Easy DIY Happy Sukkot Fall Leaf Garland (Sukkah Decoration Idea)

Here's a very simple, eco-friendly DIY project you can make to decorate for Sukkot this year! Making a fall leaf garland is a quick craft project for the Feast of Tabernacles that can be used to decorate your home, office, church, sukkah, or other temporary dwelling.

What I love about this fall leaf garland for Sukkot:

-Super simple to make!
-It's very inexpensive since you can easily gather leaves from your yard or a local park, and you can use any kind of string or twine you happen to have.
-Kids can be involved with writing letters or decorating leaves.
-It doesn't last forever. Most of us have more than enough things to store throughout the year. I'm happy for something festive that I can let go of.
-Eco friendly. This is one craft project that doesn't use plastic or things shipped from the other side of the world. When you're finished with it, release your leaves outside or toss them in the compost bin.

What you'll need:

-leaves
-string
-tape 
-marker

How to make a fall leaf garland for Sukkot:

All you need to do for this is to write letters on individual leaves, spelling out your message. Mine says Happy Sukkot! I used orange marker on yellow leaves from my backyard trees, but you can use any color of marker (black provides more contrast and can be easier to read), and of course whatever particular shades and shapes of leaves suit your fancy. 

Then tape the leaves onto the string. Be sure to give yourself extra room on the ends of the string (I used yarn) so that you can attach them to something in your sukkah, or otherwise hang up, if necessary.

And that's it! The leaves will curl up and dry after a day or two, so this garland doesn't last forever. But it's easy enough that you could remake it throughout Sukkot if you wanted and you could change up the colors and the message itself.

Another option to make your banner last longer is to dip the leaves in beeswax once you have put the letters on and proceed as directed.

Phrases to make:

Happy Sukkot

Happy Tabernacles

Sukkah Time

He's coming to dwell with us

Chag sameach

Happy 8th day

This is a low waste banner! When you're done with your garland it's easy to compost or can be burned.

More ideas for the Feast of Tabernacles:
DIY Happy Sukkot Pumpkin Candleholders
Biblically Clean Campfire Recipes for Tabernacles
Inspiration for Your Sukkah

DIY Pumpkin Candleholders for Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles Sukkah Decoration Craft)

Here's an easy craft to make to decorate for the Feast of Tabernacles or to spread Sukkot joy to a loved one...DIY pumpkin candleholders! They make for great sukkah decorations, or decor for your home, and they can also be a simple hostess gift during the fall Biblical holiday season.

They are easy to make, and kids can help to decorate them however they'd like. I wrote a simple 'Happy Sukkot' on the one in the picture, but of course you could use other Feast of Tabernacles greetings or Bible verses. You could also paint the pumpkins or decorate them with stickers if you're inclined. Here's how to make them. They really are very simple and can be done quickly!

You will need:
Mini pumpkin
Tea candle
Pen
Knife
Spoon
Marker

Break off as much of the stem as you can. This will make it easier to trace. Place a tea candle on top of the pumpkin, roughly in the middle. Trace around this with your pen (it doesn't have to be exact - but it will give you an idea of where to cut). Then carefully cut around this circle, and remove the pumpkin skin so that you're left with a small crater. Clean any seeds or debris out with the spoon. See if the tea candle fits inside. If it doesn't, use the spoon (or knife, if necessary) to scrape out more pumpkin until the cavity can hold the tea candle.

Insert the candle into the pumpkin. I take the candles out of the thin tin cups they come in and insert just the wax part into the pumpkin. That way it can simply be tossed into a fire or compost bin after being lit and used up.

Discard or compost the stem and any scrapings of pumpkin innards.

Use markers to write, "Happy Sukkot," or similar festive greetings, on the outside of the pumpkin. Other ideas you could write include:

Happy Tabernacles!
He is with us.
Welcome to our sukkah.
Sukkot: it's in tents.
I am coming to dwell among you. -Zechariah 2:10

These will keep for a few days in cooler weather. If it's warm in your area, you can also store them in the fridge before use to extend their shelf life a bit. They are a simple decoration for the Feast of Tabernacles and also make a nice gift for friends celebrating the Biblical holidays. If the cutting is done ahead of time, you can have kids add the candles and decorate the pumpkins as a craft for Bible school or as part of a Sukkot gathering activity.

I made these for Tabernacles but they can also be used to decorate for the Feast of Trumpets or Yom Kippur!

More posts like this:
Everything You Should Know about the Feast of Tabernacles
Eight Day of Activities for the Feast of Tabernacles
Sukkot Scavenger Hunt Game!

Messiah our Passover Lamb - Free Printable

Here's a New Testament Bible verse drawing attention to two Biblical holidays: Passover and Unleavened Bread.

"For Messiah our Passover lamb was sacrificed for us: so then let us keep the feast, not with the old leaven; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth." -1 Corinthians 5:7-8

That's a powerful statement penned by the Apostle Paul. I love that he said to keep these times, not just know about them. Let us keep the feast. Let us recognize the foretelling of the Messiah in the Exodus story and the holiday of Passover, and celebrate the work he did on this day many years ago. Let us get rid of the old leaven of our cultural traditions and sincerely take part in these times, recognizing that they point to the truth of the Messiah.

What better verse to focus on during these special times? It's an easy way to add a touch of festivity to your home or office, and a decoration that is perfect for Passover and Unleavened Bread. The printable itself is simple enough to print off on any basic printer. I love having this verse out for others to see because it points to the validity of the Messiah and Biblical holidays!

This printable is free for your personal use. Click here to download this printable for Passover and Unleavened Bread. Have a joyous celebration time!

Related posts:
The Beginner's Guide to Passover
Kids Crafts for Passover, Unleavened Bread, and First Fruits
Why the Biblical Holidays are for All Believers

Home is Where the Sukkah Is - Free Printable for Sukkot

If you're looking for ways to decorate for Sukkot and the Feast of Tabernacles, this printable has you covered. Simple decorations like this can help spread the festivity of this Biblical holiday and spread the joy and message of that! It couldn't be easier. Just print it off and stick it on your refrigerator or in your cubicle at work. Frame it if you want to. It also works well to put in a sukkah or a camper.

Download this Home is Where the Sukkah is printable for free below!

Yes, I do realize the picture is a tent and not a sukkah as defined by Jewish law. This is simply meant to be something fun, and if the tent in the picture doesn't work for you and this printable isn't for you, there are no hard feelings. In Scripture the word 'sukkah' means temporary dwelling space, which is an appropriate term for a variety of structures.

Click here to download this 'Home is where the sukkah is' printable. It is free for your personal use.

More Feast of Tabernacles:
Sukkot Scavenger Hunt Game
Stargazing Sukkot Party
Things the Messiah Said During Sukkot

We Fall for the Fall Feasts Printable

I wanted to offer a free printable as an easy way to decorate for the Fall Feasts. This captures a bit of the essence of all the fall holidays, Yom Teruah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot, so you can keep it around for the entire season.

We fall for:
tabernacles and trumpets
sukkahs and shofars
pumpkins and prayers
leaves and laughter
fires with friends
autumn anticipation
the fall feasts.

The we fall for the fall feasts printable is free for your personal use. Click here to download.

Have an amazing time of joy as you celebrate our Creator's set apart times!

Happy Shavuot Printable

Happy Shavuot! I wanted to share a printable today to help with the festivities at your house. A few years back I shared a milk and honey printable for Shavuot, but this one is a little more home printer friendly. Just print it out and tape it to the fridge or put it in a frame. To me, it's nice to decorate because it helps build the anticipation for the upcoming holiday, and makes it a little bit different from the rest of the year.

Click here to download this Happy Shavuot printable. It is free for your personal use. Have a lovely set apart time!

DIY Shavuot Cupcake Toppers

Here's a simple way to add some Shavuot festivity to your upcoming feast! You can make these at home in just a few minutes. You probably have everything required. Just some tape, wooden skewers or toothpicks, and the printout of these cupcake toppers is all you need. I intentionally made it something that would print out well on a regular home printer using plain paper. Nothing fancy needed at all.

You will need:
Shavuot cupcake printable
Scissors
Double sided tape
Small wooden skewers or toothpicks

What to do:
First you'll need to cut out the hexagons. This shape makes it easy to cut and get nice edges. You will need two per cupcake topper, so print the appropriate number of sheets. One sheet will get you six toppers.

Flip over one hexagon and place a skewer in approximately the middle. Use double sided tape to secure it and then grab another hexagon. Connect the backside of it with the double sided tape. You may want to experiment with different skewer sizes to come up with a height that you prefer. And voila, you have your topper. Repeat as many times as you'd like and you're finished!

Use these to top cupcakes or dessert. Or use as you would toothpicks for snacks or appetizers at your Shavuot celebration.

Looking for a dessert idea to make? Try these milk and honey recipes for Shavuot!

DIY Shavuot Basket

Here's a fun and super simple DIY that you can make for Shavuot!

A lot of you have said that you have trouble finding decorations for the feasts - here's something that you can make for just a few dollars in about fifteen minutes. If you don't have a basket at home to use, head to a thrift shop. Each one I go to is always well stocked with baskets and they are rarely more than a few dollars. I found mine for 50 cents. Since you'll be painting it, the color doesn't matter. Just find a size and style you like. 

You can use this DIY Shavuot basket for decoration or for gifting a few treats to your kids or a friend. And speaking of gifts, does anyone give presents for any of the festivals? To me Shavuot is a great time to do that, if it's your thing. Since it's only a one day celebration, there's a lot less to do, plus you don't have to worry about cleaning the leaven out of the kitchen, like for Matzah Week, or packing up to go somewhere for Sukkot. So gift giving can be a way to make Shavuot fun and special. Of course, you don't have to give gifts and there's a lot of other things you can use this basket for if you decide to keep it for yourself.

You will need:
Basket (mine is about eight inches across and eleven inches high)
Craft letters (mine are about an inch and a half high. I think refrigerator magnets would work too)
Glue gun
Spray paint

Place your basket on its side and then set the letters around the handle to get a rough idea of placement. Start with your V (since it's the the middle letter of Shavuot), and place it approximately in the center of the handle to help with symmetry. Space the letters as close or far apart as you wish. You can use a marker to dot the handle where each letter will go.

Once you know where your V is going, use hot glue to attach the bottom of the letter to the basket handle. Since the bottom of the letter has a pretty small surface area you will want to hold the letter in place for 20 or 30 seconds to make sure it stays where you want it. Once your first letter is secure move on to the next. I worked from the inside out adding the letters to help with the symmetry. 

When you have all of the letters on for Shavuot, let it dry a few minutes to make sure your glue is set. Then you're ready to spray paint it in the color of your choice. I used coral. Check the directions of your spray paint for approximate drying time. I let mine dry overnight.

And voila - you have a Shavuot basket! Fill these with treats for the kids or a friend. You could also use this as a bread basket for serving or to hold cards or favors at a Shavuot get together. Or fill with muffins or fruit for a friend. 

Feel free to use a bigger or smaller basket depending on what you're planning on doing with this. Obviously, you could use this DIY for any other holiday as well.

Gifts in my basket:
Ten Commandments Gummies
YHWH Echad Pin
Pins and stickers from Walk in Love
Ruach and Roll sticker
Yahweh Bracelet

Other ideas:
Sidewalk chalk
Craft supplies
Matchbox car or small toy
Seed packets
Necklace or bracelet
Menorah ring dish
Candy or chocolate
Dried fruit
Bubbles
Doodle Portions Coloring Book

More on Shavuot activities:
Celebrating the Fruit of the Spirit at Shavuot
DIY Shavuot Cupcake Toppers
Milk and Honey Desserts for Shavuot

Sukkah Inspiration

This year pushed Sukkos style to the next level! So many gorgeous sukkahs showed up in my inbox this year and I wanted to share a few. Thanks to everyone that sent their photos to me, it's an absolute joy to see YHWH's festivals being celebrated worldwide. I would be thrilled to celebrate Sukkot in any of these!

From @coralmesahomeschool

From @taliacarbis of The Climbing Tree

From @taliacarbis of The Climbing Tree

From @shiveringstarsfarm

From @elysamary

From @chalkontheboard

From @shasse714

From @shasse714

From @meycarbo

#sukkahgoals for sure!

For more inspiration check out last year's favorite sukkahs or my sukkah.

Welcome to My Sukkah

This is my sukkah this year, come on in and have a look around!

Since Vayikra 23:39 tells us that Sukkot starts after the corn is harvested, I brought the mini blue popcorn I grew into the sukkah as a beautiful decoration (love that color!) and reminder of YHWH's provision.

My dog spent a lot of time here.

Before we added the roof made of tree branches I hung sedum flowers from the bamboo.

As you can see our design is very simple this year. Bamboo polls and twine comprised the structure, while thrifted curtains were the 'walls.'

This was our temporary dwelling this year. It held up really well (no collapses this time), and I was happy with the design. Obviously it wasn't weatherproof, but I haven't seen a sukkah that is. At night we took in the table and chairs and the blanket we used for a rug. The next day we would take out whatever we felt like. Sometimes the table again, or a chair for reading, or even just the rug. Nothing was too heavy so it worked pretty well.

This bowl of apples brought such a nice perfume to the sukkah.

2 Cornithians 5:1 - if our earthly tent is destroyed we have an eternal building from YHWH.

The lanterns are regular ball jars with twine wrapped around them. The candles are the battery operated kind.

This was such a peaceful place to study and read or sit and talk.

He is light.

What was your sukkah like this year? I am sharing a few of my favorites next week, so please send me a photo of yours if I can include it!