Sukkah Inspiration for the Feast of Tabernacles

Who needs ideas for their temporary dwelling? Scripture instructs us that during Sukkot or the Feast of Tabernacles we are to live in temporary dwellings or booths (Leviticus 23:42). While Judaism has many, many rules for how a sukkah should look and be, Scripture doesn't give specifics. So I have no doubt that YHWH expected us to each put our own spin on how we keep this commandment. I love getting to share sukkahs from several different feast keepers so you can see the range of possibilities. Your temporary dwelling could be a tent or a camper or a homemade canopy. Hopefully this inspiration sparks and idea that is doable for you.

From @blooming_light - What a pretty set up for a Sukkot dinner party! Simple two by fours can definitely be dressed up to look elegant.

From @blooming_light - After the party!

From @elysamary - The lights add such a festive touch to this elegant sukkah!

From Land of Honey - This is my yarn sukkah from a few years back. The structure is really easy to do. The yarn takes a little persistence but is definitely doable, or you could put curtains or a tarp up to make more protective walls.

A friend send me this picture of a more traditional sukkah in Rittenhouse Square in Philadelphia. You can get kits for sukkahs similar to this.

Another friend made this using the structure from an old swing set, and then some furniture and decor that she had. It looks like a great place for Bible study!

From @taliacarbis of The Climbing Tree - I love that she took comfy furniture and a rug (a plant even!) to make this temporary dwelling more like home. These touches make for an inviting atmosphere for your friends and family to spend time in.

From @taliacarbis of The Climbing Tree - Decorative touches like Talia's pomegranates can be a great activity for kids or yourself.

From Land of Honey - See the whole post for this here. It's made out of bamboo rods and thrifted curtains.

From @blooming_light - Here's a woodsy temporary dwelling made from tree branches and pine boughs.

From Asherah Cinnamon, displayed at the Oregon Jewish Museum Sukkah exhibit in 2014 - the branches in this one are so pretty!

From Love Sarah Schneider - I love the idea of a canopy right over the table! Absolutely beautiful for a Sukkot dinner party or Scripture study.

A big thank you to everyone who allowed me to share their work and photos; you guys are inspiring others to keep the feasts of YHWH! #sukkahgoals for sure!

More sukkah inspiration here. And here.

Song of Solomon Bridal Session

So today I am thrilled to be featuring the beautiful work of Courtney Wilkerson of Twinkling Eye Photography and her spectacular Song of Solomon bridal session! She had a vision to do this theme as a stylized session and it is amazing to see many elements from a book of Scripture come alive...from the countryside setting, to the huge tree, to the olives, figs, pomegranates and flowers.

A few words from Courtney:

The book in the bible, Song of Solomon will always have a special place in my heart and the goal for my heart with this session is to minister to others. My prayer is that these photos would be a visual representation of Song of Solomon and that his love would be poured out into the hearts of all who view them.

Fun fact: this was the first time he saw her that day.

Song of Songs 2:4.

Courtney says: We prayed before the session. Worship music played throughout the night. Scriptures were read aloud during the shoot and the poses were inspired by those words.

Whether you're planning a wedding or not there's some serious inspiration here! Song of Solomon would be an amazing theme for anniversary pictures, a romantic date night, a Bible study, or couples retreat. A lot of these elements would make for a beautiful Shavuot!

Micah and Lindsey are a real life married couple.

"Your cheeks are like pomegranates."

- Song of Songs 6:7

Such a lovely way to incorporate Scripture, and a straightforward DIY. If you don't want to use your handwriting, find a pretty font and print a verse onto craft paper for instant place settings.

"You have stolen my heart, my bride, with one glance of your eyes."

- Song of Songs 4:9

"Like an apple tree among the forest, so is my beloved among men."

- Song of Songs 2:3

"Strengthen me with raisins, refresh me with apples."

- Song of Songs 2:5

Love her pretty hair!

And that boutonniere!

Pepper Sprout Barn, where these were taken, is in Jackson, Georgia.

The floral department was taken care of by Twigs, Leaves, & Flowers.

I love how she incorporated several of the foods and dairy products mentioned in Song of Songs. Something like this would be a fun appetizer for date night or Bible study.

Can a table get any more beautiful? I petition not.

Thank you, Courtney for sharing your amazing vision and serious skills with us! You can see her post on the session here.

In Remembrance of Messiah - Passover Pictures

It's If you follow me on Instagram you may have already seen a few of sneak peeks of my congregation's Passover meal. And speaking of Instagram, in the past week or so more than 30,000 photos have been posted under #passover. 30,000! Isn't that crazy?! I love checking out Passover photos and would love to see yours! Tag me or send some my way. :)

We had 16 people in attendance for our Seder. This worked perfectly for a square set up of regular folding tables with four people seated on each side.

We had a worship time before the meal with live music. That's not something we have each week at Shabbat service so it was extra special to us.

We did the traditional four cups of wine. To simplify things, we pour the first cup before the service begins.

Our Passover is not as complicated as most, so we stick with a one page overview of the evening instead of a textbook Haggadah.

Homemade matzah! I know I've said this many times, but this seriously ups the quality of the meal. If making it is an option, I would encourage you to give it a try!

Daffodils just started blooming here a few days before Passover!

Wondering what the colored pencils are for? We made a custom coloring page.

Not everyone made a lot of progress on theirs. haha As you can see this was more geared towards adult doodling that a children's coloring book. 

The matzah pinata of course came along; I'm not sure I will ever bring myself to destroy it. haha I made a few of these banners with different Passover related verses. Above the buffet said, "Eat to remember this," (Deuteronomy 16:3).

Reading the story of Israel. We also five lit menorahs - so beautiful!

This picture really symbolizes this year's Passover: a team effort. Many people contributed to make this a lovely and meaningful evening for all. One person brought the dishes, another made the napkins, another supplied silverware, someone else purchased and brought the glasses. Another picture of Paul speaking of the body of Messiah.

Part of our buffet. Our meal was basically the same elements as the Seder plate, plus a few more vegetables.

Menu:

Smoked lamb marinated in balsamic vinegar, garlic, and rosemary
Einkorn matzah
Romaine salad with peppers, cucumbers, and kalamata olives

Baked charoset with apples and apricots

Roasted root vegetables

Two types of hummus with lots of fresh veggies

Hard boiled eggs

Tabbouli salad of parsley and lemon

Kalamata olive tapenade

Coconut yogurt tzatziki

Something we decided to do this year was ask everyone to bring plenty of food so there would be leftovers to share. The day after Passover is a no-work day and it was so nice to be able to take delicious, kosher, organic food home for meals!

I think this is one of our best Passover meals yet.

We had two special attendees with us via Facetime. They live in the south so they were able to enjoy their Seder outside.

About to enjoy the third cup of my homemade, homegrown grape juice.
Matzah ring tutorial here.

Dessert is served: three types of cheesecake with mixed berries, chocolate, ganache, and whipped cream.

We love pavlova for Passover dessert but since it had been raining we decided to go with cheesecake. It's hard to go wrong with cheesecake and these were excellent.

Thanks so much to everyone who contributed to make this set apart time special!