Adam and I have been together since 2014, and after six and a half years together, I’m pretty certain there are wedding bells in our future. My favorite event to share with Adam’s family has been Passover seder. The history and symbolism embedded in this holiday gave me a feeling of religious connection I had rarely felt before. With my sights on our future together, I’ve started the process of converting to Judaism, with an emphasis on Jewish wedding traditions. Though Adam and I aren’t engaged yet, I have had a lot of time on my hands during this pandemic. Dreaming of what our wedding might look like, and having the time to research things I can make to add personal touches to a ceremony or reception, has been a bright spot during challenging times.

A chuppah (or huppah) is a handmade canopy used in many Jewish wedding ceremonies. It can be freestanding or held by members of the wedding party. It symbolizes the mitzvah of the marital union as well as the hospitality of the couple in the home and life they build together. Often, a Jewish prayer shawl (tallit) is used as the chuppah’s covering, but can really be made of anything. I thought this would be an opportunity to create a meaningful piece for our wedding that could also be a family heirloom for years to come.

“The only rule about the construction of a huppah is that it be a temporary structure made by human hands. Other than that, it’s yours to create.”

Anita Diamant

(For more information on Chuppahs, check out the original article at https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/chuppah/)

Adam and I selected a vintage lace tablecloth pattern titled “Summer Garland” created by Marianne Kinzel in 1952. I had some difficulty tracking down the pattern, but eventually found a reproduction of it for sale on a UK eBay listing. The pattern called for the use of crochet thread instead of yarn, and I chose a white and metallic silver material to work with.

To describe this project as fiddly is an understatement. Lacy pieces make it difficult to hide mistakes or changes in yarn tension, making it so that any error seems magnified, but you don’t see it until a row or two later. When I would find a mistake, I would try to undo individual stitches so I didn’t need to undo hundreds or eventually thousands of other stitches in the following rows, and this was somewhat successful. Other times, I would have to undo row after row to correct errors. As you can imagine, there were certainly times I felt frustrated while creating the chuppah! When this happened I would remind myself that I wanted this piece to be created with love and didn’t want to have a negative attitude or to have it feel like a chore. That or I would rage quit and come back to it later. After much time and stitches, the chuppah was complete!