Dinah and Joseph

A customer asked me to make a wedding card. She told me that the couple she was sending the card to are pretty frum (religious), so she wanted me to come up with something suitable. I suggested showing them in front of a chuppah, the canopy under which Jewish couples stand for the duration of their wedding ceremony. She loved the idea. "That is a perfect style wedding card!" she wrote."I just LOVE your cards and was waiting for the right special occasion to have you make one again!" (I made a card for her parents 50th wedding anniversary earlier in the year.)

After a few surreptitious messages to the bride, we ascertained that the groom was going to be wearing a black suit with a white tie for his wedding. The bride was obviously going to be wearing white. I made sure to show her in a tsanua (modest) wedding dress. According to Orthodox Jewish tradition women should dress modestly, so I showed the bride with a long sleeved and high necked dress. I also gave the groom a black kippa, which usually means that the man identifies with Orthodox Judaism.

The finished card showed the young couple in front of their chuppah. The chuppah is a white sheet, or sometimes a tallit (prayer shawl), stretched over four poles and decorated with flowers. The word "chuppah" means covering or protection and is intended as a roof or covering for the bride and groom at their wedding. Its four open sides recall the tent of Abraham who kept his tents open on all sides so that visitors would know they were welcome. It also symbolises the new home that the bride and groom will establish together.
The greeting on the front of the card wishes the couple Mazeltov (Mazal Tov) on their wedding. Mazal Tov literally means "good luck", though in practice the phrase is used to express "congratulations". One can expect to hear people shout "Mazal Tov" at Jewish weddings just after the groom breaks the glass, at brit milah ceremonies, and at Bar Mitzvahs.

My customer was delighted with the card. "Love it so much!! Thank you!!" she wrote to me.

* This post has been shared on Little Things Thursday, Creatively Crafty Link Party, Craft Schooling Sunday, Craftastic Monday at Sew Can Do, Inspire Me Monday and Handmade Monday.