Thank you, Stephanie, for sharing this beautiful handmade full-size tallit, personalized through a mix of creative techniques. Stephanie started with the tallit instructions in the Sew Jewish book, choosing the variations for the full-size tallit. Then she sewed on ribbons for stripes in a mix of blues, purples, and teal. She used fabric paint to … Continue reading
To embroider curved lines, the stem stitch makes a fabulous choice. It turns along curved lines beautifully, and you can vary the thickness of your embroidered line by varying the angle of the needle as you make the stitch. These stitch diagrams illustrate the how-to, and I’ve posted a little hamsa for you to practice … Continue reading
This Sukkot I got the chance to lead a workshop for the Beacon Sukkah Project, a Sukkot-long program of arts and lectures organized by the Beacon Hebrew Alliance and Beacon Arts in Beacon, New York. To fit this year’s theme, “Open to the Sky,” I led an introduction to drawn thread embroidery, and thought I’d … Continue reading
For tips on how to begin and end your stitching and other embroidery basics take a look at Hand Embroidery Basics. The backstitch is a simple stitch for embroidering lines, and with just a little practice you’ll master a stitch that will take you far. Overall, we move along the line from right to left. … Continue reading
During the festival of Sukkot we eat in the sukkah, visit with family and friends in the sukkah, and sometimes, so I’ve heard, sleep in the sukkah, although I’ve never done that. Why not sew in the sukkah? Particularly during the intermediate days of the festival when we’re less likely to be entertaining friends for … Continue reading
You’ve probably heard of Grandma Moses, the American artist who started painting at the age of 78. But did you know that painting wasn’t Grandma Moses’ first creative vocation? Years before she took up painting she captured the landscapes and rural life around her through embroidery. Grandma Moses became famous for her folk art paintings … Continue reading
Are you thinking about making a wedding chuppah? Earlier this summer InterfaithFamily asked me to write a guest post about chuppahs –the various styles, where to find one, and tips for making one– based on my work at Huppahs.com. InterfaithFamily, if you’re not familiar with the organization, provides Jewish resources for interfaith couples and families. … Continue reading
Join us at Beetle and Fred fabric shop in Beacon, New York on October 22 and create this perfect little pouch to tuck your phone away for some screen-free time. The pouch is easy to sew and great for helping you put your phone out of sight and out of mind for Shabbat, the holidays, … Continue reading
This topic requires a bit of a personal story. One of my favorite pieces of Judaica in the world is an 18th century Turkish Torah ark curtain –parochet—in the collection of the Jewish Museum London. The curtain is a red flannel wool richly embroidered in gold with Biblical and classical imagery: a city –Instanbul, perhaps, … Continue reading
Stripes are not required for a tallit, although they are strongly traditional in some communities. In Ashkenazi Jewish communities –communities that trace their roots to Eastern Europe in the Middle Ages—prayer shawls traditionally have black or blue stripes. The stripes call back to the blue dye used to color one of the tzitzit strings in … Continue reading
You’re thinking about making a tallit –prayer shawl– and wondering what fabric to use. Wool and silk seem popular, and many modern commercial tallits are made from polyester blends. Are these the only acceptable options? Are some fabrics better than others? Are there some fabrics you can’t use? Here are some considerations based on Biblical … Continue reading
If you’re like me, it’s easier to take time away from your cell phone if it’s out of sight. Hence, the cell phone sleeping bag, especially useful for tucking your phone away for Shabbat and Jewish festivals. As far as my internet research can tell, the idea of a sleeping bag for your cell phone … Continue reading
Here’s a great way to add a Jewish touch to your decor, a quilt, or other sewing project: an embroidered Hebrew monogram letter. And here’s a great project for a relaxing summer day: a Hebrew monogram letter embroidery kit. I’m excited to announce that I’m releasing a new line of Hebrew letter free-form embroidery kits, … Continue reading
So you’ve finished making the main body of your tallit —or tallis, prayer shawl— and you’re ready to add the corner pieces, the square pieces of fabric that decorate the corners of the tallit and help reinforce the holes for the tzitzit strings. Does it matter how close to the edges of the tallit you … Continue reading
Will you be joining the Pomegranate Guild of Judaic Needlework Convention later this month in Atlanta? I won’t be able to make it, but this little pomegranate will be representing me. It’s made by hand applique using silk dupioni. This one pomegranate is a small part of a banner put together by the members of … Continue reading
Orange Summer by Justine Miller Have you heard the story about the woman who wanted to be a rabbi and who was told by a man that “a woman belongs on the synagogue bimah the way an orange belongs on a Passover Seder plate”? The story has inspired many families, including mine, to put oranges … Continue reading
Happy Purim! To mark the occasion, I’m posting this piece about the Jews in one of the cities of Queen Esther’s Persian Empire: Baghdad. It’s an excerpt from an article I wrote in 2003 on an exhibit about the Jews of Iraq at London’s Jewish Museum. The exhibit was called “By the Rivers of Babylon.” … Continue reading
Inspired by a quilting class in curved piecing and staring down a sizable fabric stash, Deborah Freedman crafted this tallit featuring the rolling hills around the Old City of Jerusalem. Deborah created the scenes on each of the two ends of the tallit as separate pieces, and then she appliqued the pieces on to the … Continue reading
Sew Jewish 