WorkShop - Pathfinding Cards Kit

Pathfinding Card Kit

The basic project kit is $30 and includes all of the following:

• (2) 12" x 12" Pathfinding Patterned Paper
• (15) Colonial White A2 sized cards/envelopes
• (1) D-sized Pathfinding Card Making Workshop Stamp Set
• (1) 12" x 12" Glacier Cardstock
• (1) 12" x 12" Kraft Cardstock
• (1) 12" x 12" Olive Cardstock
• (2) 12" x 12" Colonial White cardstock
• (1) Package of Sequins Gold Assortment
• (1) Roll of Bronze Shimmer Trim
• 20" Grosgrain Ribbon
• Instruction Guide

Additional products needed to complete this project: 
Ink Pads: Chocolate, Desert Sand, Goldrush, Olive, Glacier

Adhesive of your choice

3-D Foam Tape

Hole Punch

Art Philosophy Cricut Cartridge (Cricut tag will be pre-cut for you in the kit, but you will need this if you would like to make more in the future.)

You will learn how to make this adorable mini tote to hold your cards or use as a gift bag.

Contact me if you would like to order this workshop. 

Projects I have been working on

Here are some paintings that I have been working on this month..

This painting is my take on a Van Gogh painting called Cafe Terrace at Night. I did this painting in acrylics and Alcohol Inks.   Its not quite done yet.. But I hope to finish it before the end of this week.  11 x 14

This painting is still untitled.  Not sure what I want to call it yet.  It is done in acrylics and alcohol inks.  I also used sand, seashells, star fish and sand dollars to give it some texture.  This is a mixed media art piece which is completed.   8 x 10

This is painting that I finished last month.  No title yet.  It is done in acrylics.   16 x 20

November CTMH Sale at Jersey Girl Craft Studio

Buy CTMH and join my November Sale and one of the customers will get a chance to win the Hostess rewards.

Last month it was $100 in free product and 2 items half price. So, if you enter the November Sale you will be in a drawing to win rewards, the size of rewards depends on the size of everyone orders together.

Click the Join button and buy $25 worth of product. Each $25 in an order will get you 1 entry or each $100 get you 5 entries. Good luck!


http://jerseygirlcraftstudio.ctmh.com/


Shop online and place your order any time before 11:59 p.m. (MT) on Sun, 30 Nov 2014

November Workshop - PML Christmas Card Kit

November’s Workshop will be held on Wednesday, November 19th at 7pm. This month we will be making 30 quick and simple Christmas cards using the Pear & Partridge Picture My Life Kit.

The project kit is $40 and includes all of the following: 

• (1) A la Carte Pear & Partridge Picture My Life Kit
• (18) 5" x 7" Colonial White Cards/Envelopes
• (12) Colonial White A2 sized cards/envelopes
• (1) Package of Clear Sparkles Assortment
• (4) 12" x 12" New England Ivy cardstock
• (4) 12" x 12" Cranberry cardstock
• (4) Pre-cut mini mistletoe leaves
• (3) Pre-cut poinsettia flowers
• Instruction Guide to make 30 cards: (18) 5"x 7" cards and (12) 4¼" x 5½” cards

Additional products needed to complete this project:  

(I will have most of this on hand at my house) 

Ink Pads: Cranberry, New England Ivy (these are optional)

Sponge Daubers

Corner Rounder

Adhesive of your choice
3-D Foam Tape

You will learn how to make 30 cards: (18) 5"x 7" cards (2 each of 9 designs) and (12) 4¼" x 5½" cards (3 each of 4 designs.)

Contact me for more information or to sign up for this month’s class. 

Please contact me no later than November 11th if you would like to join us for the class. 

All kits/classes need to be paid for in advance.

Thank you for understanding.

You do not have to be a member of the creative club to come to this workshop.

 ALL are welcome!

To order a kit(s), you may either send me a check or pay securely online with a credit card or your PayPal account. If you would like your kit(s) shipped, please choose the shipped option. $8 will be added for shipping. (Kits can only be shipped to U.S. addresses per CTMH policy. I apologize for the inconvenience.)

You can also request this workshop for any home gathering parties.  

CTMH October Sale at Jersey Girl Craft Studio

Hi ! I’d like to invite you to join me for an incredibly fun time discovering exciting new scrapbooking and cardmaking products from Close To My Heart!

I love Close To My Heart’s huge variety of papers, inks, accessories, and more, and I think you will, too. Since I’m holding my Gathering online, it’s so easy for you to browse for and purchase some of your favorite scrapbooking and cardmaking items. Shop online and place your order any time before 11:59 p.m. (MT) on Fri, 31 Oct 2014. Just click on the link below.

I will have gift certificates for a free CTHM ink pad in the color of your choice for 5 lucky shoppers. Shoppers names will be entered into and drawn at random using random.org

Also if you decided to host a online gathering or an at home gathering, you will receive a free stamp set in addition to free products and half off items.

Buy CTMH and join my October Sale and one of the customers will get a chance to win the Hostess rewards. Last month it was $200 in free product and 4 items half price. So, if you enter the October Sale you will be in a drawing to win rewards, the size of rewards depends on the size of everyone orders together. Click the Join button and buy $25 worth of product. Each $25 in an order will get you 1 entry or each $100 get you 5 entries. Good luck!

http://jerseygirlcraftstudio.CTHM.com/

Resetting your Cricut Machine

Directions for resetting your Cricut Machine (do as a last resort)

1) First, turn your machine on with no cartridge loaded. Roll all your gray dials (the two on the left and the one on the right) down to their lowest setting. 

2) Grasp the green/gold cylinder blade assembly and use it to pull the entire gray carriage car unit (the one with the Cricut bug on it) along its track to the other side of the machine. Back in the cave where the gray carriage car usually sits there is a red button. Press that button and hold it down for about three seconds. Let go and then move the gray carriage car back into place. 

3) This next step will sound a bit odd, but many times it can fix your little "bug". You're going to roll all your dials all the way up and all the way down three times-three times for each dial. 

4) Then you are going to hit the "Cut" button and turn the machine off. Let the machine sit for a few minutes (15-20), load a cartridge, turn it on, and try a practice cut. 

If this does not solve your problem, call Cricut toll free at 1-877-727-4288 7am to 6pm MST Mon-Fri (make sure you are by your machine) and someone there will walk you through some trouble shooting tips and determine if a replacement machine is needed.

Creative Club

Monthly (no-commitment) Creative Club Do you like to make fun projects at a great price or for FREE? Do you like to learn new techniques? Do you like to earn free products? If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, my Creative Club is for you!

My Creative Club will meet the 3rd Wednesday of the month at 7pm at my house, however, you do not need to be local to be part of the club. My long distance members get their kits mailed to them and any orders they place get drop shipped to them directly from the Close to my Heart office. (Sometimes they even get their orders before the local gals!)


Here is more information on the Club:
You may join the club at any time and there is no commitment to stay in the club for any length of time or to place an order. There will be a small fee (depending on the project) for the supplies used for the projects we make which will range from cards to small gift items, to scrapbook pages, and more. Each person who signs up for this club will have their name added to the bottom of the hostess list. The person whose name is on the top of the list will get the hostess rewards that month. In order for your name to keep its “place” on the list, you must place a $25 minimum order whether you attend the class that month or not. If you do not place a $25+ order that month, then your name goes down to the bottom of the list. If you do place a $25+ order, then your name continues to move up the list AND you will get $5 off your kit for that class. (For example, if the class is $10 that month, your kit will only be $5 or if the class is $5 that month, your kit will be FREE!) Long distance members pay an additional $5 to have their project kits mailed to them.


Club members will also receive:

• A free current Idea Book/Catalog!

• Free Hostess Rewards during your hosting month!

• Optional monthly classes with project kits!

• Opportunity to hold a home workshop, gathering, or catalog party to boost your hostess benefits!

• $5 discounts on all of my other workshops and classes while you are a member!

• Other freebies and surprises…

payments are accepted via paypal - rmscomp@tampabay.rr.com 

Re-Organzining Jersey Girl Craft Studio

I have spent the last week or so cleaning out and reorganizing my craft studio.  It was lots of work but so glad its done.  I finally have all my stuff in one area and my home office is back to being just a home office..

 Full look at the craft studio.  Its a lot of stuff packed into a small space.  The room is 12 x 15.  I have tried to utilize every space possible in the room to store all my crafting stuff.  I do all different kinds of crafting so I many different areas to work in. 

The Color Station.  Here I keep my acrylic and oil paints, glimmer mists, ink pads, chalk paint,

alcohol inks, re-inkers, paint sprays, distress inks, and smooch inks.

Glitter and Washi tape.  Both are home made holders.

Here is where I store tons of different crafting items.  I have 5 dressers with draws filled of all kinds of crafting items like material, paper, office supplies, mugs and coffee as well as my gift bags.. (I make gift baskets from time to time) Embellishments, washi tape, glue etc.. 

My view of the pool from the craft studio. 

I have my crafting buddy Mr. Cricut there to keep me company :)

In front of my color station, I have a rack of my embellishments.   I have three of these racks around the room, one has my embellishments on it, one has clear stamps, and the last one, I keep all my custom made greeting cards on.   

In the recollections drawers under the rack of embellishments, I keep my wooden stamps and more of my clear cling stamps and blocks.  I also have some more ink pads in here.

Next to the color station is one of my paper storage areas.  This is mostly 12 x 12 pads and loose papers.  I also have a drawer with 12 x 12 sheets of vinyl and a paper scrap drawer. 

Here I keep my essential oils, soap bases, candle making supplies, bath salts and sugar scrubs.  I make my own perfume, bath salts/scrubs, shampoo and beauty products as well as soap and candles.   I have most of my supplies for these in these two cabinets.

I also have my sewing machine sitting on the shelf covered in pink.  The only craft machines I don’t have in my craft room are my Cricuts.  My expression 2 is hooked to my computer in my bedroom. I am going to bring it into the craft studio but I need to find a place to put it and I seem to be out of space.  My Cricut Explore is in my home office connected to my 27 inch I-Mac.  That will stay there.  I can design what I want on my laptop in the craft studio, then go to my desktop in the office and cut my designs there.   If I had more room in my craft studio, I would have definitely set up a die cut area.  But this will work for now. 

I had new business cards made.  One one side is my Legal services business and on the other side is my craft business.   Easier than carrying around a bunch of different business cards. 

Full look at the craft studio

My larger work station with my laptop and my much needed magnifying lamp.

Storage for all my misc items.  Bookcase on the far wall stores my Xyron Sticker makers, Cuttlebug, Alcohol inks, blank cards, 8 x 11 card stock, more embellishments, die cuts, embossing folders, doubles of my cricut cartridges and wood projects I am working on. 

Again another look my view from my desk.   The view always seems to make me relax. 

Home Made Washi Tape holder.

If you trade mail art with me then you’d know of my complete obsession with Japanese washi tape. If you’ve never heard of it, prepare yourself for awesomeness; Japanese washi tape is a special masking tape that is beautifully patterned & coloured. It comes in various sizes and thicknesses and honestly there are more tape designs out there than you can even dream of owning. With beautiful washi tapes in your art bin, you will never have the urge to glue something down ever again! I promised myself that I would treat myself to some new washi tape, because at the time I only owned 4 different rolls. I not only wanted more selection, but I wanted to extend my tape’s life; the more rolls you own, the less you use each one and thus make them all last longer! (be careful when applying this theory to shoes). The only issue now that I finally owned a dream selection of washi tape, was organizing it all. Sure you can buy tape organizers for upwards of $45 including shipping, or go to a kitchen store a get a paper towel holder (which wont have a cutting edge) for $20, but to be honest, I’d rather spend money on more tape than on an organizer. Then all of a sudden, it hit me, this problem was calling for a DIY solution. After searching the internet, I came across this tutorial from the blog  which was pure genius and so I thought I’d share with you my adventure in making a DIY washi-tape organizer.  (I have not made this yet but I thought I would share with you the instructions on how it is made.. It looks great) First you need an empty aluminum foil or cling wrap box. My cling wrap box was empty, but the roll inside was too thick for my tapes to fit. So I (not-so-neatly) wrapped the remaining tinfoil onto the cling wrap roll so as to steal the thin roll from the middle of the foil. You also need a cutting edge, and the one of the cling wrap box was in the wrong place, so I stole the cutting edge from the aluminum foil box too.Begin by tracing the diameter of the roll in the center of both sides of the box. Cut this circular hole on both sides – this is what will hold the roll up off the bottom of the box and keep it steady when you get to pulling on the tapes. Also cut a rectangular hole in the top of the box to make a window so you can see your tapes.Find a fancy paper you like and trace the dimensions of the box on the back. Then using a bone folder (or your fingers) fold across these lines. I chose to use double sided tape to adhere my paper to the box, but you can also use glue.Make sure you also cut little flaps for the lid edges and the sides and adhere them with tape or glue as well.Now that the box is covered,  it’s time to add in plastic or acetate cover to protect the rectangular peep hole cut in the lid. I just used a strip cut from a clear plastic ziplock bag that was laying around.  Adhere this on the inside of the lid with tape.Now all that’s left to do is add the metal cutting strip to the outside of the box, just barely above the the edge of the box. adhere securely from both sides with tape. I fancied mine up with some purple washi tape along the cutting strip and on the corners of the box.Add your gorgeous rolls of tape to the roll and then position the roll inside the box with both ends through the cut circular holes.And then, just like that, VOILA!!! your very own DIY washi organizer that cost you nothing but a bit of time!This thing looks awesome and it is just so much more compact and moveable than any of the other more expensive options. Plus if I ever own enough tape to warrant making another organizer, the two boxes can be stacked together! That couldn’t be done with a paper towel holder…I hope you enjoyed yet another fun DIY organizing post!!! I saved money by just making an organizer, so I must admit I am tempted to treat myself to a few more rolls to fill the remaining spaces left in my washi tape box… but I think I’ll be a good girl… for now.

Its been a while.

So sorry that I have not had time to update this blog.  I have just had such a busy summer. School starts up next week for my kids so I will have some time on my hands.  Not a lot but a bit.  I have a few things that I have been working on over the summer that I will post in the next week or so.

Painting with Alcohol Inks

Finished painting the Letters for Erin’s Door. Now I have to find the ribbon and brads I want to use to put them together. — at Jersey Girl's Craft Studio.

Been Super Busy...

I know its been a while since I have had the time to blog.  I have been so busy in the past month. I don’t know if I am coming or going sometimes.

Have had a bit more stuff put on my plate.  Have been shuttling my kids about and taking my mom where she needs to go.   Plus I started working more.  I need to put in more hours with my business and bring in more clients.  The hubby lost his biggest client and our income has plummeted straight down.  So I really need to find more work.  I have even toyed with the idea of working for a law firm but with my other commitments I don’t think I would be able to find someone to hire me.  Plus I have been working for myself for about 15 plus years.  Not sure how I would do in the regular 9-5 environment.

Troop 182 Trailer Fundraiser | Other - YouCaring.com

Troop 182 Trailer Fundraiser | Other - YouCaring.com

Good Morning

Happy Wednesday.  I had my coffee so I am a bit more awake.  Busy day today so I need to get out of pajamas shortly and get a move on.   

Today is the Ash Wednesday, the start of Lent.   I have thought long and hard on what to give up for lent this year.   I have decided to give up shopping.   I love to shop… My husband thinks I shop a bit too much… (well, he would know cause he gets my credit card bills..)  So I thought it would be a good thing to give up for the next 40 days.  So from now until Easter sunday I will not be buying anything that is not a necessity.  I am not even going to peruse the stores cause the temptation will be too great.. Same with being online..  Too tempting to shop there too..   So I guess for the next 40 days I will have to find some things to keep me occupied.  Plenty of projects that I can do around the house or out in the yard.  

Don’t forgot to go to church today to get your ashes.   Most churches have a morning, afternoon and evening service for this to accommodate all their parishioners.   Oh and don’t forget No meat today or on Fridays for the next 40 days.   

Time for me to get ready.   Have a wonderful day :)

St. Patrick's Day Lucky Wreath in Design Space

My initial impressions of Cricut Design Space

I'm keeping in mind that it's new and that there may be changes/additions. Also it just came out of beta and I am sure there will be a quirk or two in the program.  And I'm used to using  Cricut Craft room…  I am relatively new at this.  I only purchased my first Cricut (an Expression 2) this past December.  I have only been using them for a little over two months.  And my Explore is not here yet so I have not tried that yet.. (That review will be out later.)  

The Explore seems to be such a great machine. and it so worthy of  an incredible software program. I'm not saying that Design Space doesn't have some good  points,  it does, however, the negative points are big ones. Remember this is just my initial impression of the software.

Pros

When you select an image and place it on the mat, all the layers are placed at the same time. This is a great feature.  Since I a new at this, I love it.  It separates all the layers on to different mats.   Makes it easier for me.  On my E2, I never quite got the hang of layering my images or getting the sizes right. 

You can move the images around on the cut preview screen. That means you can load your mat up with different colour cardstock and just keep selecting which layer you want to cut.   This I really like.

Dragging the middle left arrow to the right horizontally flips the object. Dragging the right middle arrow to the left flips the object. Same goes for bottom middle arrow, but it flips vertically. Regrettably  the shape also stretches while you're flipping... so I'm not sure how functional this is. 

You can do multiple lines of text in one text box and you can left/center and right align them. You can also increase the line space between the lines of text.

Each time you select a different font the text in the preview box will change.

You can select multiple images from the carts/image library and insert them onto the canvas at the same time

There's a score line image that you can insert onto your shape. Unfortunately.... that image currently says it's unavailable. Hopefully it will be available soon.

It's a bit awkward to use especially if you are new to using Cricut or to paper crafts..I think some more work needs to be done on this program.   It's difficult to resize and also difficult to position in the correct place on your object.

And  in my opinion,  the most important "pro" to some is the ability to import svg, dxf, jpg, gif, png and bmp image files and cut them on the Explore. This was one of the main reasons I decided to purchase the Explore.   Still working on figuring out how to import and clean up my graphics. I think I just need some practice. 

Cons

You MUST be connected to Design Space via the Internet in order to use it. 

Internet speeds on DS are kinda slow.  I hope that this does not continue.  I am hoping that this was just due to the unveiling and thousands of us crafters were flooding their servers. 

Ipad App is not available yet.

There's no Cricut keypad..... Not sure whether it really matters considering all the layers are placed on the mat for you.

Images are not grouped by Cartridges.  Don’t get me wrong, I think they way they group things is nice in DS but I would like to be able to look things up by cartridge.

What happened to the Licensed Cartridges?  In CCR you could see every cartridge under All Cartridges and if you wanted to purchase the cartridge you could.  I can’t seem to find any licensed cartridges listed the images.  The only ones I can see are the ones I already own. 

Many of the images say unavailable?  Hope this is fixed soon.. 

You have to ungroup images/text before you can use Hide Contour.

You have to ungroup images/text to weld. I liked it better in Cricut Craft Room. When two images only have to touch each other and they are automatically welded.  It was a bit easier. Especially for newbies like me. 

You can't unweld.   That really needs to be changed.  I don’t want to have to start all over again if I decide I don’t want something welded. 

There is no offset function.   There should be an offset function.  Makes it easier to create shadows.

There's no skew function

There is no Align function. 

There is no crop tool

There is no eraser tool. 

There should be a way to  insert a straight line (rather than shrinking a rectangle). 

You can't cut images that have gone outside the mat boundaries. I

Can't move images that you don't want to cut off to the side of the canvas as they are placed back within the cutting boundary.

The middle left handle doesn't move the image to the left, it stretches it.

Right clicking doesn't show you which font/image you have used. But the layers box will tell you the name of the cartridge

There are no cutting boundary indicators on the canvas so you won't know something is too big or goes outside the cutting boundary until you click the Go button

You can only have one canvas open at a time.

 

But overall its not a bad program.  Just needs a bit of tweaking and it will be awesome. 

Now I can’t wait to test out the Explore… Mine is now in shipping.. No delivery date set yet but it should be here by early next week. 

Cool Electrical outlet..

This electrical outlet eliminates the need for power strips, and looks much nicer on your wall.

I like it… I think they would look awesome and give you plenty of room to plug things in.. 

Guinness, Bailey's and whiskey chocolate cupcake recipe…

This looks incredible…  I think I am gonna have to go make this…  

But first I have to make a trip to the liquor store.. I am out of 

whiskey and Guinness.. 

Fabulous Christmas treat Guinnesss, Bailey's and Jameson whiskey chocolate cupcakesPhoto by: Google Images

Sometimes, not often, a good cook can create a symphony of taste and texture that you’ll treasure for the rest of your life. It’s not uncommon, if you’re lucky, to remember a truly exceptional meal with the rapture normally reserved for love.

Just think of the French writer Marcel Proust. Biting into a humble Madeline once gave him such a blast of sensual nostalgia that he conceived the whole of his masterpiece “In Search Of Lost Time” in an instant.

We can’t promise that these utterly delicious cupcakes will win you a chair of honor from the Académie Française, but they’ll certainly make you a hit with your loved ones.

Combining Jameson’s Irish Whiskey, Bailey’s Cream Liquor and Guinness, could there be a more authentic or tempting dessert from Ireland? These indulgent little beauties will knock your socks off, we can promise you that.

Ingredients 

1 cup Guinness

1 stick and 1 tablespoon of unsalted butter

2 cups dark brown sugar

3/4-cup sour cream

2 eggs

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa

1-teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups of flour

2 1/2 teaspoons of baking soda

Frosting ingredients 

1 stick of unsalted butter at room temperature

3 cups confectioners’ sugar

Bailey’s Irish Cream

Jameson’s Irish Whiskey

Frosting directions 

1. Put the stick of room-temperature butter in a large mixing bowl and beat at medium-to-high speed for a few minutes.

2. Add a few short glugs of Bailey’s and a tiny bit of Jameson’s and mix at a low speed.

3. Gradually spoon the confectioners' sugar into the bowl, mixing on a low speed.

Method 

1. Preheat the oven to 350 and line a muffin tin with cupcake liners.

2. Combine the Guinness and the butter, chopped into one-inch chunks, in a large saucepan and heat to melt the butter.

3. Remove from heat and whisk in the cocoa and sugar.

4. In a bowl, whisk the sour cream and the eggs and vanilla then add to the beer mixture.

5. Sift together the flour and baking soda, and fold in the batter.

6. Pour into muffin molds and bake or 25 minutes or until inserted cake tester comes out clean. Let stand for 10 minutes, remove them from the muffin tin and let them cool completely on a rack.

Read more: http://www.irishcentral.com/opinion/guinness-baileys-and-jamesons-whiskey-chocolate-cupcakes-79124957-237792421.html#ixzz2uRmBcVr0 
Follow us: @IrishCentral on Twitter | IrishCentral on Facebook

My morning meeting…

Today was a really busy day for me.   I managed to get up early considering I did not sleep well..  We have had great weather but with the nice weather comes allergies… So I spent most of the night up with a stuffed up head and scratchy throat.  I should take some kind of allergy medicine but that stuff totally knocks me out.   

I had an mid morning meeting at my church.  I am on various committees and ministries at church and from time to time we have meetings.. Today's meeting was for the Seder committee.  Hmm.. you might think it a bit weird for Roman Catholics to have a seder to celebrate passover.  But you need to remember that Christ was a Jew.  We think of it as a learning experience for our faith formation classes.   The Holy Family would have celebrated passover on Holy Thursday.  I think it is important that our students learn about who Jesus was, and before their was a christian religion, our people where Israelites.   

We have quite a bit of planning to do. Our Passover Seder will be held on Apr 12.  

I know a bit about what a Seder is.  I have even been to quite a few of them.   When I was younger and attended catholic school in New Jersey, we held a Passover Seder every year.  Its just been a really long time since I have been to one.  So to refresh my memory I did some research. 

For those of you who have no idea what a Seder is..  Here is what I have come up with. 

A Passover seder is a service held at home as part of the Passover celebration. It is always observed on the first night of Passover, and in some homes on the second night as well. On both nights, the seder concludes with a dinner. Participants use a book called the Haggadah to lead the service. "Hagaddah" means "the telling," in Hebrew, and it contains instructions for the seder, blessings and the Passover story.

The Passover story involves a retelling of the story of the liberation of the Israelites from slavery in ancient Egypt. This story is in the Book of Exodus in the Bible. The Seder itself is based on the Biblical verse commanding Jews to retell the story of the Exodus from Egypt: "You shall tell your child on that day, saying, 'It is because of what the LORD did for me when I came out of Egypt.'" (Exodus 13:8)

The word "seder" literally means "order" in Hebrew. The name comes from the fact that there are 15 parts of the ritual service, all revolving around the upcoming Passover dinner. Food is an important symbolic element of Passover.

Parts of the Passover Seder

1. Kadesh (Santification) - During this part of the seder, each participant's cup is filled with wine or grape juice. The Kiddush is recited aloud, then everyone takes a drink from their cup.

2. Urchatz (Handwashing) - Water is poured over the hands to symbolize ritual purification. Traditionally a pitcher is used to pour water over the right hand first, then the left. Usually people say a blessing during the handwashing ritual, but no blessing is said.

3. Karpas (Green Vegetable) - A vegetable such as lettuce, cucumber, radish or parsley is now dipped in salt water and eaten. It is sometimes said that the salt water represents the tears our ancestors shed during their years of enslavement.

4. Yachatz (Breaking the Matzah) - There is always a plate of three matzot (plural of matzah) on the table during a seder. (These matzot are part of the ritual meal - there are other matzot elsewhere to feed the seder guests.) At this point the seder leader takes a piece from the middle of the plate and breaks it in half. The smaller piece is put back between the remaining two matzot. The larger half becomes the "afikomen," which is hidden somewhere for the children to find later on. Alternatively, some homes place the afikomen near the seder leader and the children must try to "steal" it without the leader noticing.

5. Maggid (Telling the Passover Story) - During this part of the seder participants retell the Exodus story. The youngest person (usually a child) at the table begins by asking the Four Questions. Each question is a variation of: "Why is this night different from all other nights?" Participants will often answer these questions by taking turns reading from the Haggadah. Next the four types of children are described: the wise child, the wicked child, the simple child and the child who doesn't know how to ask a question. Thinking about each kind of person is an opportunity for self reflection and discussion.

This part of the seder concludes when the second cup of wine is poured. As each of the ten plagues that struck Egypt is read aloud, participants dip a finger into their wine and put a drop of liquid onto their plates. At this point the various symbols on the seder plate are discussed, then everyone can drink their wine!

6. Rachtzah (Handwashing) - Participants wash their hands again, this time saying the appropriate blessing (Netilat Yadayim). After saying the blessing, it is customary not to speak until the blessing for the matzah.

7. Motzi (Blessing for the Matzah) - Now the motzi (blessing for bread) is said over the matzah. It goes: "Baruch atah Adonai, Elohaynu, melech ha-olam ha-motzi lechem min ha-aretz." In English: "Praised are You Adonai our God, Ruler of the Universe, who brings forth bread from the earth." Next the blessing mentioning the mitzvah (commandment) to eat matzah is said.

8. Matzah - Everyone eats their matzah.

9. Maror (Bitter Herbs) - Because the Israelites were slaves in Egypt we eat bitter herbs to remind us of the harshness of servitude. Horseradish (either the root or a prepared paste) is most often used. Put a dollop of maror on a piece of matzah and eat it.

10. Korech (Hillel Sandwich) - Next participants make a "Hillel Sandwich" by putting mar or and charoset between two pieces of matzah. They then eat their sandwiches.

11. Shulchan Orech (Dinner) - Now it is time for the meal to begin! Passover seder staples include hard-boiled eggs, matzah ball soup, brisket and even matzah lasagna. Dessert often includes ice cream, cheesecake, or flourless cakes, often made with chocolate.

12. Tzafan (Eating the Afikomen) - After dessert participants eat the afikomen. Remember that the afikomen was either hidden or stolen at the beginning of the seder, so it has to be returned to the seder leader at this point. In some homes the children actually ransom the afikomen back to the adults.

13. Barech (Blessing) - A third cup of wine is poured for everyone, the blessing is recited and then participants drink their glass. Now an additional cup of wine is poured for Elijah and a door is opened so that the prophet can enter the home.

14. Hallel (Songs of Praise) - The door is closed and everyone sings songs of praise to God before drinking the fourth and final cup of wine.

15. Nirtzah (Conclusion) - The seder is now officially over but most homes say one final blessing: "L'shanah haba'a bi Yerushalayim!" This means, "Next year in Jerusalem!" and expresses the hope that next year Passover will be celebrated in Israel.

The Symbols of the Seder Plate

There are six symbols that can be placed on the seder plate but not all of them are required. They are:

Vegetable (Karpas) – This part of the seder plate dates back to a first and second century tradition in Jerusalem that involved beginning a formal meal by dipping vegetables in salt water before eating them. Hence, at the beginning of the seder a vegetable – usually lettuce, cucumber, radish or parsley – is dipped in salt water and eaten. It is sometimes said that the salt water represents the tears our ancestors shed during their years of enslavement.

Shank bone (Zeroa) / Roasted Beet – The roasted shank bone of a lamb reminds us of the tenth plague in Egypt, when all firstborn Egyptians were killed. The Israelites marked the doorposts of their homes with the blood of a lamb as a signal that death should pass over them, as it is written in Exodus 12:12: "On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn - both men and animals - and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt... The blood will be a sign... on the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt." The shank bone is sometimes called the Paschal lamb, with “paschal” meaning "He [God] skipped over" the houses of Israel.

The shank bone also reminds us of the sacrificial lamb that was killed and eaten during the days when the Temple stood. In modern times, some Jews will use a poultry neck instead. Vegetarians will often replace the shank bone with a roasted beet, which has the color of blood and is shaped like a bone, but is not derived from an animal.

Hard Boiled Egg (Baytzah) – There are two interpretations of the symbolism of the hard boiled egg. One is that it is an ancient fertility symbol. The other is that it is a symbol of mourning for the loss of the two Temples, the first of which was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 B.C.E. and the second of which was destroyed by the Romans in 70 C.E. Hard boiled eggs were traditionally the food of mourners and hence they were an appropriate symbol for the loss of these sacred sites.

Charoset – Haroset is a mixture that is often made of apples, nuts, wine and spices in the Ashkenazi tradition. It represents the mortar the Israelites were forced to use while they built structures for their Egyptian taskmasters. 

Bitter Herbs (Maror) – Because the Israelites were slaves in Egypt we eat bitter herbs to remind us of the harshness of servitude. Horseradish – either the root or a prepared paste – is most often used. A small amount of maror is usually eaten with an equal portion of charoset. It can also be made into a "Hillel Sandwich," where maror and charoset are sandwiched between two pieces of matzah.

Bitter Vegetable (Hazeret) – This piece of the seder plate also symbolizes the bitterness of slavery. Romaine lettuce is usually used, which doesn’t seem very bitter but the plant has bitter tasting roots. When hazeret is not represented on the seder plate some Jews will put a small bowl of salt water in its place.