About Our Chuppot: Your Questions Answered
e-chuppah

Q. What is a "giclée?"

The word "giclée" (pronounced "zhee-clay") originates from a French term meaning "to spray," alluding to the technology used for giclée printing, during which special inks are "sprayed" onto art paper or canvas. Giclée printing is a relatively new process of producing limited-edition, fine art prints. The term was originally coined by a few printing companies in the early 1990s that used the IRIS printer to make fine art reproductions. They wanted a term to distinguish their fine art printing from other companies that used the IRIS for other types of commercial printing. Currently, giclées also include fine art reproductions made on other high-quality digital printers, which are very similar in function and print quality.
About Our Chuppot:
Printing Process
Stands and Poles
Chuppah Rentals
Personalization & Custom Options
Discounts
Turnaround Time
Care and Life-Expectancy
 
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Q. Do you offer chuppah stands and/or poles? What have other couples done?
 

Currently, we do not carry any type of stands or poles to display the chuppah during the ceremony. Shipping costs have been the major deterrent, due to the size and weight of the poles. The best places to procure stands and poles may include the local rental supply company, the catering company for your ceremony, your synagogue, your local Judaica shop or, possibly, your florist.

Micah and Mindy, MP Artworks’ co-founders, purchased 8-foot fluted, wooden curtain rods and decorative finials from Home Depot to support their chuppah, and four guests held them during the ceremony. These could also be placed in flowerpots weighted with sand, dirt or gravel to create a stand-alone system. (Note: You may want to insert a small section of appropriately sized PVC pipe in the middle of the flowerpot and surround it with sand, etc., so the chuppah poles can be easily slipped into the pipe.) Lighter-weight PVC pipe could also be used, especially if the poles are going to be decorated with flowers.

 
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Q. Do you offer chuppah rentals?
 

We currently do not rent any of our chuppot.

 
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Q. What are the personalization and custom options available for chuppot?
 

We currently offer several options. First, you have the ability to “personalize” your chuppah by inserting your names and wedding date into the design for a charge of $50. Second, you can change the saying on your chosen chuppah design (or remove it altogether) at a separate charge of $50. Finally, if you wish to further customize the chuppah design itself in any way, please contact us to let us know what you’re looking for, and we’ll give you a quote.

 
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Q. Are there any chuppah "special offers" or discounts?
 

Order a ketubah STUDIO ketubah, in addition to your chuppah, and the personalization of the ketubah text is free. This is a savings of $65.

We also offer "Studio Seconds," our not-quite-perfect chuppah creations at discounted pricing, when they are available.

 
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Q. How much lead time do you need to create a chuppah?
 

We typically like to have 2-3 weeks lead time on a chuppah order (3-4 weeks if you are getting your chuppah personalized or customized), but we do keep a limited stock of finished chuppot. If your wedding is less than two weeks away, please contact us, and we'll see if we can help.

 
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Q. How should I care for my chuppah? What is its life-expectancy?
 

Our chuppot are made of silk, and our printing process uses pigmented inks. This combination is both waterproof and fade- resistant. In fact, you may hand wash your chuppah with detergent for delicate fabrics (such as Woolite for dark colored fabric), fold it into a towel to remove excess water (do not wring the water out), let it hang dry and iron it on a “low” or “silk” setting.

No tests that have been conducted to project the ink’s fade-resistance apply to this particular ink/fabric combination. Third-party data on the fade-resistance our inks does exist for their use on paper. According to the Wilhelm Institute, these inks will last approximately 50 years before noticeable fading occurs.

Given that most ink sits on top of paper after printing -- as opposed to fully penetrating the substrate, as it does when printed on the silk -- it is our opinion that the inks will be more fade-resistant when printed on the silk. (Prints last longer when printed on porous, cotton paper than on slick, high-gloss paper.) The fact these inks can be washed off when printed on paper, but not on our silk, also helps support this opinion.

Many couples choose to store their chuppah for their children's (or grandchildren's) weddings, which will greatly extend the lifespan of the inks. If you plan on making your chuppah into a family heirloom, be sure to store it in a climate- and humidity-controlled environment -- preferably in vacuum-sealed plastic.

 
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