Marking Some Special Occasions

Eden was turning 21! I have been making cards to mark her birthday for years. Some of you may remember this lovely story, when she called me at the tender age of 9 to thank me for making her a great card - and it wasn't even from me!

These days Eden is a soldier in the Israeli army and is also interested in cosmetics and special effects makeup. I have made cards on those themes several times before. For her 21st birthday I decided to just have fun and make a card celebrating 21. Mum told me that she likes candles, so I added those to the card and some gift wrapped presents too. The big heart shaped balloons mark her age. 

Joshua was joining the Israeli Air Force and was due to start the pilots course, considered one of the most prestigious courses in the IDF (The Israel Defence Forces). His mum asked me to make him a special good luck card. 

I have shown Joshua in his beige madei alef uniform. (There are two types of uniforms (madim) in the army, madei alef and madei bet. In all units madei bet are olive green, however madei alef differ for each force.) He is wearing the dark grey beret belonging to the Air Force. I kept his goatee beard for the card though in reality beards are not allowed in the army, with a few exceptions. I added the badge and flag of the Israeli Air Force, a light blue flag with thin stripes and the air force roundel with a blue six-pointed star in the centre. Finally, some black army boots and some "Top Gun" style aviator sunglasses are next to him.
The Hebrew greeting on the card says "An easy and successful recruitment, Joshua".

Lastly, Tamar was celebrating her Bat Mitzvah, the Jewish coming of age ceremony for girls. I made cards for her brothers' Bar Mitzvahs. You can see them here and here. Tamar's mum also wanted her daughter to receive a special card to mark the occasion. She is very fond of handicrafts, mum told me, and she makes amazing cakes. She also likes to cook and draws and paints very nicely too. Her favourite colours are black, white and turquoise.
I have shown blonde-haired Tamar busy mixing something. There is a rolling pin and some eggs on the table in front of her, along with some paints and pencils for her creative work. Behind her is a big number 12 to mark her age. It is made from a picture of a cake she herself baked. I also added pictures of some of her own creations made from beads. 
The Hebrew greeting on the card says "Our beloved Tamari. Congratulations to the Bat Mitzvah ❤". Bat Mitzvah is the name of the coming of age ceremony and also the name used to address the young lady on the occasion.

* This post has been shared on Funtastic Friday, Create, Bake, Grow & Gather, Craft Schooling Sunday. and The Good. The Random. The Fun.

Playing Guitar

Arieh recently turned 20. He is crazy about theatre and film, his Mum told me, and loves reading and playing the guitar too. His roots are in the USA and the UK (Dad is from the USA and Mum from the UK) and he lives here in Israel. Finally, he will soon be joining the Israeli Air Force for his compulsory military service.

I created some red stage curtains and added a black and white clapper board to illustrate Arieh's love of theatre and film. The flags, pile of books and guitar speak for themselves. I added the blue badge of the Israeli Air Force which consists of a sword, olive branch, Star of David and eagle wings (like those found at Bet-Shean excavations), and finally cut out a big yellow number 20 to mark his age.
It looks like he appreciated his birthday card!

Another customer asked me for a selection of smaller cards, two for men and two for some special ladies. The tulip design on the left is one I created some years ago and still enjoy making. A folded shirt and tie seemed just right for the men.

* This post has been shared on Sundays at Home, Saturday Sparks@Pieced Pastimes, Saturday Shuffle@Strawberry Butterscotch, My Sunday Photo, Seasons and image-in-ing.