Crafting Challah Boards
The first challah board I ever created was in Asheville, North Carolina. I had been learning about wood working and already had a knack for burning designs into wood. Once I carved and burned the Motzi prayer into this bread board, I realized how beautiful the ancient Hebrew text looked on wood. I began by shipping custom orders up to Newark, Delaware. That is where I grew up going to synagogue and had strong connections to the Jewish community. Our design is simple, but it took a number of iterations to get to this point. We collaborate with local artisans to craft our wooden challah boards It has been a pleasure to create so many over the years.
Steve from Shore Hardwoods in Hendersonville supplies us with the wood and makes the base of our Challah Boards, glueing together the strip of maple between 2 walnut pieces and completing the first bit of sanding. He works hard to supply us with wood from trees that have already been cut down on private land, giving them a second life. Mike McCue in Arden engraves the Windthrow-designed Motzi prayer on the front of the board with a laser, resulting in a stunning, sleek look. I carve and wood-burn the personal inscriptions by hand. Then, I sand the board, soften it’s edges and apply a smooth coat of finish with food-safe beeswax so the wood colors pop beautifully.
