It’s a Big Day in America today (erm… understatement!) and I couldn’t possibly let the day pass without posting a gorgeous real American Jewish wedding, if nothing else, to divert us from all the madness!
Menucha & Austin are just the cutest and I’ve got an extra special treat in store for you today in terms of the bride’s FABULOUS frockage from BHLDN, one of my favourite bridal fashion brands — super sassy and achingly cool.
Austin isn’t Jewish, but is going to convert to Judaism and in the meantime, Menucha wanted to find a way to show that he was included and invited into the Jewish tradition.
So he had a tisch before the ceremony, and when they danced Austin in to see his bride for the badeken, he carried out the act of placing her veil over her face, but then she carried out her own really special addition to the short ceremony — she placed a white kippah on his head, to symbolise his future conversion to Judaism. It’s personal details like this that make for a truly smashing wedding…
The wedding ceremony itself was jam-packed with intimacy, personality and so much joy. Menucha’s father was the officiant, and the bride’s and groom’s siblings held the chuppah poles. Menucha’s mother also made the ketubah. Truly a family affair.
The images today come from Alyssa Kapnik Samuel — thank you for submitting this gorgeousness, Alyssa!
How We Met
Menucha, the bride: Austin and I met in college. He was roommates with my best friend from high school. And it was a long journey from there!
Choosing to get married at Piedmont Park in Atlanta
We got married at Park Tavern overlooking Piedmont Park. We picked this because it was affordable, easy, and right in our neighborhood, so it felt a little like home to us. It overlooked the park that Austin and I would walk in almost every day when we first moved to Atlanta.
A family oriented wedding
We made this wedding about us by having it very family oriented. My dad married us and our siblings and family members gave us the seven blessings under the chuppah in their own and personal words. We planned the whole thing, did not use a wedding planner. Our colour scheme was just light and calm neutral colours, which matched our brunch wedding.
Hair + Make-up
Tiffany Stone did my hair and make-up. She was truly the best. For my make-up, I went for a very natural but elegant look, and same with my hair!
A BHLDN wedding dress
My dress was from BHLDN. I had another dress originally but couldn’t resist this one, so I bought it! It was just so beautiful and brunchy.
Shoes
I just wore sandals. Cream coloured and very casual.
The handsome groom
Austin wore this adorable navy suit that he got tailored from Trio. Very slim fitting 🙂 He wore this very down to earth grey tie and a beautiful white kippah. He looked better than me!
Bridesmaids
My bridesmaids wore dresses of their choosing but very neutral and light colours. My sisters wore light blue dresses. Their outfits were perfect for the calm and light vibes we were going for.
The Badeken
One of the most special moments for me was the Badeken ceremony. When the groom greets the bride for the first time being danced in with all his friends. He puts the veil over her head and whispers something sweet in her ear. It was my absolute favorite part. Also, after he put the veil over my head, I placed a kippah on his head. To us, that was a symbol of welcoming him into our Jewish family. Everyone cried and danced and sang.
Our chuppah design
My sister actually built and designed our Chuppah, so that was really special for us. It was so beautiful and white and looked great with everything else.
Walking down the aisle…
For when Austin walked down the aisle, we played the string quartet of All You Need Is Love by The Beatles. And when I walked down, the string quartet played Here Comes The Sun. Everyone cheered and clapped as we walked down the aisle – which was the best thing ever! It made us feel comfortable and excited.
Our ceremony
Everything about our ceremony seemed to be filled with special touches. We took the Jewish traditions but made it our own. My father married us, and my mother made and read the ketubah, and I signed it under the Chuppah. Austin’s parents and our siblings, and aunts and uncles came up under the chuppah one at a time to give us a special blessing in their own words (7 of them). My favourite part was when Austin and I exchanged our words to each other. They were funny, personal, and so full of love.
Also, I think the cheering when we walked down the aisle was really a special touch and says a lot about the friends and family that were there. They were so filled with joy and love and it really made our day so great!
Oh, and for our programs, we had little newspapers with a lot of information about Jewish weddings with some pictures, after party details, a weather forecast, horoscopes, and a crossword puzzle about us and a little comic strip. (My sister made those).
Green and white flowers
My sister actually made my bouquets and centerpieces. She bought different flowers from around the city and even picked lots of wildflowers from around Atlanta and put them all together! It was so beautiful! Lots of green and white.
Our fabulous photographer
Alyssa Kapnik Samuel was our photographer! I met with her once and we immediately felt so connected and I felt like she really understood me and what I was trying to do with my wedding. I trusted that she was tasteful and genuine and that’s what was most important for us when choosing a photographer. We also wanted to feel comfortable with our photographer and Alyssa was so easy and comfortable to be around, so it was perfect!
A vegan Dessert table
We did not have a “cake” we had more of a dessert table with cakes and cupcakes and cookies. We had the dessert table catered and set up from this sweet little vegan bakery called Dulce Vegan. They were SO delish. We had hummingbird cakes, strawberry cakes, chocolate coconut… lots of different flavours. We decided to do this because we are vegans and wanted to enjoy all the desserts! It was also important to us to support local vegan places 🙂 Park Tavern did our overall catering, a vegetarian brunch…
Entertainment
We chose a DJ so we could play all different songs that we know and love. We also wanted to have a mix of Jewish songs and party songs.
Advice to brides and groom planning their wedding
I would say to just keep the calming people around you at all times and the stressful people away from you as much as possible! Once I was surrounded by calmness, I was able to really feel loved and enjoy the day. Also, ask for as much help as you need, people like to help!
Menucha & Austin’s Little White Book
Photographer – Alyssa Kapnik Samuel
Venue – Park Tavern
Bride’s dress – BHLDN
Groom’s attire – Trio
Hair + Make-up – Tiffany Stone
Desserts – Dulce Vegan
DJ – DJ Dre 1800
