Handmade decorative Seder Plates

The Passover Haggadah demands that each person see him or herself as having personally come forth out of Egypt. Accordingly, the
is one of the most sensory-heavy  rituals of the Jewish year. During the seder, we don’t just tell the story of the Exodus, we see, smell, feel, and taste liberation.
Many of the elements of this sensory experience appear on the seder plate (k’arah), which serves as the centerpiece of the seder table. The seder plate traditionally holds five or six items, each of which symbolizes a part (or multiple parts) of the Passover story.

Handmade decorative Seder Plates

Wood and felt decorative plate

 

Clay and wood decorative plate

The centerpiece of the Passover Seder table is undoubtedly the Seder plate. It holds the ritual seder items: a hard boiled egg (beitza), a shank bone (z'roa), bitter herbs (maror), horseradish (hazeret), vegetable (karpas), and haroset

Traditional Seder plate 

Grandma's Seder Plate Is Missing!: A Passover Special

The ten Plagues - A Pesach decoration

One of the most dramatic moments of the Passover seder comes with the recitation of the 10 plagues that, the Bible says, God brought on the Egyptians to persuade Pharaoh to free the Israelites from slavery. As we recite each plague, we spill a drop of wine in recognition, according to many interpretations, that the process of our liberation caused suffering to the Egyptian people.

The ten jars of the ten plagues

The Plagues

1. Blood
2. Frogs
3. Lice
4. Flies
5. Pestilence
6. Boils
7. Hail
8. Locusts
9. Darkness
10. Killing of the firstborn

A Passover Haggadah- di Elie Wiesel , Mark Podwal

The search for chametz

The process of creating a chametz-free environment comes to its climax the night before Passover. We conduct a veritable “search and destroy” mission to find any remaining chametz in our home and eradicate it. The search is traditionally conducted with a beeswax candle, using a feather, wooden spoon, and a paper bag for collecting any chametz found. It is customary to place ten pieces of bread throughout the house to be “found” during the search. These should be wrapped in paper or some other flammable wrapping (but not silver foil, as it does not burn), and perhaps then in plastic bags to prevent crumbs.

Bedikat Chametz Kit

When you’ve completed the search, and done your best to get rid of any possible chametz, gather the family back together and recite the "Kol Chamira" declaration, translated below, nullifying all unknown chametz and relinquishing it from your ownership.

Making at home Eliyahu's cup

Kos Shel Eliyahu. A Cup of Redemption
In addition to the four cups of wine that each participant drinks during the Pesach Seder, a fifth cup is placed on the Seder table. This cup, which is not drunk, is known as Kos Shel Eliyahu, Eliyahu’s Cup.
Of course, there's a bit of drama around this cup. When opening the door for Elijah, the children gather round to watch the quivering liquid ripple, hoping to detect some sign of its sampling by the visiting prophet. But surely there's more meaning to this cup than a child's imagination?
Let's not play pretend with someone as serious and holy as the prophet Elijah. It is quite thoughtful of some people to offer Elijah a drink while visiting, but thank you, he doesn't need sips to keep him going. This cup has real purpose and meaning. Learning more about Elijah's historic role in Judaism,  we'll realize that this special cup is here even more for our own sake than for his, to inspire us and to give our seder focus and direction.
According to tradition, at this moment our homes are graced by the presence of Elijah the prophet. There are multiple reasons and meanings behind this age-old tradition. 

Hand made Kos Shel Eliyahu

 

Wood, rustic inspiration

 

Glass beads inspired

Kos Shel Eliyahu - Zvi Rotsztein