I Love to Create: Hardware Store Menorah

Growing up in Southern California then working in Hollywood, made having friends who went to temple almost as common as those who went to mass. When I moved to Austin however, I was surprised not only by the fact that there were so few Jewish people but also, by the lack of awareness about holidays like Hanukkah. I was thrilled years ago though when my youngest son came home from a Mother’s Day Out program with a paint stirrer Menorah that he’d made in class. He loved it and the tiny dreidel he received on the same day (both thanks to a fellow student’s mother) so much! I thought it was such a cool (yet really inexpensive) way to teach children about a tradition that may not be their own or if it is, then to celebrate it even further.

This week on I Love to Create, I revive that pre-school project–my version of course, with a little added, razzle dazzle.

Here’s how you and your kidlets can make a Hardware Store Menorah this Hanukkah season!

Materials

Wooden Paint Stirrer

11 Nuts (Sized to fit candles)

9 Candles (I just used the cheapie, birthday type.)

Aleene’s Fast Grab Tacky Glue

Blue, Crafty Chica Craft Paint (From the same pack you may have bought for last week’s Knit-Print Wrapping Paper!)

Crafty Chica Glitter in Color: Nova

Sponge Brush

How-To

Paint both sides of stirrer. Apply a 2nd coat.
Before 2nd coat dries, cover top of stirrer with glitter. Once dried, shake excess glitter off.
Adhere nuts to stirrer with Tacky Glue so that there’s a center pyramid stack with 4 individuals on each side. Let dry.
Insert candles in each of the nuts. If necessary, add a dab of Tacky Glue to the bottom of all candles EXCEPT for the center one; that one’s used for lighting.

The Basics of Practicing the Festival of Lights

Each of the 8 side candles represents a day of Hanukkah; the center candle is called, the “Shamos”. After sunset of each night of Hanukkah, use the Shamos to light the candles (lighting an additional one as each day passes.)

This year Hanukkah begins at sundown on December 11th. To read more about the symbolism and traditions surrounding the Menorah, check out this website.

(Holiday)Craft.Rock.Love,

Vickie