Knock Knock

Here's a new simple gift idea - door signs!

"The Most Noble Thing"

I made this piece for an aspiring writer friend of mine.  He had read an article in which a number of authors shared some advice on writing, and forwarded it to me under the subject "The Most Noble Thing" with a note to especially read Khaled Hosseini's bit.

"You write because you have an idea in your mind that feels so genuine, so important, so true. And yet, by the time this idea passes through the different filters of your mind, and into your hand, and onto the page or computer screen—it becomes distorted, and it's been diminished. The writing you end up with is an approximation, if you're lucky, of whatever it was you really wanted to say.

When this happens, it's quite a sobering reminder of your limitations as a writer. It can be extremely frustrating. When I'm writing, a thought will occasionally pass unblemished, unperturbed, through my head onto the screen—clearly, like through a glass. It's an intoxicating, euphoric sensation to feel that I've communicated something so real, and so true. But this doesn't happen often. (I can only think that there are some writers who write that way all the time. I think that's the difference between greatness and just being good.)

Even my finished books are approximations of what I intended to do. I try to narrow the gap, as much as I possibly can, between what I wanted to say and what's actually on the page. But there's still a gap, there always is. It's very, very difficult. And it's humbling.

But that's what art is for—for both reader and writer to overcome their respective limitations and encounter something true. It seems miraculous, doesn't it? That somebody can articulate something clearly and beautifully that exists inside you, something shrouded in impenetrable fog. Great art reaches through the fog, towards this secret heart—and it shows it to you, holds it before you. It's a revelatory, incredibly moving experience when this happens. You feel understood. You feel heard. That's why we come to art—we feel less alone. We are less alone. You see, through art, that others have felt the way you have—and you feel better."

The "Ketubah"

Many people deal with the "Ketubah Predicament".  On the one hand, you need it.  On the other, you don't really like it.  The creative solution that this couple came up with was to have it for the ceremony, but then immediately hide it away in a safe place and instead hang up a pretty Ketubah with a text that they feel represents their wedding, although it is not a marriage contract.

And Now For Something a Little Different

This was an interesting piece for me to make.  Usually when people order paper-cuttings from me they give me a general idea of what they want and I design something that I know they will love.  For example, for this Ketubah, the couple ordering it wanted something with bright colors and a possible Gemara theme.  The couple who ordered the second Ketubah shown here said something to the extent of, "Maybe something music-y/beach-y/sunset-y...?".  For this piece, all I had to work with was the verse.  This was the first time that somebody described to me very specifically what they were looking for and it was my job to make that vision materialize.  Although the style is very different from the pieces that I design on my own, the process of putting this together was lots of fun, I am very happy with how it came out, and, most importantly, my friends who ordered it love it!

More of the Jerusalem Theme

If you've seen the Birkat HaBayit post, you might have noticed that this is a design I use a lot. It's pretty neutral and so it makes for a great gift. To keep myself from getting bored, I like to change it up a bit and improve the design each time.  Can you spot all the differences between these ones and the older versions?

!ט"ו בשבט הגיע

I made this Ketubah for a couple who got married on Tu B'Av.  

I think the design is appropriate for Tu B'Shvat as well.

Happy Spring :)

Putting it Bluntly

The couple I made this for knew that they wanted a fancy ketubah, but didn't know what they wanted it to look like.

They also knew that they love Gemara.