Londoners Joshua, a journalist, and Lewis, a financial controller, love their city – and when it came time to plan their Jewish wedding, they wanted to show it off in all its splendor to their out-of-town guests.
Trinity Buoy Wharf, a rustic venue with exposed brick walls, high ceilings, and plenty of history, located right on the River Thames, hit all the right notes for the couple’s relaxed, rustic big day. The grooms’ silver birch chuppah, adorned with sunflowers, white delphiniums, and mixed grasses, was pure perfection, and we love that when Joshua and Lewis smashed the glass together, they used the moment to honor other LGBTQ+ couples around the world who can’t celebrate their love as freely.
When it came to entertainment, the pair chose a seven-piece DJ live band from Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor The White Keys, who brought in another Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor, Chazan and singer Jonny Mosesson, for the hora and a contemporary Israeli pop set – which got all the guests involved, including those who’d never before attended a Jewish wedding. In the grooms’ words, “The band was incredibly interactive, filling the dance floor throughout the night. The saxophonist and electric violinist often engaged with guests on the dance floor, adding to the lively atmosphere. We couldn’t recommend The White Keys enough for their energy and ability to keep everyone dancing all night.”
Scott Garfitt, an editorial photographer best known for his work capturing images of celebrities like Taylor Swift, George Clooney, Lady Gaga, photographed the day in all its glory – you can really feel the love and emotion coming out of each and every shot.
Now over to the grooms…
A London Wedding
Joshua and Lewis, the grooms: We got married at Trinity Buoy Wharf, London. With many guests coming from abroad, we wanted a venue that felt quintessentially London, and its location on the River Thames made it perfect. The venue’s rustic charm, featuring exposed brick walls, high ceilings, and numerous historic elements, matched the vibe we were aiming for. It felt spacious and airy, with beautiful spots for guests to take photographs and explore.
Relaxed and Rustic
We wanted our wedding to be relaxed, summery, and rustic. We chose earthy summer tones like yellows, oranges, purples, greens, and sand colors for our flowers, stationery, suits, ties, and other elements to create a cohesive look.
Nikki Klein was our on-the-day coordinator, but she did much more than just manage the event. She went above and beyond, assisting with our schedule, timings, and general last-minute preparations, ensuring everything ran smoothly.
Invitations and Stationery
Our wedding stationery was designed by Donna at Blossom Stationery. She created booklets for our guests that explained the ceremony, which was important to us for inclusivity. With guests from five continents and diverse backgrounds, many attending their first same-sex Jewish wedding, we wanted everyone to feel included. Donna also designed personalized arched menus, a table plan, a welcome sign, table numbers, and cocktail signs for our celebration.
Suits
Joshua’s suit was a taupe three-piece designed by Jed through Reiss’s personal tailoring service. Lewis found a suit he loved in a store and had it tailored to fit perfectly. To complement each other, we chose ties in the color of the other groom’s suit.
Ceremony & Chuppah
The chuppah was crafted from rustic silver birch beams adorned with large sunflowers, designed to look as if they were growing from the ground, complemented by white delphiniums and mixed grasses. The sunflowers matched the sunflower floor meadows along the aisles, which were interspersed with scented bunches of lavender, Joshua’s favourite flower. Our ceremony was traditional but personalized to reflect our relationship.
Both of us smashed the glass, using that moment to honor other LGBTQ+ couples around the world who can’t celebrate their love as freely. Our parents escorted us to the edge of the chuppah, which we entered together, hand-in-hand, symbolizing the start of our lives together. Our ten nieces and nephews, who are very important to us, walked down the aisle together, waving at friends and family. Lewis’ grandma, Rose, began the ceremony with a heartfelt reading of a blessing she had written herself, leaving not a dry eye in the house.
The rabbi, Zahavit Shalev, asked us to prepare a list of things we loved about each other, which she read during the ceremony, adding a deeply personal touch. Honoring our friends, who have played crucial roles in our lives, we asked them to participate in the sheva brachot. We interspersed the blessings between English and Hebrew, with friends from all faiths blessing us under the chuppah, making it an emotional and special moment.
Our Chazan, Guy Barzily, sang the final blessing — his voice was incredible. The ceremony was a poignant celebration of our love, the importance of our friends and family, and our ability to perform a traditional Jewish ceremony as two men.
Ketubah
Our ketubah was designed by Chaim Weiner, a rabbi at our synagogue. We asked two of Lewis’ best friends, Natalie and Sara, to act as witnesses, while Joshua’s close friends, Etienne and Sophie, signed the civil papers. Doing this right after our tisch, with our friends and family there to witness and cheer, was a beautiful moment.
Our music choice
We had a seven-piece DJ live band, The White Keys, who brought in Jonny Mosesson for the hora and a contemporary Israeli pop set. The first couple of sets were traditionally rowdy and fun. Many guests had not been to a Jewish wedding before but nonetheless got stuck into the dancing. Joshua and Lewis were lifted on chairs during the Hora and had traditional circle dancing. Joshua nearly went flying during the crowd-surfing section. The crowd went wild for Omer Adam’s ‘Tel Aviv’, even though many had never heard it before.
Our first dance was to ‘You’ve Got The Love’ by Florence and the Machine, beautifully sung by Amy of The White Keys. Other guests joined in partway through, dancing in pairs under the giant disco ball. The band was incredibly interactive, filling the dance floor throughout the night. The saxophonist and electric violinist often engaged with guests on the dance floor, adding to the lively atmosphere.
There was a mixture of pop music played, but the crowd-pleasers were ‘Love Story’ by Taylor Swift, which saw guests of all ages singing their hearts out, and ‘Unwritten’ by Natasha Beddingfield, which became an impromptu singalong. The night ended on a high note with Beyoncé’s ‘Crazy in Love’. We couldn’t recommend The White Keys enough for their energy and ability to keep everyone dancing all night.
Flowers
The buttonholes featured yellow heliopsis, lavender sprigs, and ivy, adding pops of color that matched our overall colour scheme and the venue’s flowers. Our flower girls wore lavender-flecked gypsophilia flower crowns, making them look like little princesses. The long tables were adorned with the sunflower floor meadows used in the ceremony and terracotta pots filled with English lavender, which guests could take home. This not only added to the rustic charm but also contributed to making the wedding as sustainable as possible.
Lavender bunches from the ceremony were repurposed and placed along the venue’s arches in bud vases, interspersed with candles. Along the tables, there were dozens of bud vases and jam jars filled with sunflowers, rudbeckia, heliopsis, and other flowers. We placed a lot of trust in our amazing florist, Nadia, at Blossom & Threads, and she brought our vision to life. She was incredible.
Photographer and videographer
Our photographer, Scott Garfitt, isn’t typically a wedding photographer. As an editorial photographer, he has captured images of celebrities like Taylor Swift, George Clooney, Lady Gaga, and even Prince William and Princess Kate. After seeing the stunning pictures Scott took at Joshua’s brother’s wedding last year, we knew we wanted him for our own.
He expertly captured key moments of our ceremony, such as the smashing of the glasses, and did a fantastic job photographing our guests dancing and having fun. Scott made us feel comfortable during our portraits, skillfully coordinated the group shots, and was present for every major moment. He was a joy to work with.
We discovered our videographer, Shot by Louis, on Instagram. After watching a few of his clips, we knew he was the perfect fit for us. He was easy to work with, understood our vision, and the video he produced beautifully captured the joyous mood of our celebration.
Food
Our caterer, Itzik Caterers, added a contemporary flair to kosher wedding food, which is why we chose them. The reception featured an abundance of food, starting with a variety of canapés and a taco and hot dog station for guests to enjoy. For starters, we had a refreshing and summery duck and watermelon salad, followed by an amuse-bouche of lemon and vodka sorbet.
The main course was marinated chicken on a bed of seasoned rice, accompanied by vegetables and gravy. Dessert was an apple and blueberry pie, served with ice cream. A vegan option was also available. In addition to an open bar, our cocktail selection included chili lemon drop martinis, mojitos, whisky sours, and, since it was a British summer, Pimms, of course.
Wedding Registry
We used The Wedding Shop for our gifts. We enjoyed the fun experience of selecting items in their London showroom and also took advantage of their fund options.
Extra Details
At each place setting, we had personalized bottles of tequila with the message, “We tied the knot, now take a shot!” Our guests definitely made good use of them!
Joshua’s brother and best man, Joel, expertly MC’d the evening, delivering thoughtful and funny anecdotes throughout. The speeches were emotional and heartfelt.
The grooms’ fathers gave a beautiful joint speech, followed by Lewis’ best men, Adam and Rob, who delivered a hilarious and loving roast of Lewis. Joshua and Lewis also gave a joint speech. They did a part together and then each read a separate section for each other, which neither had heard before. This was a really special moment of the day.
Honeymoon
Shortly after our wedding, we stayed at the Corinthia St George’s Bay in Malta. It was a gorgeous hotel and the perfect place to relax and reminisce about the wedding after a stressful few months. We’re looking forward to going to Miami and the Caribbean next year.
Advice to couples currently planning their wedding
Take moments throughout your wedding day to step back, observe your guests, and soak it all in. It might sound cliché, but the day passes quickly, and these brief pauses will help you fully appreciate what a special and momentous occasion it is.
JOSHUA AND LEWIS’ LITTLE WHITE BOOK
Photography – Scott Garfitt
Live Band – The White Keys & Jonny Mosesson
Videography – Shot by Louis
Venue – Trinity Buoy Wharf
On-the-day Coordinator – Nikki Klein
Groom’s attire – Reiss
Flowers – Blossom & Threads
Chazan – Guy Barzily
Catering – Itzik Caterers
Stationery/Invitation – Blossom Stationery
Rabbi – Zahavit Shalev
Wedding Registry – The Wedding Shop
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