There’s nothing quite like an Israeli wedding. Today’s American-Israeli couple used that to their advantage as they planned their big day with the overarching aim of “showing the Americans a real Israeli wedding” – and did they ever!
American Rachael, an elementary school teacher who made Aliyah from Atlanta, and Israeli Yuval, who owns his own marketing company and sells products on Amazon, had friends and family attending from all over the world – many of whom had never attended an Israeli wedding or even visited the country before. So the bride had the great idea to prepare a guide to things that guests from abroad might find different from the weddings they’re used to – like how you will see the bride and groom before the ceremony and how once the groom smashes the glass, you’re supposed to run up to the chuppah to congratulate the couple. Such a smart thing to do!
We love that the two were married by Rachael’s family rabbi from Atlanta, who partnered with a local Orthodox rabbi to perform the ceremony in alignment with Israel’s legal requirements. And how special is it that the gold wedding band they used in the ceremony originally belonged to the bride’s great-grandmother?!
Speaking of family heirlooms – Rachael’s grandparents wanted to gift them with something really special that would be used for years, maybe even generations, to come. After going through lots of ideas, Rachael and Yuval decided a ketubah would be just the thing. But not just any ketubah – these two opted for a gorgeous handpainted nature-inspired piece by Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor The Delicate Brush that they now hang proudly in their home. Don’t miss it in Ariel Aricha Photography’s gorgeous pics.
Now over to the bride, who looked radiant in Galia Lahav…
How we met
Rachael, the bride: Yuval and I swiped right on Tinder and met in October 2017, 2 months after I made Aliyah from Atlanta, Georgia. We chatted for a few hours before he asked me to meet him at Tamara in Tel Aviv for a smoothie. I accepted and that was our first date – smoothies and a walk on the tayelet. We got engaged a little after a year of dating and then married 9 months later.
An Aisle to Remember
We got married at Alma in Even Yehuda, Israel. While we liked some of the venues we saw before Alma, we weren’t able to agree on any of them. However, after visiting Alma, we both knew this was where we wanted to get married. The aisle to the chuppah being overwater was something I had never seen before and really loved. The indoor space was also incredible. It checked off everything we were looking for.
Authentically Israeli
While we didn’t have a set theme, I like to think the theme was “show the Americans a real Israeli wedding.” We used very simple colors when decorating the venue. We had some tables with white tablecloths and others were left to show the wood table. The venue has a giant screen that covers one entire wall of the inside area. We started off with pink cherry blossom trees and as the night progressed, the screen changed to reflect the mood of the party.
Invitations
We found a template and design on Easy Event for our invitations. We had a simple blue and pink watercolor design with classy gold accents.
Hair + Make-up
Knowing we were getting married in the middle of the summer, I knew I needed to find someone who could give me a fabulous updo and make sure my make up wouldn’t run in the summer heat.
Sarit and Avi Mor Yosef from Smy Makeup, husband and wife, worked together to make me look absolutely stunning! They took my jumbled mess of ideas and created a work of art.
A Galia Lahav Dress
My mom and I had dreamed about my wedding, especially my dress, for as long as I can remember. We used to watch “Say Yes to the Dress” together and imagine my “princess gown.” I wasn’t finding the kind of gown I wanted until I went to Galia Lahav, where I found the dress beyond my dreams.
It wasn’t exactly a ball gown, but had a tight corset top and a stunning long skirt that poofed out. I cried when I saw myself in it the first time. My mom, on facetime, cried seeing me in it. I didn’t want to take the dress off. When we put the veil on, that was it. I knew that this was the dress I was going to get married in. I had the “moment” I had seen so many other brides have on TV.
Accessories
Because the neckline of my dress was very dramatic, I didn’t have a necklace. I did have beautiful pearl earrings and a pearl necklace, gifts from my future mother and father-in-law. They were a light pink and the earrings had small silver butterflies on them, which worked so well with my dress as it had pink undertones and flower embellishments all over. For my hair piece, I actually found a beautiful and very well priced piece on AliExpress.
Shoes
I’m not a heel kind of girl, so I knew if I wanted to add some height, I needed wedges. I found a fabulous little store in Yafo where you basically create your own shoe. Color, design, heel type, accessories, etc. I ended up getting pearl white wedges (not too tall!) with some pearls. I didn’t wear those for long though! As soon as the dancing started, I switched to lace light gray TOMS to dance the night away!
The handsome groom
Yuval wore a dark blue suit with a white shirt and maroon bow tie. Dressing up for Yuval is not a common occurrence. Dressing up in a suit? I’d never seen him look so fancy before. I knew he really loved me when he agreed to wear the suit in the July Israeli heat!
Bridesmaids
In true Israeli fashion, I didn’t have any bridesmaids. However, my girlfriends from the States were with me to do photos before the wedding, as well as be my right hand ladies throughout the wedding.
Ceremony
Our ceremony had so many small special parts to it. The biggest special touch was having my family rabbi, Rabbi Michael from Atlanta, help officiate the wedding. This was something that was incredibly important to me. If we were going to get married in America, there would have been no question as to who would marry us. In Israel however, it’s a bit different, as we needed an Orthodox rabbi to marry us in order to be legally married.
Yuval and I are not religious, so we didn’t know any rabbis that we had a personal connection with. Fortunately, Rabbi Michael had a friend here in Israel who’s an Orthodox rabbi. Together, they worked out how to best lead the ceremony together, adding personal touches and stories, while still allowing us to get married legally. It was wonderful having them work together, and amazing to have Rabbi Michael, who has been there for me through my Aliyah journey and beyond, help us start our married life together.
Another very special part was the gold wedding band Yuval and I used during the ceremony. My great-grandmothers gold band has been used for all of the women in my family including my grandma, mom, and aunt. While we did get wedding rings for each other, we chose to use this family heirloom in the ceremony. Coincidentally, our wedding was also on the anniversary of my great-grandmothers passing. I didn’t know her, unfortunately, but she was there with us in more ways than one.
Ketubah
Our ketubah was a very special engagement present from my grandparents. When Yuval and I got engaged, my grandma called me, saying they wanted to get us a gift that would be used for years to come. We thought and thought about what that could be. Shabbat candlesticks, a hanukkiah, and other Jewish holiday items were ideas, but not good enough.
I don’t remember whose idea it was for the ketubah to be our gift, but it was the best idea. We got a gorgeous handpainted ketubah by The Delicate Brush that is now framed and hanging in our home. It will always have a spot on our walls and will be something that is kept and passed down for records in future generations.
Chuppah
Because the walk to the chuppah was so dramatic already (walking over water!!) we decided to keep it simple for the actual chuppah. We had a few candles lining the aisle and a simple white chuppah with a nice floral arrangement on top.
Our Music Choice
A fun little story about the song we walked down the aisle to. When Christina Perry’s ‘A Thousand Years’ was released, I was instantly in love with it. I used to spend hours on YouTube watching covers of the song. During one of those obsessive sessions, I found an instrumental version of the song by The Piano Guys. It took my breath away and gave me chills. I remember telling a group of friends in college that I found the song I was going to walk down the aisle to.
They laughed and told me that was way in the future and I’d find another song by the time I would get married. Well, they were wrong. When that song started to play, it hit me that I was really getting married. I turned to my parents and said, “This is it. My dream is coming true.”
When Yuval smashed the glass under the chuppah, we chose U2’s ‘Beautiful Day’ to play as all of our friends and family rushed to us for love and mazal tovs. It’s a fun, upbeat song that starts to get everybody in the party mood!
Our first dance song was a cover of ‘Chasing Cars’ by Boyce Avenue. Yuval and I spent HOURS trying to find our first dance song. Everything I wanted was too cheesy and everything he wanted was not cheesy enough. Chasing Cars fit the bill with its slow melodic melody and romantic lyrics about 2 people just being together and forgetting everything else.
The last special song that was played was for my father daughter dance. While my mom and I spent years dreaming about my dress, I also dreamed about this dance with my dad, because I’ve always been his little girl. We danced to ‘You’ll Be In My Heart’ by Phil Collins from the Tarzan soundtrack. This was another song that I had picked out long before our wedding. My family is a little bit Disney addicted, and this song from my favorite Disney movie just encapsulated our father daughter relationship.
Aside from those specific songs, we had a mix of EVERYTHING! American music, Israeli music, Disney remixes, Trance music, etc. We made sure we had something for everyone.
Flowers
My bridal bouquet was from a small floral store in Tel Aviv. Yuval always got me bouquets from this store so when it came time for the bouquet, I knew where to go.
Aside from the beautiful flowers on our chuppah, we decided to skip flowers for the table centrepieces. Instead, we put fresh herb plants, which provided a gorgeous green color, on the tables. The best part is that people could take them home after the wedding! We used Liatris events, recommended to us by the venue, to bring this idea to life!
Photographer and videographer
We found our photographer, Ariel Aricha Photography, through friends. He had photographed our friends’ wedding previously and after seeing the professional photos and interacting with Ariel, we knew we wanted him to shoot our special day. Ariel worked with a fabulous videographer to make sure each moment was captured on film.
Food and Cake
Our food was catered by our venue. The food was amazing. Before the ceremony, we had a cocktail hour with a few a few different options for people to wander around and eat. For dinner, guests were able to choose between different steaks, chickens, and fish as their main course, in addition to many salads set up family style on the tables. While we didn’t have a wedding cake, dessert was a beautiful display with tons of amazing finger foods, fruits, and dipping sauces. To finish the evening, we had a mini burger bar come out at midnight to replenish our guests so they could keep on partying!
Entertainment
We had an AMAZING DJ, DJ Roy Gurai, to make sure the entire day and night was filled with fun music. We told him the different things we wanted, and based on the crowd, he played the right music. As a fun surprise for all the legal adults, we had two inflatable alcohol bottles join the dance floor, walking around with bottle of Van Gogh vodka. While dancing, you could take a nice swig instead of going to the bar to order a drink. This was SUCH a big hit, especially with my friends and family from the US who had never seen something like this at a wedding!
Photo Magnet Favors
We had the typical Israeli wedding favors- fridge magnets. However, we didn’t have a specific photographer for the magnets. Instead, we had a “mirror camera” and props. Set up behind the bar, there was a mirror with a camera in it. People were encouraged to dress up in funky hats, sunglasses, etc. and take a picture with their friends, which would later be turned into a magnet.
Extra details
What made the wedding the most special was that we had friends and family coming from all around the world. All of my friends and family are from the US, as that’s where I grew up. However, Yuval has family all over the world. We had people from the US (Georgia, Maryland, New York, Illinois, Minnesota, and Wisconsin), South Africa, UK, Poland, and more. I was very lucky to have a group of my best friends make the trip to Israel (many of them for the first time!!) to celebrate with us.
Because we had people from all over the world, many of who had never been to Israel and even more who had never been to an Israeli wedding, I made a little cheat sheet. I explained some things that may be really different from American weddings, like how you will see the bride and groom before the ceremony and how once the groom smashes the glass, you’re supposed to run up to the chuppah to congratulate the couple. I also mentioned that wedding parties are like straight up night clubs… just to prepare everybody.
Our friends also had a little surprise for us in the form of a video, that was played on the giant screen that took up one entire wall of the venue. Behind our backs, they contacted our parents and asked for pictures of us as kids. Once they received those pictures, they recreated them now. They snuck into our apartment, borrowed clothes and props, and pulled off this epic surprise.
It had all of the guests laughing and it was really special that our friends and family had taken the time to pull this off. The video finished off with “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” by Elton John (which I wanted to be our first dance song but Yuval said it was too cheesy… also it’s Disney,) and Yuval and I had another dance together.
There was one more little surprise for us after our video. My family and Yuval’s rewrote “We Are Family” to fit into our lives and they gave us loving, funny, makes you want to clap your hands, show as they sang for us. Towards the end, we were given the lyrics and joined the family to finish the song.
Honeymoon
Yuval and I were lucky enough to go to Hong Kong, Bali, and Singapore for our honeymoon. Neither of us had been anywhere that far east so once we agreed on a general area, we were able to pick out more specific countries. We spent 5 days in Hong Kong to explore the city, go to Hong Kong Disneyland (obviously) and enjoy the culture. We spent 2 amazing weeks traveling to different cities in Bali, as well as doing A LOT of relaxing.
We finished the honeymoon with 3 days in Singapore, to really end our trip with a bang. We only allowed ourselves the best in Singapore and stayed at the Marina Bay Sands hotel with their famous infinity pool and we ate at both Wolfgang Puck’s and Gordon Ramsay’s restaurants. It was an absolutely unforgettable trip.
Advice to couples currently planning their wedding
Brides and grooms can spend months and months planning a wedding. It’s stressful, crazy, and the unknown can drive you insane. However, once the day finally arrives, whatever is going to happen will happen. I woke up the morning of the wedding so calm and at peace because I know I did everything I could do to make the day perfect. There was no point in stressing about the wedding anymore because there was no time to change anything. The best advice I can give to you is to let yourself stress out beforehand, and then just enjoy every single second of the day, because it will be over before you even know it!
What ‘Smashing The Glass’ Did For Us
I used Smashing the Glass to get a lot of ideas. I loved reading about different weddings, especially those in Israel because I hadn’t been to so many Israeli weddings before ours. I don’t remember how we found our ketubah from The Delicate Brush, it may have been through the Smashing the Glass website.
Rachael & Yuval’s little white book
Photography and Videography – Ariel Aricha Photography
Ketubah – The Delicate Brush {offers 10% discount to all members of Smashing The Glass’s Brides Club}
Venue – Alma
Bride’s dress – Galia Lahav
Bride’s accessories – Pearls
Groom’s attire – Gusto
Hair + Makeup – Smy Makeup
Flowers – Liatris
Bridal Bouquet – Sahlavim
DJ – DJ Roy Gurai
Catering – Alma
Invitation – Easy Event
Rabbi – Rabbi Yedidya Sinclair
Smash The Glass Pouch – Smashing The Glass Etsy Shop {or join Smashing The Glass’s Brides Club and get one for free!}
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.
