Ruhi Crafts

Make something by hand

2011-07-31T19:52:00.001-07:00

I just listened to an interesting post by Gretchen Rubin on her Happiness Project Blog. SHe is speaking about the satisfaction of making something, even something very simple, with your own hands.
Check it out at:
http://www.happiness-project.com/happiness_project/2011/07/2011-happiness-challenge-for-those-of-you-following-the-2011-happiness-project-challenge-to-make-2011-a-happier-year-and.html

I hope you enjoy it.
More posts coming soon

Joyfulness

2011-06-11T19:44:00.000-07:00

Check out this wonderful children's class from New Zealand.
Some great ideas for a Grade 2 children's classes from Layla Neilsen.

http://bahaichildrensclass.wordpress.com/2011/06/12/grade-2-lesson-2-joyfulness/

Abdu'l-Baha: The Perfect Exemplar of Baha'u'llah’s Teachings

2011-06-07T10:32:00.000-07:00

Abdu'l-Baha: The Perfect Exemplar

This weekend as we were finishing the first unit of Book 7, Sandy gave us a project, which in craft terms was very simple, but spiritually profound.
We were given a sheet of paper and some stickers and were asked to create a card on which we were asked to write a poem, or a statement about Abdu'l-Baha; what He means to you, and how He has changed your life.
After completing our project we shared our insights and thoughts, before moving on to unit 2.
If you are not familiar with the life and unique station of Abdu'l-Baha, follow the link below for more information.
http://info.bahai.org/abdulbaha-center-of-covenant.html

More soon

Music for prayer and supplication

2011-06-04T20:19:00.000-07:00

I currently have the pleasure of co-tutoring a Ruhi Book 7 with two ladies, Sandy and Linda, who make wonderful use of music, in their service of the Faith. For many year Sandy was a member of the "Dream Angels" who would brighten many a gathering with their renditions of 50s hits. Linda hosts musical events at her home. Both work to incorporate music into the core activities, and enlivened our study circle, this weekend, with their singing.
So I thought it would be appropriate to share with you a quote from the writings of Abdu'l-Baha on the use of music.

The Dream Angels
Karen, Sandy, Jennifer, Alejandra, and Melita

O thou honorable one!
Thank thou God that thou art instructed in music and melody, singing with pleasant voice the glorification and praise of the Eternal, the Living. I pray to God that thou mayest employ this talent in prayer and supplication, in order that the souls may become quickened, the hearts may become attracted and all may become inflamed with the fire of the love of God!

(Abdu'l-Baha, Tablets of Abdu'l-Baha v3, p. 512)

They gave their today for mankind’s tomorrow

2011-06-02T10:06:00.000-07:00

Once more in recent days, we have received the disturbing news of the continuing persecution of the Bahá’í Faith in Iran, with the arrest of members of the” Bahá’í Institute for Higher Education” (BIHE).
http://news.bahai.org/story/827
This prompted me to pull out an older project, which was produced to highlight the suffering and martyrdom of many in the Faith. It is a static display, which can be used in a public space, or as part of a study circle, or other core activity.
This project would be suitable for a Junior Youth class, Study Circles (especially Books 4 and 7), or a fireside. Also if you are a member of Toastmasters, Rotary, or a similar group you could use the display as a visual aid for a speech. For the junior youth it could be a school “show and tell”.
We are cautioned to be process and not event driven, so the above should be activities in which you regularly participate, and are required to speak on some subject, so why not the persecution of the Faith.

For the display I purchased a red three section display board, however you could also use a large cardboard box.
Cut down the box to the correct height and remove one side. One side will form the central panel of the display and the other two can be cut to half its width. If the box is plain it may not be necessary to do anything, but it could be covered with paper or fabric to give the desired appearance, or simply painted.

Then gather suitable pictures from the internet or from magazines and newspapers, and plan the story you want to tell .
The display in this post is particularly appropriate, because here in America as we have just observed Memorial Day, where we remember those who gave their lives in service to their country. How much more appropriate is it to remember those who gave their lives for mankind. At the time I was making the display I had just finished reading a biography of General Slim who commanded the “Forgotten 14th Army “ in Burma during WWII, and was moved by the words of the Kohima memorial to the Commonwealth troops who fell in the defense of India and Burma.

“When you go home
Tell them of us, and say,
For your tomorrow
We gave our today”

Kohima Epitaph

I used that sentiment as the centre piece of the display, telling of the martyrs of the Faith from the time of the Bab to modern times.

Having mounted the picture, I got some candle images and roughly cut the display board with a craft knife. This was to represent the horror described by an Austrian officer, who’s account appears in Book 4, The life of Baha'u'llah, Section 9.
The rope and the musket balls in front of the display are to represent the martyrdom of the Bab.
I got a length of natural fiber rope frayed the ends and then using a craft knife cut or partially cut through the rope to simulate it being cut by the hundreds of musket balls. For the musket balls I used 12mm (1/2”) wooden balls. I spray painted them black and then applied a thin coat of silver to give a realistic effect.
I then cut some wooded skewers into 50mm (2”) lengths and stuck them into the top of the display board. Next I got a length of chain and spray painted it black and when dry hung it from the skewers at the top of the display. The final touch was to place candles on the protruding part of the skewers.
The chain represents the suffering of Baha'u'llah in the Siyah-Chal

I hope this has given you some ideas, and has also helped to focus your thoughts on the sacrifice of countless ordinary believers who “Gave their today for our tomorrow”.
We owe it to them to make that tomorrow count.
All men have been created to carry forward an ever-advancing civilization. (Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 214)

A Special Place

2011-05-21T01:30:00.000-07:00

This is going to be a “scenic” post.
A few weeks ago, I received a call from one of the junior youth animators asking how they could make the scene described in Lesson 9 of “Breezes of Confirmation”. Unfortunately we were out of town, but I gave him a few suggestions on how the group could recreate that special place. However due to several schedule changes the project has yet to be done; so I worked up this example.
Creating miniature scenery is something I had done quite a bit of, but had not come across an application for it in the core activities until now.
During the 90s in Scotland I ran a miniature figure painting class (Children and Youth), for the local Community Education Group. This was mostly based around the “Games Workshop“ gaming figures, which the (mainly) boys, would paint and then use to game with.
The town where I lived was called Old Meldrum (or usually just Meldrum), so we had a competition each year where they competed for the “Meldrum Wizard” trophy for the best painted figure. I would paint a different wizard for the prize each year.(Similar to the picture below.)

The story in lesson 9 is about Musonda’s special place, where she goes when she wants to be alone and think about things. It’s a beautiful place, close to a river, with a large flat rock shaded by a tall tree. Musondo likes to climb onto the rock, lie on her back and look up at the blue sky through the branches. She always feels calm and happy in her special place.
You can create your own special.

Materials
• Cereal box
• Tissue paper
• Wallpaper paste
• Paints
• Sand
• Flock
• Small stones
• A large stone
• A tree like twig
• Artificial moss
• A small bird

Method
Cut out one side of the cereal box and then bend/fold it into the shape you require. In this case I made a hollow for the river and two raised sides to form the banks.

Take some blue tissue paper, scrunch it up then paste it into the river bed. (I used wallpaper paste, but if you do not have wallpaper paste you can water-down the white glue)
Set aside to dry

Whilst you are waiting you can make the tree.
Take your twig and using white glue, fix suitable pieces of the artificial moss to the branches to form the foliage. Set tree aside to dry.

You can now select some small stones for in the river and a large one for Musondo’s rock.
If you get the stones from the garden be sure to wash them before use.

Repeat the process with green tissue paper for the banks, but do not “scrunch” the tissue up as much. Whilst the paste is still wet sprinkle the green flock liberally on the two banks.

Flock is available from model and model railway shops, and is used to represent grass on models and layouts. An alternative is to use fine sand, and paint it green (This is what was used on the wizard base). You can buy sand in the craft shops, but you can get from various other sources.
What I do with “non-packaged” sand is to spread it on a tray and bake in the oven. This achieves the purpose of both sterilizing and drying it. I then use sieves to grade the sand and to remove foreign material such as vegetable matter, and then store it in jars.
NOTE: Be sure to allow the sand to fully cool before working with it, and observe the normal precautions used with any baking activity in the kitchen.
Also be sure NOT to use the normal kitchen utensils (This for some reason seems to upset the kitchen owners).
Set aside to dry.
Once everything is dry shake off the extra flock/sand, and keep for the next project. It may be necessary to add more paste and a second application of flock.
Then make a hole in the base for the tree, (I used an awl for this purpose) and hot glue the tree in position, from the under-side. I added some sand around the base of the tree to hide the joint
Paint the river with suitable colours, and then stick the small stones, in place with white glue.
I also applied some glue along the banks and added sand. Then glue the large rock in place under the tree.
As a final touch Juliet “quilled” a yellow bird to represent the one seen by Musondo.

And now you can relax and contemplate, in your very own Special Place.

Craft and Community

2011-05-19T17:20:00.000-07:00

I am a regular listener of podcasts and a favourite is Laurie Taylor’s “Thinking Allowed”, from the BBC, where he and his guests discuss current questions relating to sociology
I just listened to an interesting on one on crafts.
Laurie and his two guests,(David Gauntlett and Richard Sennett), discuss various questions

• Does making things really make us happy?
• How does craft contribute to bringing people together?
• How do you create communities?
• What can be considered craft?

You can listen to the show at the link below.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b010mrzc

P.S. The second part of the show speaks about fox hunting, so if you have strong views you may want to stop after the craft section.

BTW: There is a Junior Youth craft posting coming soon.

Of Quilling and Queens

2011-05-07T19:01:00.000-07:00

The Quilling
I was back in California on business again, but this time Juliet came with me, to attend the North American Quilling Association 2011 Conference in Newport Beach. The conference ran through Friday and Saturday, so Juliet was able to meet with her fellow quillers and has produced this slide show of the event. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6guzC_lcNcs
I am sure you will enjoy.
Juliet is also planning a quilling project for her May craft evening, which will be featured in a later post.
For information on quilling go to the North American Quilling association web site: http://naqg.org/

The Queen
We both had Sunday free so we decided to go to Long Beach to visit the Queen Mary, prior to Juliet catching her afternoon flight. The weather was great, and we enjoyed sunshine and blue skies. When we had visited a few weeks earlier it was blowing a gale complete with torrential rain, and we just glimpsed the liner through the rain and mist.

The Queen Mary through the mist

The Queen Mary is “craft” on a massive scale. She is a product of the famous John Brown & Company of Clydebank, and is one of few surviving examples of the Scottish shipbuilding industry, that dominated the maritime world for the later part of the 19th and the first half of the 20th century.
From her elegant upper decks to her massive engines she is a shining example of the many crafts of the early 20th century shipyard.

For more information see: http://www.queenmary.com/

Juliet on the fore deck

One of the engine room instrument panels

Ready for some delicate craft

The Bridge

The Queen Mary

Long beach with the Villa Riveria in the centre

Sorry it did not get any pictures of the state and function room decor, but I guess I was more interested in the engineering stuff.

There are several more post in the works, for this month, will be back soon.

Egg Project

2011-04-26T20:02:00.000-07:00

I am finally settled back home and am able to get back to the blog.
I have been travelling for all of March and most of April, and at the same time training for the BPMS150, which I completed last weekend. It is a bike ride from Houston to Austin to raise funds for the National MS Society.

I see that there has still been interest in the site despite my absence and the lack of new material. I would like to thank everyone for your patience, and plan to remedy the problem with several new posts.
With this weekend seeing the celebration of Easter in the Christian areas of the world, I thought to borrow the idea of the egg hunt, for this post.
It is a very simple project and requires no advanced skills, and can be used for a number of the core activities or other Bahá’í events.
Material
• Hollow plastic or cardboard eggs
• Stickers
• Paper
• Ribbon

Method

First decide on the event you are going to use the eggs for, children’s class; junior youth; study circle; Ridvan; or another Holy Day, and select suitable writings. Print-out the writings so that they are a suitable size to fit inside the egg. You can alternatively write out the quotes.

Decorate the outside of the egg with stickers, or alternatively paint or decorate with markers.
Select your quote and cut to size

Take a wooden skewer or a knitting needle, and roll the quote, as shown, then remove from skewer.
It may be necessary to roll the quote more tightly, and then secure with a piece of ribbon. Tie the ribbon in a bow and trim to length.

Place your “mini scroll” inside the egg, and you are done.
Repeat the process until you have enough eggs for your purpose.

Some ideas for use:

• An egg hunt for children’s class.
• Ayyam i Ha or Ridvan gifts
• To study a prayer for Book 1
• Just to share the word of Baha u llah

Please let us know of other ideas you have.

The Light of Unity

2011-03-16T22:38:00.000-07:00

It has been a busy start to the month of March, but not for the Ruhi Crafts blog.
I am currently on the road, and as I type this, the boom! boom! of the Disney fireworks are going off in the background. I have spent most of March in Orange county, but the time is going in fast. I have an idea to create some craft projects from general, “free” junk I am collecting but inspiration has not kicked in yet. So between working and bicycle training, I stopped by the Dollar Tree and bought a few craft items.

I bought a pack of the foam frames for light switches, some hearts, and markers. I thought it would a appropriate to use the following quotation to decorate the frame.

So powerful is the light of unity that it can illuminate the whole earth. The One true God, He Who knoweth all things, Himself testifieth to the truth of these words.
(Baha'u'llah, Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 14)

As you can see from the picture my penmanship is not very good, but you can get the idea, for a quick project for a children’s class, I am sure you can improve on the decoration, with normal access to your craft box. Also if you do not have access to the pre-cut foam frames you can make your own from foam sheet, or cardboard, or poster board, or a host of other materials.
Let us know what you think and send us some of your ideas, and pictures of your finished projects.
I hope to bring you some more minimalist craft ideas, from on the road, very soon.

Ayyam i Ha Party #1

2011-02-26T06:21:00.001-08:00

Happy Ayyam i Ha to everyone

Our community had the first of two Ayyam i Ha parties last night, and Tawa and Sam laid on a tremendous spread, which was supplemented by “pot-luck” items for the rest of the guests.
We had a wonderful time with food, fellowship, fun and of course a craft.
We made the flowers from an earlier post, with the addition of a Happy Ayyam I Ha sign, which was made using a stamp purchased from “Our Town Papers” at the Bluebonnet conference. (They sold out of them very early – I wonder why?)

This was the first time we had used this craft at an event, and it proved to be just right in complexity. It is not too complex to intimidate the non-crafter, and the time required is just right to fit into a study circle. Let us know how it works out for you.
http://ruhicrafts.blogspot.com/2011/02/flowers-of-one-garden.html
Also I discovered this great idea for an Ayyam I Ha, advent style banner, check it out at:
http://ruhicrafts.blogspot.com/2011/02/flowers-of-one-garden.html
So without further ado here are the pictures.

Happy Ayyam i Ha from Tyauvin On

In case you are wondering about the tooth brush and the paper towel, I had just finished cleaning the ink off the stamp when Juliet snapped the picture.

Kerri admires the card her daughter made for her

The crafting table

Karaoke from Linda and our hostess Tawa

Linda

Mrs. Nosrat and Tahereh

The excitement was just too much for Afsaneh and Rob

The Bluebonnet Conference

2011-02-23T20:34:00.000-08:00

We are just back from the 14th annual Texas Baha'i Bluebonnet Conference, (February 18th – 20th), which featured former member of the Universal House of Justice, Mr. Hooper Dunbar, as the keynote speaker. The theme of the conference this year was “Immortality and the Human Spirit”. Details of the conference are available at,
http://bahaibluebonnet.com/joomla/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1 where you can purchase CD/DVDs from previous conferences.
I understand that this year’s conference will be available on CD/DVD for those who were unable to attend, or simply need to review this weighty subject again, so I will not detail the main program, which is outlined at the link above.
As well as the awesome program these events are always an opportunity to meet and socialize with friends old and new.

This was the first time that we publicized the Ruhi Crafts Blog, and we shared a table with Juliet’s Divine Stars. I had been travelling all week and Juliet offered to make the sign for the display. I had intended to produce an graphic, and print it out, but Juliet made this fantastic sign, incorporating crafts, crafting tools and materials, I am sure you will agree it is vastly superior to a simple printout. You will recognize a few crafts from earlier posts on the display board.

We spoke with anyone who would listen about Ruhi and the arts, and I hope have encouraged folks to contribute, or at lease participate in discussion. We handed out cards and hope to see an increase in collaboration in the next few months.
As well as the wonderful talks and the evening’s entertainment, there were a number of vendors many of whom were artists or craftsmen.

We were beside old friends Marie and Dan Caldwell’s, “My Town Papers “ table.

Visit their site at: http://www.blogger.com/www.mytownpapers.com for a great selection of stickers, innovative photo albums and just a score of great “scrapbooking type” materials for both Bahá’í and general purposes.

Our old friends the Nossas were also there with a table selling Jorge’s beautiful jewelry, which you can find on Etsy.
http://www.etsy.com/shop/NossaJewelry?section_id=6962420
It was wonderful to spend time with them. Susan had introduced us to the institute process, and the Ruhi Craft blog owes much to Susan’s love and encouragement, as we went through the sequence of courses. Susan commented on the display, that this had grown from the single mind-map I had made during our Book 2 study circle. So it just shows what can come from the nurturing atmosphere of the study circle. Their son Pablo, who was also there with his wife Bita, was the ONLY tutor for our oldest son.
I bought Juliet this lovely ring symbol necklace.

Next to the Nossas was Sabrina Laumer’s display of arts, ranging from paintings, tile magnets, to prayer beads. You can see more of her work at
http://www.breatheart.net/main.php

Or http://www.sabrinalaumer.com/

We had met the wife and husband team, Gigi Alford and Anis Mungapen, who created the book “Hasten Forth”, when we attended the Louisiana Bahá’í School, and it was a pleasure to meet Gigi again at the Bluebonnet Conference.
http://hastenforth.com/
At first glance this is another pretty coffee table book, but one soon realizes it is much, much more than that. The first clue is the fact that the Forward is written by Mr. Kiser Barnes, but as one progresses through the book the blend of pictures and quotations from the Bahá’í writings tell the story of the Faith and the lives of the central figures.
The idea of the book is to stimulate discussion and interest in the core activities, as an aid to teaching, and a call to action. It’s a superb example of harnessing the creative spirit.

Here is what the creators say:

“All Art is a gift of the Holy Spirit,” are the worlds of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, son of the Prophet-Founder of the Bahá’í Faith, Bahá’u’lláh. He describes the station of the arts in the youngest of the great world religions. “These gifts are fulfilling their highest purpose, when showing forth the praise of God.”
Showing forth God’s praise was the motivation to undertake this project. The creators of the book hope that the pages herein may provide, in their own small way, not merely a narrative, but also meditation; not only a companion for exploring the teachings of the Bahá’í Faith, but actually inspire and incite to action.

Well that is it from an action packed Bluebonnet conference, I hope this post has given those who were unable to be there a flavour of the event, and acts as a pleasant reminder for those who were. Also I hope it helps stimulate the artist in you to get involved.
Remember you will be able to buy CD/DVDs of the conference, and if you can, please support the artists.

Featherston Bahá'í Children's Class

2011-02-21T19:29:00.000-08:00

We were off to the Bluebonnet conference this weekend and will provide a report in the next post.

However I wanted to share a post from a childrens class blog, in New Zealand, which I read this weekend. The subject is the same as an earlier post on this blog but it just shows the infinite variety of ways we can use the arts to illustrate a virtue or a quote.

It is wonderful to share ideas and to see how things are done on the other side of the world. But also to see how similar we all are and how we are striving for the same ends

Great job Leyla.

http://bahaichildrensclass.wordpress.com/2011/02/20/lesson-2-have-a-pure-kind-and-radiant-heart/

NOTE: The general link to this blog is on the right hand column.

Art + Soul

2011-02-16T22:50:00.000-08:00

“All Art is a gift of the Holy Spirit” (See full quotation on side panel), is unsurprising in a Bahá’í context, but imagine my surprise when reading the current issue of PMI Network, (a publication of the Project Management Institute), I saw an article entitled “Art + Soul”.
This was a piece by Emily Wray about the “Children’s Art Village”, a charity founded by Ms. Mai Q. Lai, in 2007.
The Children’s Art Village supports art & music programs in Ghana and India which currently reach over 2,000 children. The organization works in collaboration with local schools to provide children, who are suffering from trauma and abandonment, access to art and music programs, with the aim to facilitate healing and a return them to normal childhood things. The mission statement on their website succinctly defines their aims.
MISSION STATEMENT: At the Children's Art Village our vision is to connect children to themselves and to their creative spirits through art. Our focus is to use art & music as mediums of expression to initiate the process of healing for children who have been abandoned. We promote and support creating and maintaining sustainable art & music programs in each of the different locations around the world where we work.
For more details visit the website at:
http://www.childrensartvillage.org/events.html
As I was preparing this post a friend Neyssan Moshref posted a link to a 2006 TED talk given by Ken Robinson, arguing that schools are killing creativity by suppressing the arts, and relegating them to a subsidiary role.
You can listen to the talk at:
http://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity.html

It is refreshing to see these examples of the use of the arts, and the positive effects possible for both the individual and society.
So please let’s follow the guidance and increase the core activities and their artistic elements. Please contact us if you want some ideas or to share what you are doing.

Possess a pure, kindly and radiant heart...

2011-02-13T15:01:00.000-08:00

Here is a simple craft for Valentine’s Day, based on the following Hidden Word

My first counsel is this: Possess a pure, kindly and radiant heart, that thine may be a sovereignty ancient, imperishable and everlasting.
(Baha'u'llah, The Arabic Hidden Words)

The basic heart box is made by printing the template courtesy of the “Craftideas 4Kids site”

http://www.craftideas4kids.com/valentine-heart-box/
• Cut out the template
• Fold along the dotted line
• Glue where indicated
• And there you have a “heart box”

An alternative is to use the cereal box heart from the Ruhi Craft post on December 29th 2010.
http://ruhicrafts.blogspot.com/2010/12/plant-naught-but-rose-of-love.html
Decorate the heart to suit
Create or use the following two pictures and cut out the “Pure - Kindly - and Radiant shapes, and place them inside the heart.

Now that we possess a PURE KINDLY and RADIANT heart, all we need to do is live up to it.

Happy Valentine’s Day

The Flowers of One Garden

2011-02-07T20:58:00.000-08:00

The idea for this post started with a flower project by Amanda Formaro on the website below.
The construction details are include on the site so I will not repeat them.
http://www.familycorner.com/family/kids/crafts/heart-flowers.shtml
Thank you Amanda for the inspiration.
I made some templates for the petals and leaves, but they were only half hearted. :) :)

I made the petals and leaves from marbled construction paper, cut into 80mm strips and then folded it in half. I then assembled as per the website and added, an extra touch with a heart and two small pom-poms.

This in itself can be a project for a children’s class with each child making a flower. (We did have this scheduled for last Sunday’s class but it had to be postponed due to illness.)

But Wait! There's More!
I was about to throw out an empty tissue box when I had the idea to make a garden, or at least a window box.

Method
• Take the box and using wallpaper paste cover it with tissue paper

• Cut the tissue paper out of the opening leaving approximately a 4mm overlap.
• Cut a piece of card slightly larger than the hole

• I covered it with brown marbled construction paper to simulate soil
• Cut three slots slightly smaller than the flower stems (Craft sticks)

• Push the stems though about 5mm and hot glue in place

• Stuff the box with scrunched-up newspaper (or similar) to fill the space
• Slide the soil and flowers into the hole in the box and position. (Be gentle – I was too rough and damaged the box and had to do some repair work)
• Decorate box to suit and add an appropriate quote

NOTE: The right hand flower has a stem cut from cardboard; so if you do not have craft sticks, use cardboard.

This is probably more suitable for junior youth, but you could make a “box garden” to display the flowers from a children’s class. Or with Valentine’s Day the flowers would be a great gift for Moms. (Or Mums).

OK! So there you have a cheap and cheerful project for you classes – give it a go, and please let us have some feedback – did this work for you and what additions did you figure out.

Another HEART project coming for Valentine’s Day.

Of Pearls, Gems, and Shells

2011-02-03T19:01:00.000-08:00

In this post I want to share another craft from the recent Book 8, however this craft is also ideal for children’s classes and other study circles.

Materials
• Large Craft Sticks (Wooden tongue depressors)
• Shells
• Glass Gems
• Imitation pearls
• Magnets
• Quotes
• Stickers
• White glue
• Glue Sticks
Print the chosen quotations, on a sheet of paper, make the size and layout to suit the size of tongue depressor you have. You can also write the quotes on with markers.
In this case we used the following for the Book 8 craft:
"The rise and establishment of this Administrative Order - the shell that shields and enshrines so precious a gem - constitutes the hall-mark of this second and formative age of the Bahá'í era.
(Shoghi Effendi, Extracts from the USBN)

For the children’s class we used:
O God! These children are pearls, cause them to be nurtured within the shell of Thy loving-kindness.
(Compilations, Baha'i Prayers, p. 35)

Aigerim and Quddus

Method

• Take the craft stick, cut the quotation to size, and using the glue stick mount it in place.
• Select a shell and using the white glue mount on the end of the craft stick.
• Select a gem or pearl and glue inside the shell.
• Decorate with stickers or crayons as desired.
• Using the rubber cement glue a suitable magnet to the back of the completed project.
• Set aside to allow the glue to set.

We're Done - Juliet and Aigerim

Gab didn’t exactly follow instructions, but his little man was great fun

Frugal Finds.

• If you are looking for ways to keep down the costs, you can cut-out the “craft sticks from cardboard. You can get a lot from a cereal box. (The Cereal crafter strikes again)
• If you live near the beach you can collect the shells. Indeed this would be a great outing for your class/study circle.

Aberdeen Beach

• In many places companies hand out fridge magnets to advertise their product or company. These are free and can be cut up and used for this and other projects.

Deepening on "The December 28th 2010 Message".

2011-01-30T19:28:00.000-08:00

Some members of our community met today to study The December 28th 2010 Letter from the Universal House of Justice.

It was a wonderful to share and learn together, we also had a chance to briefly listen to a section of the recently released audio from Hear the Writings (See last post).

Thanks to Kerri and Cai for opening their home and for an excellent lunch.

Kerri, Samy and Tawa

James and Musatye

Hear the Writings

The December 28th 2010 Message.

2011-01-28T20:35:00.000-08:00

Once again the folks at Hear the Writings are offering a wonderful study aid. They have just released “The December 28th 2010 Message to the Conference of the Continental Boards of Counsellors” , by The Universal House of Justice.
You can download it for the price of a “Tweet”, or a mention on Facebook, or you can buy it on compact disc, (Which entitles you to an immediate free download in your preferred format to suit your player).
This adds to their growing collection which also includes:

• The 2010 Ridván Message
• The Advent of Divine Justice

As always the quality is excellent.
This is a wonderful way to share the messages, or for personal reflection and study. Our community is gathering to study the letter this weekend and I plan to go "armed" with my iPod.
As I said above you can download the two messages for a “Tweet”, so there is no question of being limited because of inability to pay. However, if you can afford to purchase the discs or CDs please do so and support this service.
Thanks once again to the folks at: http://hearthewritings.com/

Robert Burns

2011-01-21T21:41:00.000-08:00

For this post I want to talk about another art-form, namely poetry and I am going to unashamedly wrap myself in tartan (plaid for Americans), because January 25th is the birthday of Robert Burns, Scotland’s national poet.
He was born in Alloway in 1759 and died in Dumfries in 1796 at the age of 37.
In that short life he not only wrote poetry in Scots and English but he gathered and preserved traditional songs and ballads, the most well known being “Auld Lang Syne”.
As Scots continued to spread throughout the world they took with them many of the egalitarian ideas expressed in his works, and set-up societies to commemorate his life and works, until his name and fame encompassed the globe. What would he have thought of the fact that at the height of the cold war his birthday was celebrated both here in the USA, and in the Soviet Union, with both sides thinking they embodied his egalitarian ideals.

But what of his works?

For many one of the great love songs is, “My love like a red, red rose”, which is a traditional Scots songs preserved by Burns.
This is for Juliet

"My Love is Like a Red, Red Rose"

O my Luve's like a red, red rose
That’s newly sprung in June;
O my Luve's like the melodie
That’s sweetly play'd in tune.

As fair art thou, my bonnie lass,
So deep in luve am I:
And I will luve thee still, my dear,
Till a’ the seas gang dry:

Till a’ the seas gang dry, my dear,
And the rocks melt wi’ the sun:
I will luve thee still, my dear,
While the sands o’ life shall run.

And fare thee weel, my only Luve
And fare thee weel, a while!
And I will come again, my Luve,
Tho’ it were ten thousand mile.

In the narrative poem “Tam o' Shanter”, Burns tells a cautionary tale of intemperance and other social ills. However, it has to be said that he was not exactly an example of moral rectitude, and had an over fondness for a “wee dram”, and the ladies, but he may have been acknowledging his earlier faults

The poem is written in a blend of Scots and English, and for me one of the English verses is a most beautiful expression of how fleeting life is.

But pleasures are like poppies spread,
You seize the flow'r, its bloom is shed;
Or like the snow falls in the river,
A moment white-then melts for ever;
Or like the Borealis race,
That flit ere you can point their place;
Or like the Rainbow's lovely form
Evanishing amid the storm. -
Nae man can tether Time nor Tide,
The hour approaches Tam maun ride;

Many familiar phrases have their origin in the works of Burns, for example we have all heard of:

Man's inhumanity to man
Makes countless thousands mourn!

Or, the warning that:

The best-laid schemes o’ mice an’ men
Gang aft agley,
An’ lea’e us nought but grief an’ pain,
For promis’d joy!

Or, bringing ourselves to account:

O wad some Pow’r the giftie gie us
To see oursels as others see us!
It wad frae mony a blunder free us,
An’ foolish notion:

But what right thinking person would not be moved by the final verse of “A Man’s a Man for A’ That”.

Then let us pray that come it may,
(As come it will for a’ that,)
That Sense and Worth, o’er a’ the earth,
Shall bear the gree, an’ a’ that.
For a’ that, an’ a’ that,
It’s coming yet for a’ that,
That Man to Man, the world o’er,
Shall brothers be for a’ that.

If you would like to learn more about Burns and his work go to the “Burns’ Country”
http://www.robertburns.org/
A recent article on the BBC announces a new iPhone app, with the complete works of Robert Burns
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-12239352

The Shield of His Covenant

2011-01-19T10:27:00.000-08:00

Juliet and I had the bounty of being invited to attend a study of Ruhi Book 8 at the home of Rhea and Jeff Kester.(More about their incredible home in a later post) We had a fantastic time and were privileged to share some crafting ideas, with a great group of people.

Aniela, one of our tutors had asked if we could come-up with a craft project based on the idea of a shield, as used by Abdul Baha in the opening sentence of his Will and Testament

“All-praise to Him Who, by the Shield of His Covenant, hath guarded the Temple of His Cause from the darts of doubtfulness, ……….”

So! The task given our fellow participants was to make a shield, and like medieval knights, decorate it with a coat of arms, representing what they individually understood by, “The Covenant”.

Materials:
• Poster board, cardboard, or like material to make the shield.
• Various stickers
• Gems
• Quotes
• Markers
• Pencils
• Rulers
• Scissors
• Glue Sticks
• White or school glue
• Sheets of paper
• Any other decorative “stuff” you have available

I also made some shield templates from cereal boxes, (or you can use the cardboard from the boxes as the actual shield). When I was cutting them out Juliet quipped, “Now you can tell everyone you are a cereal crafter” – Bom! Bom!

As you will see from the picture there was a lot of talent on display, some people used the templates others custom made their shields. (Azi and Alek made large ones and Azi even “rigged” hers’ so that she could carry it on her back.

After the shields were made and decorated we came together again in the main room and everyone explained their design.

All-praise to Him Who, by the Shield of His Covenant, hath guarded the Temple of His Cause from the darts of doubtfulness, Who by the Hosts of His Testament hath preserved the Sanctuary of His Most Beneficent Law and protected His Straight and Luminous Path, staying thereby the onslaught of the company of Covenant-breakers, that have threatened to subvert His Divine Edifice; Who hath watched over His Mighty Stronghold and All-glorious Faith, through the aid of men whom the slander of the slanderer affects not, whom no earthly calling, glory and power can turn aside from the Covenant of God and His Testament, established firmly by His clear and manifest words, writ and revealed by His All-glorious Pen and recorded in the Preserved Tablet.

(Abdu'l-Baha, Baha'i World Faith - Abdu'l-Baha Section, p. 438)

Rotating Booklet

2011-01-14T06:02:00.000-08:00

This week finds me on the road, so am taking the opportunity to get a post done in the evening, before I return home tomorrow. We have a busy weekend ahead, in San Marcos, where we will be attending a Ruhi Book 8 study circle. Juliet and I have been preparing some craft activities, and hope to bring you news of them in later posts.

However this post returns to an old standby of ours, the rotating booklets.
This is one we used at the Texas Bahá’í School and the CIC gathering in 2009,
(See Post http://ruhicrafts.blogspot.com/2009/09/busy-times.html), and just the other week at the Louisiana Bahá’í School. This is great if you have a large number of people, and is also as simple or complicated as the abilities of the participants. (Everyone can at least add a quote and some stickers)
Materials:
• Paper A4 or standard letter (in various colours)
• Card stock in the same sizes
• String or yarn
• Grease-proof paper (Cut slightly larger than the finished booklet size)
• Glue Stick
• White or school glue
• Quotes (To Suit)
• Stickers
• Pictures
• Leaves
• Stencils
• In fact any suitable materials you have in your craft supplies

Preparation:
The idea is to choose the theme for the project for example “All art is a gift of the Holy Spirit”, and print a selection of relevant writings.
Make the required number of booklets.
These are made by:
• Cutting, standard letter, or A4 paper in half (use several different colours)
• Fold in half to form a double page
• Do the same with some card stock to form the covers
• Assemble the booklets with about 8 to 10 pages (Or to suit your group size)
• Using and awl drill two holes in the spine
• Tie the booklet together using string
Gather various materials such as, stickers, leaves pictures etc, with which to decorate the booklets.

On the Day:
• Form the participants into groups of 8-10 (If you have a large group)
• Distribute the booklets, and explain that each person should decorate the cover to their taste, using the materials and quotes available. (allow about 8-10 minutes for them to decorate)
• They will then pass the booklet to the person on their right (Or left if you prefer) who will take 8-10 minutes to decorate the next page. (This is where the grease-proof paper comes in; if the decorated page still has wet glue, ink, paint etc. , inset it to prevent the pages sticking together)
• Repeat this process until the book returns to the owner. (Each person can add their name to the page they make)

This activity is a great ice breaker for an intensive study circle or Bahá’í School, and you can extend the times if you want to increase the social interaction element.
Try it out and give us some feedback, or send pictures

More coming soon

Ruhi Craft: A Review of 2010

2011-01-08T20:07:00.000-08:00

Now that most of us have returned home, or the relatives have departed, and we are getting back to the normal routine, I thought it would be good to review “Ruhi Craft 2010”.
This was the first full year of the blog; so how did we do? Well we started well, faded almost to nothing in mid-year, then finished strongly. Looking at the chart below one thing is very obvious; fewer posts = less traffic.
So this year’s resolution is a “no-brainer” - Post much more frequently.
This is where the current readers can help. The blog was always intended as a collaborative project, where numerous people would provide material for posts, as well as making comments and suggestions on them. So if you have any ideas for a post, requests or comments please contact us. Also can you please “follow the blog” (see section in the right hand side panel), tell your friends about it, and if you have a website can you link to Ruhi Crafts.
Below is a summary of the year, with links to the posts, and the relevant core activity highlighted.
Since a blog is not the easiest form to find things in I have created sections listing the core activities, containing links to the relevant posts, in the right hand panel.
January
The year started with a Junior Youth project in Seabrook
http://ruhicrafts.blogspot.com/2010/01/porcupine-light_4803.html
February
In February Sandra Larkin Douglas shared the secrets of her “coffee filter” flowers, that the Children could make for Ayyam i Ha.
http://ruhicrafts.blogspot.com/2010/02/coffee-filter-flowers-by-sandra-larkin.html
March
We goofed-off a bit in March, but Shelly Julian’s, “Brilliant Stars” project for Children came to the rescue.
http://ruhicrafts.blogspot.com/2010/03/long-break.html
April/May
Ruhi Crafts was “posted missing” through April and May, but we did have the bounty of visiting our youngest son Alek who was serving in Haifa. Some pictures from the trip illustrated a December post on Symmetry.

http://ruhicrafts.blogspot.com/2010/12/symmetry.html
June
June brought a report on an awesome craft shop we visited, in Scotland, on our way to Haifa. http://ruhicrafts.blogspot.com/2010/06/letham-crafts.html
July/August
In July and August we were also AWOL. That must have been because we were training for the “Tour de Pink”, with Team Bahá’ícyclists. (Well that is our excuse – Honest!!)
September
September saw us back in harness with a floral arrangement project which would be ideal for Junior Youth
http://ruhicrafts.blogspot.com/2010/09/floral-arrangement.html
October
Oh! Yeh! Well! – It just slipped by
November
A Story Book project for Book 2 or 4
http://ruhicrafts.blogspot.com/2010/11/story-book.html
December
We ended the year by, planting naught but the rose of love in the garden of our hearts.
A project suitable for many different events. (All Core Activities)
http://ruhicrafts.blogspot.com/2010/12/plant-naught-but-rose-of-love.html

The Games People Play

2011-01-05T20:26:00.001-08:00

One time at the Louisiana Bahá’í School, we played a great “quote” game, that was provided and organized by Wandra White, and Dionne Lombard. (Pictured on the right)
This is a very simple game and does not require a lot materials or preparation, and is a great “ice-breaker”.
Pick a selection of quotes from the writing that are relevant to your event, and the number of participants.
Break the quote down into several sections
Print or write the sections on to standard 5” X 3” index cards (or use cardstock and then cut up)
On the first section of the quote write or print the number of sections in the quote.
Place all the cards in a basket or box.
Pass the basket round and each participant selects one card.

Call out those with the numbered cards

The other participant will then match their section to numbered first sections until all the quotes are completed.

The group I was in had a 13 section quote, which was giving us some trouble until someone reached for his “smart phone”. As you can see from the pictures great fun was had by all, but there was also the serious side of studying the writings.

This game will no doubt work better with a larger group but for smaller groups you can keep the section quantity down to 4 or 5.

Thank you Wandra and Dionne for a wonderful game and thanks again to Alek for the pictures

Louisiana Cypress Bahá’í School: 2010.

2011-01-02T20:27:00.001-08:00

Happy New Year to all our readers.
The first post of the new Gregorian year is the report on our wonderful trip to the 2010 Louisiana Bahá’í school, at Bogue Chitto State Park.
Juliet and I drove there from Houston with our youngest son Alek and his friend Azi.

We had a fantastic time, and were able to renew our friendship with Diane and Kenny Broussard, as well as meeting many new friends from Louisiana and surrounding states. It was the best conference I have attended, although also the smallest, the warm and loving Louisiana Bahá’ís, just welcomed all the visitors and made everyone feel totally at home.
The committee had organized a great program for all ages.
For the adults it was a study of “Revelation & Social Reality. Learning to Translate What is Written into Reality”, lead by Aghdas & Timothy Alford.
Also thanks to the efforts of many volunteers there were programs for the youth, junior youth, and children.

Karaoke Kenny

Juliet and I had the opportunity to share two craft projects over the weekend (details of these in later posts), and throughout many contributed their musical talents, to the Devotionals. The” talent evening”, saw, singing, dancing, gymnastics and even a soccer demonstration.

We were also able to buy a copy of a new photo book, “Hasten Forth”, by Gigi Alford and her husband Anis Mungapen. There will be a review of the book in a later post.
I cannot end without mentioning Paul who led the effort in the kitchen and ensured that everyone was more than adequately fed all weekend, including a traditional New Year’s Day Lunch. (Despite being under the weather).
As is always the case it is not possible to be everywhere or to acknowledge everyone specifically, but I cannot speak highly enough about the committee, all the volunteers, and community members who made this such a memorable event.
If you live in the South Central Region, you should consider this school for next year.
For more updates see:
http://www.lacypressbahaischool.org/

Louisiana Cypress Bahá’í School: 2010.

Thanks to Alek Timmons for the photographs, I believe a larger selection will be posted on the school's web site in the near future.

Plant naught but the rose of Love

2010-12-29T21:00:00.001-08:00

This is a bargain post because you get several projects in one.
But first I would like to share a quote from, Plutarch.
“The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be kindled”
Since we are all striving to build communities through the institute process it seem very appropriate to reflect on it.

The Heart
The first project uses a cereal box, some tissue paper, and three tissue flowers which form the second part of this post. It is based in part on the following quotation.

O FRIEND!
In the garden of thy heart plant naught but the rose of love, and from the nightingale of affection and desire loosen not thy hold. Treasure the companionship of the righteous and eschew all fellowship with the ungodly.
(Baha'u'llah, The Persian Hidden Words)

Collect some cereal boxes.

I used the upper part of the box to make a heart template, the size of the template will depend on the boxes you have available. If you have large boxes or wish to make small hearts you may want to make two hearts from each base

Place the template in the corner of the box and draw round it, repeating the process on the other side, then cut out your heart.

I painted the heart with red acrylic paint (This required multiple coats). But it would be quicker to cover the heart with construction paper, or paste red tissue paper over it. However decoration can be as simple or elaborate as you wish or meets needs of the group. Then add the quote of your choice.

I used a hot glue gun to secure the flower stems to the inside of the heart, and the filled the space with ”scrunched-up” green tissue, then arranged the flowers. It may be simpler just to hold the flowers in place with the green tissue paper.

---------------------------------------

The Flowers
All that is required for this project are some pipe cleaners, and sheets of different coloured tissue paper.

Sequence 1

Select two sheets of different coloured tissue paper:

• Fold them in half
• And again
• And finally a third time

Sequence 2

• Draw a circle on the folded paper
• Cut out the circle
• Mark two holes (approx 3 fingers apart) in the middle of the circle
• “Punch” holes through all the layers with scissors or an awl

Sequence 3

• Fold a pipe cleaner in half
• Feed the tissue petals onto it
• When all are threaded – pull sharply on the pipe cleaner pushing the petals upwards
• Twist pipe cleaner together

Sequence 4

• “Scrunch-up” the first petal
• Repeat with all the petals until you have achieved the desired shape

These flowers can be used for a multitude of activities, and can be made in different sizes to suit your needs.
There are many references in the Writings regarding flowers, so they can be used for children’s classes, study circles, or a decoration for a devotional.
Juliet made a huge number of them and placed them in baskets to decorate the stage for the 2009 Texas Bahá’í school.

2010 Ridvan Message @ Hearthewritings.com

2010-12-28T22:48:00.000-08:00

As I was planning a post, I noticed that http://hearthewritings.com/ are offering a FREE audio download of the “2010 Ridvan Message”.
All you need to do is share the link on Twitter or Facebook.

Check it out at: http://hearthewritings.com/

I have just downloaded my copy, and plan to listen to it on the drive to the Louisiana Bahá’í School later this week. I also intend to post again before we leave and hope to report on our craft activates at the school.

More crafts later

All from the Same Dust

2010-12-11T20:09:00.000-08:00

"An actor mentioned the drama, and its influence. "The drama is of the utmost importance." said 'Abdu'l-Bahá. "It has been a great educational power in the past; it will be so again." He described how as a young boy he witnessed the Mystery Play of 'Ali's Betrayal and Passion, and how it affected him so deeply that he wept and could not sleep for many nights."
(Published in "'Abdu'l-Bahá in London: Addresses and Notes of Conversations"
(Oakham: Bahá'í Publishing Trust, 1987), p. 93) [22]
(Compilations, The Importance of the Arts in Promoting the Faith)

Reading Abdu'l-Bahá's comment made me think of our good friend Michael Costello who is currently working to put together a short film project called; "All from the Same Dust"

Synopsis:
An African-American woman and her white father-in-law confront the hatred, mistrust, and pain that separates them when her husband dies unexpectedly.
Though race relations have improved since the time of Martin Luther King, Jr. and the civil rights movement, racism has not been eradicated, it remains in many forms, often just below the surface, hidden in the shadows of deceit, undermining any true possibility for healing, equality, and unity. The film not only addresses the racial divide between blacks and whites in America, it also speaks to the pervasive bigotry and intolerance seen between cultures, nations, religions, tribes, and races throughout the world. Until we come together as one human race, we will never achieve the peace on earth we all long to experience. The producers believe All from the Same Dust will contribute to the larger dialogue for understanding, healing, and reconciliation.

You can find more detail by following the link below, and learn how you can assist in bringing this wonderful project to fruition.
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=181124485231626

Shooting is scheduled to start early in 2011, and the film will be released later in the year.
This I believe will be a great tool to spark dialogue in various "core activities".
Details of the release along with a review will be published on this blog as soon as available.

Angela Rawna and Michael Costello

Symmetry

2010-12-10T18:40:00.000-08:00

This post I would like to share another quotation on, "The Importance of the Arts in Promoting the Faith". This one is from the booklet of the same name.
The pictures are all from the terraces, some are breathtaking whilst others are the less obvious "fine detail", but all are examples of beauty and symmetry. (Even the drain cover).

It is natural for the heart and spirit to take pleasure and enjoyment in all things that show forth symmetry, harmony, and perfection. For instance: a beautiful house, a well designed garden, a symmetrical line, a graceful motion, a well written book, pleasing garments -- in fact, all things that have in themselves grace or beauty are pleasing to the heart and spirit -- therefore, it is most certain that a true voice causes deep pleasure.

('Abdu'l-Bahá's words to Mrs. Mary L. Lucas, as quoted in "A Brief Account of My Visit to Acca" (Chicago: Bahá'í Publishing Society, 1905), pp. 11-14) [24]

Story Book

2010-11-30T19:01:00.000-08:00

The recent commemoration of several Holy days, brought to mind an old project with several applications.
It was originally envisioned as a home visit booklet project for Book 2, but can also be used for Holy day gifts.

Detailed instructions can be found on Ruhi Resources.
http://www.ruhiresources.org/news/2006/04/25/book-2-activities/practices-booklet-project/

The example shown here has a set of story cards detailing the life of Baha'u'llah, which can be used for both Books 2 and 4 as well for the Birth of Baha'u'llah celebration.

The Booklet with the story cards

A close-up of the cards

So why not make your own story book and a home visit.
Plan to post again soon and would welcome any ideas or stories you may have.

"All Art is a gift of the Holy Spirit."

2010-11-20T06:54:00.000-08:00

Another of the occasional quotations on the importance of the Arts to the institute process.

"All Art is a gift of the Holy Spirit. When this light shines through the mind of a musician, it manifests itself in beautiful harmonies. Again, shining through the mind of a poet, it is seen in fine poetry and poetic prose. When the Light of the Sun of Truth inspires the mind of a painter, he produces marvellous pictures. These gifts are fulfilling their highest purpose, when showing forth the praise of God."
(Compilations, The Importance of the Arts in Promoting the Faith)

Hieroglyphics

2010-11-15T20:04:00.000-08:00

Our community has just started a children’s class with a Book 3 Study circle running in conjunction for the parents.
This weekend both had memorization exercises, and I resorted to what Juliet calls my cave paintings, although now that I am using clipart they have been elevated to Hieroglyphics.
So without further ado here you go.

From Lesson 4

From Book 3

Let me know if they work for you, or if you have any ideas.
I am working on a few posts but I hope this keeps things going.

More soon

Citizens Of The World

2010-09-18T13:45:00.000-07:00

A Great music video posted by Cheng Lin on Facebook
Check it out

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=1558775854712&ref=mf

From the Ridvan Message of 2001

2010-09-16T06:55:00.000-07:00

Have decided to start including examples of the guidence relating to the arts and the advancement of the Institute process.
This first is from the 2001 Ridvan message:

"Throughout the endeavour, periodic meetings of consultation in the area need to reflect on issues, consider adjustments, and maintain enthusiasm and unity of thought. The best approach is to formulate plans for a few months at a time, beginning with one or two lines of action and gradually growing in complexity. Those who are actively involved in the implementation of plans, whether members of the institutions or not, should be encouraged to participate fully in the consultations. Other area-wide gatherings will also be necessary. Some of these will provide opportunity for the sharing of experience and further training. Others will focus on the use of the arts and the enrichment of culture. Together, such gatherings will support an intense process of action, consultation and learning."

(The Universal House of Justice, Ridvan 158, 2001 01 09, to the Conference of the Continental)

Monsters from the Id

2010-09-08T20:22:00.000-07:00

Last night Juliet hosted her monthly craft night, and the project was "Stuffed Monsters". I do not intend to describe the method but simply want to share the wonderful evening we had indulging our imagination in creating our monster.

Mine was a hairy haggis (see the last picture).

I will continue to report on the craft meetings and let you share in Juliet's latest project.

I hope you enjoy the pictures as much as we enjoyed taking part.

Juliet's sweat-shop

Simone

Juliet and Gwen

Alek, Jennifer and Andie

Andie

Jennifer

The finished monsters

Monster and Hairy Haggis

Floral Arrangement

2010-09-06T20:51:00.000-07:00

It’s labour day weekend and the schools are back so thought it was time for another project.
This is a very simple and inexpensive project, with plenty of scope for improvisation, that Juliet found whilst “surfing “ craft sites.

 Gather a number of cardboard tubes

(The kind on the inside of kitchen towels or toilet tissue)
 Press them flat and mark them off in ½” (12mm) increments
 Cut the tube into strips (these will form your petals)

 Take 5 sections and glue then together to form a flower

 Arrange your flowers

 This is the point where you can get really creative, we decided to use acrylic paint to colour the flowers, but you could use crayons or pencils or let your imagination run riot.
 When the paint is dry assemble your floral arrangement.
(This is one disadvantage of painting)

 We chose to use glitter glue to decorate the edges of the petals.

 And here is the final arrangement.

Here are some thoughts for variations:

o Use the small gems, or felt circles, or mini pompoms for the centres
o Use pipe cleaners for stems
o Use a different size tube for petals
o Use them as part of a picture story

Anyway if you have some ideas please share them, this is what the blog is about – participation and sharing our passion for crafts and the Institute process.
Looking forward to hearing and seeing all your ideas

Weaving activities for young children

2010-07-10T14:02:00.000-07:00

There are lots of ideas and talent out there, here is an interesting blog post, from Australia.
http://progressiveearlychildhoodeducation.blogspot.com/2010/07/weaving-activities-for-young-children.html

Thank you Jenny.

Quilling 101

2010-06-27T10:55:00.000-07:00

Juliet is an ardent "quiller", and she just posted this link on Twitter to a Quilling 101 article on Craftzine:

http://craftzine.com/101/quilling/

For more samples of Juliet's work go to:

http://web.me.com/donendusted/Divine_Stars/Divine_Stars_Paper_Filigree.html

Letham Crafts

2010-06-21T21:35:00.000-07:00

Where have all the postings gone?
Long time coming
Where have all the postings gone?
Long time ago………………………

I am no doubt showing my age by paraphrasing that old song, but it has been a while –Again I hear you say!!
Anyway we have had quite a bit going on since the last post.
I completed the BPMS150 Houston to Austin ride for MS, in April, and then did a bit of travelling. A few weeks ago Juliet, Tye and I were fortunate to be able to visit our younger son who is currently serving in Haifa,. We were able to visit the Shrines and various other sites in Israel, and had a wonderful visit with Alek.
The picture is of a craft project, which hangs in the apartment he shares with several other volunteers.

So these are the excuses, but what does that have to do with crafts?
Well on the way to Haifa we stopped in Scotland to visit my parents and two sons.

Unfortunately our timing was bad and my mother was traveling but when we visited my father in Forfar we also had the opportunity to visit a unique craft shop.
We took a series of pictures because it is impossible to describe, it has a vast selection of – well just about everything crafty. If you imagine a Hobby Lobby compressed into a regular house you have some idea of the “treasure trove” that awaits the crafter. It is not located in a city or large town but in the picturesque Angus village of Letham.
See their web site for location details
http://www.lethamcrafts.com/index.php?pag=home

If you are ever in NE Scotland I would recommend you pay them a visit.
This may be the point to issue a “financial health warning” to non-crafting spouses;
It would be wise to take control of the credit cards before turning your spouse loose in this Crafting Aladdin’s Cave.
I will not attempt to describe the shop in detail, but will just let the pictures do the talking.

My Dad and Tye

Juliet with her purchases

Long Break

2010-03-25T18:29:00.000-07:00

Things have been a bit hectic, I had a rather pressing “craft project" at work which kept me occupied for the last couple of weeks, so I have not been able to post. (See below)
I have not even able to get my cycle training in. But I am now back training and blogging.
Juliet conducted her monthly craft class and we had a house full of gals and guys, to try their hand at book binding. (More of that in a later post)

For this post we have another wonderful project from Shelly Julian, for Lesson 1 of Book 3.

"O God guide me. Protect me.
Make of me a shining lamp and a brilliant star.
Thou art the Mighty and the Powerful."

We made very brilliant stars!

Supplies:

• Pad of glitter paper (Wal-Mart - scrap booking section - this pad of paper had enough sheets for 3 different projects.)
• Print-outs with prayer on card stock
• 9 pointed star templates / stencils
• Glitter glue / paint
• Shiny, glittery star stickers
• Stapler
• Double-sided sticky tape
• Round magnets w/ adhesive on one side (Peel the paper off the back like a sticker - Wal-Mart sells large packs of these, and one pack will last for many projects.)

This craft is so fun because the results are spectacular. The children in our class are young (ages 5-11), so we traced two sizes of 9 pointed stars, and cut them out ahead of time. If you have older students, and more time, you could provide the stencils, pencils, glitter paper, and scissors and let the students trace and cut out the stars. We provided the stars, double-sided sticky tape, glitter glue, and stickers, and our students assembled their creations. When they were done, we stapled the prayer to the bottom of each star, and placed one or two adhesive magnets to the back, so that the stars could hang on the refrigerator.

Planning to post again soon

Tao of Craft

2010-03-02T09:36:00.000-08:00

Please take a look at Carrie Fidance's Tao of Craft blog.
There are lots of great ideas for your Bahá’í activities.
http://www.taoofcraft.typepad.com/

http://hearthewritings.com/

2010-02-27T07:35:00.000-08:00

To continue in an Audio theme; I have just discovered a new audio resource.
"Hear the Writings.Com". (see link on sidebar).
They currently just have the one title;

"The Advent of Divine Justice" by Shoghi Effendi.

Check out the site: They are conducting a poll to ascertain the most popular titles.

“Know thou, of a truth, these great oppressions that have befallen the world are preparing it for the advent of the Most Great Justice” ~ Baha’u'llah

Singing 'rewires' damaged brain

2010-02-25T20:10:00.000-08:00

I was reading a BBC article by Victoria Gill a Science reporter for the BBC News in San Diego.
Synopsis:
Teaching stroke patients to sing "rewires" their brains, helping them recover their speech, say scientists.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8526699.stm

So I thought I would look at what the Bahá’í Faith has to say about music, since that is particularly relevant to the Core Activity arts and crafts.

We, verily, have made music as a ladder for your souls, a means whereby they may be lifted up unto the realm on high; make it not, therefore, as wings to self and passion.

(Baha'u'llah, The Kitab-i-Aqdas, p. 38)

In sooth, although music is a material affair, yet its tremendous effect is spiritual, and its greatest attachment is to the realm of the spirit.

(Compilations, Lights of Guidance, p. 412)

This wonderful age has rent asunder the veils of superstition and has condemned the prejudice of the people of the East. Among some of the nations of the Orient, music and harmony was not approved of, but the Manifested Light, Bahá'u'lláh, in this glorious period has revealed in Holy Tablets that singing and music are the spiritual food of the hearts and souls. In this dispensation, music is one of the arts that is highly approved and is considered to be the cause of the exaltation of sad and desponding hearts.
Therefore ... set to music the verses and the divine words so that they may be sung with soul-stirring melody in the Assemblies and gatherings, and that the hearts of the listeners may become tumultuous and rise towards the Kingdom of Abha in supplication and prayer.

(Abdu'l-Baha, Baha'i World Faith - Abdu'l-Baha Section, p. 377)

Endeavor your utmost to compose beautiful poems to be chanted with heavenly music; thus may their beauty affect the minds and impress the hearts of those who listen.

(Abdu'l-Baha, Tablets of Abdu'l-Baha v1, p. 59)

What a wonderful meeting this is! These are the children of the Kingdom. The song we have just listened to was very beautiful in melody and words. The art of music is divine and effective. It is the food of the soul and spirit. Through the power and charm of music the spirit of man is uplifted. It has wonderful sway and effect in the hearts of children, for their hearts are pure, and melodies have great influence in them. The latent talents with which the hearts of these children are endowed will find expression through the medium of music. Therefore, you must exert yourselves to make them proficient; teach them to sing with excellence and effect. It is incumbent upon each child to know something of music, for without knowledge of this art the melodies of instrument and voice cannot be rightly enjoyed. Likewise, it is necessary that the schools teach it in order that the souls and hearts of the pupils may become vivified and exhilarated and their lives be brightened with enjoyment.

(Abdu'l-Baha, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 52)

It is clearly a powerful tool for reaching hearts and minds, that can be incorporated in all our activities.
Before those who know me ask; "are you going to start singing?", the answer is NO but I will deputise, and as always have my finger ready to hit the "play button"

Marble Magnets

2010-02-25T18:21:00.000-08:00

Here is a great idea for Ayyam i Ha gifts, or just a fun project for the children’s class or study circle.

Materials:

• Clear glass marbles (the kind with a flat side)
• Magnets
• Artwork
• Mod Podge or white glue
• Goop glue
• Circular punch (We used a 1” 25.4mm)
• Scissors

There are many sources of suitable artwork; you can download images from the web, use magazines, photographs, or draw your own. The theme used here is “Bahai Stars”, but you can chose your own.

First prepare your artwork. If you do not have a suitable punch you can simply cut out the artwork with scissors. As you will see from the insert on the picture below, the punch has a clear bottom which allows you to align the artwork prior to punching.

Cutting Out

Next
• Spread a thin layer of mod podge on the flat side of the marble with your finger
• Repeat the procedure with the face of the artwork
• Place the artwork on the marble and apply a thin coat of mod podge to the back and smooth down until there are no air bubbles between the glass and the picture.
• Set aside and allow to dry for at least 5 mins

Mod Podging

• Apply a small amount of the “goop” to the magnet
• Press magnet onto the back of the completed marble
• Set aside to dry

Applying the Magnet

Make as many as you like and display on your fridge or give to friends and family.

We hope you enjoy this craft, and be sure to come back to the site with your comments, ideas and friends.

COFFEE FILTER FLOWERS by Sandra Larkin Douglas

2010-02-23T19:08:00.000-08:00

Thanks to sandra for the wonderful flowers. Ideal for Ayyam i Ha decorations or gifts.

Supplies:
• White coffee filters
• Acrylic paint
• Needle & thread

1. In a small cup, dilute some yellow paint in some water.
2. Dip the edges of one filter into the paint. Allow the paint to “travel” into the interior of the filter on its own.
3. With a brush apply another color to the center of the filter, allowing the color to move out on it’s own. The two colors will blend into one another.
4. When the filter is partially dry you can use a brush and add a bit more color for accent.

The Painted Flowers

5. You can cut the filters down to smaller sizes for smaller flowers.
6. You can dip the cut off edges in green to create the leaves.
7. When the filters are totally dry, use a needle and thread and sew all the way around the edge of the filter and very carefully pull this thread up to “gather” it to the center creating a “yo yo”.
8. These “flowers” can be used in many ways. I created an example of a possible use. putting some on a piece of cardstock, adding a green pipe stem and a quotation. There are many quotes in the writings about flowers and gardens.

The finished flowers

Then will mankind be as one nation, one race and kind;
as waves of one ocean. Although these waves may differ
in form and shape, they are waves of the same sea.
Flowers may be variegated in colors but they are all
flowers of one garden.

Abdu'l-Baha, Foundations of World Unity

Hanging Quotes from Shelly Julian

2010-02-14T17:46:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Shelly Julian for the idea for this post.

This concept can be applied to any quote from Book 3.

Supplies:
• Piece of Wood (Wal-Mart has very reasonably priced, thin balsa wood pieces in the craft section)
• Paint for background
• Pencils to write quotes
• 3D paint in bottles for writing quote
• Glue gun or glue depending on the craft materials used
• Miscellaneous craft supplies left over from other projects: we used copper wire, a wooden "O", and acrylic gems

Following Shelly's example I experimented with a plaque of my own, and as you will see my penmanship is not great but it is clear. Note the "shining lamp" symbol. There will be more on how it was made in the next post, which will be just in time for you and your participants to make Ayyam i Ha gifts.

My finished plaque

Since I used the above quotation on the wooden plaque that I made, I thought I would share a memorisation method which I use, and hope that the concept may be of use.

Visual Memorisation Aid

I began using a visual memorization method, when I first started the Ruhi sequence, by drawing simple pictograms and stick people, in a sequence to represent the quote.(My wife Juliet called them my “cave paintings”)
I then went to the more high-tech method of using the vast range of clip-art available in Power Point .
You can use the example provided, but connections which work for one person may not be as obvious, or may not even work for another. The act of converting the quote into a visual form is what helps me memorize and having done the work a quick glance at the images, even after some time, will refresh the memory.
It should also be remembered that not everyone is “visual”, so this method will not work well for everyone. As a tutor it is best to have several methods to suggest to the participant, and let them experiment, to find the method that works best for them, throughout the duration of the study circle.
I have also found that this method is not particularly effective for very long and or complicated quotations.
Please experiment with this method and feel free to contact me with any ideas or questions.

I have a number of such aids for use with various Ruhi books, please contact me if you wish copies.

The Porcupine Light

2010-01-17T19:13:00.000-08:00

Well friends – finally back after my travels and returned to normality after the holiday season.

The first project for the new decade is one that Juliet found in a great book by

Mark Montano called; “The Big-Ass Book of Crafts”

I had the opportunity to assist her as she worked with a junior youth group, at Irene and Ryan's home in Seabrook, Texas, making the porcupine lights this weekend.

This project involves a bit of a hunt to find the various materials, but if you are in the USA you should be able to find everything you need in the “$” stores.

The Basic Materials

A medium colander (plastic or metal)
Night lights (One or two dependant on the size and how bright you want the light to be.)
An extension cord/cable
Pack(s) of drinking straws (In a diameter to suit the colander holes)
Cable ties (As required)

The Materials

The Process

Take a straw; fold in half and feed through the colander holes from the rear.(See figures 1 and 2.)

Figure 1

Figure 2

Continue this process until all the holes are filled (See figure 3)

Figure 3

Remove the covers from the night lights and insert into the extension cable.

Check the lamps function prior to installing them in the porcupine.(See figure 4)

Figure 4

Secure the handles of the colander with wire or cable ties (See figure 5)

Then secure the lamp assembly, and the cable using the cable ties (See figure 5)

(Take care not to damage the lamp assembly or cable, and expose live electrical parts. Also ensure that there is adequate air space between the lamps and any part of the colander or the straws)

Do not leave the lamp ON and unattended for long periods. If in doubt turn it off.

Figure 5

The Finished Porcupine Lamp

As well as doing the project with the junior youth we had some fun. Since we were near "space city" we were worried about the aliens. So birthday boy Behi modified the porcupine light with aluminium foil and we took turns of wearing it to stop the aliens reading our thoughts.

The Birthday Boy ---- Happy Birthday Behi

Juliet with the magic hat

Behi

Jim and Juliet

It just goes to show you can have great fun whilst assisting others, or is it that all the crazies have not been locked-up yet? I will leave you to figure that one out.

Well that’s all folks

How to Make a Woven Star by Juliet Hwang

2009-12-04T20:41:00.000-08:00

From time to time we will feature a project or craft which requires a little more skill and practice, and will allow you to experience the work of Bahá’í artists
My wife Juliet produces beautiful 9 pointed paper stars, one type of which is featured in this post. This project requires some skill and patience, and is for more experienced crafters, but is worth the time and effort.
To see more of her work go to:

http://web.me.com/donendusted/Divine_Stars/Divine_Stars_Paper_Filigree.html

Children's Classes

2009-10-15T21:01:00.001-07:00

I have just discovered a blog, by Shirin Tan, which provides resources for Childrens class teachers.
You can check it out at:
http://brilliantstars.blogspot.com/
I have also put the link in the sidebar.

PAPER MARBLING by Sandra Larkin Douglas

2009-10-07T20:33:00.000-07:00

Materials

1. Cut cardstock into desired size. I like 4¼ X 5 ½, because it works so nicely with 8½ X 11 sheets of cardstock and because I have many quotations typed out that fit nicely on that size.
2. Mark one side with initials, if you have more than 2 or 3 in the group. (they will never recognize their own once it is dry)
3. Spray the other side with alum water and wait a few minutes for it to dry (recipe follows) or you could dip it in a dish of alum water, if you don’t have a spray bottle. The alum allows the paint to adhere to the paper.
4. Mix paints (2 or 3 colors only) Squirt a teaspoon of acrylic paint into a small cup, add water and stir until the consistency is about like buttermilk.
5. Pour laundry starch into an appropriate sized pan about 1 ½ inches deep
6. Using an eye dropper, drop paint onto the starch. (you want the paint to float on the top of the starch, not sink to the bottom.) Put about 5 drops of 1 color and 4 or 5 of a 2nd color. Don’t use more than 3 colors, as they will turn into brown.

Step 6

7. Use a large-tonged comb or a popsicle stick and very gently skim the surface one time only, to drag the colors to intersect with one another.

Step 7

8. Lay the alum-sprayed side of the paper onto the surface of the starch and count, 1 one-thousand, 2 one-thousand 3, and lift out gently.

Setting the color

9 Lay it out on newspaper for about 5 minutes, to set the color.

Finished Craft

10 Rinse in a pan of clear water and lay out to dry entirely.
11 You can continue using the same pan of starch, but will need to add more drops of paint for each piece of paper.

Optional:
If you aren’t happy with the result, allow to dry only a few minutes or blow dry with a hair dryer until most of the water is gone, but the paper is still damp. Using a toothpick, dip into the paint cup and add more marks on the paper or use a toothbrush and splatter the paper, or just any tool to make marks. Lay out to dry entirely.

A FEW IDEAS:
•The edges can be colored with stamp pads (dragging the edge of the paper across the pad)
•You can add rubber stamp images, use stencils, stickers or any other embellishments.
•I glue on quotations and/or prayers.
•Use a half sheet of card stock for dipping. When it’s dry, cut it in half, then cut one half in half again. The larger piece is used to glue a quote or poem, the smaller 2 are for bookmarks. Punch a hole, glue on a short quote, and tie on a ribbon.
•If you use a ½ sheet, you can fold that in half and make a greeting card.
•I’ve also used lighter-weight paper and folded it into an envelope and then a greeting card, or several quote cards can go inside.

Alum recipe:
2 T alum added to 2 C hot tap water. (downsize appropriately eg: 1 T for 1C, 1½ in ½ C, etc.)
Alum can be purchased in any grocery store in the spices isle.
It is generally used in making pickles.

Abdu’l-Bahá and the Sheep.

2009-10-02T17:38:00.000-07:00

We received our first request yesterday and our first two followers.
Thank you Aniela and Susan for the follow.
The request was for craft ideas for a Book 3 and Book 4 study circle, so here is the first idea for children's classes

The following is a story from Book 3, Unit 2 Section 6, and a suggested craft for the children.

One day Bahá’u’lláh sent Abdu’l-Bahá to inspect the work of the shepherds who were taking care of his sheep. Abdu’l-Bahá was a small child at the time, and the persecutions against Bahá’u’lláh and his family had not yet started. Bahá’u’lláh then had a good deal of land in the mountains and owned large herds of sheep.
When the inspection was finished Abdu’l-Bahá was ready to leave, the man who had accompanied Him said, “It is your father’s custom to leave a gift for each shepherd.” Abdu’l-Bahá became silent for a while, because He did not have anything to give them. The man, however, insisted the shepherds were expecting something. Then Abdul-Baha had an idea that made Him very happy! He would give the shepherds the sheep they were taking care of! Bahá’u’lláh was very much pleased when He heard about Abdu’l-Bahá’s generous thoughts towards the shepherds. He humorously remarked that everyone had better take good care of Abdu’l-Bahá because someday He would give himself away.
Of course, this is exactly what Abdu’l-Bahá did for the rest of his life. He gave everything he had, each and every moment of his life, to humanity, to unite us and bring us true happiness.

After telling the story you can discuss and memorize the quotation and then have the children do the craft project.

To give and to be generous are attributes of Mine; well is it with him that adorneth himself with My virtues.
(Baha'u'llah, The Persian Hidden Words)

Print out the quotation. I usually fill a sheet with as many copies of the quote as possible and, then cut it up into the strips as shown in the pictures below.

The beauty of this little project is that it can be as simple or as elaborate as the skill of the children, and the scope your budget can accommodate.

Basic Materials
•Paper or card stock
•Cotton balls (from the pharmacy)
•Google eyes (from the craft shop)
•Glue (Multi-purpose white glue)
•Crayons and/or markers
•Scissors (Both straight and patterned)
Optional
•Stickers (Flower, butterflies, etc. Dollar store)
•Felt or foam sheet

The children draw a landscape and then populate it with sheep by gluing the cotton balls to the paper and using the markers draw heads and legs. The sheep are completed by gluing on the eyes. Dependant on what is available the children can decorate further with stickers and shapes.

After preparing this post I was looking through Book 4 and found this picture in the section about the life of the Bab, and thought it would be ideal for the children to colour and add the sheep to. I added the quote. You can "save" the picture and then print it out.

A slightly more complicated project is this little critter

Dolly the Sheep

Around Easter time Juliet found “sheep kits”; each packet had sufficient material to make 6 sheep. (see sample).
We have not seen them again, but you can make your own by cutting faces from a sheet of black foam, and buying the fluffy balls, pipe cleaners and eyes from the craft shop.
(Walmart normally has all the materials, and if you “shop around” several Dollar Stores you can probably pick up the material. Some are better for crafts than others.)

Sheep Bits

They are reasonably easy to assemble:

•Cut the legs to length; put a blob of glue on one end and push into the body.
•Glue the eyes and nose to the face
•Glue the face to the body and Hey - Presto!!!! The sheep has landed.
•Our model has a small magnet attached to her butt, so that she can be displayed on the fridge door.

Take a look at the Book 7 crafts in the previous post for some more ideas.

Well I hope you and the children have fun as well as learning about giving

Busy Times

2009-09-29T20:21:00.000-07:00

Well!!! I hear you ask – where are the crafts? - it’s been a month since the last post.
A very busy month for Juliet and I, we had two major craft projects plus tutoring Book 7 “Walking the Path of Service”.

The first was a craft workshop for the Martha Root Training Institute, Coordinators Conference in Glen Rose Texas.

The second was a workshop at the Texas Bahá’í School this weekend called: “Arts and Crafts in the Ruhi Institute Process”.

Attending the two events enabled us to meet several interesting people who I hope will contribute to the blog, and share their experience and talent.

Details of the craft activities pictured will be given in future posts.

Ruhi Crafts

2009-08-23T19:39:00.000-07:00

I have been thinking about starting a craft blog for some time, and this weekend I was fortunate enough to visit the home of Donna and Mike Ard. My wife Juliet and Mike are on the Texas Bahá’í School Committee, so while they held their meeting Donna and I had time to compare craft projects, and brainstorm a bit with new ideas.
Anyway, that and going teaching the Faith today has so inspired me that I decided to, “Strike whilst the iron is hot”, and start the blog. I have not even prepared any graphics for the header and footer, but wanted to make a statement of intent, and get it out there.
It is not my intention for this to be a one person show. I would like it to be a collaborative site and would welcome feedback and contributions. If you have any ideas please get in touch, so that we can walk together on the path of service.
The plan (so far), is to start with a few general craft projects for devotionals, and then move into the first book, “Reflections on the Life of the of the Spirit”, and, surprise, surprise !!!!!, move through the sequence of courses.

So who wants to take the red pill, and see how deep the rabbit hole goes.

More very soon