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A Tuscany-meets-Israel floral Jewish wedding with a Vera Wang bride at Baya’ar, Israel

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Friday is finally here – and we’re celebrating the imminent arrival of the weekend in style, with a proper feast for the eyes: Italian couple, Tania and Micael’s, enchantingly floral Tuscany-meets-Israel real wedding. 

There’s so much to love about this impeccably designed, dreamy celebration that we’re not sure where to start. First of all, a big round of applause is owed to groom, Micael, for his romantic surprise Paris proposal. We’re even clapping loudly enough to drown out the collective huffy sighs of all the partners for whom the bar has just been spectacularly raised. Well done, Micael! 

We’ve featured the absolutely enchanting Israeli venue, Baya’ar, many times on the blog now and with good reason. Every single one has been simply magical, and Tania and Micael’s day was no exception. Every detail, from the breathtaking floral arrangements (including the Chuppah to end all Chuppahs) was simply perfect and captured beautifully by photographer Ilan Mor.

Gorgeous Tania was a picture of fashion-forward bridal style in her show-stopping Vera Wang gown and to-die-for Yves Saint Laurent heels. 

The couple did so much to ensure their guests had the time of their lives, including booking our amazing Smashing Supplier, Legend Band, from Caliente, and setting up a flower station, where guests were treated to custom-made flower bracelets and flower crowns! What a brilliant idea!

Don’t forget to watch the incredible work of art created by videographer, Camellia at the foot of the post. We particularly enjoyed the unforgettable shot of Micael smashing the glass – well worth sitting down for a proper watch! 

Over to Tania now for the full story on her and Micael’s beautiful nighttime wedding. 

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How we met

Tania, the bride: I am a fashion buyer and my husband, Micael, is an accountant. We met five years ago and we immediately connected. But after two years, we decided to go our separate ways, until May 2015 when we decided we couldn’t be apart. We started dating again and this time was different. On December 24th at five in the morning, I received a call from Micael telling me that I had to wake up and be ready in 10 minutes.

He covered my eyes and took me to the airport! I didn’t know where we were going until we landed in Paris, where he took to the front of the Eiffel Tower and proposed in the classic way… the rest is history.

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A music and art-filled Jewish wedding with Monique Lhullier and Jenny Packham gowns at the Great Synagogue and Four Seasons Hotel in Florence, Italy

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Spring has sprung and we’re delighted to share our first real Jewish wedding of April – and what a way to kick off the month! Today’s cultured couple, Tara and Ben, decided to get married in one of the great art history capitals of the world, Florence, Italy.

Not only that, but their ceremony was held at the stunning and world-renowned Great Synagogue in the heart of the city and their reception at the prestigious Four Seasons Hotel. For Tara, who has a degree in History of Art, this was the definition of a dream destination wedding.

The couple’s music-filled Jewish ceremony included sensational Smashing Supplier, chazan Simon Cohen, who the couple flew in especially so that they could enjoy his beautiful voice.  

Bride Tara looked every bit the classically beautiful bride in not one but TWO incredible dresses. First in her elegant Monique Lhullier gown, which she wore for the ceremony and then in her Jenny Packham party dress.

The laid-back, loving atmosphere of the day, including the epic fireworks display the couple arranged to surprise their guests, was captured by the brilliant David Bastianoni, whose wonderful work has been featured many times before on the pages of STG.

We’ll pass you on to beautiful bride Tara for the lowdown on her and Ben’s beautiful day!

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An art history lover’s dream venue

Tara, the bride: It’s hard to describe the magic of walking down a little side street, turning a corner, to be suddenly faced with the Duomo faà§ade and one the grandest synagogues in the world. So much beauty in one city and, for us, it was the perfect place to get married.

The Four Seasons had it all — The hotel is made up of a 15th-century Palazzo della Gherardesca and an ex 16th-century convent called Il Conventino, set within acres of beautiful gardens in the heart of the city.

I have a degree in History of Art and we are both lovers of classical music. Having visited Florence a number of times, it was always on our wish list. So where else to marry but at a music-filled ceremony at the Great Synagogue in the heart of the City of Florence?

Afterwards, just five minutes away, we were strolling among our 170 guests in 12 acres of stunning gardens at the Four Seasons Hotel, the former Palazzo Scala Della Gherardesca dating from the time of Lorenzo il Magnifico.

The green avenues, lined with Renaissance sculptures with fabulous views of the Duomo and the Chianti hills, were the perfect backdrop for what we wanted – an elegant outdoor reception followed by a casual dinner under the stars and fun night of partying.

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A relaxed, fun atmosphere

We wanted a traditional wedding done in a more casual and carefree way. Elegant but fun was the message of the weekend. All our guests were in holiday mode, so were relaxed. We didn’t use a wedding planner, but the staff at the Four Seasons were fantastic with helping us plan the day.

Music was a constant theme throughout the wedding, and we felt strongly about creating an informal and casual atmosphere during the dinner in the gardens. To do this, we created a Spotify playlist of our favourite songs to be played during the dinner.

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A breathtaking beachside Jewish wedding with a Victor Vivi Balaish bride and a performance by Rami Kleinstein at Al Hayam, Caesarea, Israel

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At STG, we’re always up for an epic Israeli wedding, and today’s stunning celebration genuinely looks like it has been stolen straight from Pinterest and magically transformed into reality.

There are a few familiar suppliers. The idyllic venue, Al Hayam, has graced the STG pages twice before, and the photographer is one of our much-loved Smashing Suppliers, Ran Bergman, who we absolutely and unequivocally adore. No wonder the photography is simply outstanding!

The couple, Lior and Re’em, also happened to be closely related to Israeli megastar singer and producer, Rami Kleinstein (yes, the Rami Kleinstein), and he not only led the kabbalat shabbat ceremony (as the wedding fell on a Friday the two ceremonies were combined), but even did a few numbers from his own repertoire. Now, don’t you wish you’d been there?

Not only was the wedding picture perfect (a Chuppah overlooking  the beach followed by a party in Gan Gili – what more could anyone want from an Israeli wedding?) but what a beautiful couple! Let’s just say the cumulative effect of the destination, the gobsmackingly gorgeous bride and groom and the obviously electric atmosphere is extremely easy on the eyes. 

Oh, and the wedding had a bar in a pool. We’re not jealous, you’re jealous.

I’ll hand over to beautiful bride, Lior, to tell you all about her and Re’em’s perfect day.

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A wedding with two styles

Elki Jacobs designed the wedding in two completely different styles. Lunch and a chuppah in a Mediterranean style in blue and white. For the afterparty they created a cool chic club ambience.. all overlooking the Mediterranean sea.

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A bohemian Jewish wedding bringing the outdoors inside at Lourensford Wine Estate, Cape Town, South Africa

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Today’s stunner of a real wedding comes all the way from Cape Town, South Africa, and is, unbelievably, only our second STG South African real wedding. Needless to say, if this is the level of wedding pretty coming from that part of the world, then we’d definitely like to see a lot more, please!

When presented with a chuppah this breathtaking, it seems ludicrous not to talk about it first, and, frankly, this divine design deserves all the positive adjectives. Decadently draped in fresh flowers, it’s so astounding that you’d be forgiven for almost failing to notice the awe-inspiring mountainous backdrop of Gavin and Kelly’s Jewish ceremony.

Beautiful bride, Kelly, looked a million bucks in her sublime custom-made, boho-inspired dress, flanked by no fewer than 12 bridesmaids.

With a natural ethos in mind, Kelly’s brief for wedding planner, Veronica, from Petals Group, was to bring the outdoors inside, which Veronica managed with aplomb.

The day was immortalised in images by much-sought-after photographer, Shanna Jones who did such a phenomenal job that she earned one of the most passionate reviews of a supplier we’ve published on these pages. We can certainly see what all the fuss is about — just look at this spread, a picture of perfection.

We’ll pass you over to Kelly’s capable hands to tell you more about her and Gavin’s ethereal and whimsical wedding day.

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An idyllic Cape Town venue

Kelly, the bride: We got married at Lourensford Wine Estate in Somerset West, Cape Town. Gavin is originally from Cape Town, which really is one of the most beautiful places in the world, so we decided to look at venues there. We loved the relaxed and informal, homey feel of Lourensford and we knew we wanted to get married there from the second we viewed it.

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Bringing the outdoors inside

We knew what we wanted from the beginning. We wanted a very earthy, natural boho look and feel. We wanted it to be understated and nothing over the top. We knew we wanted flowers, but, more so, we wanted greenery. If we could have done the whole wedding outside we would have, but with Cape Town weather being temperamental it wasn’t worth the risk, so we wanted to try bring outside inside. We used, Veronica, from Petals Group. She was outstanding and we could not have done a thing without her. She really guided us throughout the process.

Overall, what we really wanted was our wedding not to be a big show. We wanted it to be small, intimate and authentic and really just to celebrate our love. Every part of my day felt sincere and genuine and all the love and care for me and Gavin was so present. I think people felt that sincerity, and enjoyed the evening because of it. That’s what made it special to me.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A spiritual Jewish wedding with an epic boat journey at Natural Bridge State Park in Slade, Kentucky, USA

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Madeline and Alex met through their shared Jewish faith and, after a long friendship, their romance began followed by a beautifully planned literary proposal.

As a wedding planner, bride Madeline had a real head start and the couple had no problems planning their perfect day. From the breathtaking location with its stunning autumnal colours to the grand entrance made by groom Alex on the couple’s boat, affectionately dubbed the ‘Oar Vey’.

Their ‘book of love’ theme was captured by photographer Ben Keeling and incorporated a plethora of literary and library-related details, to celebrate the couple’s shared love of reading and, of course, their unique proposal.

We adore the idea of having themed ID badges to help the wedding party stand out so that people knew where to direct their questions — that’s definitely an idea to steal, especially for festival-themed celebrations!

We’re also totally in love with incredible Smashing Supplier, Ink With Intent’s beautifully crafted Ketubah and the couple’s ‘Tree of Life’ Chuppah, onto which they sewed personal materials, packed with meaning and memories.

Madeline and Alex wrote a beautifully eloquent account of their wedding planning journey, so we’ll hand over to them to tell you all about it! Enjoy!

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How we met

Madeline and Alex, the bride and groom: Alex sat on the interview panel when Madeline applied as choir director at our synagogue. He rolled his eyes and asked snide questions, showed up late for the first rehearsal, and convinced Madeline that he hated her. However, we quickly formed an unconditional friendship. Four years later, in an ironic twist, the friendship went on hiatus when Alex thought Madeline hated him. Convinced Alex was angry with her, Madeline avoided temple for the next two years.

Alex finally called on 25 September, 2015 to let Madeline know a mutual friend had suddenly passed away. He didn’t expect her to answer, and she nearly didn’t. During the brief conversation, she felt prompted to ask him to meet. He told her to call back in an hour, after Erev Shabbat services. She drove to temple and stood in the sukkah as a cold rain began to fall. Alex stood next to her with his arms crossed as she apologised for ending their friendship. He brushed the apology aside, then gave the greatest impromptu, heartfelt speech a man has ever made.

“I had to stop looking for you. I wanted you to be there. I wanted you to be there so bad, and you weren’t. So I had to put it away. I had to put all that in a box, and put it up on the shelf, and close the door. Because I couldn’t keep looking for you anymore.”

After a few minutes of uncertain conversation, we parted. Alex’s final words were, “Call me every five minutes.” Four months later, on a trip to meet her mother in Washington, DC, Alex visited the Library of Congress with Madeline. Having made almost a full circle of the mezzanine, he stopped her in her tracks.

“This is the place for questions, right?” he asked.

“No,” she replied, “This is a library. It’s a place for answers.”Continue ReadingContinue Reading