Jewish Catholic Wedding Archives - Smashing the Glass

A Pronovias Bride for an Interfaith Jewish-Catholic Wedding at Offley Place, Hitchin, UK

10/06/2024 by Karen Cinnamon

When London couple Rachel, who works as a programme manager in the social impact sector, and Jason, a product manager in the technology sector, got engaged, they knew their top wedding planning priority would be to blend their two backgrounds into an authentic and meaningful interfaith wedding.

Rachel is Jewish, while Jason is Catholic, with Portuguese roots – and it was important to both that their religion and traditions were represented in the day. The pair worked with their officiant to craft a bespoke ceremony combining aspects of traditional Jewish and Catholic ceremonies, and they wrote their own ketubah text (which they then translated into both Hebrew and Portuguese!). Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor The Delicate Brush turned it into a gorgeous piece of art, adorned with the most stunning florals and metallics.

Music was another way Rachel and Jason showcased their backgrounds, and their choice of Matzoh Boys as their band could not have been more perfect. In addition to their Jewish music prowess and fab Israeli singers (one of whom is Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Jonny Mosesson), the Matzoh Boys also have Latin and Gospel singers – so in addition to a stellar Israeli dancing set, Rachel and Jason also got Portuguese tunes and a hymn for their ceremony.

The pair chose Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Liam Smith as their photographer, and we could not be any more in love with his ultra-moving documentary images. They loved Liam’s natural style – and can’t rave enough about what a wonderful and calming presence he was on the big day!

We can’t turn you over to Rachel without mentioning how timelessly elegant she looked in her classic Pronovias dress, which she found at Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Mirror Mirror in Islington, and where she adored working with the wonderfully attentive team.

Now over to Rachel!

How We Met

Rachel, the bride: We were set up on a blind date by Rachel’s cousin, who worked in the same company as Jason. Given that Rachel is Jewish and Jason is Catholic (both brought up in practicing households), we didn’t envisage that a blind date would turn into a serious relationship, let alone a marriage. However, we quickly realised that we wanted to be with one another, which meant a lot of pretty serious conversations about how we could blend our different backgrounds together early on. Now, seven years later, we’re married!Continue Reading

A Mikaella Bride for a Very Southern Interfaith Jewish Wedding at Southern Oaks, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

10/07/2023 by Karen Cinnamon

When Louisiana State University grads Rachael, a Social Media Manager for the Office of the Lieutenant Governor, and Cody, a Manager of a Sunbelt Rentals Power and HVAC Store, were ready to make things official, they knew they wanted their wedding to include some nods to the state where they met and fell in love.

From their choice of the oh-so-charming Southern Oaks in New Orleans as their wedding venue, a jazz band, and delectable Southern cuisine, this celebration was full of atmosphere – plus a few ultra-personal touches like a grooms cake made from mini bags of Spicy Doritos, complete with a specially designed bag featuring Cody’s name!

When it came to the Jew-ish ceremony, Rachael, who’s Jewish, and Cody, who’s Catholic, made sure they came up with something that worked for both of them. And it was actually Cody who found the couple’s beautiful ketubah by Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Nava Shoham. The couple picked her Tree of Life Infinity Ketubah, customized with text that fit their feelings for each other and the relationship. Don’t miss it in the wonderful images from Brenner Photography & Films!

Now over to Rachael, who looked ever so elegant in Mikaella…

How We Met

Rachael and Cody met at LSU in early 2015 through mutual friends. Their friendship grew and eventually, they both invited each other to their sorority and fraternity events. What grew out of this friendship was a connection that laid the groundwork for a beautiful relationship soon to form.

Much of the time that Cody and Rachael dated, was spent long-distance. Cody was based in Houston, Mobile, and Puerto Rico due to his job. But their commitment was strong for four years of dating, until on July 12, 2020, when Cody proposed.

For the proposal, they drove up to Poplarville, Mississippi, where Rachael’s family farm is located. Rachael was told, that they were going to be taking family pictures on the farm. This is where she had her suspicions that it might be the BIG moment. So she secretly went out and bought a new dress for the special day. Cody had requested to make sure Rachael’s nails would be done for the proposal since this is something she told him she wanted so her mom helped get Rachael to a nail salon.

The Maas and Mitchell families arrived to set up a surprise celebration while Cody whisked Rachael away on a side-by-side into the fields overlooking the farm for a little bite to eat. He had a plan to purposely leave a small speaker in the side-by-side to ask Rachael to go back and get it. When she would turn around he would be on one knee. Instead, Rachael being the helpful person that she is, grabbed the speaker out of the side-by-side when they got out of the car and foiled his plan. They then set up a picnic blanket and fruit and talked for a while. At one point Cody turned to Rachael and asked the big question, “Will you marry me?” After Rachael said yes, they popped some champagne and celebrated!

They then headed back to celebrate with both of their families, who had helped set up a beautiful table of decorations and a huge lunch.Continue Reading

A Martina Liana Bride for an Autumnal Interfaith Jew-ish Wedding at West Hills Country Club in Middletown, New York, USA

11/03/2019 by Karen Cinnamon

Attention all interfaith couples! We know it’s not easy finding resources on how to craft a big day combining two different religions and backgrounds, and we’re always on the lookout for wise words from couples who’ve been there.

Today, we totally hit the jackpot. Crystal and Evan had a joint Jewish-Catholic ceremony, with a priest and a rabbi, and we love how involved they were in creating a personal ceremony that embraced both of their backgrounds.

This also happens to be a totally gorgeous wedding — Crystal and Evan took full advantage of their late September wedding date with seasonal blooms and a color scheme heavy on moody autumnal hues. Jessie Casey’s photos and Fantasy Flash’s video captured all the gorgeous details.

We’re crazy about their wild floral ketubah, which took full advantage of the venue’s permanent gazebo to craft a totally unique look. And how cool is the outdoor ballroom tent they held their reception in?!

Now over to the bride, who was pure perfection in Martina Liana…

Outdoor Ballroom

Crystal, the bride: Evan and I got married at West Hills Country Club in Middletown, NY. We chose it because we absolutely fell in love with the atmosphere, the service and most importantly the beautiful outdoor ballroom tent.

A Super Luxe Laduree-Fuelled Interfaith Jew-ish Wedding at the Shangri-La, Paris, France

20/04/2018 by Karen Cinnamon

There’s SO MUCH to love about today’s stunner of a Jew-ish wedding, but I’m particularly obsessed with how they incorporated one of my all-time favorite patisseries into their day…

New York-based Melissa, who works in luxury marketing, and William, in finance, opted to wed in Paris, where William lived for many years. The city played an important part in the development of their relationship — as did one of its most delicious exports, Laduree.

Known for the tastiest macarons around (seriously, once you try one of theirs you won’t want to bother with any others), as well as exemplary presentations of classic French pastry, Laduree has long been a favorite Parisian haunt of the couple’s. So much so that when William proposed — in the City of Love, naturally — he did so over a bag of Laduree goodies (seriously, we love this guy!).

In a nod to their engagement, the pair opted to forgo cake in favor of something quintessentially French: a croquembouche. But not just any croquembouche. A rose lychee flavored croquembouche from Laduree. I’m positively drooling over here just thinking about it!

Instead of a traditional guest book, Melissa and William asked their guests to sign a Laduree macaron book. Each page featured a different flavor, and guests could choose one to sign. Oh, and the favors? Laduree macarons, in a selection of the bride and groom’s favorite flavors.

Even their venue, the mega-opulent Grand Salon at the Shangri-La Hotel, kind of resembles one of Laduree’s beautiful salons (although unlike my local Laduree, the Shangri-La comes complete with a straight-on view of the Eiffel Tower). The place is just dripping with old-school Parisian glamour.

Claire Morris Photography and videographer Zen Film Works captured the day beautifully — you’ve got to see the portraits of the couple at iconic spots all around Paris.

It was important to Melissa, who is Jewish, and William, raised Catholic, to find a ketubah vendor who offered texts suitable for interfaith couples, and they ended up with a beautiful papercut from Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Ketubah.com.

Now I’ll turn you over to Melissa could not have looked more elegant in her showstopper of a gown, custom designed for her by Sharon Wilkes (who we adore, and just happens to her best friend’s mother).

How we met

Melissa, the bride: We originally met in the summer of 2006, while we were both participating in a summer pre-college program at Georgetown University following our junior year of high school. As I was from New York and William was from Paris, seeing each other after the program was quite unlikely, but we were smitten with each other.

We kept in touch on and off for the next 5 years, and resumed speaking after a long hiatus around February 2011 when William, who was working in finance but had retained his teenage passion for writing, had written a short story and asked me for my thoughts.

In May of 2011, I had just graduated early from university and was traveling through Europe, while William was on a summer break from his master’s program in Paris. William asked me to meet him for a spontaneous trip in southern Spain, and I said no at first, nervous about seeing him after all those years.

But in my heart I felt that I should go, and a few weeks later I flew to meet him in Andalusia, where we spent five days traveling together and began to fall in love. After the trip, we decided to give things a real shot and began dating long distance. This lasted for four years, with me in New York and William in Paris and London, before William could finally move to New York in June 2015.

A Blush and Rose Gold Color Scheme for a Romantic Jew-ish Wedding at The Ballroom at Ellis Preserve, Philadelphia, USA

19/01/2018 by Karen

Today’s real wedding is a very special one – and not just because it’s an absolute beauty (which it TOTALLY is) but because dear Gillian is one of our much-loved real blogging brides of 2017! It’s such an honor and a privilege to finally be able to share her and Pete’s Jew-ish wedding day.

We love a Jew-ish wedding where both cultures and backgrounds are represented, and Gillian and Pete’s mixed-faith ceremony saw their priest and rabbi working together to create something that truly represented them – too beautiful!

Beautiful bride Gillian looked a million bucks in her Tara Keely gown, which she paired with meaningful and custom-made accessories, with a little help from her dad, who is a tailor, and also made Pete’s midnight suit.

A color scheme of blush shades and rose gold is, of course, the ideal excuse to rock that mismatched bridesmaids look, and the overall effect was absolutely stunning.

The couple had so many unique and borrow-able ideas, such as cute-as-a-button custom acrylic signs and the most adorable postcard guest book idea. Guests wrote their good wishes for the couple on postcards, which are still being posted on to them by family to this day. What an excellent way to make your big day last!

The story of the day was captured by the brilliant Blaise Szallasi, whose spread of images you can see below, and the totally stunning cinematic videography is by Wise Films.

We’ll leave you in Gillian’s capable hands for her brilliant writeup. We’ve loved having Gillian’s upbeat voice on the blog, so please give her a standing ovation. Take it away, Gillian!