam tray embroidery craft, I just couldn't resist dusting off this project to share with you, as it still looks great four years after I first shared it. The wonderful thing about these string stars is that they have a universal festive look so they would truly be great any time. If you don't have any styrofoam trays hanging around waiting to be upcycled, try this on cardboard, the results will also be great! Okay, here is that post:

I have been saving these little square styrofoam trays as I had a feeling that would be great for a fun recycled craft project! And the a few days ago the idea came to me, embroider them! For starters I gave my geometric string stars a try, and I just love the results, don't you? You can use these little works of art as is hung on the wall (or in the succah!) or make some shapes to hang form the bottom of the piece, dream catcher style! So gather soem styrofoam trays, or even a piece or cardboard or foam core, and lets get started.

Cross Stitch Apple Embroidery On A Foam Tray!

I have dusted off this project from my archives, as it is truly one of my all time favorites! And this apple is just the beginning, collect styrofoam trays (from non-meat items) and have fun thinking of all the possibilities!I have a box with a bunch of trays in the basement, so if and when I get around to dreaming up some more cross stitch projects you'll be the first to know! I just got a big batch of embroidery thread that is calling my name, so you never know! Here's the old post that was written a week before Rosh HaShana, this time around we have more like a week and a half. Ah yes, and I've finally begun to realize that apples are a great symbol for the succah as well, so this craft can be enjoyed as decor indoors and then hung in the succah!

Here's a fun apple cross stitch craft that is fun for all ages, and is a recycling craft to boot! And with Rosh HaShana in less than a week, well a few of these cross stitch apples, that can be whipped up quite quickly would be a great way to welcome the new year! Not to mention of course that apple themed crafts are always perfect for teacher appreciation gifts and Fall. So gather your supplies, and if you don't have a recycled styrofoam tray on hand you could even use a piece of cardstock, a piece of foam core, or even a paper plate! Time is of the essence, so lets get crafting!

Cross Stitch Apple Embroidery Recycling Craft

Here's a fun apple cross stitch craft that is fun for all ages, and is a recycling craft to boot! And with Rosh HaShana in less than a week, well a few of these cross stitch apples, that can be whipped up quite quickly would be a great way to welcome the new year! Not to mention of course that apple themed crafts are always perfect for teacher appreciation gifts and Fall. So gather your supplies, and if you don't have a recycled styrofoam tray on hand you could even use a piece of cardstock, a piece of foam core, or even a paper plate! Time is of the essence, so lets get crafting!

Pineapple Embroidery On A Recycled Styrofoam Tray!

Okay dear readers, I have to admit that I just love my little pineapple embroidered on a recycled styrofoam tray, that actually held some precious passion fruit! Who can resist a tray that is this color and shape? Certainly not me, and with pineapples being all the rage at the moment, well this little project seems just perfect right about now! And best of all, you can whip it up quite quickly on account of the large stitches and easy to draw motif. Pair it with my geometric string stars embroidered on styrofoam trays, and you've got some great decorations to hang in the succah or anywhere that could use a little dose of creativity. Shall we get started?

Styrofoam Tray Recycling Craft: Embroidered String Stars

I have been saving these little square styrofoam trays as I had a feeling that would be great for a fun recycled craft project! And the a few days ago the idea came to me, embroider them! For starters I gave my geometric string stars a try, and I just love the results, don't you? You can use these little works of art as is hung on the wall (or in the succah!) or make some shapes to hang form the bottom of the piece, dream catcher style! So gather soem styrofoam trays, or even a piece or cardboard or foam core, and lets get started.

Spring Gift Baskets From Embroidered Styrofoam Bowls

Aren't these embroidered styrofoam bowls great? With Purim coming up and Spring on our doorstep, now is the time to make little baskets, right? And really, embroidering on styrofoam is just too much fun! How about washing out a large coffee cup from your last coffee run (try a little bleach to get rid of the coffee stain?) or trying this idea out on some take out containers if bowls like these don't happen to be on hand. And do take a look at my post, embroidering on styrofoam trays for some more inspiration.

A few months back I caved in and bought my kids an unhealthy dinner treat, namely instant Chinese noodles, as I was going out for the evening. When I returned, the bowls were just screaming "save me, save me" so I did, and am happy to have found a fun use for them! So if you're gonna eat something not so healthy, as least do something great with the container!

You'll Need:

• recycled styrofoam bowls, these were from instant noodle soup
• a flat piece of styrofoam from a recycled tray or take-out box
• yarn 
• a large yarn needle, the large ones are quite dull, or use a plastic yarn needle for kids
• paper or felt 
• high tack craft glue (not hot glue, it will melt your project!)

How To:

1. Embroider simple designs on your bowl, either by planning ahead or doing something random. If you plan ahead, so make holes in your bowl with the needle to guide the embroidery. The star bursts were done randomly and are quick and look great....I'd recommend those if you're making a bunch.
2. To make the cover, trace the rim of your bowl on a flat piece of styrofoam, adding a little pull tab to your circle. Cut out and trim to desired size, and embroider. 
3. Cut a handle from paper or felt and glue to inside of bowl. If you'd like to cover the inside to finish off your basket nicely, cut a piece of paper to wrap around the inside, and affix with glue.
4. Make a few and enjoy! 

And, to give credit where credit is due: the inspiration for this project came from a recent Craft Schooling Sunday contributor from Sweden, Pysselbolaget. I took the general idea of embroidering on recycled containers and came up with something related of course, you know like cousins or something. Where will the inspiration you've gotten from my project take you?

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Embroidery On Recycled Styrofoam Trays

Embroidery on recycled styrofoam trays is just too much fun, and I'm already envisioning a whole series of mini embroidered pictures. Embroidering on styrofoam trays is a great way to introduce the art of sewing to young kids or take a little time out for yourself to make a small whimsical embroidered picture.

You'll Need:

• recycled styrofoam trays, cleaned well and sanitized with soap and hot water if they held meat or fish
• yarn
• a large yarn needle, or even a plastic yarn needle for kids

How To:

Figure out your design before you start embroidering, mark lightly with a pencil on the back of the tray. I of course did it on the front, silly me, totally not necessary! Make holes with your needle along the lines of your drawing. Make sure holes are not too close together. Thread your needle, tie a knot in the end of the yarn and go to town!

Of course, if you'd like to do something just a bit more sophisticated (and time consuming), by all means, why not use a regular sized embroidery needle and embroidery thread and practice some more complicated stitches? 

Stay tuned for a fun way to use embroidery on styrofoam for your Purim gifts (can you guess?) coming up tomorrow!

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Recycled Styrofoam Tray Craft With Paper Mache

Yes, you can make a gorgeous, artful and even useful tray from a recycled styrofoam meat/fish/food tray. I have a little secret to share with you all, and that is that with just a few crafty moves on your part, you canmake a stunning tray worthy of holding your fine jewelry, among other things. And how is that exactly, you may be thinking? Well, my friends the secret is simply combining two techniques that I mentioned yesterday in my post about DIY baby blocks, namely paper mache plus decoupage. Yes, meaning strips of gooey newspaper and then a finishing touch with a top layer of some beautiful decoupaged napkins, or any other paper that you'd like to use. And there you have it!

 And of course, your creations may just turn out to be so lovely that you'll want to use them on your dining room table, which is certainly fine as well.

 

You'll Need:

• recycled styrofoam trays
• newspaper and a flour/water or glue/water paste, plus my paper mache tutorial
• white acrylic craft paint (optional, not necessary if your last layer of paper mache is with white paper)
• beautiful napkins and mod podge or any decoupage medium, plus my  napkin decoupage tutorial

How To:

Cover tray with several layers of paper mache and set aside to dry. Either apply a layer of paper mache with white laser printer paper, or paint your paper mache surface white or cream. Apply a decorative layer of decoupage using images from the very delicate top layer of napkins, or just about any paper or imagery that suits you. Enjoy, and or course these would make great gifts, so be sure to make a bunch of them!

 

Styrofoam Tray Printing Re-Visited (For Rosh HaShana Cards?)

On a recent visit with some of my nieces and nephews in the US, I was looking for a quick craft project to do with them. Then I spied some styrofoam trays about to go into the garbage, horrors of horrors, so I rescued them and spent half an hour or so teaching the art of printing!

The most important tip for this project is to keep the designs very simple, and to make sure that the paint is neither too thick or too thin. It may take a few tries to get a nice print, but it's worth it. And in any case, you can always cut apart your prints and collage the best results together. (Which is what I did with the blue Chamsa shape below.) And it's important to remember that part of the beauty of this project is the imperfect results! For complete instructions, and some more techniques, see my post from last year here.

Oh and by the way, Rosh HaShana is just a bit more than three weeks away, so how about using this technique to make some  unique  cards to send to relatives and friends? And if you make prints on water color paper, or card stock, you can also go over your prints with a light wash of color, which can look gorgeous!

 

Make Festive Chanukah Bunting And Chanukah Cards From Styrofoam Prints

Here it is finally, the first actual Chanukah themed craft project! Phew I was feeling a bit behind, given that Chanukah is just 25 days away, which is not much time for the creative jewish mom to get it together. Plus I wanted to make sure you'd have some time to do some crafting too. Last night I sat down with my 6 year old son and we made these prints together, using the technique I taught you in the post about printing with recycled styrofoam trays. You can find that post and a complete tutorial here.

I just love how all the prints look together, they remind  me of  vintage Israeli graphics from the 50's.

I had planned to use the prints for Chanukah cards, but today it occurred to me that they'd make great bunting! And for some unknown reason I printed all the images with a substantial border at the top, perfect for folding over a ribbon and securing with tape!

And here's the first Chanukah card I've made. It looks great with the home printed wrapping paper that we learned how to make in this post! I simply cut out the print, pasted it to a piece of yellow paper, trimmed the yellow paper to size, and adhered that to the orange card. Simple enough!

I have to say, I feel much better now, knowing that there are three projects in my Chanukah category! It's certainly a start and I hope to bring you lots and lots more great projects to help you and your friends and family celebrate Chanukah in a meaningful way. So stay tuned!