There’s nothing like an Israeli wedding… and the nuptials of Eliana, a student, and Naftali, who just finished his army service and is currently in yeshiva, just tick all our boxes!
These two got married at the stunning Psagot Winery in the Shomron. In addition to the gorgeous natural scenery, the couple – who got engaged during COVID – loved the fact that Psagot was flexible and worked wonderfully for both smaller and larger weddings.
Like so many couples getting married in Israel, Eliana and Naftali knew from the get-go that they wanted to work with Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Herschel Gutman as their photographer – so much so that they chose their wedding date around his availability! As always, Herschel and his team were fantastic to work with – and naturally, the couple is over the moon about their beautiful photos (just scroll through this post and we’re pretty sure you’ll see why).
And how special is it that the couple got married under Naftali’s family chuppah?! What a wonderful tradition to have a family chuppah that can be brought out for all the weddings!
Now over to the bride, who looked so elegant in her dress by Dorit Izbizki…
How we Met
Eliana, the bride: We both grew up in Beit Shemesh but only knew of each other. We officially met at a mutual friend’s wedding when Naftali sat with Eliana’s brother. We first spoke there and the rest was history….
A Winery Wedding
We got married at the Psagot Winery in the Shomron. We had gotten engaged in February right after a corona lockdown and didn’t know what the country would be like a few months later. We had no idea what type of wedding we were going to have! We had heard that Psagot stayed open throughout the previous lockdowns and was able to accommodate smaller and bigger weddings. Plus, the venue is gorgeous and we loved it from the minute we saw it! We loved that the winery was different than a classic wedding hall.
Theme
We used A to Z Events Israel run by Adena Mark Kapon. Adena and her team were amazing at helping us plan the wedding of our dreams! Throughout the entire wedding planning process Adena was so positive, helpful, calm and available for everything we needed. She is so patient and creative. She really understood the type of wedding we wanted and made it happen! We always felt that we could ask Adena questions and consult with her on anything.
We went for an elegant theme with a touch of nature to it. The venue overlooked the Shomron so the scenery was beautiful. The Psagot Winery is stunning so we didn’t feel the need to make any big changes to the hall. With Mookie (our florist) and Adena’s help, we changed the location of the chuppah to the edge of the outdoor area which gave it a whole different look. We had a lot of flowers at the entrance, centerpieces, an arch at the Kisei Kallah, and over the entire chuppah.
Invitations / stationery
We had a general idea of a traditional Hebrew\English wedding invitation text. We designed the invitation at a graphic design store in Beit Shemesh called Oach designs. We had a logo with our initials in Hebrew and a pasuk from Shir Hashirim on top that we both really loved.
Hair + Make-up
Leah Neppe did my makeup and hair. A bunch of my friends used her and I loved her work! Leah met with me before the wedding and we planned the look I was going for. She gave me great and professional advice about different styles. On the day of the wedding, Leah was so calm and fun to be around. She asked me what I wanted throughout the entire process and changed anything I wanted to be changed. I am so happy that Leah did my hair and makeup and would recommend her to any bride.
A Dorit Izbizki Dress
My dress was designed by Dorit Izbizki Bridal. I had seen other dresses of hers and loved a particular one. When I went to look for a dress at Dorit, I asked for a long sleeve version of that same dress. It was the first dress tried on and I knew that it was my wedding dress! It was perfect!!
The dress was an A-line dress with a long train in the back that I was able to clip under for the dancing. The fabric was a lace designed with branches and leaves going up the entire dress. The leaves also went up the neckline (my Mom’s idea). I added a thin beaded belt by the waist. There was another layer of a sparkly lace under which gave it a sparkling look.
Accessories
I wore all of my hair up with a hairpiece that I had bought off of Amazon. Jewellery- I wore a bracelet from my in-laws, diamond pearl drop earrings that were my great grandmother’s which was very special, and my engagement ring. My veil was from Dorit Izbizki.
Shoes
I wore white open-toe block sandal heels from a store called Republic Store. For dancing, I changed into sneakers, personalized with my new last name on it from Etsy. (Credit to my mother in law:) )
The handsome groom
Naftali wore a navy suit from The Suit Lady in Teaneck. He wore a white tie, brown shoes and fun socks that said “Happy wife, happy life”- from Eliana.
Bridesmaids
I had 6 close friends, a cousin and my sisters in-law wear the light blue (the color of the wedding)
Ceremony
The ceremony was a traditional Orthodox ceremony. We made sure to have a lot of music throughout the ceremony and in between the brachot. Eliana’s father gave a short speech under the chuppah as well.
Ketubah
We used a standard Ketuba from Tzohar.
Chuppah
Our chuppah structure was square-shaped with colorful flowers going around the entire thing. The chuppah itself is Naftali’s family chuppah which was very special and meaningful.
Our Music Choice
The band was called Netanel Kuperman The Band. In addition, we had Ohad Moskowitz singing at the chuppah and dancing. They were all amazing! We had Jewish\Hebrew music throughout the entire wedding.
Flowers
My bridal bouquet was a mix of yellow and white roses with white orchids on top. The flowers for the wedding were a mix of blues, lavender and pink. Our Chuppah structure was covered in flowers as well as the arch by my kisei kallah. Our florist was Mookie from Pine & Clover . She knew the exact vibe I was going for and did an unbelievable job!
Photographer and videographer
Herschel Gutman was the obvious choice!! It was clear to us from the beginning that we wanted to hire him and we even chose our wedding date around his availability. Herschel and his team were so professional and organized throughout the entire day. He captured the most important day of our lives in such a beautiful way and we are forever grateful. It was such a pleasure having Herschel on our wedding day and we recommend him to anyone who wants their event to be captured in the most memorable and perfect way!
We had a livestream link for family and friends who weren’t able to make it by Video Eden.
Food and Cake
We used the Psagot Winery catering and the food was delicious!
Advice to couples currently planning their wedding
Someone gave me great advice a few days before our wedding. She said- it’s most likely that something will go wrong on your wedding day and it’s important to have that mindset. If you are prepared that there will be a few mistakes on your wedding day then when something goes wrong you will automatically say “one mistake down”. Go into your wedding knowing that not everything will be exactly perfect the way you planned and that’s OKAY because this is going to be the happiest day of your life and everything will be amazing!
ELIANA & NAFTALI’S LITTLE WHITE BOOK
Photography –Herschel Gutman {offers 10% discount to all members of Smashing The Glass’s Brides Club}
Production Photography – Jonny Finkel Photography
Livestream – Video Eden
Wedding planner – A to Z Events Israel
Venue – Psagot Winery
Bride’s dress – Dorit Izbizki
Bride’s shoes- Republic Store
Bride’s accessories – Amazon
Groom’s attire – The Suit Lady
Hair + Makeup – Leah Neppe
Flowers – Pine & Clover- Floral and Event Design By Mookie
Band – Netanel Kuperman The Band
Featured Singer: אוהד מושקוביץ Ohad Moskowitz
Entertainment Coordinator: Ely Katz, Symphonia inc
Catering – Psagot Winery
If you’re a Jewish or Jew-ish bride-to-be, you’ll want to join Smashing The Glass’ Brides Club. Guided by the world’s number 1 Jewish wedding expert, Karen Cinnamon, Brides Club is the private community for Jewish and Jew-ish brides that removes wedstress and indecision and gives you what you need to plan with confidence during these uncertain times. Join our Brides Club here.
Great story and great couple