creative jewish mom

Braided DIY Dog Toy Gift, Or Gift Topper, Using T-Shirt Yarn!

Growing up we always made lanyard keychains at summer camp, from the simplest to the most complex spirals, and somewhere in my crafts stash I even have a bunch of lanyard lace that I bought as an adult, to do crafts with my kids. As you may know, I also happen to love t-shirt yarn, so I almost fell off my chair when I spotted this t-shirt yarn lanyard, made as a dog toy but surely great inspiration for other items as well! Curtain tiebacks? Handles? Key chains (with fewer strands) or maybe even trim for a round pillow? Just as soon as I finish this article I'm grabbing some of the t-shirt yarn that I bought for Chanukah crafting, and I will give it a try!

I am not a dog owner, but I always love looking at the dog toys that I happen upon, and there are certainly quite a few that can be easily made, and even better, made as gifts for your dog lover friends, or why not leave one at the dog park with a little note for someone to find! If you need a nice sized gift for a dog lover, (friend, family, boss, client?) consider making a dog toy gift topper (or two) to give together with an amazing pet portrait for example.

Add a large dog bone shaped gift tag, (A simple DIY project, using brown cardboard, or maybe jeans fabric glued to cardboard) or even attach the dog toy to the large gift tag, and your presentation will be over the top! That handmade touch makes your gift extra special and memorable! Do make sure to use neutral colored or solid colored paper if your dog toy is colorful like this one! Of course wrapping paper with a dog theme could be great, and maybe you'll decide to make your dog toys based on the wrapping paper that you find first? Either way, have fun with it! Okay, lets get crafting, you can make dog toys and I'll make some keychains!

DIY Boho Fringed Placemats For Summer Entertaining

I have pulled this post out of the archives because it is a keeper, and I'm still enjoying my DIY boho place mats, which are great indoors or outdoors, and perfect for that little extra something this summer! Enjoy! And I just had the thought that these could also be great for the Succah, so why not plan ahead!

I love t-shirt yarn, and have been thinking about using it for macrame and embroidery, not just crocheting! Industrial-waste t-shirt yarn also supports eco-consciousness, as it is made from odds and ends of fabric left after the pieces for making clothing is cut from the yardage. What I found after making these fringed and embroidered place mats/wall hangings is that t-shirt yarn is a great way to add color to a project that might have called for rope of some kind, and it works great for fringe, tassels (see my t-shirt yarn tassels) and more. So if you're looking for a simple and stylish summer project, this is it! These place mats work great placed on round side tables or outdoor tables or anywhere to add some flare our protect a wooden surface. Ah yes, and of course you can easily make some wall hangings, which I truly am going to do as I have a bunch more of these place mats to craft with!

Crochet T-shirt Yarn Pears For Fun Home Decor

I have been living with these fun crocheted pears for a year and a half or so, and I can surely report they are just so very charming! And wouldn't a crocheted pear from t-shirt yarn be a great baby gift, it would look soooo cute in a baby's room, or just about anywhere. So with the Jewish holiday of Tu B'Shevat, the new year for fruit baring trees, coming up in just a week, now is a great time to crochet fruit, and while you are at it, why not go with giant fruit!  Here is my original post:

I have been wanting to crochet a pear for ages, partly to go with my daughter's pirum parum poster, and partly because who can resist a crocheted pear? And who can resist a crocheted pear that is big enough to be a pillow or couch prop, certainly not me, and I am truly in love with the results of taking a regular crocheted pear pattern and using t-shirt yarn to make it something different altogether, yippee! So, as you can see, once you start crocheting pears from t-shirt yarn you really have to crochet at least three, as they look just so amazing together, right? I was crocheting that black pear on a car trip with my husband and he had no idea what I was up to, and only saw the results when I gave it to him as a chanukah present......of course he didn't appreciate my efforts, but that is okay, I didn't really crochet it for him, but rather as some fun decor for our bedroom or any little spot in the house in need of some giant fruit! Okay friends, lets get crocheting......

Fringed Woven Placemat IKEA Hack With T-Shirt Yarn

I love t-shirt yarn, and have been thinking about using it for macrame and embroidery, not just crocheting! Industrial-waste t-shirt yarn also supports eco consciousness, as it is made from odds and ends of fabric left after the pieces for making clothing is cut from the yardage. What I found after making these fringed and embroidered placemats/wall hangings is that t-shirt yarn is a great way to add color to a project that might have called for rope of some kind, and it works great for fringe, tassels (see my t-shirt yarn tassels) and more. So if you're looking for a simple and stylish summer project, this is it! These placemats work great placed on round side tables or outdoor tables or anywhere to add some flare our protect a wooden surface. Ah yes, and of course you can easily make some wall hangings, which I truly am going to do as I have a bunch more of these placemats to craft with!

Embroidering With T-Shirt Yarn!

Ever thought about embroidering with t-shirt yarn? I am always looking for ways to do intricate yet lovely crafts in a quicker way, so embroidery with t-shirt yarn is certainly one way to do that, right? With ethnic wall hangings and baskets still popular in the home decor arena, now is the perfect time to make some fun summer accessories for your home, with some t-shirt yarn and some woven placemats or baskets. I actually made the example here as a wall hanging, though it has not yet made it to the wall, it is propped up on a bedside table under a window for now, and maybe forever until I make something new! Okay, ready for a few tips to get those creative gears turning? Read on......

Crocheted T-Shirt Yarn Dishtowel For A Play Kitchen

Now that you know how to make adorable play cupcakes, let's make some things to use in a play kitchen. And of course you don't need an actual play kitchen, little ones can make that part up themselves. Add a cute t-shirt yarn dishtowel to the set up and maybe some wooden utensils, and let the imagination take them for a ride. No, I won't be letting anyone play with my new pink casseroles that I got recently for small change at 80% off, but they sure do complete the picture! And actually some pink casseroles like these would be simple to crochet with t-shirt yarn, okay, I guess I do need to go out and buy some more yarn (which I've been avoiding), as I think I need to take my own advice, it will be perfect. Lest I digress, we are here to learn how to crochet a play dishtowel from t-shirt yarn, so lets get started! Ah yes, and I might add that yes this is much thicker than a dish towel would be, but washes really well and can be used as a doll blanket or even a rug, which makes it super versatile for imaginative play.

Embroidery With T-Shirt Yarn On Benches In Jerusalem

I came across these photos of benches embroidered with t-shirt yarn in Jerusalem, and I just had to share them with you because truly I just love everything about this project! Yes, of course I'm bound to like just about anything that uses t-shirt yarn plus creativity, and the peacock bench (continue reading) takes the prize! I don't know too much about this commissioned yarn bombing project, or whether the benches are still intact, but I may just have to go and see for myself sometime soon.

The photos here are courtesy of a great article on mymodernmet, and the copy below is quoted from that article as well, which you should check out, so inspiring!

"Jerusalem-based artist Talya Tomer-Schlesinger sees artistic potential hidden within every corner of the world. The director of the Baka neighborhood asked Tomer-Schlesinger to brighten a local road for an upcoming arts festival and, when she was deciding what to create, the artist looked to the street’s benches. These latticed structures reminded her of her grandmother’s embroidery grids, which inspired her to weave recycled materials directly onto the seats. Since the benches are outdoors, Tomer-Schlesinger used old bathing suits in place of thread or regular fabric to prevent weather damage.

While she embroidered flowers, leaves, and even a vibrant peacock on the bus benches, the artist invited locals to join her. This expressive production evolved into a community project, bringing joy to those who participated in and witnessed the benches’ evolution. Hopefully, this venture will inspire other cities to bring their residents together as they add a bit of creative color to their own streets."

Crocheted T-Shirt Yarn Flowers In Any Size

Need a bunch of sweet crocheted flowers that will make a statement and won't take a year to crochet? Try crocheting these simple one-round flowers using commercial t-shirt yarn (or super chunky regular yarn) and you'll have a whole tree full of blossoms  to celebrate the arrival of Spring, a wedding or engagement, or in our case, first a 3 years old birthday party this week, followed by the Jewish New Year for the trees, Tu B'Shevat, coming in a few weeks. Tu B'Shevat is generally the time when the first fruit tree, the almond tree, blooms, so crafts with pink blooms is perfect, and these crocheted flowers, now hanging over our dining room table are setting the stage for this lovely holiday.

When you plan ahead for your upcoming event, you can crochet some of these flowers on the go....you know, in line, in the waiting room, on the bus or train, you name it! So lets get crocheting!

Tassel Keychain With T-Shirt Yarn

I just love t-shirt yarn, and never to waste even a tiny bit, I realized that I could whip up some fun tassel and braided keychains using the scraps. These examples are just my first attempt, and I'm sure with the addition of a little sparkle or a wooden bead or two things could get even cuter, right? I'll admit, I was dreaming of macrame keychains, but quickly realized that would be a time investment at a time when there's no time to invest, so this is the closest we are going to get for now. And, I also realized that t-shirt yarn is stretchy and maybe not the easiest thing to macrame with, at least on a small scale, so do keep that in mind. Ready to make a fun new keychain, likely with a few ideas of your own? Lets get started......

Recycling Yarn By Simply Unraveling Old And Tired Knits!

About ten or so years ago I knit a chunky afghan using four strands of yarn to match our couch. I was happy with the results and it was a present for my husband's birthday, the only problem was that after around a $40 dollar investment using cheap acrylic yarn and a lack of time to make the blanket bigger, I stopped knitting and called it a day. My husband always made jokes about the fact that the blanket was too short, so for subsequent crocheted blankets, as well as a quilted fleece blanket, I made sure that they were amply sized!

To make a not so interesting story shorter, this blanket was used on the couch until I changed the colors in the living room, and until it started to look, well a bit like a rag of sorts and got stuffed into a closet. Fast forward to operation Passover cleaning 2017, and when I spied the knit afghan in my son's closet, well I knew that rather than give it away to someone who wouldn't really love it anyway, I should simply unravel it and get a huge amount of yarn to use next fall for winter booties, hand warmers etc. for the whole family, maybe even for the whole neighborhood!