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Amanda & Charley | Super fun and intimate laidback Jew-ish wedding at the Santa Barbara Courthouse, and The Lark, Santa Barbara, California

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santa-barbara-courthouse-weddingI love it when my readers email me with their wedding planning queries and stories. I first heard from Amanda, a Smashing The Glass reader (and today’s beautiful bride!)  back in July 2014 with the following email:

Hi Karen! I am reaching out in regards to Kathleen and Liz’s beautiful wedding in Palm Springs that you featured on Smashing the Glass earlier this year. I am getting married this September and I have been looking for a chuppah far and wide. I haven’t had much luck, but I absolutely love Kathleen and Liz’s chuppah and was hoping you would be able to either provide their contact information or pass this email along with my details. I would love to ask if I could potentially rent their chuppah and incorporate their beautiful handmade piece in another celebration of love. If not, I completely understand but I figured it never hurt to ask!

I was so delighted that Amanda had reached out to me about this idea, and immediately put her in touch with Kathleen and Liz. For logistical reasons, the ‘passing of the chuppah’ didn’t work out, but there is a happy ending to the story! Amanda and Charley found a local craftsman who constructed their ideal chuppah out of reclaimed wood, and what’s really lovely, is that after their wedding, Amanda and Charley wanted to spread the love of their chuppah and pass it on, and they did just that (full story below!)

Amanda contacted me after her big day with her wedding story, and I am so delighted to share it with you today. It’s a true ‘Smashing The Glass’ W Day, bursting with creativity, authenticity and bucket loads of L.O.V.E.

These two pulled off their big day on a modest budget, and what an incredible job they did. So although the top image looks truly opulent, this is in fact an incredibly casual, laid back wedding with some amazing budget ideas. In fact Amanda says “keeping our wedding small and manageable left enough money for a honeymoon to Cambodia which was the best way to kick off spending the rest of our lives together!”

The biggest budget tip these two adhered to was keeping it small. They shared their celebration with a select group of close family and friends (just 40 people) and were confident enough not to invite the people who weren’t closely involved in their lives.

Can you believe that Amanda’s TWO divine wedding dresses, her shoes and her accessories were all purchased for under $1000 ( £650)?! All the florals were bought by Amanda from a local flower shop the day before the wedding, and instead of spending their budget on live music or a DJ, these two had their nearest and dearest contribute to a wonderfully personal Spotify playlist.

Amanda and Charley… I take my hat off to you. You definitely achieved your aim of creating the greatest party on the smallest budget.

Enjoy Amanda’s story below, and all the wonderful images taken by the rather talented Casey from CLB Creative

laidback Jewish wedding at the Santa Barbara Courthouse, and The Lark, Santa Barbara, California
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Jessica & David | Outdoor, rustic, relaxed Jewish wedding, full of handmade and DIY details, at The Bivouac, Swinton Park, North Yorkshire, UK

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rustic-wedding
I was so thrilled when  the talented  wedding dress designer, Sally Lacock, alerted me to Jessica & David’s unbelievably beautiful and creative  Jewish wedding. I’m almost at a loss as to  where to start when talking about it — I’m like a New Year’s Eve Catherine Wheel spinning off in a hundred and one different directions wanting to tell you about each and every one of the exquisite details that make up their Yorkshire Dales wedding (and it’s actually the first time I’ve featured a wedding from this corner  of England  (NB. Please submit more from this region!)

We’ve got floral crowns, a  highly personalised ceremony, a patchwork  chuppah made by  all the couple’s  friends and family,  sewn together by the groom’s mum, and decorated with Yorkshire wild flowers, fantastic  music choices, the smiliest bride I’ve ever seen,  a “Balkanistic” boogie dance band,  beautiful wild blooms, a  jukebox filled with 100 of the couple’s favourite songs that guests played between sets and throughout the weekend, tipis, personal touches, and not surprisingly,  it looks as if everyone had an absolute hoot judging from the beams on all the guests  faces.  Every picture is  wonderfully happy and fun-filled  and smiley and exactly what a wedding should be.

Bride Jessica’s  report is a joy to read, and Alex Brenner‘s images will make you feel all warm inside and put a lovely big smile on your face. Without further ado I give you one of  Smashing The Glass’s  most immense weddings yet. Jessica and David, I take my hat off to you…

Outdoor, rustic, relaxed Jewish wedding, full of handmade and DIY details, at The Bivouac, Swinton Park, North Yorkshire, UK
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Meredith & Shoshana | True love + oodles of creativity: Lesbian Jew-ish Wedding at Notley Abbey, Oxfordshire, UK

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lesbian-wedding
One of the  reasons I’m in love with my job as editor and curator of Smashing The Glass is that weddings are the ultimate fusion of creativity, traditions and of course true love – three things that I adore  – and this divine wedding has all three in buckets.

When  an email  from Danny and Julie  of Minty Slippers  popped in with a link to Meredith and Shoshana’s incredible wedding film, below, I had a massive ‘this is why I cherish  my job’ moment. It’s so very moving, and their devoted love for each other is so apparent — I literally  whooped, hollered and clapped my hands with glee in anticipation of  blogging Danny and Julie’s fabulous work, and Meredith and Shoshana’s love story.

It’s a tale of long-distance desire  with the pair  first meeting  in 2011 when Shoshana, from London, was studying at the New York Film Academy and Meredith was working at a Manhattan advertising agency.

Shoshana eventually returned to London after her studies, and being thrown suddenly into a long distance relationship, they  decided to make videos to remind them  of the fun they  shared  together.  Their videos are super creative and fun and will fill you in a little more on  their love story.

But on to the wedding itself.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen brides who smiles as much as Meredith and Shoshana  did on their big day; honestly their infectious grins are enough to make even the most miserable, rainy Mondays seem like Happy Hour in  the Caribbean.

They  were married at Notley Abbey in Oxfordshire, a beautiful venue that was once the home of Sir Laurence Olivier. There is a Stephanie Allin  AND a J.Crew  gown, both as beautiful as each other. There is a singing harpist, an  immense  naked cake, outdoor games and stunning florals  . There are  hand-painted favours by Shoshana (who is an illustrator by trade) of each guest’s name painted and presented on miniature easels. There  are some fantastic ideas for a really meaningful wedding ceremony.

But most of all? Most of all there is L.O.V.E

The beautiful moments on  film below were captured by Minty Slippers, whilst  the immense photography is courtesy of  Mark Cachia.


The venue

Meredith and Shoshana, the Brides: We chose  Notley Abbey in Oxfordshire, for its tree-lined entrance, the castle like turrets, the beautiful gardens and the stunning contemporary mix with 13th century architecture — need we say more, it was perfect!

Lesbian Jew-ish Wedding at Notley Abbey, Oxfordshire, UK
‘Global travel meets art’

Our wedding theme would be best described as  ‘global travel meets art’   – that’s what we arrived at in the end! We didn’t have a colour scheme but we definitely thought about colour throughout the process. We didn’t use a wedding planner, we had too much fun planning it ourselves!

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Magda + Eric | Rustic, vintage-chic, relaxed outdoor Jewish wedding with Parisian influences at Bianca, Moshav Ginaton, Israel

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vintage-rustic-outdoor-wedding
I have a sneaking suspicion that you’re going to fall in love with this afternoon’s wedding which is a tale of love crossing continents, culminating in a wedding that combines the al fresco spirit of Israel with some serious Parisian designer chic.

There’s lots to love about this W-day, first off Magda’s bridal style is OFF THE WALL. I adore her wedding dress (actually it’s a two piece skirt and top by French designer, Delphine Manivet) that harks back to a bygone era with its high neckline, 3/4 length sleeves and lashings of feminine lace.

I also love the fact that Magda was inspired by the wedding scene from ‘Fiddler on the roof’. It’s one of my all-time favourite films which I guess doesn’t come as any surprise! Magda and Eric chose the famous Sunrise, Sunset track to be played during their wedding ceremony, as well as choosing their own personal ‘relationship song’ to be played when Magda circled Eric seven times (read more about this Jewish wedding tradition here).

Another moving, but very fitting ceremony detail, was the placing of a picture of Eric’s mother on a table under the chuppah during the ceremony. She sadly passed away a few months before the big day, and it was her dream that Magda and Eric would get married in Israel.

The details are so beautiful in this wedding — I particularly love the delicate flowers and decor by wedding designer (and STG regular), Kim Bulow. So very lovely.

Here is Magda & Eric’s story. Words by Magda, photography by Supanit Riansrivilai and a beautiful wedding film by Alexander Perel at the end. Enjoy!

Rustic, vintage-chic, relaxed outdoor wedding with Parisian influences at Bianca, Moshav Ginaton, Israel
How we met

Magda, the Bride: Eric and I met in Paris where he was living, and  I was on holiday visiting a friend. At the time I was living and studying in New York City (I’m originally from Warsaw, Poland) and we met up for every one of the 10 days that I was holidaying in Paris!

We kept in touch once I returned to New York and after a couple of months, I decided to close the door on my past and move back to Europe, to settle down in Paris.

We started dating, then we moved in together, then we got a pug named Eliot(!), and after 3 and a half years, in July 2014, we tied the knot.

Rustic, vintage-chic, relaxed outdoor wedding with Parisian influences at Bianca, Moshav Ginaton, Israel

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Maya & Danny | Outdoor DIY Garden Jewish Wedding at Cedar Bend Events, near Austin, Texas, USA

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DIY garden wedding
This morning’s w-day is the union of teenage sweethearts Maya and Danny, and the wedding report is written entirely by the dashing groom! This sweet pair have been together since they were bright-eyed and bushy-tailed (they met when they were 15 years old) and they had their wedding desserts catered by the same ice cream parlour as they had their first date at. Isn’t that adorable?

They had such a fun, authentic wedding. I love the hand-crafted details, the purple touches (a nod to Maya’s purple hair?), the vibrant blooms, the Harry Potter favours, and the outdoor relaxed vibe.

Plus, any wedding that includes a family performance of “Sunrise, Sunset” from Fiddler on the Roof gets a big thumbs up from me!

Their entire day really is beautiful. Enjoy all of the wonderful images taken by the rather talented Cory Ryan, and when you get to the end of the post, tell me how much do you love that very last picture?

Outdoor DIY Garden Jewish Wedding at Cedar Bend Events, Austin, TexasOutdoor DIY Garden Jewish Wedding at Cedar Bend Events, Austin, Texas
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