Is anyone else up tonight getting ready for Purim? Some years I am ready days in advance and others I am making costumes right up until the seuda! This year I am in between that. I have one more costume detail to take care of and we have to assemble the shaloch manos (mishloach manot) tomorrow. I have to work, too, so not sure when that will happen.
At any rate, I would like to share with you some Purim inspiration from last year – costumes and shaloch manos. You might not need these ideas for this year, but you can always come back to this post next year for new ideas!
COSTUMES:
Pinterest is my go-to place for ideas for costumes these days. I used to have a few websites that always had great ideas, but now my boys often have a specific idea in mind. So it is easier to search for that particular costume than go through tons of articles with multiple costume ideas. I always use the terms “handmade” or “DIY” so that I can find make-it-yourself ideas. I like the satisfaction of making my own costumes and they are much less expensive that way. I usually have leftover supplies from year-to-year, too, and can pull what I need. I love that my boys continue to play with all their old costumes for dress-up!
Last year, my boys really gave me a break in making costumes. Three out of four decided to be secret service agents. One of the boys decided he wanted to be a mouse!
For the mouse costume I used:
- a grey sweatshirt and sweatpants
- a white felt circle cut and pinned to the shirt
- a set of mouse ears, bow tie and tail – bought very cheap on Amazon
- an eyeliner to make whiskers
For my secret service agents:
- each boy wore dress pants, a white dress shirt, a tie, and a black hoodie sweatshirt.
- I bought over-the-ear earphones and sunglasses from the dollar store.
SHALOCH MANOS:
I usually have three criteria for our family shaloch manos (mishloach manot) – homemade, placed in a reusable container, and creative. This past year, I did two out of three. We made hot cocoa cups. They included a hot cup, hot cocoa mix, a few wafer cookies, and a package of Sixlets. Not so fancy, but I think creative and useful (and somewhat inexpensive)!
Here are some highlights from what we received last year (2015):
Very creative and unique theme and packaging! Thanks Devorah and Eli!
Most creative and complete theme! Every year our friends Yosef and Bella come up with a theme that they use for their shaloch manos and costumes. The family all dresses up according to that theme and they pick coordinating foods for the shaloch manos as well. Last year was a Wild West/Cowboy theme.
More creative themes – Star Wars, drum, shaloch manos man, and “Frozen.” Thanks Dave and Keri, Shari, Naftali and Jessi and Arik.
Beautiful packaging. Thanks Jen!
Delicious and fancy (plus great reusable packaging)! Thanks Tammy and Mark! The bread was delicious!
Wonderful meals and homemade goodies! Thanks Zipporah and Rabbi, Racheli and Yitzchak, and Chana and Shmuel.
Very thought out and unique shaloch manos. Our friends Amy and Joshua wrote a poem and had coordinating foods to go with different parts of the poem.
Color and fruit themes. Thanks Vicki and Warren, Elisheva and Yaakov, and David and Debbie.
Hope this gives you some ideas! Thanks to all our friends for their thoughtfulness and creativity!
Related posts:
- Inspiration for Purim costumes and shaloch manos
- Need last-minute shaloch manos ideas?
- Kids’ Mitzvah Checklist for Purim
- Purim is coming too fast!
Surviving on a tight budget 
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