Ilana

Ilana celebrated her 50th birthday in November. She is quite a regular customer of mine and so it seems that her family and friends who have received my cards over the years wanted to return the compliment when it came to her birthday. 

Her daughter contacted me and asked if I could make her mum a card. As it happened, one of Ilana's friends had already beaten her to it, but her daughter didn't mind. I assured her that the cards would be different! She told me that her mum likes cooking. She loves butterflies and tulips. And she is a teacher.

I showed redheaded Ilana holding a big bunch of pink tulips. Some butterflies are fluttering past her. I added a little blackboard with the words "Back to School" on it, and an exercise book and pencils to represent her teaching career. A cooking pot and wooden spoon illustrate Ilana's love of cooking. A big yellow number 50 marks her age.

Ilana's friend asked me to make her a birthday card too. She requested a water bottle, and some vegetables, since Ilana loves to cook. She told me that Ilana teaches English and also loves to read.

I showed Ilana with the water bottle in her right hand. She is pointing to a blackboard with the words "50 Today!" on it with her left hand. Next to her are some vegetables and a small pile of books.

Ilana was delighted with her cards and kindly messaged me on the day of her birthday:

Thank you for my cards

I was soooo lucky to get two 

❤️❤️❤️❤️

Love them

* This post has been shared on Wednesdays in the Studio, Tuesday Turn About and Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop.

Joyeux Anniversaire

This is another card I made before we lost Gadi. The recipient turned 75 in May 2022. His daughter-in-law asked me to make a birthday card for him. Hobbies include photography, plays, concerts, art exhibitions, Judaica (her father-in-law has a spice box collection) and travel, she wrote to me. That long list was whittled down to a camera, an aeroplane, and something to represent modern art!

I showed my customer's father-in-law with a camera in his hands. There is an aeroplane behind him, to represent his love for travel, and also some framed art and a sculpture. I added a 75 to the card too, to mark his age. Next to him is a spice box. Spice boxes are used at the havdalah ceremony performed at the end of Shabbat, to separate the holy day from the weekday (havdalah means "separation"). The ceremony involves lighting a special candle with several wicks, blessing a cup of wine, and smelling sweet spices. The spice box is passed around and everyone smells the aromatic spices as a way to uplift the spirit since the end of Shabbat is experienced as a sad moment.

My customer sent the card to France, where her father-in-law lives, thus the greeting "Joyeux Anniversaire", or "Happy Birthday". The traditional Hebrew blessing "120 עד" directly below means "May you live until 120". The Torah states that Moses died a the age of 120, at which age "his eye had not dimmed, and his vigour had not diminished". (Deuteronomy 34:7). The blessing therefore carries the implication that the receiver should have a long and fulfilled life.

My customer was very happy with the card. "I've been wanting to have an excuse to order a card from you for ages. Love your work!" she wrote to me.

In January 2023 another customer wrote to me and said "Unbelievably my uncle Joe is 100 in 3 weeks... it feels like the card is very important. So if you feel like making him one, I'd love that." She told me that Uncle Joe likes coffee and chocolate.

I decided to show him holding a big birthday cake with lots of candles on it, though I didn't add 100! A hot cup of coffee is in front of him and some yummy chocolate behind him. A big red 100 marks his very special age.

"I absolutely love the card" my customer wrote to me, then sent me this wonderful photo of her and Uncle Joe together.

* This post has been shared on Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday) and Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop.

Nifty Fifty

A customer asked me to make a card for her friend's birthday at the end of June. It was going to be her 50th birthday and she wanted a special card to mark the occasion. Books, nail polish, a water bottle and running shoes were requested for the card. My regular customer already knew how I work!

I decided to show the birthday girl with a bottle of water in one hand and some little bottles of nail polish in the other. I gave her a floral dress, like the one she was wearing in the photos my customer sent me, and a blue Alice band in her hair too. Behind her are some running shoes, and next to her a pile of books. A big pink number 50 shows her age.

My customer was delighted with the card. "You are brilliant!" she messaged me. "I love it. Thank you so much."

* This post has been shared on Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop and Little Things Thursday.

Two Cards for Mum's 80th

A customer asked me to make two cards for her mum's 80th birthday back in May. She sent me a recent photo of her mum and told me that she likes to knit, do crosswords and play Kalooki.

Showing mum knitting was easy. I added a newspaper with a crossword puzzle on it and a tiny pencil. I had to look up Kalooki  but soon learnt that it is a card game popularly played in Jamaica. It is sometimes called Jamaican Rummy. I printed out a tiny Kalooki score sheet and some playing cards. A big yellow number 80 marks mum's age.

My customer wanted me to show her children on the second card. Once again she sent me a recent photo and I was able to create a likeness of them all, carefully copying all the details, from the girls' dresses to the colour of the boys' belts!

"Thanks to my amazingly talented friend Lisa Isaacs for making these wonderful birthday cards for my mum's 80th." my customer wrote on Facebook. "She [mum] loved them."  

* This post has been shared on The Good. The Random. The Fun., Wow On Wednesday and Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop.