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’Smashing Summit’ – Our Epic Summit starring Mindy Weiss, Monique Lhuillier, Ron Ben-Israel, Galia Lahav’s Chief Designer and Many More Covering Everything You Need To Plan Your Jewish (or Jew-ish!) Wedding, Your Way

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Smashing-SummitYay – it’s 2018! Who can now say “I’m getting married THIS year?!” (so exciting!). Or maybe you’re looking forward to tying the knot in 2019? Or you’re a close friend or relative of someone who’s planning a wedding?

Whichever fabulous camp you fall in, you won’t want to miss our EPIC Online Summit on Wednesday January 31st 2018, hosted by our founder and editor, Karen Cinnamon, and featuring Mindy Weiss, Monique Lhuillier, Ron Ben-Israel, Galia Lahav‘s Chief Designer, Duke Photography, Bruce Russell, Blake Ezra, Food Story, and a whole host of wedding industry superstars  covering everything (and we mean EVERYTHING!) you need to know to plan your Jewish (or Jew-ish) wedding — your way.

Streamed directly to your computer or mobile device, our Online Summit  will show you EXACTLY how to create a Jewish wedding that totally reflects who you are and what’s important to you —  from Jewish wedding traditions, and how to make them your own, to amazing ways to personalize your wedding, to how to come up with the perfect wedding hashtag, to creative food and drink ideas to the hottest wedding dress trends, to so much more (see full schedule below)!

We want your guests to walk into your wedding and say “this is so them!”

your-jewish-wedding-your-way-summit

What’s more our online summit is the only conference where cosy slippers and a hot chocolate (or a large glass of wine!) are positively encouraged, so come interact with Karen and twelve of the best speakers in the wedding industry about everything you need to know to plan your Jewish wedding your way… all from the comfort of your sofa.

And the best news of all? It’s totally free! 

>> Reserve your (FREE!) front seat TODAY

We’re hosting this very special Summit to celebrate the launch of something brand new and very exciting from Smashing The Glass… Trust me, you’re going to be SO excited about what we’re launching – it’s truly OFF THE SCALE!).

We are beyond thrilled to announce our Summit speaker lineup and schedule below  for an online event that is truly the first of its kind.

Speaker Line-Up and Schedule

5:30pm GMT |  12:30pm EST |  9:30am PST
‘Welcome… and introducing something brand new for Brides from Smashing The Glass’
Karen Cinnamon
Real Jew-ish bride and groom
Founder & Editor of Smashing The Glass

5:45pm GMT |  1:15pm EST |  10:15am PST
‘How to create a wedding that reflects who you are and what is important to you’
Bruce Russell
International Luxury Wedding Planner and owner of By Bruce Russell

6:00pm GMT |  1:00pm EST |  10:00am PST
‘How to pick the perfect music for your Jewish wedding’
Jonny Mosesson
Chazan, Musician and Entertainer

6:30pm GMT |  1:30pm EST |  10:30am PST
‘How to personalise your chuppah… and what to do with your smashed glass‘
Lauren Dubell- Beadle
Founder of The Chuppah Design Co + Resident DIY Expert at Smashing The Glass

7:00pm GMT |  2:00pm EST |  11:00am PST
‘Creative food and drink ideas for your Jewish wedding’
Matt Rickard and David Swann
Managing Director at Food Story, and Executive Chef at Food Story

7:30pm GMT |  2:30pm EST |  11:30am PST
‘Style ideas for the Fashion Forward Bride’
Sharon Sever, Chief Designer at Galia Lahav

8:00pm GMT |  3:00pm EST |  12:00pm PST
‘Top 5 Wedding Cake Trends for 2018  / 2019’
Ron Ben-Israel
Executive chef and owner of world-renowned Ron Ben-Israel Cakes

8:30pm GMT |  3:30pm EST |  12:30pm PST
‘Jewish wedding traditions – and how to make them your own’
Blake Ezra
International Wedding Photographer and owner of Blake Ezra Photography

9:00pm GMT |  4:00pm EST |  1:00pm PST
‘How to find the perfect wedding photographer’
Duke Khodaverdian
International Wedding Photographer and owner of world-renowned Duke Images

9:30pm GMT |  4:30pm EST |  1:30pm PST
‘How to come up with the perfect wedding hashtag’
Sara Gibbs
Comedy Writer and Features Writer at Smashing The Glass

10:00pm GMT |  5:00pm EST |  2:00pm PST
‘Top 5 Wedding Dress Trends for 2018  / 2019’
Monique Lhuillier
World-renowned bridal designer, and founder of one of the world’s leading fashion houses

10:30pm GMT |  5:30pm EST |  2:30pm PST
‘5 Amazing Ways To Personalize Your Wedding’
Mindy Weiss
World-renowned international celebrity wedding planner and bestselling author

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Wonderful Jewish Wedding Dà©cor by Isra Love on Etsy

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How can something so cleanly designed by simultaneously bilingual? We love this ‘mazel tov’ cake topper.

It can be really hard to find proper, contemporary Jewish wedding dà©cor, with Hebrew writing in beautiful, chic typography. That’s why we’re so very grateful for Isra Love on Etsy, a little online slice of Jewish wedding (and gift) heaven that does just that!

Cake toppers

We adore Isra Love’s range of cake toppers, with their messages, both in Hebrew and English, presented in a stunning, contemporary and fashion-forward way. Here are a few of our faves!


We’re big fans of this adorable ‘love’ (ahava) cake topper.

Isra Love’s full wedding cake topper range is available here.

Table numbers

Other beauties in the Isra Love treasure chest include beautiful, printable table numbers, like the ones we’ve picked out below. Continue ReadingContinue Reading

Six Beautiful Jewish Wedding Traditions and How to Make Them Your Own

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jewish wedding traditions
Image: Lara Hotz Photography from Gena & Tony’s real Jewish wedding

Question: How is a Jewish wedding different from all other weddings?

Answer: The heart of a Jewish wedding beats amidst its unique traditions and within the potent symbolism. A chuppah, the processional with the parents of the bride and groom, the Klezmer or uniquely ‘Jewish’ music, the Seven Blessings, the breaking of the glass, the chair dance…and of course, there’s more.

While the traditions make the wedding, these days many Jewish and Jew-ish couples are choosing to lend a more modern, egalitarian approach to their simchas by updating the rituals so that they take on a meaning that speaks more to their values as a couple.

Reimagining the traditions, for some couples, is a key part of the wedding planning process. Here are some creative ways that many brides and grooms are choosing to modernize the Jewish wedding traditions and make them their own:

Hora-Jewish-Wedding
Image: Blake Ezra Photography from Chelm & Jake’s real Jewish wedding

Reinvent the Ketubah

The Ketubah is the Jewish marriage contract, written in the ancient language of Aramaic. It is typically framed and hung in the marital home after the wedding day and is often lovely to look at. The text of the traditional ketubah hasn’t changed much over time: it is legalistic and doesn’t mention love, instead stating that the groom has “acquired” his wife. With the advent of feminism, couples have increasingly found solutions to the limitations on the woman’s role in a Ketubah.

Some choose to keep the traditional wording but choose their own English text to sit alongside it: words that describe the home they want to create or the bond that they share. Other couples write their own Ketubah so that the wording aligns with their shared values (sample Ketubah texts are available all over the internet).Continue ReadingContinue Reading

12 Cute Phrases for the Inside of your Wedding Kippot

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kippah wedding
Kippah by Hebrewear (Get 10% discount from Hebrewear as a member of Smashing The Glass’ Brides Club)

Let’s face it, ordering a batch of kippot / yarmulkes / cupples for your guests is an absolute must for any Jewish wedding. While it’s totally fine to leave them blank, it can also be a lovely ‘kipp-sake’ (sorry) for your guests to provide a fun slogan, perhaps even with your wedding date and names embroidered or printed into the kippah.

In other words, you can ‘cupple’ them (aaargh!) with something personal and make them your wedding favors.

Do have a look at our cool kippot Pinterest board with some of our favorite kippah designs, and make sure you check out our fabulous Recommended Vendor, Hebrewear (wedding kippah specialists) who can create any kippah idea you have in mind! In the meantime, here are our 12 fun phrases for the inside of your kippot.

1. Your names and wedding date

It’s simple, it’s effective, and people will always remember your big day when they wear their kippah.

2. Your favourite line from your vows or ketubah

If you have a particularly poignant line or phrase from your wedding vows or ketubah, why not have it in your kippot?

3. Please G-d by you

Save your elderly relatives a bit of work, and let your kippot do the talking.

4. Fun facts about the couple

To make it even more fun for your guests, perhaps include a few little facts about the two of you. You could have a few different designs printed, making your kippot collectors items!

5. He’s a kippah / she’s a kippah

OK, it doesn’t quite scan both ways, but as far as cute puns go, we’re pretty proud of it.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

10 Couples Who Totally Made Their Jewish Wedding Their Own

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Creative Jewish Wedding
It is very easy to make the mistake of assuming that Jewish weddings are quite predictable and similar to one another. But Smashing The Glass‘s entire raison d’àªtre is to demonstrate how this is absolutely not the case.

Jewish traditions are templates, ready to have a couple’s unique and original personalities stamped onto them. Every Jewish or Jew-ish wedding we feature is a total one off — a unique celebration encompassing all of our couples’ quirks, tastes and influences.

To prove it, we’ve put together a list of ten incredible past STG couples (in no particular order) to illustrate exactly how they did things their way. The list we’ve chosen incorporates vastly different budgets, themes, cultures, sexual orientations and styles – and we wouldn’t have it any other way. 

Prepare thyselves for a full on Pinning session, because there’s simply too much pretty (and creative ideas galore) to handle.

1. Danny and Aaron’s Jewish wedding, complete with an entrance on the back of a Jew-nicorn


Image: Maya Myers

When it came to doing things their way, Danny and Aaron went EPIC. They 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, if Joss Stone herself wasn’t enough, they also had a a 16-person-strong gospel choir.

> Read more about Danny and Aaron’s Jewish wedding here

2. Charlotte and Ellie’s industrial, Victoriana Jew-ish wedding


Image: Dale Weeks

Charlotte and Ellie’s same-sex Jew-ish big day had a dramatic and industrial meets romantic, dark florals theme, and took place at the iconic St Pancras Renaissance Hotel in London. Special touches included home-designed invitations, rust-coloured chairs, Victoriana table decorations and whole flower stems strewn down the aisle. ‘Sunrise, Sunset’ from Fiddler on the Roof signalled the start of their Jewish ceremony.

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