Velvet Tallit and Tefillin Bags
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==Material== | ==Material== | ||
| − | Velvet can be made from silk, cotton or other fibers including artificial fibers like polyester or viscose. It is made in a special double woven process where the finished material is cut in half to create a thick short pile that is soft to the touch. Velvet is a very traditional fabric for tallit and tefilin bags and is also used for other | + | Velvet can be made from silk, cotton or other fibers including artificial fibers like polyester or viscose. It is made in a special double woven process where the finished material is cut in half to create a thick short pile that is soft to the touch. Velvet is a very traditional fabric for tallit and tefilin bags and is also used for other Jewish ritual items like challah covers and kippot. |
==Royal Blue== | ==Royal Blue== | ||
Revision as of 20:08, 15 April 2013
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| Material: | |
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| Velvet | |
| Style/Look: | |
| Velvety | |
| Description: | |
| Common, traditional and reasonably priced pouches for tefilin and tallit sets. |
Velvet tallis and tefillin bags are very popular and reasonably priced making them the most common type of pouches for these Jewish religious items.
Contents |
Material
Velvet can be made from silk, cotton or other fibers including artificial fibers like polyester or viscose. It is made in a special double woven process where the finished material is cut in half to create a thick short pile that is soft to the touch. Velvet is a very traditional fabric for tallit and tefilin bags and is also used for other Jewish ritual items like challah covers and kippot.
Royal Blue
Silk velvet was often used by royalty as it was originally very expensive to produce by hand. Today velvet made from artificial fibers is much cheaper to produce, but velvet made from silk is still extremely expensive. Velvet must be washed gently by hand or preferably dry cleaned as the pile can easily be damaged by machine washing. Plush velvet is another type of velvet where the pile is slight longer and less dense. Tallit and tefillin bags are usually made in royal blue or black velvet and many people chose to have a matching kippa (skullcap) made as well, especially when these bags are given as Bar Mitzvah presents.
Embroidery
Velvet tallit and tefillin bags can be personalized with the recipient’s name and embroidered to make very individual bags. Traditional designs vary from very simple plain ones which just have the words tallit or tefillin in Hebrew together with the person’s Hebrew name, to elaborate embroidered designs. For example Chabad tallit and tefilin bags may be decorated with pictures of the Lubavitch headquarters at 770 Parkway, in Crown Heights, New York. Other types of designs available from companies include modern embroidered and appliqued designs illustrating views of Jerusalem or the Wailing Wall (Kotel) etc. Many designs use silver and gold thread and even metal applique to bring out the richness of the velvet.
Advantages and Disadvantages
Modern artificial silk velvet tallit and tefilin bags are very reasonably priced and make an excellent choice for a family on a budget. As long as the bags are protected from the rain by a plastic cover they last well, and can easily be repaired if they get damaged. The main disadvantage of a velvet tallit or tefilin bag is that they are usually the most common ones seen in a synagogue so it can be difficult to distinguish one pouch set from another. This makes it even more important to try and choose an individual style of design that can stand out from the crowd. Nevertheless because of this popularity someone having a velvet tallit and tefilin bag set will fit in whichever type of synagogue they choose to pray in.