Jewish DIY Weddings Archives - Smashing the Glass

A Reformation Bride for a DIY Jewish Wedding at Littlefield, Brooklyn, New York, USA

22/02/2019 by Karen Cinnamon

DIY and NYC aren’t the first two things we think of as going together when it comes to Jewish weddings. But super cool (not to mention resourceful) couple Grace and Barry proved us wrong with their charmingly eclectic indoor garden party celebration in Brooklyn, beautifully captured by the amazing Mandee Johnson Photography — their outdoor photoshoot in the streets of Brooklyn is serious #weddinggoals.

With some help from their families — Grace and her mom DIY’d the floral arrangements, while Barry’s mother fashioned a beautiful, simple chuppah canopy from an old lace curtain — and fun touches like string lights and a BBQ buffet, these two prove that it’s totally possible to craft a memorable wedding on a budget, even in the most expensive of cities.

And how cool does Grace look in her dress from Reformation (which happens to be a fantastic option for brides on a budget who don’t want to compromise on style)? We’ll leave the gorgeous bride and groom to fill you in on the rest…

How we met

Grace and Barry, the bride and the groom: Barry is on stage, performing. Grace is in the audience, audience-ing. After the show, she cracked a joke about his shoes, he laughed, that was that.

A Rebecca Ingram Bride in a Leather Jacket for a Trilingual Rustic Jewish Wedding at Ferncroft Country Club in Middleton, Massachusetts, USA

28/09/2018 by Karen Cinnamon

Okay, how cool is that customized leather jacket, today’s bride Lyubov paired with her classic Rebecca Ingram gown? We just love the touch of edge (not to mention the massive dose of personality) it adds to today’s fab Jewish wedding — and did we mention that Lyubov DIY’d it herself? #goals

There are just so many awesome touches in this fantastic day, from the sweet invitations — complete with cartoon portraits of Lyuobv and Juan, who both work in the pharmaceutical industry, in their W-day attire! — to the beautiful rustic birch chuppah, dolled up with touches of lace and greenery.

Fergie Medar Photography not only captured all the details beautifully, she really did an amazing job illustrating the love between these two and all the emotion that went into their day.

We’re also bowled over that the pair pulled off a tri-lingual (!) wedding. With the bride’s family speaking Russian, the groom’s speaking Spanish, and friends speaking English, Lyubov and Juan had speeches in not one, not two, but THREE languages. Prepare to be bowled over by Jonny Havens Wedding Films’ touching video.

Now over to Lyubov, who credits Smashing The Glass for providing loads of inspo in creating this special day!

How We Met

Lyubov, the bride: Juan and I met our freshman year of college in English class (he sat behind me), and we instantly connected. We were friends for a bit, and then started dating.Continue Reading

A Maggie Sottero Bride for a Contemporary Cool Jew-ish Wedding at Le Meridien Chicago, Illinois, USA

07/09/2018 by Karen Cinnamon

Today is a special day for all of us at Smashing The Glass: it’s our first time blogging the Jew-ish wedding of one of our very own Brides Club members! Jeanette had the SWEETEST things to say about the inspiration she found in the Club and on Smashing The Glass:

I absolutely adored Smashing The Glass. The personal outreach, appeal to a specific group of brides, detailed blog posts, and overall eye for uniqueness and quality made it a much more visited website and Facebook page than other wedding blog. I used Facebook Lives and articles from STG to aid in my planning process, such as in writing my speech, deciding on a veil, buying a smash glass (and knowing how to use the pieces after), designing a cake, picking songs, and many other elements I’m forgetting! I can’t think of anything missing from the blog!”

Aw… we’re blushing now… Jeanette, a speech-language pathologist, and Chris, an architect, are all about contemporary minimalist design, and they channeled their passion for all things modern into an ultra-unique wedding aesthetic.

From the geometric hanging centerpieces (!) to the striking cake with metallic geometric dividers between the layers to the stylish stationery (100% designed by the groom!), this wedding has some serious flair. Jennifer Hyde of JHyde Photography did such a fantastic job capturing all the cool touches.

We’re so thrilled that the couple credits STG with helping them do everything from picking songs to writing speeches, but one thing we can’t take credit for? Jeanette and Chris’s brilliant idea to “table hop” during dinner: instead of staying in one place for the whole meal (or, alternately, running around frantically with no time to eat), they chose four tables to sit at, one for each course. That way, they were able to spend time with more of their guests, in a relaxed way. Such a smart setup!

Now over to Jeanette, who looked stunning in her tulle-tastic blush pink Maggie Sottero gown (and matching rose gold hair!)…

How We Met

Jeanette, the bride: We met in college at Southern Illinois University, at a party one of my now-bridesmaids convinced me to go to!

A Lucy Can’t Dance Bride for a ‘Kosher Braveheart Does Glastonbury’ Jewish-Scottish Wedding at the Fox and Hounds, Great Moulton, UK

03/09/2018 by Karen Cinnamon

We’ve got two words for you: Wisteria. Chuppah. Just look at it! Have you ever seen anything more lovely than those simple strands of purple and white perfection swinging gently in the breeze, captured to perfection by photographer Katy Treadwell?! Because we’re pretty sure we haven’t.

Sophie, a property photographer for an estate agent, and Andy, a web designer, totally rocked their “Kosher Braveheart Does Glastonbury” Jew-ish wedding style (seriously, have you heard of a better theme?!). Between Sophie’s swoonworthy bridal ensemble–consisting of a boho-perfect Lucy Can’t Dance two-piece, flower crown, and green and blue ombre cathedral veil (that the bride dyed herself!)–that knockout chuppah, and their awesome festival-inspired wedding cake with THE coolest hidden back (seriously, do NOT miss this one!), this is one wedding we’re seriously sad not to have attended.

Oh, and you know how much we love it when couples let us know they’ve used Smashing the Glass to plan their big day. Well, not only did Sophie and Andy draw inspiration from the blog in planning their beautiful boho English-Scottish-Jew-ish wedding–Sophie reports that our Real Blogging Brides and 5 Minutes With sections–were especially helpful, they even used one of our very own Smash Glass pouches for under the chuppah.

We love love LOVE seeing our smash glass pouches in our Jewish wedding features so make sure you buy one and send us your pictures just like gorgeous Sophie did! So now over to the bride herself…

How we met

Sophie, the bride: We’d been friends for around 6 years before we started dating, and it only took him another 6 before he popped the question! But we wouldn’t have it any other way, and I feel like the luckiest lady in the world that I got to get married to her best friend!

A No Holds Barred DIY Carnival Backyard Jewish Wedding in Los Angeles, California, USA

08/08/2018 by Karen Cinnamon

Jewish wedding Carnival Wedding at parents’ backyard California USA_0020
We have NEVER seen a wedding like today’s one before. Fact.

Plenty of couples choose themes, and pull them off beautifully, but the level of dedication this couple put into their carnival Jewish wedding is just off the charts. We’re not just talking about a wedding that hints at a fair aesthetic; Talia and Danny actually set up a full-on carnival in the bride’s parents’ backyard. We’re talking a Ferris wheel, games (complete with life-sized stuffed animal prizes!), photo booths, claw machines, a balloon artist and a stilt walker… and that’s just the beginning!

Even more impressive is how much of the work the couple — along with Talia’s family — put in themselves, from artistic details to heavy-duty stuff like wiring. With the help of their multitalented florist, Dawn of Tularosa Flowers — who did so much more than just florals — the pair made their dream into a reality, with everything from the big stuff (that Ferris wheel!) to the smallest details (the floral centerpieces were inside popcorn containers — genius).

It doesn’t hurt that Talia has got to be one of craftiest brides we’ve encountered — so much so that this fall she’s opening an arts and crafts business where people can come and make projects of their own. After seeing the ah-mazing photo props she crafted from cardboard boxes — Zoltar’s head, a popcorn machine, and more — plus her spiffy ticket booths (also crafted from cardboard) we think you’ll agree she’s found her calling.

Photographer Shimmy Lautman and videographer Michael Newman did SUCH a fantastic job capturing all the glorious details (a drone was involved!).

We haven’t even gotten to the carnival cart food, or the Kinder Surprise Egg invitations (yes!) — but we’ll leave it to Talia to tell you the rest.

A Backyard Wedding

Talia, the bride: We got married in my parents’ backyard. It’s the house I grew up in since I was born, and my father also grew up in the house. It meant a lot to me to get married there because it’s where all the milestones of my life happened. From taking my first step, to losing my first tooth, to graduating high school, all of my memories took place there, so it made it extra special to also have my wedding there.