Smashing the Glass | Jewish Wedding Blog

Inspired Jewish Weddings

Home > Real Jewish Weddings > Jewish Destination Weddings > Page 13

A Mika Bridal Bride for a Joyful Jewish Wedding in Blue at Citrus, Even Yehuda, Israel

by

Keren and Raanan, Citrus Even Yehuda, Israel

Jewish weddings are all about the joy… and in today’s gorgeous feature, each and every image positively exudes emotion. Keren and Raanan, both currently studying Nutritional Science at Ariel University in Israel, kept their focus firmly on love and good vibes – and Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Herschel Gutman Photography captured it all so perfectly!

In Keren’s words, “After seeing Herschel’s work, we absolutely loved how he captures a couple, and how every detail in every picture is noticed. He has a very calming persona and is exactly who we wanted and needed around on this crazy day.” Doesn’t get much better than that!

There’s so much more to say about this wonderful wedding – like how Keren and Raanan kept the rain on their big day from getting to them, all the involvement from talented friends and family, and fun nods to the bride’s South African heritage – but we’ll turn you over to Keren for the rest…

Keren and Raanan, Citrus Even Yehuda, Israel Keren and Raanan, Citrus Even Yehuda, Israel
How We Met

Keren, the bride: We are both currently studying Nutritional Science at Ariel University. We started studying during Corona, so all our classes were on zoom. At the end of the first semester, a mutual friend who is also studying with us organised a small hangout of the English speakers in our degree and this is where we met. This hang out also happened to take place at my house. So whenever anybody asks where we met, the answer is “at my house.” Shortly after that we started hanging out and talking a lot more, until we started dating about 2 months later. 

Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A Mia Pava Bride for an Ultra-Personal Family-Focused Jewish Wedding at Tur Sinai, Jerusalem, Israel

by

Laura-Ray-Tur-Sinai-Jerusalem

We love it when a couple has their Jewish wedding, their way… and that’s exactly what today’s couple did! Laura, a photographer, and Ray, a public health consultant, made it their top priority to craft a wedding that was “so incredibly us,” and they put their own stamp on everything from the color scheme to the vibe, the music to the souvenirs.

Laura and Ray even designed the invitation themselves, along with matching programs and seating cards! And when it came to the ketubah, they opted for a gorgeous design by Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor The Delicate Brush.

Laura is a mother of six mostly grown kids, and it was important to her that they all had major roles in the wedding ceremony. Two of the kids were the emcees, Laura’s oldest daughter was her attendant, two kids sang Laura down the aisle, and her youngest daughter was her maid of honor – so special!

Given that Laura herself is a professional photographer, she naturally wanted only the best when it came to photographing her wedding – and so she opted for none other than Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Herschel Gutman! His images of the day are so full of emotion and love, we can’t stop scrolling through them.

Read on for more fabulous details of the day in the couple’s own words…

 

Laura-Ray-Tur-Sinai-JerusalemLaura-Ray-Tur-Sinai-JerusalemLaura-Ray-Tur-Sinai-Jerusalem
How We Met

Once upon a time there was Ray, a public health professional living in the US with no plans to move anywhere. And there was Laura, a divorcee, mom of 6, living in a settlement in Israel. Their mutual friend, Shoshanna, came up with the crazy idea that these two people should date each other. She told them. They were unimpressed… And did nothing about it at the time.

When Covid took Laura’s dad summer of 2020, just a few months after it took Ray’s dad, Ray reached out to Laura via Facebook messenger with a really kind message and even followed up a few weeks later to see how she was. Laura was impressed. With the ice broken they began speaking occasionally via Facebook messenger. Laura was charmed by Ray’s unique sense of humor and skill at SongPop. Ray was astounded by Laura’s seemingly endless cocktail concoctions and her ability to stay up later than God…

Their conversations grew more frequent and deeper and by October they were messaging daily, and starting to add phone calls and FaceTime as well. And yet, they had never met in real life. Because of covid, they could not even entertain the idea of travel for months. Finally, in April 2021, Laura flew to the US and they met for the first time at the airport when Ray came to pick her up. That first date lasted 11 hours and started two weeks of what they dubbed ‘concentrated craziness’.

Since then Ray and Laura have been back and forth to Israel and the US numerous times, documenting it all with a steady stream of photos. They even managed to meet in ‘neutral territory’ with a trip to Switzerland. Finally, on July 8, 2022, on a bluff overlooking the Sea of Galilee, and over a glass of cabernet, Ray proposed to Laura and the rest is history 🙂 (Meanwhile, there’s no doubt that their dads have met up in heaven and are kvelling together over this beautiful turn of events…)Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A Pronovias Bride for an Intimate Destination Jewish Wedding at Villa Cora, Florence, Italy

by

Ilyssa-and-Nick-Villa-Cora-Florence-Italy

Buckle your seatbelts, we’re taking off for beautiful Florence, Italy, where Atlanta couple Ilyssa, a strategy pricing analyst for a hospitality company, and Nick, who works as a sales engineer for a HVAC distributor, held the intimate destination Jewish wedding of their dreams!

Taking their cues from their majestic venue, Villa Cora, Ilyssa and Nick kept things romantic and elegant with plenty of flowers, greenery, candles, and romantic lighting. And their outdoor chuppah was truly the stuff of fairy tales – sitting amidst a stunning backdrop of the autumnal Florentine countryside, covered in greenery and flowers, and set at the end of an aisle strewn with rose petals and lined with candles. Don’t miss it in the wonderful photos by Leigh Wolfe!

We’re also obsessed with the couple’s exquisite ketubah from Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Danny Azoulay Ketubahs. In Ilyssa’s words, “The verbiage on our ketubah really resonated with us and the life we want to build together through Judaism. The verbiage ended with ‘Set me as a seal on your heart.’ I had this engraved on the inside of Nick’s wedding band, so we can always remember what our ketubah represents even on the hard days.” Awwww!

There’s so much more to say about this very special Jewish wedding – like, how great is it that instead of a wedding came Ilyssa and Nick opted for a midnight pizza bar?! – but we’ll let Ilyssa herself fill you in on the rest…

Ilyssa-and-Nick-Villa-Cora-Florence-Italy Ilyssa-and-Nick-Villa-Cora-Florence-ItalyIlyssa-and-Nick-Villa-Cora-Florence-ItalyIlyssa-and-Nick-Villa-Cora-Florence-Italy
How we Met

Ilyssa, the bride: It was your typical modern day romance… We met on Bumble in 2016. At the time, Nick was living in Atlanta while I finished my undergraduate degree in Athens at The University of Georgia. As we are both big beer fans, it was only natural that our first date was at an Atlanta brewery. After dating for 5 years Nick finally asked me to be his wife at the Cator Woolford Gardens in Atlanta, Georgia.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A Joyful Jewish Wedding on the Mediterranean at Bayit al Hayam, Yafo, Israel

by

Rebecca & Nativ, Caesar Yam, Israel

There’s nothing like an Israeli Jewish wedding – and we’re obsessed with the joyous union of Rebecca, a technical writer, and Nativ, a lawyer, at the stunning waterfront venue Bayit al Hayam. The whole wedding was an ode to Tel Aviv – the city where the couple met and fell in love – and everything about the day really showcased what a very special place it is. 

This wedding really has it all – Mediterranean views, fabulous golden light, delectable food, the kind of child party Israeli weddings are known for, and, of course, tons and tons of Jewish joy!

It was all captured so perfectly by Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Ori Carmi Photography. In Rebecca’s words, “The photos he captured from our wedding are pure magic; I can’t put into words how happy we are with them. He photographed the feeling and the true essence of the moment; each time I look at the photos I’m transported back to that bliss.”

Read on for the full story…

Rebecca & Nativ, Caesar Yam, IsraelRebecca & Nativ, Caesar Yam, IsraelRebecca & Nativ, Caesar Yam, Israel Rebecca & Nativ, Caesar Yam, Israel
How we met

Rebecca, the bride: We actually met exactly three years ago this April, during the first week of the COVID lockdowns! It’s a crazy story. The lockdowns in Israel were really strict at the beginning, and it was illegal to leave your house to go more than 100 meters. We matched on Tinder, and I (Rebecca) was curious about where Nativ lived because you never know right? So I asked him by chance to drop a pin of his location, just for laughs.

I remember being stunned to see that his location was 90 meters away. Basically next door neighbors! We met that night for a “social distance walk” and then every day after that. We decided if we went 30 days of seeing each other every day, that was it.

Don’t forget, the world was at a complete standstill at this point, so we were spending every moment together,  and it was the most fun we ever had. I always say it was like a “pre” honeymoon where we got to enjoy each other’s company. I moved in after two months and the rest is history. 🙂

Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A Kallmeyer Bride for a Parisian Chic Jewish Wedding at Pavillon Dauphine, Paris, France

by

Susie-Axel-Pavillon-Dauphine-Paris-France

It’s not easy planning a Jewish wedding long-distance – and that goes double when it happens to be halfway across the world, as was the case for California-based couple Axel and Susie! In honor of Axel’s French roots – he’s originally from Lyon, France – the couple opted to make things official in none other than the City of Lights.

And they found the perfect partner in making their dreams come true in their wedding planner, Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor La Fete. Working with a knowledgeable planner is so key when planning your big day from afar – and if you scroll through the beautiful photos from Dream Prod, we’re pretty sure you’ll agree La Fete knocked it out of the park.

Everything about this exquisite wedding was perfectly Parisian chic from the venue, Pavillon Dauphine, to Susie’s 4-piece custom wedding outfit by Daniella Kallmeyer of Kallmeyer. And naturally, the food was nothing short of gourmet.

Read on for all the wonderful details of this very special day…

Susie-Axel-Pavillon-Dauphine-Paris-FranceSusie-Axel-Pavillon-Dauphine-Paris-France Susie-Axel-Pavillon-Dauphine-Paris-FranceSusie-Axel-Pavillon-Dauphine-Paris-France
How we Met

Axel and Susie met in April 2019 in San Francisco, California on the dating app “Hinge.” Axel, originally from Lyon, France, had been living in SF since 2015. Susie, originally from Washington, D.C., moved to SF from Mexico City in March 2019 and met Axel shortly after – very shortly in fact: he was her first date since moving to SF. On their first date, they met for dinner on a Tuesday night and were the last two to leave the restaurant. A few months of persistence later, Axel asked Susie to join him on a trip to France in September 2019 – and the rest is history.Continue ReadingContinue Reading