A 30+30 Birthday

Howard was celebrating a special birthday. His wife wasn't sure if he would like the number of the birthday he was celebrating on the card but suggested I show it in a subtle way. Because he's an accountant, she thought it would be fun to show her husband holding a calculator with the numbers adding up to his age. He also loves the Montreal Canadiens, known as the Habs, a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, she told me.

I showed her accountant husband sitting at his desk, with his laptop computer in front of him. He is holding up the calculator which, um, just happens to have the sum 30+30=60 on it 😉. Behind him I added the badge of his favourite ice hockey team, along with a stick and puck. Why is it called a puck? Hockey players way back when must've been some literary enthusiasts, because the puck is named after a character from Shakespeare. In "A Midsummer's Night Dream," Puck was a flighty and mischievous elf. Apparently the hockey puck can be pretty flighty too, sliding smoothly across the ice in all directions!

My customer posted the card on Facebook and, before I had even got out of bed that morning, I received an email saying "Love the card you did for Howard!"

* This post has been shared on Link-up Potpourri, The Good. The Random. The Fun., Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop and Crafty Creators Link Party.

Biking in Be'eri

Stanley's sister asked me to make him a special card for his 60th birthday. He enjoys bike riding and reading historical nonfiction, she told me. She also mentioned that likes whisky a lot too! She sent me a photo of her brother biking on the Be'eri Singletrack, a 28 kilometre loop trail located near Beeri, in the north-western Negev desert near the border with the Gaza Strip.

I have shown Stanley in his biking gear. He is wearing dark glasses, just like in the photo his sister sent me. I included his bike in the background too and added a large bottle of whisky, a tumbler and some books. A big number 60 marks his age.

My customer was pleased to see the card when she went to visit her brother on his kibbutz and he was happy for me to share the card here.

* This post has been shared on Creatively Crafty Link Party, Little Things Thursday, Thursday Favorite Things

50 & 60

Saville was turning 50 so his wife asked me to make him a special birthday card. You definitely need to show him hiking Shvil Yisrael, the Israel National Trail, she told me and it would be great if you could add in cooking and biking too. I asked her what Saville likes to cook and she told me that he make hummus and challah every week.

I showed Saville in front of a desert landscape. He has a large rucksack on his back. The white, blue and orange striped marker indicating sections of the Israel trail is next to him and behind him is his blue bike. I added a small challah and a plate of hummus to illustrate his love of cooking.

His wife posted my card on Instagram and declared "Lisa's card made it [Saville's 50th birthday] just that much more special."

Sarah's sister asked me to make a special card for her upcoming 60th birthday. She likes baking and bike riding and she is a teacher, she told me. She enjoys gardening and sunbathing too. She also wanted me to mention that they are sisters and to include a large 60 since Sarah is very proud of her age. 

Sarah teaches social sciences at a secondary school in London. I have shown her with a social sciences book in one hand. She is wearing a green gardening glove and holding a trowel in her other hand. Behind her I added a red parasol on a beach. Her bike is standing there too.

Her sister told me that she likes to bake scones and lemon cake - favourites in our home as well! A scone filled with cream and jam is on a plate next to her, while there is a slice of lemon cake in front. Finally, I added a little graphic saying "sisters are special".
I do hope that this sister liked her special card.

* This post has been shared on Little Things Thursday, Creative Crafty Link Party, Thursday Favorite Things, Craft Schooling Sunday and All Seasons.

Bringing Love to the World

My customer's husband was turning 60. He writes, composes music and plays the piano and guitar, she told me. He has written albums, including one for the "Loving Classroom" school program. Loving Classroom is an organisation that trains teachers to cultivate respect, compassion, listening, kindness, gratitude, love, friendship and care in the classroom. Lastly, she wrote, he loves the Almighty and is connected to his Oneness.

Loving Classroom is definitely his main thing, my customer told me, so I showed her husband wearing the program's T-shirt. He is holding a book about the program and there is a piano in the background and music notes dotted about. A big number 60 marks his age.

I added the Loving Classroom logo, bottom left, which illustrates the 4-H methodology: H umanity, H ead, H eart and H and. My customer felt it was important to include it. The blue logo on the right says עולם אוהב - Loving World. Her husband has a great belief in building a loving world for both personal and global well-being. Finally, the word אחד, below the 60, literally means one but in the context of this card it refers to G-d or Hashem.

My customer was delighted with the card. "It is absolutely BRILLIANT, Lisa. You are a genius craftswoman." she wrote to me. "I love it. Thank you!"

* This post has been shared on My Corner of the World, Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop, {wow me} wednesday, Keep In Touch, Little Things Thursday, Creatively Crafty, All Seasons, Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday) and Pictorial Tuesday.

Seventy, Sixty

A family friend contacted me some time ago to see if I could make a special card for his mum's upcoming 70th birthday. Mum likes doing paper puzzles, surfing the web for cruises, watching television and being taken out, he told me. She loves chocolate and cake and, like me, is a Hull City A.F.C. supporter. I suggested adding one of my paper portraits to the card and a big number 70 to mark her special birthday.

I have shown mum with a bar of chocolate in one hand and a big slice of cake in the other. On the left of her card I have added a computer with a picture of a cruise ship on the screen, Hull City's current logo, featuring a tiger's head in an amber shield, and a television with Bargain Hunt showing on it. Her son told me that mum likes to watch Coronation Street, Emmerdale, Neighbours and Bargain Hunt! To the right, below the number 70, is a little table piled with treats since she enjoys being taken out, and below that, a small Sudoku and crossword puzzle.

"I got the card this morning. It's great. Thank you." my customer wrote to me, then followed up to tell me that his mum really liked the card.

A book club friend asked me to make a card for her husband's 60th birthday, below. His interests include music, especially the Beatles and playing the guitar. He is originally from Australia, enjoys public speaking and is a guide at Yad Vashem, Israel's official memorial to the victims of the Holocaust. She also suggested I add the logo of the company where he works, oh and added that he is a big fan of potatoes and cholent, a traditional "Jewish" stew. It is usually simmered overnight for 12 hours or more, and eaten for lunch on Shabbat (the Sabbath).

I included all these things on his birthday card. You can see the cholent and potatoes to the top left. Below them is a megaphone to represent his love of public speaking. The Yad Vashem logo (Yad Vashem literally means "a monument and a name"), a map of Australia, and a black and white photo of the Beatles follow. From the top right I have added his company logo, a classical guitar and some music notes. A big red number 60 marks his age.
"I never told you how much Michael appreciated the card." my friend later told me.

* This post has been shared on Little Things Thursday, Creatively Crafty Link Party, All Seasons and Creative Mondays.

Holding a Plank

A new customer contacted me and asked me to make a card for her friend who was soon to celebrate her 70th birthday. Denise was an English teacher for over 40 years, she told me. She reads constantly - sometimes 3 or 4 books at the same time - and she is very, very fit! Apparently she does the plank for 15 minutes every day, which I am told is exceptional (not being very, very fit myself, I don't know these things!).
I have shown Denise doing a plank on her card. There are bookshelves loaded with books behind her, and another book lies open, ready to be read after she has finished her exercises. A big number 70 marks her age.
My customer messaged me to say "I wanted to write and say thank you [for the card] - it’s just perfect. I am SURE it will be her [Denise's] best card!"

My brother-in-law also recently celebrated a milestone birthday, so a special card was popped into the post for him. On this occasion I made a papercut card, cutting his name and age by hand from white stock. I then lined the card with a red paper inlay since Brian is obsessed with passionate about Arsenal F.C., the Premier League football club who traditionally play in red.

* This post has been shared on Amaze Me Monday, Inspiration Monday, MMM Block Party, Busy Monday, Inspire Me Monday, Happiness is Homemade, Creative Mondays and Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday).