Israeli Weddings Archives - Smashing the Glass

An Asaf Dadush Bride for an Ultra-Personal Summer Jewish Wedding at Luca, Israel

20/11/2020 by Karen Cinnamon Leave a Comment

Can’t you just feel the love seeping out of Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Jossef Si’s photos of bride Stav, an M.Sc student in biomedical engineering, and groom Ran, a CPA?

This beautiful Israeli Jewish wedding was SO full of emotion, and we are here for it! We love that Stav and Ran read letters they’d written to each other aloud during their ceremony – and how sweet is it that the couple’s families and friends wrote new lyrics to a favorite song all about the pair’s relationship, along with a cute video?! Possibly even more adorable, Stav’s father wrote new lyrics to‘What a Wonderful World,’a song they’d often danced to together when Stav was little, and which turned into the soundtrack to their father-daughter dance – awwwww!

Back to those incredible photos by mega-talentedSmashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Jossef Si – it’s worth saying again that we just can’t get over how dreamy these pics are. And we’re not at all surprised to hear that on the day, Jossef was a calming presence who made the camera-shy couple feel totally comfortable.

Now over to Stav, who looked ravishing in her Asaf Dadush gown…

How we Met

Stav, the bride: We have been dating for the past 5 years, but we know each other from before. It all started ten years ago, in 2010. Ran had just resigned the army and I was a senior in high-school, we met at the beach in Eilat city, where we both went on vacation with friends. Ran played the guitar and sang funny songs with his friends, and we all bonded. Since then, I had my eye on him, and tried to start a little conversation afterwards on Facebook but it didn’t go well.

A year after I decided to do the SAT test before joining the army, and Ran took the same course at the very same time. We met again, started learning together, had a very good time (very platonic I must say) and when I joined the army the connection faded. 5 year later when I came back from my after-army trip around the world and Ran was a CPA student, he sent me a message, we went out and from that point on it’s all history.Continue Reading

A Galia Lahav Bride for an Ultra-Personal Israeli-American Jewish Wedding at Alma, Even Yehuda, Israel

05/10/2020 by Karen Cinnamon

There’s nothing quite like an Israeli wedding. Today’s American-Israeli couple used that to their advantage as they planned their big day with the overarching aim of “showing the Americans a real Israeli wedding” – and did they ever!

American Rachael, an elementary school teacher who made Aliyah from Atlanta, and Israeli Yuval, who owns his own marketing company and sells products on Amazon, had friends and family attending from all over the world – many of whom had never attended an Israeli wedding or even visited the country before. So the bride had the great idea to prepare a guide to things that guests from abroad might find different from the weddings they’re used to – like how you will see the bride and groom before the ceremony and how once the groom smashes the glass, you’re supposed to run up to the chuppah to congratulate the couple. Such a smart thing to do!

We love that the two were married by Rachael’s family rabbi from Atlanta, who partnered with a local Orthodox rabbi to perform the ceremony in alignment with Israel’s legal requirements. And how special is it that the gold wedding band they used in the ceremony originally belonged to the bride’s great-grandmother?!

Speaking of family heirlooms – Rachael’s grandparents wanted to gift them with something really special that would be used for years, maybe even generations, to come. After going through lots of ideas, Rachael and Yuval decided a ketubah would be just the thing. But not just any ketubah – these two opted for a gorgeous handpainted nature-inspired piece by Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor The Delicate Brush that they now hang proudly in their home. Don’t miss it in Ariel Aricha Photography’s gorgeous pics.

Now over to the bride, who looked radiant in Galia Lahav…

How we met

Rachael, the bride: Yuval and I swiped right on Tinder and met in October 2017, 2 months after I made Aliyah from Atlanta, Georgia. We chatted for a few hours before he asked me to meet him at Tamara in Tel Aviv for a smoothie. I accepted and that was our first date – smoothies and a walk on the tayelet. We got engaged a little after a year of dating and then married 9 months later.

A Sveta Swan Bride for a Summer Jewish Wedding Full of Flowers, Smoothies, and Balloons at Kedma Garden, Neve Ilan, Israel

14/09/2020 by Karen Cinnamon

We’re obsessed with the epic summer vibes of the Jewish wedding of Shira and Ofek, both students. Opting to make the most of the season, these two chose a stunning outdoor venue, opted for fun touches like a flower booth and a smoothie bar!), and a simple white chuppah studded with color-coordinated blooms. Photographer Lior Moshe did SUCH an incredible job capturing all the love and joy between Shira and Ofek on their big day.

We’re also incredibly touched by all the ways the couple included Ofek’s late brother, who tragically passed away from cancer, into their day. First, at the chuppah they gave each guest a white balloon in his memory, which the guests all released into the sky at once. The pair also used a kiddush cup inscribed with Ofek’s brother’s name, which Ofek’s mother had made so that he could be a part of all the family simchas. And Shira and Ofek also made a donation to a cancer charity in honor of each of their guests – all such beautiful ways to remember a loved one.

Now over to the bride, who looked so boho chic in her summery gown from Sveta Swan Bridal…

How we met

Shira, the bride: We met at school at the age of 16, and have been together ever since.

A Destination Jewish Wedding Full of Personal Touches at Achuza, Beit Hanan, Israel

28/08/2020 by Karen Cinnamon

Planning a Jewish wedding from thousands of miles away is no small feat. Luckily, London-based couple Jodie, who works as a decorative homeware buyer, and Matt, a football agent realized that straight off the bat when they started planning their big day in Israel, and they made sure their first planning decision was choosing a great planner to help smooth the way.

Even luckier for Jodie and Matt, they found one of the best of the best: Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Victoria Rosen Events. Vicki is a popular choice among STG couples opting to wed in Israel, and this couple’s rave review of her planning prowess makes it clear why: in addition to helping them source some truly outstanding vendors (not to mention their gorgeous venue),

Vicki seamlessly ran the whole day’s events so carefully and left us and our parents feeling totally calm, happy and taken care of. She couldn’t do enough to help us. Always available, nothing was too much. Vicki was incredibly supportive and always positive, friendly and super-efficient.

We’re also crazy about all the fun, memorable touches the couple added to their day. For starters, they had a flower stand (inspired by a something they saw right here on Smashing the Glass!) in the reception area, where guests could have bespoke floral hair accessories and button holes made on the spot! And if that weren’t enough, they also hired a glitter face painter to make sure their guests had a night that was literally sparkling. Oh, and pre-wedding, Jodie and Matt also blew their own smash glass and kiddush cup to use under the chuppah!

You can probably already guess that this was one fun wedding – and if you have any doubt, a quick scroll through Idan Hasson’s radiant, joyous photos should set you straight.

Now over to Jodie…

Nature and Soul

Jodie, the bride: We got married at Achuza. Matt didn’t want to get married in a hotel hall and I vetoed beach venues because of what humidity does to my hair! : ) We were both looking for a soulful, outdoor venue surrounded by nature and somewhere that we could create a fun and intimate party atmosphere for all of our friends and family. We fell in love with Achuza as soon as we walked up the path towards the venue. It’s surrounded by flora and the chuppah is stunning and all natural.

An Archaeology Student’s Zionist Jewish Wedding at The View of the Jordan, Mitzpeh Yericho, Israel

10/08/2020 by Karen Cinnamon

We always love hearing how couples go about choosing their Jewish wedding venues – and Eliora and Nathan’s story is just so much fun! The bride, who’s finishing up a BA in archaeology and geography at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and the groom, currently working as a security guard while he studies to be a tour guide, are passionate about ancient history – so much so that they knew incorporating it into their big day was a must!

Living in Israel, Eliora and Nathan are lucky enough to be close to Yericho, one of the world’s oldest cities – perhaps THE oldest, dating back over 10,000 years. So they opted to wed at The View of the Jordan in Mitzpeh Yericho. And the setting was far from the only personal touch the couple incorporated into their day: in honor of their shared commitment to Zionism, the pair opted for a blue and white color scheme, and even draped an Israeli flag under their chuppah so they could literally marry underneath it. And how sweet is it that Nathan played guitar himself to accompany Eliora’s walk down the aisle?! We can’t get over all the joy and emotion spilling out of each and every one of Herschel Gutman Photography’s incedible images.

These two also happened to get married in early March 2020, just as Israel was tightening up its COVID-19 restrictions – literally, new regulations were issued DURING the celebration. Lucky for Eliora and Nathan, that means they just squeaked by without having to make major modifications to their big day, though they did place hand sanitizer, gloves and wipes on every table as a precaution.

We’ll let the bride fill you in on the rest…

Ancient History

Eliora, the bride: The hall we got married in is called The View of the Jordan in Mitzpeh Yericho. We chose it due to the location, close to Jerusalem where most of our family and friends would be arriving from. In addition I study archaeology and I wanted a hall near an ancient city, and there is no older city than Yericho, dating back about 10,000 years – in most academic circles it is considered the oldest city in the world.Continue Reading