There’s nothing like an international Jewish wedding – so naturally we’re obsessed with today’s! Bride Michelle, who works in HR, hails from Argentina, and Darren, who works at a private security and intelligence firm, is from the UK. They met after both had moved to Israel, and now live in Tel Aviv.
And in planning their day, they strove to mix all three cultures in everything they did, from the speeches (each was delivered in English, Spanish, and Hebrew!) to the food to the music. When it came to the latter, the duo found the perfect partner in Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor DJ Naor, who read the crowd perfectly and kept the dance floor full with his mix of Israeli tracks, traditional Jewish music, British classics, Latino, Funk and House, and bangers!
We’ve also got to mention what an absolutely stunning venue Michelle and Darren picked. They loved Gioia Mia, in central Israel, for its space, energy, and indoor/outdoor mix – not to mention the gorgeous outdoor chuppah area. Don’t miss the fabulous pics from photographer Boris of Flea Studio.
There’s so much more to say – like how the couple’s wedding date fell not even a week after Israel opened up to international travelers in November 2021 – but we’ll leave all that to the couple…
How we Met
We met on a dating app called OkCupid – Darren looked for a woman in the Kfar Saba area who speaks Hebrew, Spanish, and English and Michelle appeared like mannah from heaven!
Indoor/Outdoor
We got married at a venue called Gioia Mia, which is located on Kibbutz Nahshonim in central Israel. We chose this venue because we were very impressed by the space, the energy, and the indoor/outdoor mix – it simply oozes class. We visited around nine venues overall and we fell in love with this one – it answered all of our requirements. The chuppah area especially was amazing. In terms of the pandemic, we simply postponed by a year to November 2021 from November 2020 but at the same venue.
An International Wedding
Michelle is originally Argentinian and Darren moved to Israel from the UK so we tried to mix the three cultures (Argentina, Israel, UK) as much as possible in everything we did – the music, the format of the event (speeches, length of the chuppah), the food, the dress code etc. We planned the wedding ourselves but had an event manager on the day to make sure everything went smoothly. There was no particular colour scheme.
Invitations / stationery
Michelle’s friend Mishela (yes, we know, very similar) is very good at graphic design – she makes invitations as a job on the side – and we were lucky enough that she gladly agreed to make the invitations for us. There was nothing particularly unique.
Hair + Make-up
Michelle, the bride: I looked for someone who knows how to work well with curls and whose make-up style is light and natural. Michal Aran Makeup Artist was ideal.
A Ran Zuriel Dress
I actually bought the first dress that I saw – it was love at first sight! The designer was Ran Zuriel – I bought it directly from him at his store in Tel Aviv. I looked for a classic, clean style that compliments my curves! I did my amendments and additions at a seamstress called Mariana.
Shoes
Vintage style pearl white heels and then afterwards I changed into Adidas trainers for comfort.
The handsome groom
Darren wore a charcoal grey suit with a blue, silk Christian Dior tie with polka dots. He bought the suit with his dad in Manchester and had it fitted by a local tailor. Darren also wore beautiful brown leather shoes that we bought together in Tel Aviv. All of the close family and friends wore white kippot with our names inside.
Bridesmaids
I asked each bridesmaid to wear a different colour – kind of like the colours of the rainbow. See the photos!
Ceremony
We wanted the chuppah ceremony to be unique to us. Darren’s nephew suffers from a terminal disorder and we were honoured to have him blessed by the Rabbi under the chuppah. The rabbi was also very energy and communicative with the guests, and regularly encouraged singing and joy. He played the guitar and sang as well as conducting the service. The songs were very personable to us as people and our background – in Hebrew, Spanish, and English – reflecting our modern and traditional values. At the culmination of the ceremony, Michelle also made a short speech under the chuppah and gave Darren a ring, which was very moving.
Chuppah
So one of the things we loved so much about Gioia Mia was the chuppah area – it has a great backdrop of lighting and greenery. We felt it would have made no sense to spend a fortune adding artificial flowers in addition. So we put some fairy lights on the chuppah and the rest was simply left as it – we’re really glad we made that decision.
Our Music Choice
We played a wide variety of Israeli, traditional Jewish, British classics, Latino, Funk and House, and bangers! DJ Naor read the crowd perfectly and the dance floor was full throughout.
First Dance – Christina Perri, ‘A Thousand Years’
Recessional Dance – Carlos Vives. ‘Volvi a nacer’
Processional songs – Bride, ‘boee be shalom’ (played by the rabbi on the guitar); groom – Robbie Williams – ‘She’s the One’
Last Song – Elton John, ‘Your Song’
Flowers
White roses and baby’s breath flowers
Photographer
We had a really great bond with Boris from Flea Studio and we were impressed with his work and professional approach. We loved their authentic style and that they didn’t try too hard to edit/photoshop/force photos.
Food
The venue did the food – we got a lot of compliments after that it was delicious.
Entertainment
We had a saxophonist, Musicali, playing – he played at the reception, during the meal, and “live-on dj” during the dancing. Our friends and families made us video messages and we had speeches delivered by the best man and the groom. We did an Argentinian style “carnival” during the dancing.
Extra details
Our speeches were delivered in all three languages so we had the translation behind the speaker on a screen. We managed to get lots of secular Israelis to sing along in the pre-ketubah signing “tish” and traditional Jewish “Israeli dancing”. Israel opened its borders to tourists for the first time in 18 months on 1st November 2021 and our wedding was on 7th so a lot of Darren’s family and friends were able to come and be with him, which was very special and created amazing energy throughout the event.
Michelle did all the design herself – for example, she created a literal family tree where photos going back several generations of family weddings were hanging from a tree in the garden of the venue.
Honeymoon
We were supposed to be going to Naples in Italy but it was cancelled because of COVID restrictions. We’re hoping that we’ll get there soon!
Advice to couples currently planning their wedding
To go with the flow and embrace the unexpected – there will be things that don’t go according to plan, and it’s absolutely fine!
Michelle & Darren’s little white book
Photography – Flea Studio
DJ – DJ Naor {offers 10% discount to all members of Smashing The Glass’s Brides Club}
Day Of Wedding Co-ordination – Ofek Pravda
Venue – Gioia Mia
Bride’s dress – Ran Zuriel
Groom’s attire – House of Fraser, Paul Afrim Tailor
Hair + Makeup – Michal Aran Makeup Artist
Ketubah – Tzohar
Saxophonist – Musicali
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 wedding moments in Israel. All the events were very bright photographs.