Conference taveng::bagels

    You might call a few rabbis and ask them; that is how we found someone
    to do ours (no English on it, though), but she has moved from the area
    anyhow.  Hand-done caligraphy is really lovely!

    We recently bought one at Kolbo and had Cynthia Bell calligraph it; she
    did quite a nice job.  Kolbo has her number (in Jamaica Plain).
    
    We also talked to some artists about having one done from scratch
    (instead of filling in the blanks)... quite pricey!
         fred

    The Jewish Advocate has some advertised.  You can also get 
    recommendations at the Hebrew Book Store on Harvard St., Brookline.
    
    Bernice
    

Leslie Miller in Framingham does a real nice job of paper-cutting
ketubot.  I believe her prices are reasonable and her work is
excellent.  You can call her at home or at Frameking also in Framingham.

Steve

I don't know if she does English but the wife of Rabbi Kaunfer head of the
Solomon Schechter School in Providence did ours (in Hebrew from scratch).
It was a little pricey but well worth it.  Unfortunately, I can't remember
her first name.  They should be listed.

Gavriel

    Elaine Adler in Lexington did our invitations, and they were wonderful.
    Her calligraphic art is beautiful, and was on display at the Lexington
    Public Library (unfortunately the show is over). Completely handmade
    ketubot by her or anyone else were out of our price range.
    --Dan

    Could anyone  put a dollar figure on "pricey"? We're considering a
    handmade  ketubah,  and  have  no  idea  of what price range we're
    talking about.

--David

    Ours was done by an artist in NY 2 1/2 years ago.  Her prices ranged from
    about $400 to $1500, if I remember correctly.

Of the three artists recommended by Kolbo for artists who will draw up a
ketubah to your specifications the prices ranged from a $450 flat fee from a
folksy style artist to $250-1000 from other artists.  It varies depending on
the artist's style.  For instance, one artist's price depended on the
intricacy of the papercut while another said it depended on whether we wanted
to use gold leaf or parchment as opposed to rag paper.

Thank you for the names so far!
Tamar

    I'm a  little  confused  (after  all,  I've  never  gotten married
    before).  What does it mean to have a ketubah completely hand made
    (or  from  scratch) as opposed to whatever the other option is? Is
    one  option to buy the contract and then have someone paint around
    it?  What  does  a  paper-cut ketubah look like? (I've seen Leslie
    Miller's paper cuts, and I like them.)

--David

    The ketubah calligrapher could start with a blank piece of paper, and
    write out and illuminate the whole contract. For considerably less
    money, you can buy preprinted illuminated (or plain) ketubot with
    blanks for the names, etc., and someone fills them in. You see a lot of
    these on the wall at Kolbo. In our case we chose the latter route,
    buying a preprinted ketubah we liked by mail order. The place we got it
    from provided a "fill in the blanks" service for an extra fee; they
    sent us a blank information form which we filled out with our rabbi,
    and then they transcribed that information onto the print, in a
    matching calligraphic hand.
    
    I've seen a very simple ketubah at the Israel Bookshop that someone
    could illuminate around. However, if you're going to have that work
    done, you might as well have the contract written out by hand anyway.
    
    For those of you starting out in the marriage biz, I recommend, as
    others have before, buying a copy of "The New Jewish Wedding" by Anita
    Diamant. However, it will not tell you how to pick a caterer.
    
    --Dan

I know this doesn't fit in with the rest of the replies, but I've
often wondered why people go to such great expense to beautify and
frame what is essentially a pre-nuptial agreement. It specifies
responsibilities both during and (G-d forbid) after the marriage,
but it's something I hope I'll never have to refer to again.

Jem

    Correct me if I've misunderstood, but I believe the Ketubah is the
    binding marriage "contract". The rabbi that married us 2 years ago
    explained that the Ketubah signing and ceremony he performed in the 
    rabbis chamber is what "officially" (religiously, at least) married 
    us. I'm not sure why you don't understand the fuss over the document.
    For those who are inclined towards making a fuss over any paper,
    this document is as worthy of the fuss as any of the others.
    
    				One man's opinion 

Re: .13

>    The rabbi that married us 2 years ago
>    explained that the Ketubah signing and ceremony he performed in the 
>    rabbis chamber is what "officially" (religiously, at least) married 
>    us.

What officially marries you is when you place the ring on her finger and
pronounce the formula, "Behold you are betrothed unto me according to the
law of Moses and Israel." The Ketubah simply states the marital obligations
of the husband to the wife, and those which ensue from (R.L.) a divorce.
Perhaps what you heard is that the couple is not allowed to live together
without the Ketubah, but this does not affect the marital status, only 
for the woman's protection.

Jem

    The custom  of making beautiful ketubot dates back at least to the
    middle ages. My parents received, as an aniversary present, a book
    of  illuminated  ketubot.  They're  absolutely beautiful. It seems
    that  there  is a tradition of making religous articles beautiful,
    both  in Judaism and in other religons. Why should kiddush cups or
    menorahs be beautiful?

    Also, some  authorities  (M.  Lam  in  "The Jewish Way of Love and
    Marriage)   say   that   you  should  have  the  ketubah  visible,
    particularly  if you lived together before marriage, this makes it
    obvious that you are not legally married. (I don't recommend Lam's
    book, but it does explain some of the laws. For general reading, I
    strongly recommend Anita Diamant's book "The Jewish Wedding Book".

--David

Please, I'm still interested in ketubah artists.  Are there any other kind
people out there who know other artists' names?

Tamar

    I will add two names to your search for an artist/calligrapher for
    Ketubot. 
    
    In the Boston area, Marilyn Gross 617/787-9152 does calligraphy
    and illumination.  Marilyn is a system programmer at Northeastern,
    so that evenings would be the best time to reach her. 
        
    If you are looking for a unique indiviualized Ketuba Yisrael V'Jona
    Farren are artists whose main media is papercuts.  They usually
    do the illunimation and have a calligrapher who will do the text.
    Each Ketubah is unique and is developed for the Hasan and Calla.
    They are in Sharon, MA, 617/784-6457.
                                                          
    
    Best of luck.
    
                                                          
    Burton Cusner
                
    
    
    You can call both of these references, who would be more than glad
    to speak with you and show you their portfolios. 

    Elaine Adler (mentioned in an earlier note) is very good, as is
    Jonathan Kremer.  I'm not sure if Jonathan is still in the area, but if
    he is, Kolbo will know how to contact him.

                                                Aaron

Dena does Ketubot and other calligraphy, including wedding invitation 
designs.  She does gorgeous illumination work.  She lives in Allston and is
listed in the Boston phone directory.

Dena Boch Elovitz did our Ketubah, and it's gorgeous!