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Danny & Aaron | Extraordinary Gay Jewish Wedding, with the Couple Arriving on a Unicorn, at Paramount Studios, Hollywood, Los Angeles, USA

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Gay-Jewish-Wedding
OK guys, we are starting the week at TRULY EPIC on the wedding spectrum. Are you ready for what I have in store for you?

The truth is, I actually don’t know where to start with all the love that I have for Danny and Aaron’s immense Jewish wedding. And by the time you lot are through you won’t know what to do with yourselves either.

To begin with these two rode down the aisle to their chuppah atop a tallit-wearing horse dressed as a unicorn (or Jew-nicorn, as they dubbed it!) to the tune of Madonna’s Like a Virgin. What’s more Joss Stone (yes, the Joss Stone) undertook the role of cantor, singing Circle of Life as Danny and Aaron circled each other under the chuppah, and a 16 person gospel choir was on hand for a few of the ceremony songs as well.

When I asked Danny and Aaron what advice they’d give to brides and grooms currently planning their Jewish wedding, they told me, “be unique to your personalities. You can create new Jewish traditions by adding a personal flare to more traditional Jewish rituals, making your wedding unique to you as individuals and as a couple”, and boy did they live up to their own advice!

Danny and Aaron certainly know how to throw a phenomenal party. And throw a party they did. At their reception, John Legend, Ciara, Joss Stone, and Korean rapper, Psy (aka Mr. Gangnam Style!) performed live  keeping guests entertained till well into the small hours. But as much as there was world-class entertainment and flamboyant gestures, Danny and Aaron’s W Day was absolutely all about sharing, loving and being together. An ethos that the pair stood from the very start as they decided not to uphold the traditions of being apart until the ceremony, instead opting to get ready together — sharing every single moment of their wedding day.

Thank you to Danny, Aaron and Maya Myers Photography for letting me give you the most incredible start to your Smashing The Glass week!

Gay Jewish Wedding at Paramount Studios, Hollywood, Los Angeles
Choosing Paramount Studios in Hollywood as our wedding venue

Danny and Aaron, the Grooms: We both work in the music and television industries. We wanted to have our guests experience a Hollywood studio and wanted to create a grand overlaying look of our wedding and so Paramount Studios was a perfect fit for us. We wanted to design the whole room.

Gay Jewish Wedding at Paramount Studios, Hollywood, Los Angeles
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Abby & Lance | Orange and blue Jewish wedding at The Ranch Golf Club, San Jose, California

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ORANGE-BLUE-WEDDING
I’m feeling very happy indeed this morning, because Abby and Lance’s wedding is such a gorgeous one to be blogging on a Friday morning.

The adorable couple married in San Jose, California — a city that is close to their hearts as it’s where they live, and it’s also where they went to high school. I should also add that these two first met when Abby was just 6 years old, when Lance generously gave her some of his sweets. Bags of those same sweets (Laffy Taffy’s!) were handed out at the wedding to all their guests. Super cute!

They wanted their wedding to be really fun for their friends…and it was just that. Throw in a beautiful outdoor chuppah setting, and an orange and peacock blue colour scheme — and I think you’ve pretty much got the perfect Smashing The Glass wedding to kickstart your weekend!

Ranch Golf Club Wedding
the fun factor

Abby, the Bride: We really wanted everyone to have fun at our wedding, and not feel like this was just another stuffy, boring wedding that they had already been to. What guided us was constantly asking ourselves, “Would this be fun?” We had drinks and hor d’oeuvres available for our guests prior to the ceremony and welcomed them to keep their drinks during the ceremony. Being that we got married in August, sundown was late in the day and pushed our ceremony and reception into the night. Rather than having another “rubber chicken” dinner that took away from time to enjoy dancing and partying, we selected about a dozen different kinds of foods to have set out during the reception. People could graze the buffets as they desired and all foods chosen you could eat with your hands or just a fork (i.e. no knife required).

Ranch Golf Club Wedding
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Neela & Jeffrey | Indo-Trini Jew-ish Barn Wedding at Full Moon Resort, Big Indian, New York, USA

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Today I am bringing you the most immense interfaith wedding that came to my attention courtesy of the wonderful By Petronella. It’s a cultural extravaganza full of heart and sentiment, and anyone planning, or even thinking about, an interfaith wedding ceremony must read Neela’s W-day report.

I can’t promise that her wedding to Jeffrey won’t make you cry, as at the end of the post is the wedding film by Mae B Films and hearing them recite their personalised vows set me off… I may just have shed a tear or two over how pure and emotive it was. Instead of feeling constrained by their interfaith ceremony, as some couples do, Neela and Jeffrey’s was an undiluted celebration of love in its very purest form.

Apart from the obviously very happy and very in love Neela and Jeffrey, and the unbearably gorgeous setting (a deer makes an appearance!), this wedding is all about the magical blend of cultures for me.

Oh and there’s the sparkler send-off…yep an actual send-off with hundreds of sparklers — I love that idea – and what a great photo opp! Take it away, Neela and Jeffrey.

interfaith wedding
a rustic country wedding venue

Neela, the Bride: We chose the venue because of its natural beauty, rustic setting and low key vibe.  We visited the area in the Autumn of 2013 and felt very connected. We also loved that no cell phone service was available in the area which allowed us and our guests to disconnect from the busy city life, reconnect and have a mini retreat.  We fell head over heels in love with the barn on our first visit to Full Moon Resort. It simply brought a magical feeling the moment we stepped into it. Growing up in the country, the setting brought a sense of home for me. We both felt a sense of belonging and peace amidst the mountains.

interfaith wedding
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Michaela & Aviad | A Jewish wedding in the woods in Ben Shemen forest, Israel

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FOREST-WEDDING
I’m really excited about today’s wedding, not just because it’s epitomises my idea of simple beauty, but also because Liron Erel was the photographer, and I’ve been dying to get his work up again on the blog.

It also contains a few firsts: It’s the first Jewish wedding that I’ve blogged  on  Smashing The Glass to take place in a real bone fide forest, it’s  the first to feature a Jewish bride proudly (and resplendently!) showing off her tattoos, and it’s the first to feature my favourite boutique hotel in Tel Aviv, The Montefiore, which is where today’s lovely  couple got ready.

Here is what the  beautiful bride, Michaela, had to say about her Israeli wedding in the woods.

Forest Wedding
how we met

Michaela, the Bride:  We met whilst we were working together in  the same bar (in fact, our  first dance was to We found each other in the dark  because we  met in a  bar!).  Nothing happened between us for a long time until we were both invited to a friend’s wedding. Maybe it was the magic air of a Jewish wedding, but I started to see something between us…

Forest Wedding
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Create a beautiful ‘Wed-Site’ with Riley & Grey + 50% reader discount

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Riley-Grey
Some of you may be aware that I ran my own graphic and web design business for 10 years, prior to working full time  on  Smashing The Glass. That explains why I get super excited about  gorgeous  designs and beautiful  graphics and really know a brilliant  creative  product  when I see one, and ‘the one’ that I’m thoroughly  obsessed with right now is Riley & Grey.

Their wedding websites are by far the prettiest, and most  alluring ones out there, and can be  completely customised to your specifications. When I was planning  my own wedding  I hunted high and low for a cool and stylish wedding website and eventually binned the idea when I couldn’t find one to reflect my tastes. What a shame that Riley & Grey weren’t  around then as I would have, without question, used their services.

The best online tool for you and your guests

A wedding website (or ‘wed-site’ as you might have heard them referred to) is a great tool for collecting guest addresses, managing RSVPs and dietary requirements, and informing  your guests about your gift list. They’re also eco-friendly, and can incorporate all sorts of extra information and photo and  video galleries in a beautifully stylish way.

You can introduce your bridal party, tell everyone the story of how you met, explain directions, and if you’re having a destination or weekend-long wedding, incorporate the full schedule of events, and see who’s coming to what and when. You can also advise  your guests on  nearby hotels, attractions,and all the relevant transport links in a beautiful, orderly way. And if any specifics change, unlike print, you can instantly update  the details in a flash!

Riley Grey wedding websiteRiley Grey
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