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How to Decorate With Cinco de Mayo Crafts

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The holiday of Cinco De Mayo is celebrated with what are called cinco de mayo crafts. These crafts include tissue paper flowers for the hair, jewelry, flag making, hand-made instruments and paper mache pinatas. Cinco de Mayo takes place on the 5th Of May and commemorates the victory of the Mexicans over the French army at The Battle of Puebla in 1862. The Cinco De Mayo holiday is not, as many people think, Mexico’s Independence Day, which actually takes place on September 16.

Cinco de Mayo is a time to celebrate and dress up. Although most Mexican jewelry is made of silver and set with precious stones such as amber and turquoise you can make a facsimile of a silver Mexican bracelet by cutting a slit in a toilet paper roll so that it fits over your child’s arm like a silver cuff. You then wrap the cuff in aluminum foil or tin foil and glue colorful dried beans and sequins to it. You can paint the dried beans a sky blue to resemble the actual turquoise gems. This is one of the many easy cinco de maya crafts that you can find directions for on the Internet. This glittery project is sure to delight adults and children alike.

Maracas and rattles are also a big traditional part of Cinco de Maya festivities. During the celebration, the rattles are shaken to welcome generous spirits and drive away the unhappy spirits of the past. A very simple rattle can be constructed out of a Popsicle stick, a brightly decorated toilet paper tube, a few beans and some masking tape.

Really gorgeous Mexican Maracas can be constructed out of blown up balloons that are used as the forms for paper mache. Handles are attached to the paper mache bulbs and their receptacles filled with dried beans. Directions for creating this musical instrument and other sophisticated crafts can be found online.

Paper Mache is a large component of many Mexican crafts, particularly when it comes to making piñatas. Piñatas are typically animal shapes that are filled with candy, hung from a tree and then beaten with a stick by children until the piñata breaks open and spills its contents. You can find a great recipe for homemade paper mache paste as well as designs for animal armatures everywhere online.

The “Ojo de Dios” or God’s Eye symbol is also traditional among Cinco de Mayo crafts. This diamond shaped square made of green, red and white yarn is an ancient symbol that was first made by the Huichol Indians of Mexico. It is used to ward off evil spirits or the “evil eye.” You can make very large Ojos out of tree branches or tiny ones out of toothpicks. This is a perfect project for you to do with children.

How to Decorate A Kid’s Room With Bible Crafts

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Bible crafts are an easy and inexpensive way for children to be exposed to art. Popular examples of these kinds of bible crafts can cost between $30 and $200. A good example is the S&S Worldwide Bible Figures Set. This Includes 600 full-color felt figures, with 12 different landscapes depicting stories associated with Jesus, The kit also includes cut out felt shapes of angels, men, women, children, animals, buildings, scenery and a teacher’s manual with over 180 beautifully written stories and detailed scene arrangements.

Learning Walls are bible crafts that are essentially large murals. These murals are large black and white drawings of such familiar Bible scenes as the flooding of Noah’s ark, the story of Christmas and the story of Easter. The idea is that a group of children can color this mural in to create a unique piece of art. Much less expensive than most bible crafts, these murals can be found on the Internet for less than $15.00.

Making your own Christian cross is also a rewarding activity. Kits exist for making very attractive crosses out of shells glitter and sand. Most of these kits cost less than twenty bucks. There was also a kit for making a hand knotted crucifix necklace out of cord for less than eight dollars.

However it is also possible to make your own cross at home by placing beads on a crucifix shaped wire. Beads made from precious gems such as carnelian or amethyst or Austrian crystals make particularly classy looking bible craft necklaces for adult. Also very attractive and a bit more hard-core is the homemade crucifix that is constructed from nails fixed together with coils of copper wire. Many beading sites also feature free patterns for creating your own beaded cross.

Stained glass is a big aspect of bible crafts and on the net you can find bible crafts kits selling the materials to cut and solder together windows to create depictions of such scenes as the Last Supper and the releasing of the Peace Dove. Sometimes these kits are sold as plaques designed to hang in the windows, although you can also buy kits that make candle holders and Tiffany glass style lampshades.

Of course you can create your own bible crafts using any medium that you wish. Bible scenes and bible verses can be woven into tapestry, embroidered, quilted, constructed out of wood, painted and sewn onto fabric. To find the bible crafts that are best suited to the talents of both you and family members try typing such phrases as angel projects, Christian craft kits, Christian craft supplies, bible craft supplies and bible craft kits into Google.