Author: acraftyarab

Moon Cupcake Toppers {Recipe}

| acraftyarab

We had such a great time making these mini Oreo, easy moon cupcake toppers this past weekend.

 

I found the mini Oreo cookie bag in our grocery store check out aisle and had the idea right away that they would make adorable mini moons.

 

We love making crafts that focus on the moon since it’s such a big part of the Islamic calendar. It helps determine when Ramadan starts and when Eid is celebrated.

 

We have so many moon crafts, that I’ve compiled them into a list of 99, so be sure to check it out.

99 creative arabic craft moon projects

For this yummy treat to happen, gather these few items.  The goal is to make more Oreo toppers for the cupcakes than to eat them. Sadly we had a lot of broken pieces in our bag that could not be used as toppers and had to be sacrificed.  So I’d recommend buying two bags if you are trying this out.

 

Supplies

Mini Oreos
Spreading knife
Cupcake {Home made}
Toothpicks
Sprinkles
Frosting
Plate

Our toothpicks had a pointy end and a flat end, so we used the pointy end for the cookie and the flat end went into the cupcake.  Hold the Oreo firmly in your fingers when you insert the toothpick as the inside of the cookie is very soft. Place the finished Oreos on a plate.

We settled on making just five of the moon phases, to look similar to our Ramadan Chalkboard String Art. We used it as a guide to decorate the Oreo cookies with the frosting.

Once the cookies were done, we added the sprinkles for texture to look like the dark spots of the moon.  We also picked up the Oreo cookies and gently pressed the frosted side into the sprinkles that had fallen on the plate to pick up extras.

Our moon phases cupcake toppers are done and ready to be placed into the cupcakes.  Put them all on one, or spread them out.  Again, try not to eat them before the party. It’s very hard!

If you’d like to make more party treats, check out these other simple crafts

BaklaWa Pops {Recipe}

Ramadan Man’ousheh Mini Bites {Recipe}

 

Visit A Crafty Arab on Pinterest to see more tutorials that teach about Islam or the Muslim world.

Enjoy these moon books that teach about it’s importance during Ramadan:

Arabic Birthday Pendant {Tutorial}

| acraftyarab

Name pendants are huge in the Arab world because Arabic is such a beautiful script to write. This polymer clay pendant tutorial for kids plays on the popularity of these name pendants to celebrate a birthday.

People enjoy having their name or the name of a loved one on a necklace, worn close to their heart. I thought it would be fun to build on the popularity of the name pendants to create one that spelled the word eid, which is the Arabic word for festive or holiday.

 

Eid, when combined with the Arabic word for birth, milad, means birthday: Eid Milad.  This birthday pendant, in bright yellow and pink colors, will adorn a birthday gift to a friend this weekend (don’t tell her it’s a book!). After she opens the gift, she can hang the eid pendant on her fridge, in her room or reuse it on someone else as a gift tag.

 

It was so easy to make that my teen took only an afternoon to put it together.  But I would suggest making it a day in advance to ensure the glaze is fully dry.

 

Supplies

Sculpey Clay
Glaze
Paintbrush
Xacto
Fuzzy yarn

Use the Xacto to cut the clay into two equal parts and spend a little time kneading it.  Once each piece is soft, roll them into ropes that are equal sizes.

Now you will need to twist the two pieces around each other.

Roll these two pieces to each other so that they smooth out into one rope.

Write out the word eid onto your cooking surface directly so that you don’t have to move it. Add a little curve to the ends so that you can hook your word onto your yarn.

Once your piece is done baking and has cooled, add a layer of glaze to give it a little shine & protect the surface from dust.

Now your eid pendant is ready to tie with yarn to your gift.  Once we cut off the extra fuzzy yarn, we noticed a little heart had formed.

We added a dab of glue to the wrapping paper & added the heard for the dot of the i.

To turn it into a pendant, tie the yarn around the inside of the letters e and d and hang it anywhere you’d like.

Please stop by these other interesting way to wrap a gift:

Arabic Initial Wrapping Paper {Tutorial}

Happy Eid Pop-Up Wrap {Tutorial}

 

Visit ACraftyArab on Pinterest to see more tutorials that teach about the Arab world.


Art Residency at the Sou’Wester Lodge {Outing}

| acraftyarab

This past week I had the pleasure of participating in an art residency at the Sou’wester Historic Lodge and Vintage Travel Trailer Resort on the Washington coast.

I was able to teach a quilling class, while also taking the time to make paper art.

 

I had never done an art residency before and this location was perfect for a first time attendant.  I purposely asked to go in the fall because I have visited the coast multiple times with the family & really needed to spend the time making art & not be tempted to explore the area.

 

On my first day of arrival I was met with a monster of a storm.  I took some video footage of the angry ocean and spent most of my time trying to stay warm.

 

In the middle of the week, I taught a quilling class to locals.  I started by introducing them to the Arab world & explained how quilling as an art form started in ancient Egypt before moving to it’s height of popularity during the Italian Renaissance.

I showed examples of past works that have survived & talked about which pieces were the most popular when the craft came to North America. Then we had a great time making flower boxes, ornaments and jewelry.

Once the class was over, the sun finally came out & I was able to spend a little bit of time outdoor getting some exercise on the local bike trails. Of course, I still spent most of my day creating new art.

I even made some new ornaments & rings to leave in the lobby store display case.

I can’t wait to do this whole experience again.

 

Not only did I enjoy the fun of teaching quilling to a new audience, but I also enjoyed the time alone, away from family obligations, to create new work.