From Kiddush to Bar Mitzvah Party – Marigolds Pop!

| | Posted in Bat Mitzvah, Celebrations, Crafts, Decor, Misc, Summer | Tagged , , , , , ,

[Disclosure: This post contains Amazon affiliate links.]

Lately, all my craftiness goes to Instagram since it’s a quick way to share my creativity without all the work that goes into a blog. Life is just BUSY at the moment! But, I haven’t forgotten about my avid blog readers who have supported me from the beginning. I’ve actually had this post in mind for almost a year and decided today was finally the day to share it.

Photo credit: Sparkfly Photography

Last summer I was in the thick of it so didn’t really post much about it, but in August, we celebrated my son’s Bar Mitzvah! It was a wonderful day from start to finish and we loved every minute of it. But, what I really want to share today, is one very simple craft I did for the big day.

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Counting down with joy!

| | Posted in Hanukkah, Kids, Printables | Tagged , , ,

[This post contains some affiliate links.]

I debated making a countdown calendar this year since, to be honest, I’m just exhausted.  But I got a few requests and have made one every year since 2012 so I just had to do it.  I know there are those that feel like counting down is too much like an advent calendar – but here’s the thing, we count down all sorts of things: birthdays, vacations, etc.  In our house we have a Halloween countdown calendar too.  It just adds excitement and anticipation to things, especially in these rainy grey fall days.  

HanukkahCalendar2021WM

 

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Let Your Palette Be Your Guide

| | Posted in Misc

[Disclosure: This post contains some Amazon affiliate links.]

As many know, I started pandemic life with a challenge to myself to make a card a day.  I sort of fell off with this challenge but nonetheless looking over my photos of cards from the past year, I count over 150 handmade cards!  Some were sent to friends while others were gifted for others to send.  In any case, the challenge inspired me to step outside my comfort zone and try new techniques and combos.  More than anything, it has provided a respite from the monotony of stay-at-home life. Today, I bring you my latest series of cards which evolved as I started playing with certain colors and dies.

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Made with Love: A Stationery Set

| | Posted in Gifts, Handmade Card, Papercrafts, Rubber Stamps, watercolor

When you think of homemade gifts, what usually comes to mind?  Some carefully frosted sugar cookies? Or maybe a freshly picked fruit pie? Perhaps a knitted scarf or a custom t-shirt?  Well, handcrafted cards can be more than just snail mail you send, they can also be a gift, especially for the less crafty folks in your life.  Read on to learn how to design your own custom stationery set for a friend, whether it be for a Hanukkah gift or any other gift-giving occasion.

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And the countdown begins…

| | Posted in Hanukkah, Kids, Printables | Tagged , , ,

Hanukkah 2020 Countdown Calendar…to inauguration day! Well actually to Hanukkah but I’m pretty excited about inauguration day too to be honest. 2020 has been a *very* long year, to say the least. But with Halloween behind us and the arrival of the dark and cold, it’s time to start thinking about the beautiful light that is Hanukkah! While my blog may be a bit neglected these days (my Instagram is more alive), my crafting continues to keep me sane. Since it has become a yearly tradition, I had to create this year’s countdown calendar for everyone who wants something to celebrate along the way. I decided it was time for a change so I found some absolutely adorable sketch-tastic Hanukkah graphics for this year’s calendar.  I’m quite excited at how it turned out.

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Crafting in the time of Corona

| | Posted in Challenge, Handmade Card, Misc, Papercrafts, Random Acts | Tagged , , ,

[Disclosure: This post contains some Amazon affiliate links.]

I have had the above print by Mary Engelbreit hanging in my home office/craft space for a while now.  I always find that focusing on a craft project helps my brain reset from lawyer mommy life.  If you follow me on Instagram, you may already know that in an attempt to keep myself sane, I am challenging myself to make a greeting card a day and send them to friends to communicate from afar.  It’s a win win since I get my creative energy flowing (and a sudden validation for my hoard of craft supplies) and the friend I send it to gets a lovely surprise.  Several friends who received theirs this week have already told me it made their week in this time of social distancing.  The other benefit of a card is that it’s the type of project that can fill as much or as little time as you want.  If you just want to do a quick card with a single stamp, you can totally do something clean and simple.  Or, if you have a bit more time, you can layer stamps and inks to your heart’s content.  Either way, you get the satisfaction of completing a project in one sitting! Continue reading →

The return of Frozen – Counting Down to Hanukkah 2019/5780!

| | Posted in Hanukkah, Kids, Printables | Tagged , ,

[Disclosure: This post contains some Amazon affiliate links for certain items.]

Hanukkah Countdown Calendar

It’s beginning to look (and feel) a lot like winter!  We are at my folks for Thanksgiving and we woke up to nice layer of frost this morning.  Brrrrr!  And of course Frozen 2 is in the air.  My daughter has been asking on a daily basis when we are going to see the new movie!  It’s pretty funny actually since the first one came out when my son was 4.  He’s now 10 and in 5th grade while my daughter is 4 and totally obsessed with all things Frozen.  (Sidenote even the 10 year old wants to go see the movie so at least it’s something we can all agree on).  In addition to the movie request, I am getting a daily request to decorate for Hanukkah.  I mean given the darkness that is settling in, who can blame them for wanting more light? Continue reading →

Gearing up for Hanukkah – a few of my favorite things

| | Posted in Crafts, Decor, Dreidel, Gifts, Hanukkah, Kids, Menorah | Tagged , , , , , ,

[Disclosure: This post contains some Amazon affiliate links.]

Ugh!  Halloween is over and it appears as though Christmas has settled in to stay – it is EVERYWHERE already!  And I am not even going into it having had a nice solid dose of the Jewish holidays to sustain me since I spent Rosh Hashanah through Simchat Torah with pneumonia (and I am not talking just take a Z-pack and be okay pneumonia, we’re talking hospitalized for a couple days, out of the office for five weeks pneumonia – but don’t worry I am finally on the mend).  Anyway, Christmas is exploding already and so my natural response is to start thinking about Hanukkah.  My son and I went to JoAnn on Saturday to pick up some craft supplies and were very sad to not find a single Hanukkah thing amidst all of the Christmas stuff.  In addition, as we were checking out the checker commented on my pretty blue glitter cardstock and then proceeded to ask what color our Christmas tree was.   While I really wanted to be like WTF?! and ask why that even seemed like a sensible question, all I said was “Oh, we celebrate Hanukkah, this is the perfect color for that.”  Then she was either too scared to say anything else or was trying to wrap her head around the fact I didn’t celebrate Christmas.

OY.

Despite this experience, there is some fabulous Hanukkah stuff out there already which is the inspiration for today’s post.  It can go quickly so no time like the present to start your Hanukkah planning and shopping!resw

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Elul and Gratitude

| | Posted in Celebrations, Decor, Hanukkah, Misc, Papercrafts, Rubber Stamps | Tagged , , , ,

[Disclosure: This post contains Amazon affiliate links.]

Gratitude Confetti

It’s the month of Elul, the end of the Jewish Year 5779. We prepare to enter 5780 and dip apples in honey for a sweet year ahead. Elul is a time of contemplation and return as we prepare to enter the high holy days. I feel guilt for my poor neglected blog, perhaps an unanswered email or two to mamaleh, a lack of intentionality in my content. But, beyond that guilt I also feel immense gratitude. If you are reading this right now, that gratitude goes to you for despite my lack of posts on the blog itself, you are still here, reading, commenting, sharing, fueling my creative outlet. Continue reading →