Ariella's Album

Ariella celebrated her Bat Mitzvah back in February and her mum asked me to make a personalised album for her. Ariella likes art, music, baking, sushi, Netflix, shopping and jewellery, mum told me. She also has a favourite T-shirt, which she asked me to show Ariella wearing. Ariella's hair is strawberry blonde and she has blue/green eyes, mum said.

There was plenty for me to work with!

I have shown Ariella with some paintbrushes in one hand and with a big cake in the other. To her right is some sushi and a paint palette. To her left is a laptop computer with Netflix open on it, some music notes and a wooden spoon and spatula. Ariella is wearing her favourite T-shirt, silver earrings and has a shopping bag over her arm. Mum asked me to put the logo of Claire's on the front of the bag, since it is Ariella's favourite place to shop.

Ariella's name and the words Bat Mitzvah appear at the top of my design and the date of her Bat Mitzvah celebration is at the bottom. The album opens the English way, from left to right. (Hebrew books open from right to left.)

The colour scheme for Ariella's Bat Mitzvah celebration was raspberry, gold, peach and black. I made the background box and border raspberry coloured. Her T-shirt is khaki but she is wearing a black skirt. The Claire's shopping bag and a couple of the music notes are peach, and the lettering is gold.

All the requested colours were used!

I decorated five pages inside Ariella's album as well. They covered her interest in art, music, baking cakes and shopping, along with her love of jewellery, below.

* This post has been shared on The Good. The Random. The Fun.

Hana & Gary

Hana was turning 40 so her husband wrote and asked me to make a special card for her. She is a hairdresser and a teacher, he told me. She loves going to the gym, her iPhone, Instagram and jewellery. There was a lot to include but this was an extra large card, so I had plenty of room.

I showed blonde-haired Hana with her hairdryer in one hand and a dumbbell in the other. I added some running shoes as well, since running and weights are her favourite ways to exercise. Behind her is a blackboard with the words "English Lesson" chalked on it. In the foreground I added Hana's iPhone 12, some hairdressing scissors and a comb, the Instagram logo and some sparkly jewellery. Her husband wasn't sure what her favourite piece of jewellery is but said that he had just given her a gold necklace, so I made sure to add that. A big silver 40 marks Hana's age.

A few months before Hana turned 40, her husband Gary celebrated his special birthday. Hana also asked me to make him two very special cards. The first card, an extra large one, was going to be from their children. Hana asked me to show her husband with their five kids. He is a big Everton F.C. fan so I included the club's crest on the card. He is wearing a royal blue shirt, Everton's traditional home colour. Hana also told me that he enjoys playing golf and lifting weights and I had to include his iPhone and the TV remote too!

The card from Hana showed Gary enjoying a tumbler of whisky and smoking a cigar. To his right is a big 40, his Tesla electric car and some weights. On Gary's left I showed the logo of his accountancy firm along with some tiny coins. A bottle of whisky and some more cigars completed the design.

After asking Gary a few questions about Hana's card, he replied saying "Now I understand why my wife likes your work. She also likes detail!". They certainly got it in tenfold on all three cards!

* This post has been shared on The Good. The Random. The Fun.

Proud Israeli Women

A regular customer contacted me with a request for a special card for her mother-in-law's 70th birthday. She's a very active, vibrant woman, my customer told me. She made Aliya 2 years ago (literally, the Hebrew word "aliyah" means ascent or rise, but for generations it has been used to mean "to move to Israel") and is proudly Israeli with strong South African roots.
Mum-in-law is always on the go. She recently travelled to Italy with a friend, is a keen swimmer, she likes to take selfies and is constantly looking for - losing - and finding - her keys... phone... credit card... glasses. She often wears a particular necklace that my customer sent me a photo of. Finally I learnt that she is a beloved remedial teacher and still teaches English to children to this day.

I have shown the birthday girl wearing her favourite necklace and waving a South African and an Israeli flag. She has found her key and her credit card and is holding them tightly in her other hand. An alphabet book represents the years she has spent teaching, whilst a towel, swimming goggles and mobile phone mark her love for swimming and taking selfies respectively. I added a little picture of the Colosseum in Rome to serve as a reminder of her recent trip to Italy.

"My mother-in-law loved your card! She was blown away!" my customer wrote to me.

Another proud Israeli, Ella, is one of those lucky people who receives one of my birthday cards every year 😉. Last year I showed her all glammed up for her high school prom. She is now serving her time with the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) and so this year mum asked me to show her daughter in her olive green uniform, sitting next to a computer, working through the stacks of paper next to her. I added the big red number 19 to mark her age.
"Lisa, you did it again! Absolutely love your card!" she wrote on Facebook and shared the card for all to see.

The mother-in-law featured on the top card might have her favourite necklace but this lovely rose gold one is quite possibly now mine. Some time ago Anna and Robert of Monday Monarch kindly approached me and offered to send me a necklace or bracelet from their site. It's always nice to support fellow Israeli makers and so I was more than happy to have a good look around. I chose a 1 disc, rose gold 18" necklace and asked them to engrave it with my initial, using the font of my choice.

The handmade rose gold initial necklace which arrived so beautifully packaged in my postbox was a great choice! It is gorgeous and dainty and feels so light that you can almost forget that you are wearing it.
If you are looking for a great personalised gift - or something special just for yourself - Monday Monarch are located in Tel Aviv and will be very happy to hear from you!

* This post has been shared on {wow me} wednesday, Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop, You're the Star Blog Hop, Share Your Style, Little Things Thursday, Creatively Crafty, All Seasons and Mix it up Monday.