A Galia Lahav Bride for a Luxe Disney-Inspired Jewish Wedding at Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel, California, USA

How We Met

Aliza, the bride: In 2014, we matched on JSWipe, bonding over having several unlikely and random mutual friends. After exchanging long messages about everything from music and tech to travel and languages, we had our first date at the Santa Monica promenade, which lasted 12 hours! I left that date knowing that I had just met “The One.” We went on to have our second date at Disneyland, which, as a hopeless romantic, was a dream come true. Admittedly, our relationship wasn’t always smooth sailing.

As we each navigated our early twenties and found ourselves living in different places, we dated on and off for a few years. It wasn’t until 2017 that we reconnected once and for all at a Shabbat dinner & the rest was history! In 2019, Nathan proposed to me in front of Sleeping Beauty’s Castle, making our engagement extra magical. My engagement ring features a hand cut diamond from the early 1910’s. Nathan worked with Steve from Korshak Diamond Corporation to custom design both my engagement ring and my diamond wedding band!

Full of excitement and imagination, we began planning for a July 5, 2020 wedding, We chose July 5th as our wedding date because it was the day after Nathan’s grandparents’ wedding anniversary – July 4th. At the time of our choice, they had been married for 65 years and we felt it would be good luck! (They made it to 68 years, before Nathan’s grandma sadly passed away in January 2023.) When the pandemic hit in early 2020, we were left with no choice but to postpone our celebration.

While a party can wait, we felt that we didn’t want to put our love story on hold, so we decided to still get married as planned on our original date in a beautiful intimate ceremony in my parents backyard in Boca Raton, FL. What we lost by having to postpone also afforded us an extra year to fully bring our dream wedding celebration to life. We spent the months leading up to, what would now be our July 4th, 2021 “vow-renewal” and belated reception, planning out every unique detail!

Beachfront Meets Ballroom 

Nathan and I actually began touring wedding venues before getting engaged! We had both always envisioned getting married by the beach and wanted to have our ceremony outside with our reception inside. Upon touring the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel, we instantly fell in love with the jaw-dropping panoramic oceanfront views from the Bluff Lawn, as well as the stunning crystal chandeliers and French doors in The Pavilion ballroom. We also loved that The Pavilion had access to an ocean-facing outdoor terrace so that you’d still be able to see sunset!

Inspired by Disney 

With Disney holding a special place in our hearts and a deep significance in our relationship we knew we wanted our wedding to feel like a magical fairytale come true. With excitement and imagination, we dreamt up an elegant-yet-whimsical, enchanted forest, fairytale, Disney-inspired wedding. Our overall colors were shades of pink, orange, yellow, green, and gold, with a strong magic mirror meets “through the looking glass” motif.

During the months leading up to the big day we scoured antique stores, eBay, and Facebook marketplace for ornate gold mirrors to be used for our escort wall and welcome sign. We hunted for rare collectable Disney figurines and memorabilia to incorporate as part of our centerpieces. We spent countless sleepless nights crafting with our Cricut machines, DIYing favors and decorations. It was all worth it in the end!

Each table was named and themed like a different Disney movie or character with corresponding figurines, signage, and decor nestled amongst the floral centerpieces. At each place setting there was a die-cut menu shaped like a magic mirror (which we designed, printed, and cut ourselves). On our sweetheart table, we displayed a rare Larry Nikolai replica of the Sleeping Beauty Castle. (Its Cinderella Castle companion was displayed outside by our guestbook). Hanging on the hedge wall behind us was a “Happily Ever After” purple neon sign.

We rented pink napkins from our florist, gold flatware from Signature Event rentals, beaded charger plates and our glossy white dance floor from Chiavari Chair Rentals. Above our dessert table we also had a gobo-light projection of the classic Walt Disney Pictures logo with our names! While I had a clear wedding vision and am a creative who loves to plan and obsess over little details, there was no way I could have done this myself.

We were incredibly lucky to work with Jeannie, the owner of Details Details as our wedding planner. Not only did she flawlessly execute the day and bring the whole grand event to life, but she gracefully put up with my many late-night emails full of random epiphanies and ideas. Jeannie expertly collaborated with Extreme DJ to design moodier “enchanted lighting” using color washes & uplighting, as we envisioned somewhat darker lighting, rather than a brightly lit ballroom, to create the enchanted forest feel.

She also assisted Nathan in pulling off the most epic musical surprise, as detailed below. Additionally, we have to give credit to the incredible Elizabeth Brady, our point person at The Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel, who was also instrumental in making sure everything was perfect!

Invitation

Our invitations were a labor of love! We had a clear vision of wanting something regal and fairytale-like. Taking inspiration from Pinterest, I approached Melissa Ward from Whimsique with the idea of a gold glitter gate, and she brought it to life! Our Ketubah artist, Rachelle from The Delicate Brush, beautifully painted flowers and ivy to match the florals and greenery on our Ketubah. She digitized them, allowing us to incorporate them into our invitations and other stationary items.

Using the digitized flowers, Melissa skillfully designed the perfect layout for our invites, along with a custom monogram that we integrated into various wedding elements. To help us make the best choices, Melissa sent us a lovely sample box filled with different cardstock and ribbons in our color palette. The invitations arrived in an exterior white envelope and an interior pink envelope, sealed with a custom rose gold wax seal with our monogram for an extra touch of elegance.

Our gold glittery gates were bound by two-tone pink silk ribbons, and opened up to reveal the interior invitation, featuring our florals and monogram. These were printed using a combination of digital printing, single-color letterpress, and gold foil printing on white cotton paper. On the backside of the gate, there was a die cut pocket for inserts (custom schedules for each guests, response cards, etc.).

For an extra touch of elegance, Melissa also added a custom rose gold wax seal with our monogram. We also scoured the internet for the perfect combination of vintage stamps to match our theme and paired these with custom stamps from minted that had an image of the venue!

Hair + Makeup

Stacey Alyson was incredible! She specializes in braids and twists and impressed me both during my hair trial and on the big day. She expertly installed my Bellami extensions to add length and volume, and she styled twists and romantic curls while weaving my headpiece into my hair. Stacey has a sweet and calming presence, and I can’t recommend her highly enough. She and her team also created beautiful hairstyles and natural glam makeup looks for the bridesmaids!

As for my own makeup, I personally love a bolder glamour look with a strong contour and glittery eye makeup, so I booked Beauty by Aylin! I’m somewhat notorious for always having elaborate nail designs. Loi Lien of Glam By Loi has been doing my nails for over 7 years, and for my wedding, he truly outdid himself. He created a 3D floral French tip, meticulously crafting “petals” out of acrylic. To say I was obsessed with these nails would be an understatement!

A Galia Lahav Dress

My dress was a custom version of Galia Lahav’s Gala 902. I knew I wanted a princess-style ball gown with floral accents and lots of sparkle. This was one of the first dresses I tried on at the Galia Lahav flagship store in Los Angeles, and I instantly fell in love. It truly made me feel like a fairytale princess while still embodying a whimsical, organic, “enchanted forest” vibe.

The Gala 902 is a blush and ivory A-line ball with a floral lace corset, illusion neckline, and floral appliqués cascading down the skirt. I personally opted to make the corset a bit more structured, the cups more defined, and to deepen the neckline. I also wanted the dress to be more sparkly, so we added layers of glittery tulle (their ‘Caviar Tulle’) to the skirt.

Individual Swarovski crystals were also placed along the bodice, the illusion mesh, and the appliqués. We paired the dress with a customized version of the Aelin Veil, with added touches of lace and sparkly tulle.The team at Galia Lahav, particularly their stylist Emily Matthews and their in-house alterations specialist Pat Guimba, were absolutely incredible.

Both of them consistently made me feel comfortable, beautiful, and understood. Being a curvier plus-size bride, I initially had some apprehension about wedding dress shopping. However, the Lahav team transformed the entire experience, making the try-ons and fittings exciting, fun, and inclusive. Their approach was truly meaningful to me! 

Accessories

As mentioned, I paired my dress with a customized “glittery” version of the Galia Lahav Aelin Veil! In addition to the sparkly tulle, we added touches of lace appliqué in a similar placement and arrangement to that of Lahav’s Chiquita veil. My headpiece was the Jennifer Bridal Halo designed by Maria Elana. My earrings were her 606 Earrings. 

The handsome groom

Nathan also went the custom route. Working with Neil from No. 33, a bespoke suit maker located in downtown Los Angeles, he was able to choose everything from the cut to the fabric himself. Keeping in line with our color scheme and floral theming, he requested a light gold cotton-wool blend for the tux exterior, accented by a black rose-embossed shawl collar. His bowtie was the same material as the collar.

The interior of the suit was a gray and silver rose-patterned silk and featured an embroidered label with our names and wedding date on it! Neil also crafted the dress shirt with a classic spread collar and french cuff contour at the wrists. He added our initials onto both sides of the cuffs so that Nathan could have a visual yet invisible reminder of our commitment and bond. He looked incredibly dapper!

Nathan’s shoes were a glossy Salvatore Ferragamo Belshaw Patent Oxford in Nero Patent Leather and sported a velvet trim and grosgrain laces! Nathan’s groomsmen wore Tan three-piece suits from Friar Tux with matching petal pink bowties and pocket squares, also from JJ’s House.

Bridesmaids

I had a rather large bridal party with 10 of my favorite ladies by my side. I had 2 co-maids of honor – my best friends, Kelsey and Sara. To make them stand out, both of them wore Rose Gold sequin dresses from Revelry. The other bridesmaids looked stunning in Petal Pink chiffon dresses from JJ’s House.

I wanted them all to be in the same color and material but each wear different styles! Both the pink and rose gold complemented the florals and decor. 

Ceremony & Chuppah

With the Pacific Ocean as our backdrop, our ceremony was picture perfect. Embellished with beautiful flowers and billowing white chiffon, our Chuppah (admittedly inspired by Pinterest) looked stunning. Pink wisteria cascaded down from the back beam, adding a touch of elegance to the setting. To complete the look, we displayed our Ketubah on an easel during the ceremony.

Our florist fashioned a Mickey head out of rose petals, which was situated in front of the ombré rose petal-covered aisle, adding a touch of whimsy and fun to the decor. Garlands of greenery and flowers were draped along the aisle, woven between the rows of chairs.

In addition, swathes of pink chiffon and floral pomander balls (also in the shape of a “Mickey Head”) adorned the chairs. As we made our way down the aisle, a string trio accompanied by a harpist played instrumental versions of some of our favorite songs. Nathan walked in to the tune of ‘Can You Feel the Love Tonight’, while the bridal party followed to the sound of ‘Perfect’ by Ed Sheeran. (Our dog, Sugar, was our flower girl, and she was pulled down the aisle by one of my co-maids of honor in a mini-Cinderella carriage)!

For my entrance, I chose one of my favorite love songs, ‘I Get to Love You’ by Ruelle. We offered our guests white floral embossed Kippot for the ceremony, which were created by Skull Cap — the same vendor who made my Bat Mitzvah Kippot! We also provided wedding programs that doubled as fans! These programs not only helped keep guests cool, but also contained important information about the wedding party, schedule, and Jewish wedding traditions to help those unfamiliar understand their significance.

Utilizing the monogram created by Whimsique and the watercolor florals Rachelle painted, we actually personally designed, cut, foil stamped, and assembled these programs ourselves! Rabbi Jonathan Aaron of Temple Emanuel of Beverly Hills officiated our ceremony. Although we had technically already been married for a year, we still wanted our vow renewal ceremony to honor the customs and traditions of a true Jewish wedding.

To achieve this, we circled each other seven times, my mom and dad recited the Sheva Brachot in both Hebrew and English, Nathan’s parents wrapped us in the Talit as we received the blessing, my sisters read two meaningful passages during the ceremony, we drank from two cups of wine, and, of course, Nathan smashed the glass! The first cup we drank from was the Kiddish cup we used at our wedding the year before, which we filled with my favorite Shabbat wine, Bartenura Moscato.

(Pro Tip: Make sure to use white wine, instead of red to avoid potential stains on your dress!) Funny story — at the time of purchase, we were unaware of how massive the cup was, as it is a massive gold and silver goblet, meant to be used as an “Elijah’s Cup.” Nathan also surprised me in the middle of the ceremony by gifting me a beautiful moissanite ring, designed by Heidi Gibson.

Ketubah

Our Ketubah was a custom watercolor creation designed and painted by the incredibly talented Rachelle Tchiprout of The Delicate Brush. Our goal was to have the floral and greenery elements of our wedding decor seamlessly translate into the design of our Ketubah. Rachelle worked closely with us to bring our vision to life.

Custom meaningful Hebrew and English text is encircled by a rose gold foil band. Green ivy wraps around the band, and is complemented by peonies and roses in shades of pink and orange. The saying “Ani L’Dodi V’Dodi Li” has always meant a great deal to both of us, so we also incorporated that Hebrew phrase in gold foil. To add a playful touch, we asked Rachelle to incorporate a hidden Mickey within the Ivy, can you spot it?

During our backyard wedding, we did a virtual Ketubah signing. We were lucky that our first witness, my friend Kayla, was able to be there in person with us. However, both Rabbi Aaron and our second witness, Michael (the mutual friend who we had initially bonded over), participated remotely via Zoom. They each signed a printed copy of our Ketubah text. Luckily, at the wedding in Laguna Niguel, we were all finally able to be in person together!

We held our secondary Ketubah signing in a rather unique location — a Cinderella Carriage! Rabbi Aaron and Michael were able to add their missing signatures to our Ketubah and I’m willing to bet this might be the first Ketubah signing to ever take place in a Cinderella Carriage! I have to note, there were several complications with being able to have the carriage. Jeannie and the Cindy Cinderella Carriages team worked very hard to make it possible and we couldn’t have done it without them!

Our music choice

We hired Gabe from Extreme DJ as our wedding DJ! We loved his energy and knew he would be the right person to MC the evening. As a couple who doesn’t have just one song that is “our song,” but several songs that hold meaning in our relationship, there were many meaningful musical moments throughout the evening. As our Bridal party was introduced, ‘Isn’t She Lovely’ by Stevie Wonder played.

Subsequently, we made our Grand entrance to the iconic song ‘Miracles Happen’ from The Princess Diaries (another Disney homage). We did our first dance to the Ingrid Michaelson version of ‘Can’t Help Falling in Love with You’ which transitioned into a semi-choreographed dance to ‘I Believe’ by the Jonas Brothers (one of our mutual favorite bands). During our first dance a smoke machine created a “dancing on clouds” effect. This was followed by us inviting everyone to join us to dance the Hora (to ‘Hava Nagila’ of course)!

A few other noteworthy musical moments: Nathan did a mother-son dance to Phil Collins’ ‘You’ll Be In My Heart’, fittingly from Tarzan and I did my father-daughter dance to ‘You Raise Me Up’ by Josh Groban. Nathan and I are both obsessed with The Parent Trap, so we requested ‘This Will Be (An Everlasting Love)’ by Natalie Cole to play during our cake cutting. Being as it was the 4th of July, we were treated to a magnificent impromptu fireworks show during our reception! Countless fireworks illuminated the sky over the water, and we were able to sneak away for a bit to enjoy the spectacle!

Despite being public fireworks, it felt as though they had been orchestrated just for us! Since we technically got married the year prior on July 5th, midnight marked the ringing in of our 1-year-anniversary. We opted to do a New-Years-Eve-Style countdown leading up to that moment, followed by a brief speech and ‘This is Heaven’ by Nick Jonas playing. The two final songs of the night were both songs with lyrics embodying how special and irreplaceable we feel to each other — ‘Anyone’ by Juston Bieber and ‘Imagine’ by Ben Platt.

However, hands down, the craziest part of the night was when Nathan surprised me with a special performance by my all time #1 celebrity crush, Jesse McCartney! Nathan got onstage, pretended he was about to sing, and then instead introduced the performance. Jesse sang some of my all time favorite songs — ‘She’s No You’, ‘Friends’, ‘Wasted’, ‘Because You Live’, and of course ‘Beautiful Soul‘. It was such a mind-blowing, amazing, and unforgettable moment. He brought me on stage, held my hand, serenaded me, signed our guest book, and took photos with us! 13-year-old me would legitimately never believe this. I still have to pinch myself to this day!

Flowers

From our first meeting with her, we knew Nisie was the perfect person to bring our enchanted forest dream to life… after all, her company’s name is Nisie’s Enchanted Florist ! It was immediately apparent that she understood my vision and could make it a reality. As a huge floral lover, having an abundance of flowers and lush greenery was essential.

Our floral arrangements primarily consisted of my favorite flowers: peonies and roses, along with hydrangeas, ranunculus, and wisteria in shades of medium pink, pastel pink, orange, and bright coral, with accents of hot pink and yellow. I desired a more organic look for my bouquet, so I requested a loose, cascading, asymmetric arrangement. Nathan wore a single blush pink rose as his boutonniere.Our tables showcased a combination of low, medium, and tall arrangements.

The tall arrangements were placed atop a mix of stunning crystal candelabras and gold halo centerpieces. Both the long tables and our Sweetheart table were adorned with greenery and florals that cascaded from the edge of the table to the floor. Each individual place setting was topped with a single large rose, upon which a name card was placed.

The color of the roses corresponded to their food choice and served as a helpful identifier for the servers! To further enhance the forest ambiance in the ballroom, we incorporated real pepperberry trees and hedge walls throughout the room. Cascading fairy lights and tea lights in glass globes adorned the trees, framing our sweetheart table.One other significant floral element which I had my heart set on was a ceiling treatment. Florals and greenery hung from the oval soffit above the dance floor, creating a truly enchanting effect!

Photographer and videographer

We knew without a doubt that capturing both photography and videography of our wedding was absolutely essential. Nathan and I are both incredibly sentimental, and we desired the ability to re-watch and reminisce over our special day for years to come. We chose Michael Anthony Photography as our photographer because we were captivated by his dramatic and cinematic style, particularly his renowned epic veil and dress shots.

I had initially stumbled upon his stunning photos on Instagram and found myself repeatedly drawn to them as I crafted my wedding “mood board.” Michael had also shot incredible engagement photos for us, so we knew the wedding photos would be equally majestic! During our decision-making process, we dedicated time to watching wedding films from various videographers’ portfolios. We were advised to select a videographer whose films moved us to tears, even though we had no personal connection to the couples featured…

That’s how we knew Custom Made Productions was the perfect team for us. We were drawn to Ari’s beautiful cinematography, evocative editing, as well as his significant experience in capturing the beauty of Jewish weddings! With an abundance of special little details, it was vital for us to collaborate with professionals who could skillfully capture every moment. Above all, both Michael and Ari excelled in capturing the love and tender moments shared between us on our special day.

Food and cake

We used the amazing in-house catering team of Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel. To keep everything “Kosher” for my dad and accommodate my family’s dietary needs, we opted for a “Pescatarian” menu. Even though it’s not the most traditional “wedding food,” I wanted to include my two favorite meals on the menu – Caesar Salad and Eggplant Parmesan.

Our first course was the salad, followed by the Intermezzo. However, this wasn’t your average Intermezzo presentation. Each guest received a scoop of mango sorbet served in their own individual “Glass Slipper” carved out of ice, with an LED light inside!

Bringing this vision to life wasn’t easy, but we were thrilled to find Marco from The Art of Carving Ice. He designed and tested it to perfection. It was hands down one of the most unique elements at our wedding, and everyone was in awe when the Cinderella-style slippers entered the room!

For the entrees, we offered a choice of pan-seared salmon with brown butter gnocchi and Brussels sprouts, eggplant Parmesan with spaghetti, or a roasted cauliflower steak with freekeh, golden raisins, Brussels sprouts, roasted carrots, and a lemon mint vinaigrette for our vegan friends. We also had mashed potatoes served family-style on each table because… YUM!

Later in the night, we had a dessert table complete with Disney-inspired petit fours and confections, as well as several stations inspired by classic Disney theme park foods – Cotton Candy, Churros, and Popcorn! Our Cotton Candy vendor, Lee’Poof, was able to create cotton candy in several fun shapes, including Minnie and Mickey Mouse heads!

The statement piece of the evening was our 3D, 6-tier cake. Jenny from IntriCakes brought our fairytale vision to life in ways I could never have imagined! We enlisted an artist on Etsy to paint a custom portrait of us based on what our wedding outfits would look like. The portrait was then printed on edible paper and surrounded by an ornate gold fondant frame, featuring another “hidden Mickey.” The cake was adorned with cascading gum paste flowers that matched our color schemes.

Jenny brilliantly conceptualized the idea of incorporating a 3D fondant skirt that would pop out from the painting and gracefully flow beyond the frame of the portrait. She also surprised us in her initial cake design sketch by incorporating peekaboo Disney silhouettes and vignettes from our favorite movies on the backside of the cake. There was even a depiction of the two of us with our dog, Sugar!

The back of the cake also featured gold wording in the Disney font that read, “And they lived happily ever after…” We offered two flavors of cake – Mango Berry and Triple Chocolate – both of which were beyond delicious! I still dream about that cake to this day.

Extra details

One part of the day I haven’t gotten to share much about yet, was our cocktail hour! Set on the Dana Lawn, with the string trio playing in the background, our cocktail hour was relaxing fun, and filled with special elements. Our Escort Wall was a lush hedge wall adorned with flowers. We hung a gold acrylic sign (which we purchased from Etsy) that read ‘Mirror, Mirror on the Wall.” Below the sign, several ornate gold antique mirrors with flourishing calligraphy done by Megan Lortz of Blushing Calligraphy served as our seating charts.

Elsewhere, we showcased our welcome sign – another large gold mirror to which we personally added white vinyl lettering, creating a calligraphy-like effect. We delighted our guests with his, her, and ours cocktails. ‘Hers’ was the ‘Brides Elixir’ – my favorite drink, a Midori sour with a rainbow candy belt and cherry garnish! ‘His’ was the ‘Philipp Your Cup’ – a bourbon cocktail with lemon juice, honey syrup, and mint.

And ‘Ours’ was the ‘Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Bubbly,’ a glass of champagne with a Berry popsicle made using custom gold acrylic, laser-engraved popsicle sticks with our hashtag – #PhilippMyHeartWithJoy. We got the popsicle sticks from AtomicKraftworks! We displayed our custom guestbook meticulously designed by Karen from Spellbinderie along with pink and red flower pens, purchased from Amazon. Adding to the charm, we opted for an ornate iron mailbox as a unique twist on the traditional card box.

As an additional photo opportunity, guests were able to take pictures inside or next to the Cinderella Carriage. We also had a delightful cheese display and passed hors d’oeuvres for everyone to enjoy. A few other noteworthy mentions were the favors we offered our guests during the reception. We provided our guests with pink silk “goodie bags” containing several fun personalized favors (matches, lip balm, a gold Mickey Mouse bottle opener keychain, etc).

In addition, for their comfort, we had custom embroidered slippers available that guests could change into if their shoes were hurting, as well as hand-made monogrammed plastic water bottles so people could bring their drinks to the dance floor without worrying about glasses breaking.

Both of those featured the monogram designed by Whimsique! We cut and applied the vinyl to the water bottles ourselves and had the slippers embroidered by Everlasting Embroidery in Fort Lauderdale! I had always envisioned sparklers going off during our grand entrance, but due to California’s fire safety laws, this proved impossible. We adapted and decided to have three truss pillars light up as we walked through the doors into the ballroom.

In place of handheld sparklers, our bridal party held Fiber Optic Wands (which, ironically, I nostalgically remember waving around as a child at Disney World, truly bringing things full circle) and created a “bridge” for us to run under! At our reception we entertained guests with another unique photo opportunity. Pro Photobooth Group offers a “Magic Mirror Photo Booth,” designed to look like a full length gold mirror. This tied in perfectly with our overall theme and decor.

Honeymoon

We did a mini-moon to Hawaii the week after our wedding and later did our full honeymoon in Italy. In Hawaii, we split our time between Maui and Oahu. The two amazing hotels we stayed at on Maui were Wailea Beach Resort and the Sheraton Maui Resort & Spa. On Oahu, we got to check off a major Disney Bucket List item and stay at Aulani. We also spent a few nights at the beautiful Hilton Hawaiian Village in Honolulu.

Other highlights of our trip included parasailing, attending a luau, driving the Road to Hana, and eating authentic shaved ice by Matsumoto Shave Ice in Haleiwa. The absolute best meal we had was beachside at Mama’s Fish House on the north side of Maui!

We had been planning our Italy trip since pre-pandemic times, so seeing it come to fruition was monumental. We began our trip in Rome staying at the amazing Anantara Palazzo Naiadi Rome. We took a private city golf cart tour of Rome through the company ‘My Best Tour’ (mybesttour.com). After our time in Rome, Nathan and I road-tripped through the country, making our way to Positano, Sorrento, Saturnia, Florence, and Venice. I highly recommend the jaw-dropping hotels we stayed at in Positano – Villa Fiorentino Positano and Hotel Miramare.

The views and amenities were fabulous. We also were able to take a boat to Capri for a day-trip where we saw the magnificent Blue Grotto. In Sorrento, a must-do is eating at O’Parrucchiano La Favorita. Cannelloni was invented there, and the dining room is blooming with lemon trees, making you feel like you’re inside a lemon grove!

Advice to couples currently planning their wedding

Our wedding day flew by so quickly and I do wish I could go back and be more “in the moment,” and stress less about the small things! There were a few things I did that I felt were really helpful:

1. I hired a Bridal Stylist named Maradee Wahl. I feel like this is a service that isn’t as widely known but made all the difference in the world to me! Maradee and her team steamed all the bridesmaid dresses as well as the groomsmen suits (which is especially helpful if you have friends traveling from out of town, whose garments may have gotten wrinkled in transit!).

They were also able to make some small, last-minute needed alterations! Maradee prepped my accessories, helped escort me where I needed to go, bustled my dress beautifully, made sure it looked amazing in photos, helped me get in and out of the dress, and was just generally there to help with anything and everything I needed that day! She also came with me to my final dress fittings. It was so calming and reassuring to have one dedicated person solely focused on helping me with anything and everything I needed. She truly is “Maradee Poppins!”

Hiring a bridal stylist or bridal concierge is something I would 100% recommend. It takes the stress off of you and your bridesmaids!

2. Have a plan to preserve your flowers. We had bags of silica sand and containers ready so we could preserve my bouquet. If you don’t want to dry the flowers yourself, there are lots of vendors who will do this for you. You can pre-arrange to have your bouquet sent in the mail to someone from Etsy or drop it off with someone local who can do the preservation for you! We opted to have our preserved flowers put into resin mementos!

3. We hired a hairstylist to give on-site haircuts and beard trims to any groomsmen who wanted one the day of the wedding.

A few things I wish I had done differently:

1. I think this service has become more popular as of late, but I do wish I had hired a wedding content creator — someone who was dedicated to capturing and creating social media-specific content for the wedding, from TikToks to Boomerangs.

2. I also wish Nathan and I had carved out time to get a photo with each table so that we’d have a photo with every guest.

3. Nathan and I wanted to have our ‘Yichud’ — the alone time after the ceremony, but in all honesty, I do wish we had gotten to attend our own cocktail hour! My best piece of advice overall is just to not sweat the small stuff, dance with your friends and family, wear comfy shoes, eat the food, and focus on the emotions of the day!

ALIZA & NATHAN’S LITTLE WHITE BOOK

Photography – Michael Anthony Photography
Videography – Custom Made Productions
Ketubah – The Delicate Brush {offers 10% discount to all members of Smashing The Glass’s Brides Club}
Wedding planner – Details Details
Venue – Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel
Bride’s dress – Galia Lahav
Bridal Stylist – Maradee Wahl
Bride’s dress alterations – Pat Guimba
Bride’s accessories – Maria Elana
Groom’s attire – No. 33
Bridesmaids – Revelry, JJ’s House
Hair + Makeup – Beauty by Aylin, Stacey Alyson
Bridal Nails – Glam By Loi
Flowers – Nisie’s Enchanted Florist
DJ + lighting – Extreme DJ
String Quarter – Angelica Strings
Catering – Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel
Cake – IntriCakes
Portrait for wedding cake – Katarina Art Gallery
Stationery/Invitation – Whimsique
Rabbis – Rabbi Aaron
Ice Sculptor – The Art of Carving Ice
Cotton Candy vendor – Lee’Poof
Seating Chart Calligraphy – Megan Lortz of Blushing Calligraphy
Chargers and Dance floor renteal – Chiavari Chair Rentals
Silverware – Signature Event rentals
Cinderella Carriage – Cindy Cinderella Carriages
Slippers Embroidery – Everlasting Embroidery
‘Magic Mirror’ photo booth – Pro Photobooth Group
Popsicle sticks – AtomicKraftworks
Custom guestbook – Spellbinderie
Smash The Glass Pouch –  Smashing The Glass Etsy Shop {or join Smashing The Glass’s Brides Club and get one for free!}

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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.

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