Feb 21

Feb 21 DIY: Shabbat flowers

Flowers were made for Fridays

My dad is just so sweet. When I was growing up, each evening when he came home from work was a family celebration! He would step through the door, and happily say, “Honey, I’m home!” and my brothers, sister and I would run to the front of the house to greet him! Fridays were extra special because he always brought my mom a bouquet of fresh flowers for Shabbat.

Flowers on Shabbat became extra special years later when I was a teen visiting Israel. I remember being in Jerusalem on a Friday afternoon, and like magic, flower bouquets seemed to pop up all over the shops in the city. It was such a festive and happy afternoon. People greeted everyone with a “Shabbat Shalom,” and women, girls and men walk around the city, holding fresh flowers in their hands.

The Hebrew word for flowers is Pra-khim (one flower is Perach). We thought it would be festive to make our own DIY flowers for Shabbat. It’s a little chilly today, but that’s okay, because these flowers will bloom in any weather.

To make the flowers you will need:

Pipe cleaners (we like green)
Deconstructed flower leis
Pony beads

Here’s how to make a DIY flower (Step 1 and Step 2 are best for an adult):

Start by pulling the blooms off a flower lei and set them aside. They will already have a hole in the center. It’s very small, so if you’d like, you can use a pencil tip to enlarge the hole.
Next, take a pipe cleaner and one pony bead. String the bead onto the end of the pipe cleaner, and fold the tip of the pipe cleaner over the bead one time (or two) to secure it. This bead is the center of the flower.
Next, invite your child to take the flowers from the deconstructed lei and string a few onto the pipe cleaner. They should pull the flowers all the way up the pipe cleaner and stop just under the folded down pony bead.
After they have a nice bloom, they can string pony beads onto the stem. Stringing flower blooms and pony beads are good for fine motor skills too!
When they are happy with the number of beads on the stem, help them fold over the end of the pipe cleaner into a small circle. This will secure help to secure the beads.

That’s it! A Shabbat Perach (flower). Your child can make a bunch of stems for your Shabbat table. It is also nice to make individual stems to give as a special Shabbat gift!

Share with us some special ways your family celebrates Shabbat in the comments below, and let us know if you make flowers for Shabbat!

For more Shabbat activities, you can click here to make DIY mini challah and click here to make DIY Unicorn Challah for a magical Shabbat!

We hope your Shabbat is as sweet and as fragrant as Shabbat flowers!

~Jennifer