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A Beachy Jewish Wedding Weekend at Nautical Club, Limassol, Cyprus

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Israeli couple Hila and Tamir wanted the magic of their Jewish wedding to last more than a few hours – and so they decided to make a magical destination weekend of it! With the help of their fantastic planner, Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Moran Goldstein, the couple settled on Limassol, Cyprus, a breathtakingly beautiful spot just a 30-minute flight from Tel Aviv.

The celebration was spread out over four days, with different activities each day – including fun stuff like a boat trip to a blue lagoon (complete with DJ!) and a pool party – with the centerpiece being Hila and Tamir’s gorgeous oceanfront outdoor ceremony. We love that the pair had two of their best friends officiate, and instead of the traditional Seven Blessings, they had friends and relatives come up and give brief original speeches.

We’re in love with photographer Chen Belachnes’s vibrant images, and we bet you will be too.

Now over to Hila…

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How we Met

Hila, the bride: We met at a 24h cross-country relay race. Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A Calla Blanche Bride for a Beachy Jewish Micro Wedding at Ocean Place Resort & Spa, Long Branch, New Jersey, USA

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Sarah and Josh, Oceanplace Resort, New Jersey

There’s nothing like a beach wedding – and the Jewish wedding of Sarah, who works in advertising sales, and Josh, a VP at an investment bank, at Ocean Place Resort & Spa is pure perfection.

So much so that you’d never guess it was their plan B, after they had to rethink their original plans for a 200+ person wedding when COVID hit – scroll through the incredible images captured by Andrew Graham Todes and we bet you’ll agree. Despite a few challenges – for instance, it was so windy during the ceremony that the bride’s veil blew off! –  Sarah and Josh pulled off the ultimate pandemic-safe minimony, featuring custom welcome bags packed with monogrammed hand sanitizer, masks, and fans with ceremony details and safety tips, as well as plentiful signs instructing people about COVID precautions.

We’re in love with the couple’s ketubah from Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Ketubah.com, whose trademark exemplary customer service was on display when they provided Sarah and Josh with a free reprint after their initial COVID wedding location fell through at the last minute.

If you’re looking for direction on how you can plan a micro wedding just as beautiful as Sarah and Josh’s, or trying to decide whether to go forward with an intimate affair vs. postponing, or struggling with absolutely any kind of COVID-related planning drama, sign up for our Bye Bye Coronacoaster, Hello Action Plan workshop on February 21 – full details here. 

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How we met

Sarah, the bride and Josh, the groom: On a brisk winter night in early February 2017, Josh was getting ready to start his next chapter in NYC after moving back home from Boston. Josh’s friends invited him to the NJ Devils game and his first night out in Hoboken. After bouncing around, they ended up at 10th & Willow Bar. On the same evening, Sarah was having a girls night which included dancing in a bar when no one else seemed to be. Sarah caught Josh’s eye and after building up some courage, Josh decided to approach her once she finally sat down. Much to his surprise, Sarah immediately rejected him (after all, it was girls night).

Sarah claimed that Josh was too young for her, convinced that he was in college. Feeling confused, Josh went back to the bar to buy some drinks for his group. However, most of his buddies were going separate ways so he was left with 6 Bud Lights to himself. Feeling a second wind of confidence, Josh decided to try and approach Sarah again, hoping to break down her defenses with an offering of Bud Light and an ID inspection. After realizing Josh was actually the same age, Sarah became more interested and even impressed by his persistence.

They talked over the beers until the lights came on. To end the night, Josh ordered 8 (yes, 8) Jimmy John’s sandwiches for the two of them, 6 of which were donated to Sarah’s fridge. Sarah was undoubtedly intrigued by Josh. They exchanged numbers, had their first date 1 week later and the rest is history.

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An Allison Webb Bride for a Beachy Destination Jewish Wedding at Ana y José Hotel in Tulum, Mexico

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There’s nothing like a Jewish wedding on the beach, and Julia and Nick’s minimalist celebration in swoonworthy Tulum, Mexico, ticks all our boxes and then some.

First off, we love that these two knew they’d stumbled onto something special with their venue – I mean, can you believe that beach?! – and decided to keep a low profile with their décor so as to let the surroundings speak for themselves. They stuck with mostly natural materials and native flowers, greenery, and pampas grass (with the exception of some prominently placed protea flowers in a nod to the couple’s shared South African roots).

And we’re totally obsessed with Julia and Nick’s simple but stunning chuppah, consisting of nothing more than natural driftwood-esque branches and the couple’s grandfathers’ talitot. Against the backdrop of the ocean, does it ever make an impact! Don’t miss the incredible photos from Someplace Wild Photography.

We’ll let the bride, who looked so beautiful in her lace gown from Allison Webb, fill you in on the rest…


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How We Met

Julie, the bride: Nick and I have known each other forever, and I know a lot of people say that, but really, we have! Both coming from South African Jewish families, our lives have been intertwined for as long as I can remember, so it only seemed natural then when I got to high school (two years after Nick) that he was a kind, familiar face in a see of thousands of new ones, as I was coming from a small private school to a large public high school. Our story begins in high school, dating off and on as teenagers and A LOT of sneaking out of my parents house! When it was time for college, we parted ways, Nick two years older and off to New York City for his own adventure.

Fast forward a bit, and we are both at NYU, both living in New York City. It was an incredible and very intense way to reconnect. Somehow, even when we were “broken up” we kept finding our way back to each other. Once we both had matured a bit, we finally decided it was time to really be together. After a few years in New York, we decided to make our way back to our home base, Atlanta, where both our families and extended family lives.  

Although a rollercoaster, we really have watched each other grow up and taken time to do that separately. To be with someone who has witnessed a lot of your life is pretty crazy and we are constantly grateful to continue to have the front row seat to each other’s life. 

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A Lee Petra Grebenau Bride for an Intimate Destination Jewish Beach Wedding Weekend at Aruba Marriot Resort and Stellaris Casino, Aruba

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There’s nothing like a destination wedding weekend – just you and your beloved and your very nearest and dearest friends and family, away from it all, coming together and getting to know each other and celebrating your love. That’s exactly what Jessica, a speech language pathologist, and Max, a manager for a pipe supply company (#masefourthwithbejess), did, jetting off to the Aruba Marriot and Stellaris Casino with an intimate crowd of 40 to party all weekend long.

These two threw a laid-back, informal centered around a huge dance party – and followed up with another party the next day on a private pirate boat! The couple flew in their photographer, Nela from Christian Oth Studio, and she was, in the bride’s words, a total Rockstar, snapping beautiful, artful photos from start ot finish.

And of course we’re obsessed with the bride’s incredible custom gown from Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Lee Petra Grebenau. Lee is one of our very favorite Israeli designers, and Jessica was lucky enough to be able to work with her in person in NYC to create the dress of her dreams – something feminine yet edgy, appropriate for the beach yet not a beach dress – and above all, something with a big bow. Lee came through and then some – we could not be any more in love with the design she came up with for this beautiful bride.

And speaking of the beautiful bride, we’ll leave it to her to fill you in on the rest…

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How we met

Jessica, the bride: We met at a bar in the Hamptons. My sister was dating Max’s best friend. After months of messaging my sister to set us up, I agreed to go on a date with him. We have been together ever since.

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A Jadore Bride for a Sundrenched Destination Jewish Wedding in Santorini, Greece

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In the five fabulous years since Smashing The Glass’s inception, having lovingly blogged hundreds of incredible real Jewish weddings, we have always ALWAYS wanted to blog a Jewish wedding from Santorini (surely one of the most magical places on earth) and today the day has finally come. and seriously guys… this wedding is EVERYTHING.

It’s a destination Jewish wedding that has us absolutely picking our jaws off the floor. Australian couple Katie, who works in PR, and Aaron, a commercial airline pilot for Virgin Australia, wanted a spectacular backdrop for their once-in-a-lifetime day, and so they chose to marry on the sun-drenched Greek island of Santorini. And did it ever deliver! HannaMonika Wedding Photography’s images from the day are just beyond.

Every photo is its own little work of art — and a whole bunch of them could’ve easily been plucked from the pages of a super-glam travel magazine. Take a scroll through, and we guarantee you’ll be fighting the urge to book yourself a ticket on the next flight to Greece. And don’t even get us started on Orriss Films‘ Hollywood-perfect trailer – seriously, Katie and Aaron look like absolute movie stars, and every scene is shot so exquisitely.

We just can’t get enough of photographers Hanna and Slavomir’s style: bright and crisp, romantic and modern. They could not have done a better job of capturing the amazing light and colors of Santorini. The blue skies, the whitewashed houses, the lush greenery of the chuppah… yep, we’re smitten with this one.

Oh, and did we mention that beautiful Katie — who looked so effortlessly summer chic in her Jadore dress — was an avid Smashing The Glass reader in the lead up to her wedding? She reports that she found the blog especially useful for Jewish music inspo for the horas and the procession. So glad we could help, Katie! Now over to the bride…

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How we met

Katie, the bride: We met at a pub in Sydney. Aaron saw me with a girlfriend sitting at a table and wanted to introduce himself without being sleazy, so he and a friend asked if we minded if they shared a table with us while they ate their dinner.
We said fine, not realizing he had actually already had dinner but ordered a second meal so that he could sit at the table. Slowly they worked their way into our conversations, and soon after he was telling me about his friend that he thought I might like. He handed me a card for his friend if I was interested and that’s when I saw “Aaron” on the card and realised he was telling me about himself, haha.
Needless to say I ended up texting him later in the night after a couple of glasses of wine. It took us about a month to finally catch up after that initial meeting because I was being difficult (sorry hubby!), but the rest is history. I never would have thought that night I was going to meet my future husband.

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