A Boho bride in cowboy boots for a DIY rustic Jewish wedding at Moshav Mevo Modi’im, Israel

Nikki and Gavriel met via the power of Google search (no kidding… read their ‘how we met’ story below!) but their Jewish wedding was far from hi-tech. It was a super cool, relaxed rustic affair set in Gavriel’s home town in Israel with an abundance of lovingly crafted DIY details.

So much of the wedding was DIY’ed straight from the heart, from the stunning florals organised by the couple and their families (no pro florists involved at all!) to the home-made wooden signs, hay bale seating, BBQ menu and the beautiful bride’s jewellery all made by Gavriel’s mother. She also created Nikki’s stunning baby’s breath flower crown. Is she one talented mama or what?

I absolutely love Nikki’s bridal style and how she accessorised her dress with that deep green sash. And she totally rocks those cowboy boots of hers. I’ve always loved a bride in cowboy boots — such a cool look for a country style affair.

The whole W Day is full of natural and rustic details — unfussy and relaxed, but ever so pretty. Perfect for a venue surrounded by wonderful nature.

Enjoy this treat of a Friday wedding with images by one of our ever-talented Smashing Suppliers, Herschel Gutman Photography, who captures the essence of the day perfectly.

How we met

Nikki, the Bride: A friend and I were looking for a new experience and for whatever reason googled “religious farms in Israel”. We found a little family farm on a moshav and helped out a here and there with the farm duties on our stay. The daughter of the family asked if we wanted to hang out with her and her friends. We said yes and through her we met a group of guys. The mother of the family told us, “be careful — moshav boys are dangerous!” But over the course of the weekend I hung out with Gavriel on the moshav.. we talked and I listened to him playing the guitar and singing (as well as admiring his devastatingly good looks!) I couldn’t not give him my number…. Well the rest is history and here we are about two years later…. as husband and wife!

our wedding in a nutshell

After looking at many wedding venues and outdoor places, we decided we didn’t want just ‘another typical wedding’. We wanted our to be different and special.  And Gavriel wanted to give me the country style wedding of my dreams… Together we really did pull it off choosing to get married in Gavriel’s hometown, we hung hundreds of metres of fairy lights and string lights for a warm atmosphere. We rented empty wine barrels and placed them all around and covered them in flowers. We made wooden signs with cute sayings and directions. We brought in a bunch of hay bales and spread them out for the good old country feel…. And of course the food that was served was a BBQ being grilled right on the spot. We had long tables and no seating plan so everyone would feel free and comfortable .

Choosing to marry on a football field in a very significant place

Our venue had a lot of significance to us. We got married on the soccer field of Moshav Mevo Modi’im — a tiny town of about 40 families. My husband’s family is one of the residents there and it was also the first place we met — I was accidentally on a farm on this moshav and we met quite by chance one weekend. It also fitted in perfectly with the style we were going for which was an old rustic country style.

Hair and make up

Miriam Kaufman is the best hairstylist and makeup artist in all of Israel (in my opinion). She did my makeup as naturally as possible (no eye liner and base) but made me look the most beautiful I’ve ever felt. My hair is short so there was not much to do more than a little braid and my flower crown.

A wedding dress with hanging flowers

After a long dress search I found the perfect dress for me called ‘The One’ in Ra’anana, Israel by Studio Alma.  They were very helpful and sweet and really gave me the dress of my dreams by adding a green belt and hanging flowers that gave it a little more of the “free style” look I was after.

Once I put the dress on and added the belt I looked at myself and thought “this would blow Gavriel’s mind and make me feel beautiful.. I can totally see myself wearing this!” (And when I walked out of the dressing room one of my favourite songs started playing in the studio and I took that as a sign from heaven!).

Jewellery made by my mother-in-law

My mother in law is a silversmith and jeweller and hand made me my jewellery to match perfectly. I decided to wear a flower crown of live baby’s breath going again for the safe open and free feeling… (also made by my mother in law the morning of our wedding).

cowboy boots for the bride!

I wore tall cowboy boots made by Corral with a bit of a heel and white flowers that went with my dress…

the handsome groom

My super handsome husband could have blown me away in anything, but he wore shirt and trousers made of linen with an off-white waistcoat pulling it all together and brown suede boots. Swoon!

The ceremony

My favourite part of the ceremony was the moment Gavriel saw me and I saw him and we both burst into tears of happiness. The best moment of my life.

Our amazing photographer

We found Herschel Gutman Photography on Facebook! We saw some of his photos and were interested, then as soon as we met him and saw how nice he was as a person to work with we were sure and signed with him at that same meeting!

He came through above and beyond all our expectations! He was so easy and friendly to work with and he was never in our faces – utterly unobtrusive and a joy to be around.

As for the photos they literally speak for themselves . We are the happiest we could have been. All our special moments were properly captured and you can sense what we’re feeling at that moment in every one of them.

Flowers by us!

We didn’t have a  florist we did all the flowers ourselves with the help of our amazing families. We had lots of greenery (eucalyptus), baby’s breath, and some Lisianthus.

entertainment… and a song by the groom

Our band was The Elevators they’re normally a Grateful Dead cover band, but being such close friends they played our wedding and pulled off an amazing evening! Starting off with some traditional Jewish tunes and rocking it out all night long with 70’s, and all our favourite classics… Oh and Gavriel got up and sang me Crazy Love by Van Morrison .

‘chill out’ decor

We had an open bar and created a chill out zone with hay stacks, rugs, pillows, and low couches for people to chill, drink and smoke.

advice to other brides and grooms

This is your dream and your day. Don’t listen to anyone else… Don’t do what your friends are doing or telling you to do. Do what you want and fulfill your own dream with your loved one!

Don’t be afraid to do something different… something amazing! Something that will stay in your memories forever… And also… don’t expect everything to be perfect… just let the day play it self out… and it will be the best day ever!

Much love and success to all brides to be!

Nikki & Gavriel’s little white book

Photography — Herschel Gutman Photography
Venue — Moshav Mevo Modi’im
Brides’s dress — Studio Alma
Bride’s cowboy boots — Corral
Hair + Make Up — Miriam Kaufman
Band — The Elevators