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
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
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
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
On the Friday before Rosh Hashanah, Sarah Jacobs, the author of the blog Sarah in NYC, was facing a deadline to finish a custom kittel –the white coat traditionally worn by men on special occasions. The deadline was later that day, but she took time to talk to me about the kittel, her work, and … Continue reading
Hey quilters, Row by Row 2016 is on. The annual fabric store hop launched on Tuesday, and this year’s theme is “Home Sweet Home”. All summer long, local quilt fabric shops across the United States and Canada are giving away free, original quilt row patterns based on this year’s theme. A handful of shops in … Continue reading
Have you been looking for a tallit with Scottish flair? Have you wanted a kilt but weren’t sure where to find one that comforms to the Jewish laws of shatnez? Scottish rabbi Mendel Jacobs has you covered. He’s just registered the first official Jewish tartan with the Scottish Tartans Authority. Scottish rabbi hawks ‘kosher’ tartan … Continue reading
The world doesn’t have enough sanctuaries; calm, protected spaces to pray, meditate, and enjoy a cup of tea with a friend. One creative Jewish community in New York’s mid-Hudson valley, the Beacon Hebrew Alliance, built such a sanctuary inside their synagogue earlier this year by enclosing part of a multi-purpose room with fabric. They call … Continue reading
The year I lived in Tunisia opened my eyes to a whole new world of Jewish culture, especially during the spring holiday of Lag b’Omer. The holiday takes place thirty-three days after the first day of Passover. In my American community, we celebrated with a picnic, but on the Tunisian island of Djerba, the El … Continue reading
Last week, two obscure words made news in Iraq and Syria: dhimmi and jizya. Both words relate to non-Muslims living in some strict Muslim societies. And because this blog is not just about sewing patterns and tutorials but also about the role of sewing in Jewish culture and Jewish history, I thought I’d offer a … Continue reading
We’re sharing this post from our sister site, Backyard Huppah. Direct link to showtunes. Fans of the award-winning PBS documentary The Gefilte Fish Chronicles will be glad to hear it’s being turned into a musical, currently in development and playing in theaters around New York and New Jersey. The play tells the story of the … Continue reading
When we heard that British Pathé, which maintains seventy years worth of historic news reels, uploaded 85,000 videos to YouTube this week, we had to search the archives for sewing-themed video gems. Here are some of our favorites. Steel yourself for some unfortunate gender stereotyping, but if you can get through that, you can learn … Continue reading
Peta over at The Not Sew Guilty Quilter just launched her first ever (maybe THE first ever?) Jewish craft and quilting swap. She’s matching up folks to sew Jewish holiday themed table or food prep items for each other. Do you have a Jewish-themed table runner or pot holder in you? One of the guidelines … Continue reading
Sew Jewish 