This wedding! Today’s Jewish wedding is what summer festival wedding dreams are made of. Mor, the CEO of a rock climbing gym, and Rotem, a software engineer, had the dreamiest ever Israeli vineyard wedding, expertly captured by photographer Roman Balashov and videographer Guy Lahav.
We’re obsessed with their minimalist magical chuppah — which the brides credit to their amazing planner, Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Bebke. With just a few artfully placed bottle vases full of flowers and greenery artfully draped from the poles, it shows you don’t have to go for something crazy ornate to make a big impact.
We also love that the couple crafted an ultra-personal ceremony incorporating Jewish tradition with their own personalities and values. The brides’ sisters officiated, and rather than saving speeches for the meal, Mor and Rotem decided to include them during the chuppah — including an incredibly emotional one by Mor’s mother. We love the idea of making speeches a part of your ceremony — such a special way to involve important people, and to inject some individuality into the proceedings!
Both brides were perfectly decked out in boho chic splendor, with Mor in Limor Rosen and Rotem wearing Tamara. Oh, and did we mention that they chose “I Kissed a Girl” as their recessional?! LOVE!!!!
Now over to Rotem…
How we met
Rotem: We met at Ben Gurion University when we both started biotechnology engineering studies.
Wine and Love
We got married in a vineyard south of Tel Aviv. We wanted to share our love of nature and wine with our guests – and invite them to something like a wine and love festival.
A Fab Planner
We knew we wanted to do something special for our big day but we didn’t exactly know what to do. When we met Bebke we knew right away they would be our wedding planners. Fom the moment we met Inbar and Gev we felt like they could be the ones that would make our dream come true.
And that’s exactly what happened, with hard work and many many meetings that helped them get to know us and make this wedding feel specially made for us and show our personalities.
Hair + Makeup
Mor’s hair and makeup was done by Liat Maman. They had a hard time deciding whether to go with hair up or down but eventually decided that hair up was the best choice.
My (Rotem’s) hair and makeup was done by Yael Lahav. I decided to go with my hair down and a braid at the top. Both of us kept our makeup very natural.
Limor Rosen and Tamara Dresses
Mor’s dress was a dress from the Urban Dreams collection of the designer Limor Rosen. It was a cream-color two-part dress. For the dancing, she changed the lower part out for a shorter skirt that let her dance and move freely.
My (Rotem’s) dress was pure white chiffon, from the Forest Fairy collection of the designer Tamara.
Cream and White Shoes
Mor wore cream-color suede sandals with high heels, and I wore white kitten heels.
A Custom Ceremony
We wrote the ceremony ourselves, based on elements from the traditional Jewish wedding and incorporating the way we see our future. The thing we loved most about it was that both of our sisters were our “rabbis.” The ceremony started a moment after sunset, and the sky behind us was magnificent and looked like a painting.
A Magical Chuppah
We were inspired by photos on Pinterest, but the final result was really all down to Bebke’s magic touch.
I Kissed a Girl
Our music was a mix of everything we love. Our processional was Angel by Jack Johnson, and the recessional was I Kissed A Girl by Katie Perry – that made people laugh, and got them in to the mood to go straight to the dance floor.
A Surprise Cake
Our cake was made by Bruria Hadar – Mor’s aunt. It was a surprise but it matched the wedding design perfectly.
Vegetarian Food
The food was all vegetarian and had everyone licking their fingers. We also had a Gela ice cream car that offered vegan ice cream.
A Song by One of the Brides
For the reception we invited the band Swing de Gitans. They played music that felt perfect for Friday afternoon. I (Rotem) surprised Mor and the guests when I joined them and played a song I wrote for Mor when we first met.
Emotional Speeches
A few people gave speeches at the chuppah. One of them was Dalia – Mor’s mom. she told the story of how Mor first told her she had a girlfriend, and finished with the words “Love is just love.” Everyone was very emotional after the ceremony, especially us. We were overwhelmed by the love and acceptance from all the people around us.
Mor & Rotem’s little white book
Photography – Roman Balashov
Videography – Guy Lahav
Wedding planner and production – Bebke
Mor’s dress – Limor Rosen
Rotem’s dress – Tamara
Hair + Makeup – Liat Maman and Yael Lahav
Band – Swing de Gitans
