20 Jewish Crafts to Make With Washi Tape

You may have seen thin, colorful rolls of “decorative” tape at your local craft or toy store. Your local grocery store may have even started stocking it in place of candy at the check-out. If you’ve been wondering what the fuss is about—read on.

Washi tape has grown into something of a crafting sensation over the last few years, and it’s available just about everywhere now. Washi tape is a cousin of masking tape, but enthusiasts love it for its strength and durability. It’s usually made of natural fibers, including the barks of trees native to Japan, and it’s easy to apply and remove without damaging paint or other surfaces, which makes it great for kids.

So now that you know what washi tape is, what can you do with it? Since you can find rolls of the tape in vivid colors and patterns, it’s great for easy decorating and upcycling. If you’re always on the lookout for more Jewish crafts, here are 20 projects to try with those rolls of washi tape you just ordered. And if you’re a parent who just finished Abigail Pogrebin’s My Jewish Year, the craft ideas and activities below are fantastic companions to any family holiday celebrations.

ROSH HASHANAH

Rosh Hashanah, the beginning of the Jewish year, is the perfect time to plan out what you’d like to accomplish in the coming year. Keep track of what your family’s plans, hopes, and resolutions for the new year by decorating a custom journal together.

image via a Colorful Journey blog

Washi tape makes it easy to cover and decorate a notebook or journal with one material. Cut out designs or simply wallpaper the whole thing, and then start drafting your resolutions.

SUKKOT

Refresh the sukkah decorations with washi tape. Sukkah decorating is one of the best family activities of the Jewish year – it’s creative, physically active, and can involve all ages.

The problem is that using the same old sukkah decorations year after year can get old, and buying new ones means finding storage for them during the rest of the year. Instead, try jazzing up old decorations with colorful tape or using the tape itself to create fun shapes.

 

HANUKKAH

Wrap Hanukkah Presents

If you have trouble locating that one roll of Hanukkah wrapping paper that takes a decade to use up, fashion your own wrapping paper with newsprint or a paper grocery bag and decorate with washi tape. You can even use the tape to create a fancy bow!

Put a Tape Hanukkiah on the Wall

There is no more child-friendly Hanukkah menorah than simply (removable) tape on the wall. Have your child pick out colors or patterns for each candle and build your hanukkiah as big or small as your wall allows. Each night, cut off a small piece of tape for the new flame.

TU B’SHEVAT

Create Tu B’Shevat Planters

Washi tape is the perfect easy decoration for small pots. Celebrate the birthday of the trees by having kids decorate planters, and then choosing what to plant. You could even use a tape-marked popsicle stick or toothpick to identify what’s growing. This works great for a large group project.

PURIM

Turn Anything Into a Grogger

A toilet paper tube? A paper towel roll? A clean margarine tub? Any small recycled container makes a great Purim grogger. Just seal and decorate with your favorite washi tape.

Decorate Your Mishloach Manot

Make your Purim gift bags of treats stand out by sealing or decorating them with washi tape. You can buy a light solid color roll and write a message directly on the tape. Or use your washi tape to jazz up these special PJ Library printable Purim gift tags.

PASSOVER

Make a Special Haggadah Holder

You don’t have to keep the old Haggadot stuffed away in a drawer until Passover. Pick up an inexpensive magazine holder and decorate it with a fun Passover-inspired design.

Give the Afikomen Bag a Makeover

Another great group activity is creating your own afikomen bags for the Passover seder. If you don’t feel like sewing a cloth pouch, you can even use a large mailing envelope or reuse one of your PJ Library envelopes.

LAG B’OMER

Count the Omer on a Homemade Calendar

Removable tape is great for big display calendars. Help kids learn about counting the Omer with a giant Omer calendar, where they can mark days off with tape.

SHABBAT

Wrap Tea Lights for Shabbat Candles

If your Shabbat candlesticks are suitable for tea lights, give those tea lights a little sparkle. A roll of tape is about the same width as the tea light, so you can easily wrap a fun pattern around each one. Make sure there’s always an adult present when using these on Friday night, since the paper tape is flammable.

Create Shabbat Place Card Holders

Make your own place card holders by covering clothespins in washi tape. These look great on the Shabbat table or for any occasion.

Make a Havdalah Spice Box

Old spice containers make great Havdalah spice boxes – just be sure not to use the more savory ones like garlic or onion powder. Clean them out, add a cinnamon stick and cloves, and tape away!

EVERYDAY

Upcycle a Mint Tin

Always looking for a kippah (yarmulke) clip? Upcycle a metal mint tin into a cute kippah clip holder. And maybe throw in a small piece of candy for good measure.

Scrapbook a Big Event

Washi tape’s versatility is great for scrapbookers, so add some flare to a bat mitzvah album.

Personalize Party Favors

If you’re giving out small gifts to wedding guests (like bottles of water or bubbles), wrap them with a stripe of washi tape, and they’re personalized in seconds.

Make Custom Get-Well Cards and Envelopes

You might not think you have the time or skill to create homemade cards, but with some washi tape at the ready, you don’t have to be a crafter extraordinaire. Practice bikkur cholim by making special washi tape cards and envelopes to give to friends who are under the weather.

Designate Kitchen Tools

For those who keep a kosher kitchen, it’s not always easy to find duplicates of a favorite kitchen utensil in two or three different colors. Washi tape is an easy solution; just designate a color or pattern for dairy, meat, and pareve.

Transform a Glue Stick into a Mezuzah

The glue-stick-into-mezuzah is a whole craft on its own, but when it comes time to decorate, make it super easy with washi tape.

Design a Bookmark

What’s better than a homemade bookmark? Trim some cardstock and have kids cover strips with their favorite colors and patterns of tape.

November 8, 2018