Vote for New Texas Dreidel Tees designed by Threaded Heritage (and Win!)

Threaded Heritage designs and manufactures the cool (not kitsch) Jewish t-shirts on ModernTribe.com. I'm thrilled with what these guys are doing for cool Jewish t-shirts, that is creating tees sans funny Yiddish sayings. It's a space that needed filling and they are doing a great job. Threaded Heritage and ModernTribe are collaborating to create a new t-shirt for No Limit Texas Dreidel. Our run-away-success of a game needs a t-shirt that is just as cool. LOOK! Vote at right, then comment and give us an opinion on what you like and what you don't. One of the commentors will be chosen to get one of our new t-shirts as soon as they are produced!

Design 1: Wooden Dreidel:


Design 2: Texas Dreidel Royale:





Remember:
(1) Vote at right
(2) Then comment and give us an opinion on what you like and what you don't.

Commentors will be entered into a lottery and one will be chosen to get our new t-shirt!

Passover Bloopers - Part One - Box Girls

I was looking at The Box Girls website for their Passover Box of Questions. It's literally a box of questions around the theme of Passover (I suppose about freedom, leadership, and desert survival) so you and your family can talk amongst yourselves. Kind of a goofy idea, I know, but actually something I'd go for because I can be such a sentimental nerd.... Anyhow, this is the picture of the family at the Passover Seder enjoying the Passover Box of Questions.

Check out that stack of matzah! A Jew would never inflict that much of the bread of affliction on his beloved family. I also like the way the daughter, dad and son seem to be enjoying an additional glass of wine post seder (like four glasses isn't enough!) Oy! I kid.

Thank you Box Girls for including not one but three Jewish holiday boxes. They also make Hanukkah and Shabbat.

Do you Vazu?

** Update: Vazu is now available for sale on ModernTribe.com here.**

My customers are the most wonderful people -- they call me to chat and tell me interesting insights they have about Judaica and Israeli design. Yesterday a woman told me about Vazu by Israeli designers T.H.+E. Design Group. I immediately loved the product and the concept and want to add it ModernTribe ASAP.

Let me tell ya about them. They are pretty, modern-design vases, right?

Well, look again.




They are actually made of plastic and fold flat for storage and travel. I don't know the price point yet but my customer told me it is pretty reasonable. Wouldn't they be great to bring along with the flowers you are giving to your girlfriend or hostess? How many times have you carted a glass vase with you and had to worry about it breaking in the car?

Below is how they are merchandised. Unassuming packaging which looks more like pantyhose than a designer vase.

I'll let you know when the are available at ModernTribe.com.

Introducing Regina Allen on ModernTribe.com

I want to introduce you to Regina Allen and her handmade, one of a kind, Judaic jewelry we are now selling on ModernTribe.



Regina's first love is painting. She mixes textile and wallpaper patterns with vintage images of women and children from sources such as coloring books. The result is a juxtaposition of the ornate and the simple to create a modern vintage look.



In Regina's own words:

I want these works to be provocative and seductive, taking something decorative and beautiful on the surface and making it more complex and a little discomforting. As I make this work, I'm considering my own roles as mother, artist, homemaker, and wife and my struggle to balance these many faces in a society with little real support for families...I see women all around me struggling with the same issues, trying to keep their identities as sensual, thinking women, while nourishing their families and their careers. These are the pressures and restraints I'm considering as I make these images.

Recently Regina has started to make jewelry, and like her paintings, they are a "collage." She combines new pieces with old, found, and vintage beads, chains, and charms to create one-of-a-kind pieces. These pieces are one-of-a-kind and exclusive to ModernTribe.com.

Learn more about Regina Allen and see more of her paintings at ReginaAllen.com.

Buy Regina Allen's Judaic jewelry at ModernTribe.com.

Would You Wear a Venetian Mask This Purim?

Purim is revelrous Jewish holiday. It's traditional to feast, drink, give gifts of food to friends and to the poor, and dress in costume. The feasting, drinking, and giving are pretty typical for Jewish holidays (although more feasting, drinking, and giving than normal is required).

I'm considering stocking these Venetian masks for Purim -- for our ADULT Purim parties and I want your opinion on them -- please!

Venetian masks seem to be PERFECT for Purim -- because it turns out that Italian Jews, in the middle ages, were the first to adopt the custom of dressing in costume to celebrate Purim. The Italian Jews were inspired to wear costumes by the Roman Carnival, naturally. But the custom spread and stuck, likely because it is so appropriate for Purim.

Hiding our identity by dressing in costume is a way for us to experience the Purim story. The story is chock full of people mis-representing themselves and concealing their true identity. Esther is the major incognito who conceals her Jewishness from the King and becomes Queen. Of course, later she reveals she is a Jewess to save her people from Haman's plot to kill the Jews. Other cases of mistaken identity include Mordecai (Esther's Uncle and informant) hiding his language abilities and thus eavesdropping on the plot for Jewish extermination; Mordecai was able to listen with ease because the conspiritors felt free to discuss thinking he didn't know their language. Then Haman (the King's right hand man and striving Jew killer) is mistaken for Mordechai and thus, as it's discussed in the Talmud, Haman's daughter dumps her chamberpot on top of her own father's head! Oops.

Shakespeare must have gotten his inspiration from the Purim Megillah.

Wikipedia has a great page on Purim: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purim

So what do you think of the masks? Most of them would sell for 6-$18.

Israeli Electronica - Onili - Games

The first paragraph of today's JDub newsletter had a couple of words that intrigued me: "remix" and "chanteuse" and a link to Onili's single Games from her upcoming album First Kiss. I have a thing for electronica and super thing for female electronica... and Israeli female electronica? You can imagine. I've been searching for it for months! And check out this cute album cover of Onili with a shotgun - it's so Israeli fem-punk, love it!


You can hear her music at her website: www.onili.com

You can buy her single Games at CDBaby who describes Onili's music as:

"Girly Electro-PoP with rock energy played by a live band." and goes on to tell us:

Both French and Israeli, Onili is a mix of two cultures sharing her time between her little Israeli mountain where she runs her studio and Paris where she grew up...Onili's lyrics are stories of her life through her emotions of love, anger, frustration, conclusions and understandings, with humor and passion.

I can't wait to hear more from and about Onili.

Passover by Design by Susie Fishbein - a Cookbook for Modern Seders

Those of you who keep kosher likely know Susie Fishbein's series of kosher cookbooks, the first being Kosher by Design. This February, Susie is coming out with another book: Passover by Design. Even those of you who don't keep kosher may want to add this book to your library for its modern seder settings and unique recipes. Recipes include Thai quinoa (a berry that has the taste and texture of a grain) and giant zebra fudge cookies (zebra stripes are so in right now). And check out this table setting which includes individual seder boxes complete with all the necessities for seder participants. No more reaching across the table for the matza or maror -- you've got your own stash in front of you. The box even has a sake flask and tea towel for the ritual handwashing.

Passover by Design is scheduled for release on February 28th. You can reserve your copy at ModernTribe.com for 20% off the cover price and we'll ship it to you as soon as it arrives.

You can see more of a preview of the book here.

Thanks for the clever and modern ideas Susie!

Israeli Designer: Orna Lalo

I tripped across Orna Lalo on the net and was immediately struck by her work. Much of it is too fanciful for my taste but some of her slightly more subdued, new-natural pieces could dress up a table beautifully. Her bio says her training was in textiles. She seems to create "fabric" out of man-made materials making fashion for her candlesticks. As you can see, these pieces are ready for a night out on the town.

See more of Lalo at her website www.LaloOrna.com.

Preview of ModernTribe's Modern Passover

We had a photoshoot this weekend to get ready for Passover. I know the holiday is still a ways away but we are so excited here's a preview of what is come to ModernTribe.com. Modern seder plates and modern seder accoutrement for your modern Jewish lifestyle.

Bird Watching at Atlanta Gift Show

Birds are a great motif for Jewish stuff -- well, specifically the dove-type bird. The symbol of the dove comes from the story of Noah in Genesis, from The Torah... or you may call it the "Old Testament." After the rain (and 40 day slumber party with two of every beast) Noah sent a dove out to find land. When the dove came back with an olive branch, Noah knew land was near. Since then the dove with the olive branch has become a common Judaic motif and a universal symbol of peace.

Birds were a very popular motif last spring and they are still everywhere at the trade shows.

I found the most beautiful bird ceramic bird tiles at the Atlanta Gift Show made in the UK. The small tiles are 4 1/2 square tiles and retail for $56 and are hand made by a craftsman in the UK.

Ibride is a French design of modern-vintage trays and furniture whose motifs range from woodland creatures to portraits of famous people as children. They are heavy on the whimsy and do boarder on kitsch but they are truly unusual and wow -- take a look at the furniture on the Ibride website. They design a tray with a bird motif called skylark:And the third set of birds I've had my eye on since the New York International Gift Fair (NYIGF) last August: melamine plates from Working Class Studios -- designed by SCAD students (Savannah College of Art and Design) from my home state and now home town (they have an Atlanta campus too). These I bought (the entire melamine plate collection) and are coming to ModernTribe.com for you to buy soon because they are my favorite melamine line. Set of four will be $25.

Designist Dream Uncovers the Israeli in Italian Design

I recently discovered a great blog on Israeli design by Ziva Haller called Designist Dream (say designist slowly). She reports on furniture, decor, fashion and all things design-related going on in Israel or abroad by her Israeli compatriots.

Ziva's recent posts on Israeli designed furniture shows this: you may think it's Italian or German designed but, alas, it could be Israeli designed. Israeli designers work for design houses Zanatto, Kartell, and Alessi. For example, at right, The Clover chair by Ron Arad for Italian furniture house Driade.

And the Bigwire table by Arik Levy for Italian furniture house Zanotta:
Learn more about Ron Arad in Ziva's blog post here.
Learn more about Arik Levy in Ziva's blog post here.

Expect more great insider Israeli information from Ziva coming soon!

Glam Rock Found at Atlanta Gift Show

This past week was a big international gift show right in my own back yard: the Atlanta International Gift Show. When I go to these shows I'm there to visit my regular vendors and, of course, look for the totally cool, new Jewish stuff. While walking through the juried Boutique aisles, a bunch of sparkling, candy colored things lured me into a booth. There was nothing Judaic about the line but the mix of chrome and gloss was irresistible. Stunningly, the designer was speaking Hebrew. I'd stumbled upon Glam and Glam Rock by Triple C Designs. The owners are Israeli (living in Brooklyn) and they design glam-punk rock-star jewelry and purse accessories such as keychains, compacts, purse hangers, and pill boxes. Here's the skull motif again (sans Magan David):Take a look at the Glam Rock line (Glam is "coming soon") and tell me what would you like to see on ModernTribe.com?

What is Tu B'shevat?

To quote the cover of Jewish Living Magazine this month: Tu B'shwhat?

Tu B'shevat literally means the "15th of Shevat" the Hebrew month which falls in the common calendar's January to early February. But Tu B'shevat is considered the Jewish New Year of Trees. Trees are extremely important in Judaism: trees are used metaphorically to consider G-d and life in Judaism and the planting of trees is holy. Combine that with the very modern importance of reclaiming the baron desert of Israel through planting trees, and it's easy to see why a celebration of trees is part of our tradition.

(There are actually four "new year" celebrations in the Jewish calendar: Rosh Hashanah being the one we all know and love for the apples dipped in honey. There is also 1st day of the month in which Passover falls which is the New Year of Festivals, and then the first of Elul, falling late August, is the New Year of Cows. Really. )

The origin of Tu B'shevat

The Jewish New Year of Trees was originally the date Jews used to calculate the age of trees. A tree is as old as how many Tu B'shevats it has been on Earth. Why is this important -- to calculate the age of trees? Well, there is a Commandment in the Torah that people shouldn't eat the fruit from trees for the first four years: no one eats for the first three and then during the fourth year the fruit is picked but not eaten (instead is donated to "G-d"). Then after the tree reaches four years of age, people can eat the fruit. Go ahead and ask "why four years?" but there is no good answer except "it is Commanded."

Modern Celebration

The Tu B'Shevat seder began as a Kabbalistic Jewish mystical practice in the 17th century. Ecologically minded Jews have adopted Tu B'shevat as a time to honor conservation and sustainable agriculture. (I bet Madonna celebrates.) The seder pretty much consists of drinking wine, eating fruit, praising G-d for creating these things, and reminded ourselves that we are stewards of the Earth. One way we drive home the point is by eating carob. Carob is indigenous of the land of Israel and it takes a special meaning because of how long it takes to bear fruit: up to 70 years. "Why plant a carob tree if you won't live to eat its fruit?," an old man is asked in a Talmudic tale. The old man replies that it is for his children and grandchildren. We must take care of this world for the next generation.

Along with carob, it is traditional to eat the "seven species", which are fruits of the earth mentioned in the bible and native to the land of Israel: pomegranates, dates, barley, wheat, figs, olives, and grapes. Also, participants get to drink four glasses of wine ranging from white to red. So, for example, you'd start with a Chardonnay, moving to a White Zinfandel (those morally opposed to white zin can obstain), continue with a Pinot, and end with a Cabernet.

Thinking of doing a Tu B'shevet seder?

• Here is a link to a spiritual but concise seder by the The Jewish Woman's Center of Pittsburgh.
• A link to one from Babaganewz appropriate for kids complete with music, games, and a slideshow of "Totally Wacky Trees"
• Check out Jewish Living Magazine for their Tu B'shevet seder recipes including: red pepper and olive bruschetta, pomegranate-glazed lamb roast, and pistachio-stuffed medjool dates.

Oh -- one last thing. If you are in the New York City area - yay for you: Don't miss this Tu B'Shevat Celebration at the JCC Manhattan:

Omarosa is back on Apprentice...

... and she goes all spin with No Limit Texas Dreidel!

Happy New Year & New Stuff for 2008

Hanukkah was an incredible whirl-wind for us at ModernTribe.com. Thank you to all our customers, non-profit affiliates, artists, designers, and suppliers for a wonderful first Hanukkah.

There is so much to look forward to for 2008.

New Stuff
We have new stainless steel and gold anodized jewelry coming from Polli Designs including the gorgeous Leaf Pendant Necklace for Tu B'shvat, the Jewish harvest celebration. Tu B'shvat is the Jewish New Year for Trees and has become for many an ecological celebration centered around preservation of trees and the Earth. Look for more tree-themed items coming soon.

Pomegranates are one of the seven species traditionally eaten on Tu B'shvat. In honor, we are adding to our pomegranate collection these pom-red vases or candleholders in two sizes.

Shahar Peleg's Chainlink Bottle Holder was a huge hit with gift-givers. We're adding some more Peleg designs soon including this Hotman pot holder (may be a perfect gift for your hot man).

Jewish t-shirts that are cool but not kitsch. We are so excited about these...

Of course we'll be stocking up with modern Passover wares so that your seder can be fit with the 21rst Century.

Better Shipping Notification and Shipment Tracking
We changed our shipping methods. For US shipment we now ground ship FedEx or UPS which allows tracking. When our warehouse ships your package, you receive an email with ship notification and tracking information.

No Limit Texas Dreidel to be sold in stores near you Hanukkah 2008.
We are selling NLTD wholesale to retailers and non-profit organizations for fundraising. If you know of a synagogue gift shop or a Jewish non-profit who may want to sell No Limit Texas Dreidel contact us and let us know!

Sign up for ModernTribe.com's newsletter to get notices of new stuff and discount codes.

We always want to hear from you -- dear customers -- so don't hesitate to call or email us.
1-877-324-1818, info@moderntribe.com

-- Jennie