"Garden of Memories" Memorial (Yartzeit) Candle Holder with "Forever in our Hearts" Matchbox Sleeve
Some of you know, my beloved grandma Mary Kleinhandler passed away on April 16, 2011. She and my grandfather, Arthur Kleinhandler were a source of great strength and inspiration. As you can imagine, her passing marked the end of an era for our family. In dealing with the loss and grief I found comfort in involving myself in the creation of this "Garden of Memory" Memorial Candle holder and "Forever in our Hearts" matchbox sleeve.
Every aspect of the designing, cutting, soldering and this was part of my own process in realizing their passing. It has a garden growing of Hebrew letter Shin flowers. They loved to garden. My husband David and I do too. Shin stands for G-d's protection. It is dedicated to the memory of this beloved couple.
It took about 1 1/2 hours to cut each individual flower and it's surroundings. Over the course of cutting this piece I broke more than 5 dozen tiny saw blades.*
*(Metal-Geeks only: It was cut out of 14 gauge copper, using a 3/0 laser blades from Rio.)
After the sheet was cut, sculpted with tiny jeweler's files (F. Dick are my favorite 
! ), I added texture to the leaves, stems and surrounding areas (using steel wires, decorative stamping tools and ball peen hammers). I also designed the matchbox.
! ), I added texture to the leaves, stems and surrounding areas (using steel wires, decorative stamping tools and ball peen hammers). I also designed the matchbox.
Here's what it looked like after I cut out the "happy couple."
We all go through loss of loved ones. It is a sweet Jewish tradition (which is also Universal) to light a candle that burns for 24 hours at the anniversary of that person's death. I want to share this meaningful tradition so that others including my own friends and family can honor the memory of loved ones in a beautiful, supportive way.
We all go through loss of loved ones. It is a sweet Jewish tradition (which is also Universal) to light a candle that burns for 24 hours at the anniversary of that person's death. I want to share this meaningful tradition so that others including my own friends and family can honor the memory of loved ones in a beautiful, supportive way.
Here's the finished copper master - original:
"Garden of Memories" Memorial (Yartzeit) candle holder with "Forever in our Hearts" matchbox sleeve, by Aimee Golant.
Just beautiful Amy. Thanks for sharing your process. A very loving tribute to your grandparents. I'm sorry for your loss.
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And I'm *so* sorry for misspelling your name!!! My fingers were working on muscle memory.
L~
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They're beautiful in actuality and also in the sentiment they represent. The other thing I like about this process is that you probably thought about all the people you were close to and incidents you all were involved in with each other over the years . . . like a meditation and so the experience was even richer than anyone could imagine at first glance. Hours of love to feel and remembering is the gift to the ones who stay behind. The body doesn't differentiate or know the difference between the real or the imagined and they can both be heartfelt and intense.
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