Get ready for a truly magical wedding! Pacific Northwest couple Shachaf, who works in ticketing, development, and behind the scenes at the historic Mount Baker Theatre in Bellingham, WA, and Josh, who works as an educational content editor for a Jewish non-profit, had the most incredible magical forest-inspired Jewish wedding at HaGiva in Israel.
Shachaf was a member of our Brides Club, and we’re so thrilled to hear her kind words about the group:
I don’t think I have ever felt more supported and heard than meeting with Karen during 1-on-1’s and I loved getting to know and learning from other brides who were going through the same process as me. Seeing them go through the process ahead of me gave me so much encouragement! I cannot thank Karen enough for all of her support and inspiration!
Karen also referred Shachaf and Josh to their wedding planner, Yana, owner of Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Craspedia Events. In Shacahf’s words,
Yana is one of the kindest, most hard working, intelligent, and determined people I have ever met. She works around the clock, always makes you feel as though you are the only bride on her plate. I’m very lucky to have been recommended not just a perfect wedding planner, but now a life long friend.
Yana helped Shachaf and Josh plan the PNW wedding in Israel of their dreams, with tons of whimsy and character – don’t miss all the fun details like the moss-and-mushroom centerpieces!
The couple chose Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Tzahi Shemesh to photograph their day, and they couldn’t be more thrilled with their choice. In Shachaf’s words,
It was clear that Tzahi was going to bring an amazing energy to the wedding, and he did exactly that! He brought a contagious smile and endless energy that lasted until our goodbyes at the end of the night!
Read on for all the fabulous details of this magical day in the bride’s own words…
How We Met
Shachaf, the bride: We met at the end of 2020 when we were both in transition periods in our life. We both found ourselves temporarily under the roof of our Chabad on Campus rabbi, and we quickly became close. The rest is history!
Israel Meets the Pacific Northwest
We got married at HaGiva in Givat Brenner, Central Israel. We live in a very green and forested part of the US, and while we knew we wanted to get married in Israel, we definitely wanted to feel like we were home in all the greenery and HaGiva was the absolutely perfect place for that. Their staff is absolutely top-notch and were so dedicated to making sure that all our guests enjoyed the day!
Theme + Wedding Planner
We incorporated “us” into every element of the day, from the venue tribute to back home in the Pacific Northwest, to our green color scheme, our mix of Israeli and PNW wedding favors. The wedding was very laid back but whimsical and fun, and we received feedback from guests saying this was the most unique and special wedding they had been to. Our wedding planner came as a recommendation from Karen during a 1-on-1.
Yana, owner of Craspedia Events, is one of the kindest, most hard working, intelligent, and determined people I have ever met. She works around the clock, always makes you feel as though you are the only bride on her plate, even when she may have upwards of 50 clients she’s working with at one time.
She also brought on two incredible women, Chen and Tia, to assist with day-of-coordination, verify that we were hydrated while we partied on the dance floor, and helped us tremendously throughout the day. I’m very lucky to have been recommended not just a perfect wedding planner, but now a life long friend.
What ‘Smashing The Glass Brides Club’ Did For Us
My experience with the Brides Club was so outstanding. I don’t think I have ever felt more supported and heard than meeting with Karen during 1-on-1’s and I loved getting to know and learning from other brides who were going through the same process as me. Seeing them go through the process ahead of me gave me so much encouragement! I cannot thank Karen enough for all of her support and inspiration!
Invitation
Peninah Baumgarten designed our beautiful main invitations and monogram. It was important for us to have the invite be in Hebrew and English for all of our guests, and we wanted a nature inspired monogram with our Hebrew initials, which she executed flawlessly.
We asked Elinor Hall to create an art piece based on the venue that we used on our velum wraps and thank you cards. We personally designed the envelopes and reception cards, and assembled the invites ourselves! Sealing each one with our monogram wax stamp was our favorite part of the invite process. Guests really loved the invites and were so excited to receive them!
Hair + Makeup
Kristina and Shuli worked their magic with hair and makeup. They both met with me for a trial and accommodated my specific needs, and made me feel so beautiful (and comfortable) through the whole day!
Dress
I was fortunate to find a dress in Israel while I was visiting in February prior to the wedding. I was looking for a more modest dress at first and looked at shops in LA and a few around Israel before I came across Tali and Marianna in Yafo.
Both incredibly talented designers, their attention to detail was impeccable, as evident by their designs. While the dress that I chose was not as modest as I had planned, I absolutely fell in love with the design and lace detailing and with how comfortable I was in the dress. Tali designed and created a custom bolero for the ceremony that attached to my dress that gave a seamless look.
Ceremony & Chuppah
We have a very close relationship with our rabbi back home in Bellingham, Washington, Avremi Yarmush. He’s the reason we met and we wanted him to officiate our wedding, so he agreed to travel to Israel to marry us. Our dear friend and talented musician, Hershel Gilbert-McNabb, sang some of the brachot which made the ceremony very special for us.
We livestreamed the ceremony to allow family and community back home to join us, and we absolutely felt the love most when all of our guests flooded the chuppah at the end to congratulate us. The ceremony was a very special time for us as we celebrated our Judaism to the fullest extent!
Our ketubah was ordered from ‘Kesubahs & Tenaim’. We plan to decorate and frame the ketubah with dried pieces from the bridal bouquet.
Our music choice
One really proud aspect of the day was our first dance. We both really connected with Hanan Ben Ari’s song ‘Im Tirtzi’ early on in our relationship, and it was a natural choice for our first dance. Since it wasn’t a slow song, we decided to hire a choreographer, Rachel Hutchins, who taught us over the course of a few lessons by zoom from her studio in Nashville. We both play music and Shachaf works in the music industry so having a live music aspect was important to us.
Our wedding planner suggested Frisson Trio based on our request for a mix of traditional and contemporary instrumentation. They did a phenomenal job adding to the atmosphere of the cocktail hour prior to the ceremony, and worked with our requests for the ceremony songs. Our wedding DJ, Shai Ravner, was an absolute gem!
He was called to reserves the week of the wedding, and it made us so emotional to hear from him day before the wedding letting us know he would be there! He incorporated all of our song requests seamlessly into a lively and meaningful mix for the dance floor. He did a great job of reading the crowd and really excited the guests throughout the evening.
Flowers
Our fabulous venue designer, Olga Aharonov Korianski, was another one of Yana’s recommendations. Olga went well beyond floral arrangements, she created the magical forest theme that we envisioned as a PNW wedding in Israel. Olga’s eye for detail and desire to create the perfect decor led to the whimsy and character that was beyond our wildest dreams for our day.
From the moss and mushroom detailing on the centerpieces, to the hairpieces for the flower girls, everything was perfectly magical. She also helped with designing branding for the wedding favors and assisted in presenting our personal touches we requested to add. It was abundantly clear that she invested her whole heart in designing our day.
Photographer and videographer
We booked an amazing team of photographers. From our first look at Tzahi Shemesh’s work, it was clear that he was going to bring an amazing energy to the wedding, and he did exactly that! He brought a contagious smile and endless energy that lasted until our goodbyes at the end of the night! His work was phenomenal as evident by the amazing photos, and complimented Liran, our videographer, so well!
They both worked together so seamlessly and made us both feel so comfortable throughout. Liran went above and beyond during his editing process to make us feel included by asking for our preferences for songs since music is so important to us! Rehovot Studios recorded and broadcast the livestreamed cocktail hour and ceremony. We loved that our family and friends could join us from home and they felt like they part of the event!
Arkadi’s Klick Magnet photography was the star of the night. A true staple of any Israeli wedding, our guests treasured having a mobile “photobooth” and taking their magnets home. Arkadi also sent us home with larger prints that are now covering our fridge and walls. We loved working with all of these talented artists and love that we have these memories to cherish!
Food
HaGiva provided us with their own catering, Etz HaSade. Their food was remarkable! The catering was highly regarded by guests who really enjoyed the sheer volume of food between the cocktail hour kiosks, focaccia over, appetizers, meals, dessert bar, and burger bar at the after party!
Wedding List
Karen suggested we use appycouple.com for our wedding website! We created a registry on Amazon and also listed some charities that we requested guests donate to in our name.
Extra Details
My grandmother passed this February, which really informed my vision for the feel of the wedding. She was so excited for our wedding that she had picked out an outfit even before I went bridal dress shopping. She used to bring me fairy figurines when she would visit me and I collected them in my room growing up. Our bond gave me the inspiration for the “magical forest” theme of the wedding and made me feel a connection to her on the day. We also created pendants of her face for my cousins to wear during the ceremony to make us feel closer to her, and mine was tied to my bouquet.
We created a corner for her and Josh’s grandparents who are also no longer with us and wrote a short mention of how we hope to have their memory guide us in our married life.
While we knew that wedding favors were not traditional in Israeli weddings, we still wanted guests to leave with something that reminded us of home. We put together gift bags of “Nana (mint) Tea” and “Milk and Honey” soaps made by Hamsa Soap Works, owned by Israeli-raised Sagit Hall, who is part of our community in Bellingham. We incorporated honey sourced in Israel and tea in varying flavors because we love to drink tea together and it reminds us of home. Each bag was complete with honey dipper and crystal stirring spoon.
Advice to couples currently planning their wedding
The best advice I followed was given to me by Josh. He insisted that the only thing that was truly important to him was that we come out of the day married. I was able to let go of the minor details knowing that he was having a good time! Remember that this day is about you, what others have to say is unimportant.
SHACHAF & JOSH’S LITTLE WHITE BOOK
Photography – Tzahi Shemesh Photography
Planner – Craspedia Events {offers 10% discount to all members of Smashing The Glass’s Brides Club}
Videographer – Liran
Venue – HaGiva
Bride’s dress – Tali and Marianna
Hair + Makeup – Kristina, Shuli
Flowers – Olga Aharonov Korianski
DJ – Shai Ravner
Band – Frisson Trio
Catering – Etz HaSade
Stationery/Invitation – Peninah Baumgarten
Artist – Elinor Hall
Rabbi – Avremi Yarmush
Magnets – Klick Magnet
Livestreaming – Klick Magnet
Gift Bags – Hamsa Soap Works
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.
