Jewish Budget Weddings Archives - Smashing the Glass

A Nouvelle Amsale Bride for an Autumnal Outdoor DIY Jewish Wedding on a Budget at Camp Holiday Trails in Charlottesville, Virginia, USA

23/12/2020 by Karen Cinnamon

We could not be any more overjoyed to be featuring the gorgeous DIY Jewish wedding of our beloved Brides Club member and blogging bride Erin as our very last wedding of 2020!

Erin, a medical education coordinator at the University of Virginia, and Josh, a musician and fourth-grade teacher at a forest school, had originally planned to wed at their synagogue, followed by a reception at a local restaurant. But like so many 2020 couples, they had to retool their day when COVID hit. They were intent on marrying on their original date, but knew they needed a mostly outdoor venue that allowed for social distancing.

Luckily, Erin and Josh live in beautiful Charlottesville, Virginia, and they were able to find a spot that perfectly fit the bill in Camp Holiday Trails, which during the summer functions as a camp for children with medical needs – so not only did they end up with incredible natural scenery requiring very little in the way of added decor (abundant fall foliage AND the Blue Ridge mountains as a backdrop? Yes please!), they were able to support a good cause too.

Erin and Josh were on a tight budget – but luckily they also happen to be super craftsy, and they ended up creating so many incredible DIY touches that really made their day pop. The highlight has got to be the ketubah they created together, featuring a gorgeous composite photo of the couple sitting by a local pond looking up at the Milky Way (with photos by the groom) – perfectly in keeping with their loose theme of “a starry fall night in the mountains.” We also love the cool copper pipe chuppah these two built – which they plan to repurpose in the future as parts for their sukkah! Don’t miss it – and all the other handcrafted touches – in the incredible photos from Steve of Photography Champloo.

The couple also had some help from their wonderful friends and family – Erin’s sister, Kaley Agee, happens to be a professional photographer, and she pitched in with some getting-ready shots on the big day in addition to manning the videography (which Erin and Josh will be editing themselves). And when Erin determined a florist was out of budget, her amazing friend and fellow Brides Club member Karisa, sent over some unused Sola Wood Flowers left over from her own wedding, which Erin dyed and hand-painted herself.

There’s so much more to say about this fantastic wedding, but we’ll let Erin tell you the rest…

How we Met

Erin, the bride: Josh and I met how any good millennials meet – on a dating app! Josh and I had the unusual courtship of two months of talking before we ever met in person (it was the Thanksgiving holiday, then I went down to Florida to see my family over the winter holidays, and then by the time I got back, Josh was on a Birthright trip to Israel!)

We were finally able to meet in January of 2018, and we both fell hard pretty quickly after our first date at a local coffee shop (where we both unknowingly ordered the same drink!)Continue Reading

A Magical Laid-Back Outdoor Jewish Wedding at Ein Chemed, Jerusalem, Israel

12/10/2020 by Karen Cinnamon

HOW magical is the Israeli Jewish wedding of Andrea, a medical massage therapist, and Yehoshua, who works in sales?! Their gorgeous Jerusalem Hills venue, Ein Hemed, looks like an absolute fairy tale wonderland – all trees and twinkly lights – the perfect choice for two nature lovers!

Picking a venue that was totally stunning all on its own also helped the couple stay on budget – not much was needed to make Ein Hemed shine. With just a simple chuppah, lanterns and flower petals lining the aisle, and pinecones and herbs on the tables instead of flowers, Andrea and Yehoshua created the ultimate rustic vibes without breaking the bank.

Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Herschel Gutman Photography (whose team also handled videography) captured not only the marvelous aesthetics of the day, but – in his trademark style – the couple’s story too.

We also love how the pair – both of whom made Aliyah on their own – took the wedding as an opportunity for their friends and family to get to see Israel and the lives they’ve built in the country. There’s so much more to say, but we’ll let Andrea take it from here…

How We Met

Andrea, the bride: We like to say that we met at the party we didn’t want to be at. It was a very cold and stormy February night. It was a night that no one would have wanted to leave their homes, yet thankfully we both did. A mutual friend was having a party to celebrate his birthday. I debated whether to go or not thinking that perhaps many friends would not show to the party because of the horrible weather.

In the meantime, Yehoshua was already out due to the fact that he was going to the kotel for 40 days straight in the merit that his bashert would be revealed. That night he even struggled to find a minyan (10 men) because of the torrential downpour. Nonetheless we both ended up at that party, however, he showed up shortly before I was planning on leaving. We spoke very briefly and then said our goodbyes- no numbers exchanged.

Almost one month later we both attended a wedding that I, Andrea, did not plan on attending. A friend’s husband was unavailable and she convinced me to come take his place. Thankfully I agreed because I turned around during the ceremony, and there I saw the brightest smile 🙂 Yehoshua and I got a ride home together, this time, exchanging numbers. 6 months later we were engaged and another two and a half months we were married! God was our clear matchmaker and we are forever grateful!

A Spiritual, Magical Florida Backyard Jewish Wedding Reimagined Due to COVID-19

24/04/2020 by Karen Cinnamon

Today’s Jewish wedding is so unbelievably, jaw-droppingly, breathtakingly gorgeous, it’s hard to believe it wasn’t the couple’s Plan A all along. But believe it or not, bride Ganga, whose work combines counseling, astrology, ritual, and ecological design to support clients through change and loss, and Seth, a strength and conditioning coach who draws on a similarly interdisciplinary background, pulled together this intimate, impromptu wedding in the bride’s mother’s back garden after their original plans were waylaid by coronavirus.

These two had a bigger wedding at an eco-retreat all lined up – and they still plan to hold that bash, with their original lineup of vendors, next year – but when the pandemic hit, they changed their plans to this pared-down backyard celebration with a focus on spirituality.

The couple, who are both training to be inter-spiritual ministers, poured themselves into developing a ceremony that felt deeply authentic to them both, from their circling around each other to the Adon Olam, to adapting the seven blessings to reflect poems and blessings from many traditions to reciting their own vows.

We also love the thought they put into selecting their gorgeous Gingko Spiral ketubah by Temma Gentles from Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor ketubah.com: the ginkgo has been around for over 300 million years, meaning it’s a true adaptor and survivor – just what we all need to be in these uncertain times.

And would you believe these exquisite photos were shot by a first-time wedding photographer? Ganga’s bridesmaid – the only one who was able to make it in the end – just happens to be mega-talented photographer Thais Aquino, who’s clearly a natural at weddings!

Now over to Ganga, the bride…

How we met

Ganga, the bride: We met through my best friend who had been one of Seth’s students, on New Year’s Eve 2016. The first thing I remember asking Seth was what his intention for 2017 was, to which he replied, “just to be love.” That immediately told me we were on the same page in our approach to life, and within a few weeks we were learning how to be love, together.

A Lis Simon Bride for a Homecoming-Themed Jewish Wedding at the University of Missouri, Colombia, Missouri, USA

27/03/2020 by Karen Cinnamon

In uncertain times, there’s nothing like a return to the familiar. Which is why the homecoming-themed Jewish wedding of Savannah, who works as the development director at a Jewish nonprofit, and Josh, who’s starting law school this fall, who opted to wed at the University of Missouri (also known as Mizzou), where they met as college freshmen.

These two truly followed STG’s motto of “your Jewish wedding, your way.” They worked together to craft an ultra-personal ceremony that paired the traditional structure with the couple’s egalitarian values. Since lots of the guests had never before attended a Jewish wedding, Savannah and Josh also put together a program explaining the ceremony – which doubled as a fan, perfect for keeping cool in the Missouri heat! They even FaceTimed the bride’s grandma in, since she couldn’t travel to attend in person – this is such a great way to include long-distance loved ones, and in light of COVID-19 its’s something we’ll probably start seeing a lot more of.

And how special is it that Josh’s dad built the couple’s chuppah, and his mom decorated it? They even made it so it can be taken apart and moved easily, and Savannah and Josh have since repurposed it as a sukkah! Don’t miss it in the beautiful photos from Chase Castor and Cam Wiley of Kindling.

We’re also in love with the couple’s cool contemporary ketubah from Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Ink with Intent. It’s a true piece of art, which now hands proudly outside Savannah and Josh’s bedroom. These two even wrote their own ketubah text, based on the egalitarian structure with some personal touches thrown in.

There’s so much more we could say about this joyous Jewish wedding, but we’ll let the bride – who looked beautiful in Lis Simon Bridal – tell you the rest…

How we met

Savannah, the bride: Josh and I met as 18-year-old college freshmen at the University of Missouri. We were set up accidentally by a mutual friend, Clayton, and I didn’t even think Josh liked me that much! I complained to Clayton that I was bored — he was out of town — and he told me to see what Josh was up to. So, that was the first time I talked to Josh one-on-one, and we then proceeded to get locked out of our dorms in the rain.

We spent all night talking outside our dorm and because it was 3 a.m., our friends weren’t answering their phones and the dorm assistant on call was asleep. We were truly locked out until the early risers woke up! The next day, Josh asked me out on our first date, where our friend (and my bridesmaid), Katie, picked out both of our first date outfits without telling either of us. So, thanks to Clayton and Katie, we’re now happily married!Continue Reading

A David’s Bride for a Rustic DIY Backyard Jewish Wedding on a Budget in Door County, Wisconsin, USA

13/12/2019 by Karen Cinnamon

We were sold on this DIY Jewish wedding on a budget from the moment we read in the brides writeup, “We wanted the wedding to be about the community coming together.” Because isn’t that really what it’s all about?

Super crafty couple Federica and Nathan did nearly everything either themselves or with the help of family and friends – from building their own birch chuppah (from fallen trees on the groom’s family’s property!) to creating their own playlists to setting up on the day. Nathan’s mother grew and picked the flowers, and designed Federica’s bridal bouquet. Even the photographer, Mandelette, just happened to be the groom’s cousin!

And Federica did her own hair and makeup, baked her own wedding cake, AND designed and illustrated the invitations, on the day stationery, and ketubah – talk about a triple threat!

It’s really touching to hear how this wedding brought the couple’s friends and family together – with the bridal party, the families, and the couple themselves all pitching in to help with setup the morning of the wedding. But we’ll let the bride, who looked stunning in her Davidʼs Bridal dress, tell you about that…

How we met

Federica, the bride: We met in 2013 attending Ulpan in Israel. The first time I saw him he had just gotten off his Aliyah flight and still had his suitcase with him. We went from the small Kibbutz where we met to living in Tel Aviv, from Tel Aviv to northern Italy and now Rome.