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How to Handle Wedding Planning Stress, Anxiety, or Overwhelm {Instagram Live Recap with Michelle Jacobs of Elegante by Michelle J}

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Who’s having a hard time with wedding planning stress or overwhelm right now? ???? If that’s you, my latest Instagram live is an absolute must-watch. 

I spoke with the wonderful Michelle Jacobs of Elegante by Michelle J, all about how to handle wedding stress, overwhelm, and anxiety – not to mention all those (often unwanted) opinions!

Michelle is the ultimate Jewish wedding planning expert, and I love sharing her knowledge and expertise with you. A London-based planner focusing on destination Jewish weddings – both abroad and in the UK – she’s passionate about creating magical experiences for couples and their families and guests.

Chloe and Danny‘s Tuscan Jewish wedding, planned by Michelle! Photo by David Bastianoni

All About Overwhelm 

In this Live, Michelle and I talk through some easily actionable tips to make your wedding planning as fun and stress-free as possible. We opened the discussion with a focus on wedding overwhelm – something that very often comes up when Michelle first speaks with her couples. It’s especially common at the beginning of a couple’s wedding planning journey, but even all the way through overwhelm can be a big issue.

Michelle shared some great tips on how to deal:

Remember it’s a marathon, not a sprint – it’s true there’s a lot involved in planning a wedding, but no one’s expecting you to do it all at once.

Michelle also recommends that before you get started you sit down and have a conversation with your partner about what sort of wedding you really want and what your priorities are. The clearer a picture you have of what you’re aiming for, the easier it will be to figure out next steps and make choices. 

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Jasmin and Brett‘s Osea Island UK Jewish wedding, planned by Michelle! Photo by Claudine Hartzel

Getting Clear on Your Priorities

In terms of figuring out what it is that the two of you want – Michelle strongly believes that every wedding should reflect the couple behind it, so she’s a big supporter of looking inward before you look outward. First have a think about what you two like to do, what your home is like, what your ideal day out would be, and after you’ve done that start looking at Instagram, Pinterest, Smashing The Glass’s real wedding archives etc. 

Some things to think about: Do you want a country or city wedding? Small or large? Local or destination? Casual or formal? Ballroom or barn? Those are the big-picture issues. You’ll also need to have a sense of how much you want to spend so you won’t waste your time looking at vendors and venues that are out of your price range – or a venue that’s the wrong size for your crowd. It’s smart to share this vision with your family upfront and get everyone on the same page before you dive into planning. 

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A Suzanne Neville Bride for a Conservatory Jewish Wedding at Syon Park, London, UK

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There’s not much we love more than seeing a couple work with a mega-talented team of our beloved Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendors to make their Jewish wedding a day to remember – which is exactly what London couple Emma and Arik did!

From the moment the duo chose Lucie and Alex from #STGvendor Ruby J Events as their wedding planners, they were off and running. Lucie and Alex understood the vibe the couple were after and ran with it, sourcing an amazing team of vendors and taking care of all the details so that Emma and Arik “were able to enjoy every minute of planning and every second of the day” – no small feat, especially during Covid!

Another amazing #STGvendor, Sensation Band, provided the perfect soundtrack to the ceremony, with Guy singing the couple down the aisle accompanied by Jason on keyboard. For the reception, #STGvendor Balagan Roaming Band roamed the venue getting the party going and creating an electric atmosphere for the evening!

To capture their day, Emma and Arik opted to work with Promise Photography and #STGvendor Michael Pearl Films. The duo found Michael an absolute delight to work with, and they’re in love with bot their highlights video as well as the full 2-hour version!

Last but absolutely not least, the couple chose #STGvendor Feast by Ed for his mouthwatering kosher catering, and they were bowled over by not only the deliciousness of it all but the beautiful presentation too – and how wonderful Ed himself is to work with, of course!

There’s so much more to say, but we’ll leave the rest to the bride, who looked so elegant in Suzanne Neville…

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How we Met

Emma, the bride: Arik works in data analytics and I’m a nanny, 2 professions that would never cross paths if it hadn’t of been for Hinge! We chatted for a while on the app and then we arranged to go for a drink (neither of us knowing at that point that neither of us drank). We met at Sophie’s bar in Soho and stayed chatting and laughing for hours, which is pretty much how we spend every day now – minus being in Sophie’s bar!

We moved in together 1 year later and spent 2 months living together at my dads at the beginning of lockdown. Arik was sad to leave so that was a good sign! I came home after a long walk with my sister one day (not knowing that Arik had planned this, to get me out the house), to find Arik on one knee in the lounge, surrounded by rose petals, candles and holding a ring. The rest as our rabbi said under the chuppah, is soul music.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A Magical, Colorful Multicultural Jewish-Hindu Wedding at Mallu Farms, South Delhi, India

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We are so excited to be sharing the gorgeous Jewish-Hindu wedding of our beloved Brides Club with Smashing The Glass member Sara to Deevakar! Like so many couples over the past few years Sara and Deevakar’s planning journey was filled with lots of ups and downs and uncertainty due to the pandemic – but in the end, they pulled off the fairy tale Indian wedding of their dreams – and it is just BEYOND!

From the start, the couple knew it was important to them to honor both of their backgrounds – Sara’s Russian-Jewish and Deevakar’s Indian-Hindu – and they planned the most beautiful interfaith wedding honoring both religions, and highlighting the many commonalities between the two. The wedding was a two-day extravaganza, filled with so many beautiful rituals, delicious food, and, of course, lots of music and dancing! Don’t miss the stunning images from Dhaarna Bhola Photography.

We’re so touched by Sara’s kind words about how valuable Brides Club was to her during the planning stages: “The ladies in Brides Club helped a lot with moral support. I didn’t have bridesmaids, and yet I felt completely supported by the lovely women in the group. From brainstorming creative ideas, to being able to share my planning anxieties, Brides Club had my back. My wedding wasn’t the traditional, cookie cutter Western Jewish wedding I was used to seeing, but because Brides Club is made up of all different types of women who also plan Jew-ish weddings, I didn’t feel alone.”

Sara also used her Brides Club discount to purchase her gorgeous ketubah from Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor ketubah.com. Designed by artist Shell Rummel, it depicts two colorful, intertwined circles – a design Sara and Deevakar picked for the way it beautifully represents their marriage and life together – aww!

Now over to Sara…

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How we Met

Sara, the bride: Deevakar and I met in Chicago, USA, and currently live in an apartment overlooking the Chicago River. I’m from Boston, MA, USA and Deevakar is from Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India. Our love of family and similar cultures (Russian-Jewish and Indian-Hindu) bonded us. We got married in July 2020 in a minimony. We had a city hall wedding, and a small barbeque at Sara’s family’s home in Newton, MA. We finally had our religious ceremonies in New Delhi, India—both Jewish and Hindu. It was a large, fun-filled, two-day celebration, which melded the two cultures in food, music, and rituals.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

Jewish Bride Spotlight: Ines Frigerio

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Ines is a member of our Brides Club for Jewish and Jew-ish brides, and we’re so excited for her wedding plans!

Inside Brides Club, I personally help you to minimize wedstress and overwhelm, and maximize your wedding budget. Oh – and every Brides Club member gets a free smash glass pouch (designed by me) for under the chuppah posted out to them too. Mazal Tov!

Come and join Brides Club too – for advice, discounts, community, sisterhood… and your sanity!

ABOUT INES

Where are you from? São Paulo – Brazil
What do you do for a living? I’m a chef
How did you meet your partner? At a Pideon HaBen in London; at a mutual friend’s home
Where did you go on your first date? Drinks at a local pub (not romantic at all!!! I actually thought we were just catching up as friends as we knew eachother before we got together! I had no idea it was a date; until he kissed me goodbye)
When did you first know you were in love? Our first kiss during our first date! I knew he was my besheret
How long had you been dating when you became engaged? A little over 2 years
What date are you getting married and where?  29/8/22

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An Andalusian Fantasy Ashkenazi-Sephardi Jewish Wedding at Villa Luisa, Seville, Spain

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Rebecca & Emmanuel, Villa Luisa, Seville, Spain

We love it when a couple lets their Jewish wedding locale set the stage for an ultra-memorable celebration – which is exactly what Parisian duo Rebecca, a physiatrist, and Emmanuel, an epidemiologist, did when they chose to make it official in Seville, Spain!

The pair chose Andalusia not only for its fabulous East-meets-West architecture and delectable cuisine, but also for its rich Jewish history, in tribute to the bride’s Sephardic heritage.

And their amazing wedding planner, Charlotte Ricard-Quesada from Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor La Fête – who Rebecca and Emmanuel found right here on Smashing The Glass – brought their dreams to life exquisitely – on a super tight timeline, no less! Charlotte’s fluency in Spanish and experience planning weddings in Seville made the process a breeze, and she connected the pair with many of their fabulous vendors – including their breathtaking venue Villa Luisa, which captures the splendor of old Andalusia in all its glory. Don’t miss the dreamy photos by Juan Luis Morilla!

And did we mention that Rebecca and Emmanuel’s Seville-based kosher caterer, Taim, served up authentic Andalusian tapas – which are often difficult to find with kosher certification?

There’s so much more to say about this one-of-a kind wedding, but we’ll turn you over to Rebecca to hear about the rest…

Rebecca & Emmanuel, Villa Luisa, Seville, SpainRebecca & Emmanuel, Villa Luisa, Seville, SpainRebecca & Emmanuel, Villa Luisa, Seville, SpainRebecca & Emmanuel, Villa Luisa, Seville, Spain
How we Met

Rebecca, the bride: We met on the internet 17 years ago. I was looking for someone who could lend me medical books, Emmanuel had some and the exchange took place at the Saint-Germain-des-Prés metro station, near the medical school.Continue ReadingContinue Reading