On Soup and Stilettos

I certainly would not call myself a great cook. I come up with decent enough meals and we all eat reasonably well, but a great cook? No. Having said that, I make soup most weekends to open our Friday evening Shabbat meal and I was recently trawling the internet for some inspiration. I discovered this recipe and it was GREAT! Really great. Though this blog is by no means a food blog, I felt that I had to share it. This soup was so easy and yummy! To make it kid friendly I only used half the jalapeno pepper and poured in a little apple juice rather than the concentrate suggested. I made my own seasoning from some of the spices that were mentioned. The result? A really tasty soup that was possibly still a little bit too hot for the kids but perfect for me and I thoroughly enjoyed finishing it off a couple more times during the week.

Back to the cards. I recently delivered this little lot to one of my regular customers. She leaves me pretty much free to come up with what I want, sometimes giving me guidance as to the age or favourite hobby of the person she wishes to send the card to. Usually she just asks me for "something pretty". The card in the foreground is going to a lady who likes fashion. I had fun making the little red number and the black stiletto heels. One can dream! I wouldn't look very good in the outfit myself...

This 'Sweet 16' card was recently made for the daughter of a friend of mine. I was happy with the composition and have since made a few variations. One of them, the 21st birthday card in my shop, is currently part of the EtsyGreetings Great Greetings Giveaway. Purchase any item from my shop, or from participating shops, throughout November and you will be eligible to win 20+ handmade greeting cards from a variety of talented Etsy sellers. To see details about the giveaway and information about how to enter, please visit the EtsyGreetings blog and then get shopping!

A Saracens Fan

The boy celebrating his Bar Mitzvah on this occasion is a Saracens fan. I now know that the Saracens are a professional rugby union team based in St. Albans, England. It made a nice change to be creating a rugby card, rather than my usual football! Once again it was requested that I personalise the card with his favourite team but also add a Jewish element to it, so I have illustrated the Bar Mitzvah boy playing his favourite sport, dressed in his favourite team's colours but also wearing the traditional kippa (skullcap).
I also created some more traditional cards for the rest of his family. His parents and grandparents received 'Handmade in Israel' cards, below, depicting a Bar Mitzvah boy, Star of David and Torah scroll and tallit (prayer shawl).

Last week my nephew in London celebrated his birthday. It is sometimes hard to know how to illustrate a card for a 17 year old boy, and especially one whom I have created cards for many, many times before. I know that he is a table tennis player and a keen Arsenal supporter, so a colourful card with a bat and football was put together.

Today is the last day of the Etsy Greetings Team's Valentine's Day promotion. Terri of Cards and Moore by Terri, who has worked really hard pulling this promotion together, kindly included my Pack of 5 Valentine's Day Cards in an Etsy Treasury, seen below in the centre of the bottom row. They were in great company, and if you haven't yet searched Etsy for the perfect card, why not drop by now and purchase a card? Search "egvdpromo" on Etsy to find stunning handmade cards, made by some incredibly talented people.

All You Need Is Love

It seems that the theme for my blog post today is LOVE. Hearts and flowers abound in preparation for a wedding and Valentine's Day.
My first card was created for a young couple who were married this week. I was asked to make a card with "something traditional" on it. The colour of the wedding invitation was cream with a mink coloured ribbon across the front of it, so I attempted to carry this through into the overall colour scheme of their customised card.
I have explained previously the religious significance of the wedding canopy and candles that I have depicted. Please go to my post A Jewish Wedding if you would like a refresher. I simplified my design a little on this occasion, enlarging some elements and adding the bow to match the invitation that the couple's guest had received. I hope that they liked their card.
I am currently participating in the Etsy Greetings Team's Valentine's Day promotion. The cards that I have included in the team's collection are some old favourites of mine. These sweet heart cards, above, are available as a pack of five in my shop. Buy them during the period of the Etsy promotion, from now until 31st January, and receive matching tags as my gift to you.
While of course I'd suggest that my pack of heart cards are absolutely perfect for your Valentine needs, and for many other occasions throughout the year, it's possible that they just aren't your favourites. For other ideas search "egvdpromo" on Etsy to find more beautiful handmade cards, made by some incredibly talented people. Lastly, thanks to a kind team member on another Etsy team that I belong to, Etsy Chai, one of my cards was featured on the online magazine Michal's Tefillin, in a piece about unique wedding accessories. It was a pleasure to see one of my wedding card designs there amongst some beautiful jewelry and ketubot (in Jewish weddings, this is the wedding contract between the bride and groom).
Don't forget to check out the great Valentine's Day cards with specials now!