Smashing the Glass | Jewish Wedding Blog

Inspired Jewish Weddings

A Needle and Thread Bride for a Backyard Jewish Wedding in Kfar Chabad, Israel

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How gorgeous is the intimate backyard Jewish wedding of Israeli couple Libby, who  has recently graduated with a bachelor’s degree in bioinformatics, and Yanki, a product designer for a start-up?!

By the time these two got engaged, COVID had already hit – so they knew from the start that they’d need to keep their affair on the smaller side. This was just fine with the bride, who’d always dreamed of a cozy, intimate wedding – and if we had a backyard like her parents’, we’re sure we’d feel the same! The whole space was transformed into an absolute floral fantasia, and we just can’t get enough of it.

Libby and Yanki wanted to make sure they found photographers who’d really get the vibe they were going for on the day, and sure enough their choice to work with Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Luz Weddings did not disappoint. We’re in love with their stylish images capturing everything from the gorgeous design details to the couple’s happiness.

Being a designer, Yanki took charge of the couple’s invitations, creating a logo using the pair’s initials that ended up featuring on all of the wedding stationery. Yanki even designed the ketubah, which came out so beautifully! Another thing that came out beautifully? Libby’s stunning gown, which she ordered online from Needle and Thread – obsessed with the delicate embroidery and sweet pink flowers!

Now over to the bride…

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How we met

Libby, the bride: I spotted Yanki at my cousin’s son’s bris, about a year ago. We met there and the rest is history 🙂Continue ReadingContinue Reading

Real Jewish Brides: Jenna on Moving back to Tucson, Arizona!

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Jenna will be marrying Mat on 13th June 2021 at The Lodge at Ventana Canyon in Tucson, Arizona. Click here to read all Jenna’s planning posts to date.

THREE FACTS: (1) Jenna + Mat have known each other all their lives – they met when they were both one-year-old at a baby class! (2) Their relationship began at the University of Arizona in March 2012 (3) Mat proposed at Jenna’s parents house in December 2018


The news is official!  My fiancé, Mat, and I will be moving back home to Tucson, AZ! Like so many during these days, we are now both fully remote.  This means we can move out of our tiny one-bedroom apartment in Brooklyn and to somewhere cheaper where we can rent much, much more space.  Our lease is up at the end of February, so we’ll be packing up a Pod (love this style of moving, as you pack it up, they drive it, and can even store it until you have a final delivery location), packing up the cat who will detest being stuck in her carrier that long, and heading out west.

Goodbye snow, cold, subways, small apartment – hello warm Tucson, those beautiful sunsets, stunning mountains, space (especially outdoor space), and Sonoran Mexican food (my personal favorite style of Mexican food)!

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An Essense of Australia Bride for a Drive In Jewish Wedding at Micklefield Hall, Hertfordshire, UK

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Happy 2021! To ring in the new year, we’ve got something extra special for you today: the drive in Jewish wedding of Sophie, a program manager at a beauty college, and Marc, a TV set designer! When faced with England’s 15-guest limit, these two came up with the most creative way to include more of their guest list in a legal and COVID-safe way, retooling their vision for the big day to encompass a retro drive in movie theater style setup at their original venue, Micklefield Hall, who “were amazing throughout adapting to all our plans.” We can’t get over the incredible day they crafted, and once you have a peek at Iain Gomes Photography’s incredible photos, we bet you will too.

They ended up with 41 cars outside, with 86 people watching the proceedings on a big screen and listening through their car radios (plus a Zoom stream for those who couldn’t make it to the drive in). The wedding was also streamed on zoom so everyone who couldn’t make the drive in could watch online. Marc being a designer, he created videos, graphics, and artwork to amp up the drive-in feel, including a fun welcome pack delivered to each car on arrival. The packs included photo props – the couple asked guests to take selfies with the props, which they then assembled into a guest book – and a wedding speech bingo card: the couple read out wedding speech phrases from the barn, and guests in cars honked their horns when they won! Then, after the ceremony, the pair drove around on a farm truck greeting their drive in guests (from a safe distance, of course).

Extreme Production filmed the day – and lit it to look good on the big screen – with some films by Marc, pre-recorded wedding speeches and a video with the couple’s first dance song playing in the background so guests could dance along from their cars or from home, played in between the live broadcasts.

Sophie and Marc couldn’t have pulled this epic day off with help from some wonderful Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendors, including Alexandra’s Florist, who not only created the couple’s gorgeous floral chuppah but was also “amazing throughout and always adapted to our ever changing plans,” the legendary Toastmaster Jango, and ever-innovative kosher caterer Feast by Ed Shaerf, who were “so understanding with constantly changing plans” and put together a fantastic afternoon tea featuring sandwiches, cakes, doughnuts, and macarons with iced tea – all packed in boxes and delivered directly to guests’ cars!

We just love how Sophie and Marc found so many creative ways to make sure their drive in guests were truly involved and engaged – read on for more of their excellent ideas!

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How we met

Sophie, the bride: We met in December 2016 after matching on Jswipe! Marc moved to London in March 2016 from Manchester and I’m from Stanmore. Our first date was in a bar in Shoreditch. I actually saw Marc in the same carriage as me on the way to our first date and thought it would be awkward to get off together at the same station so I stayed on an extra stop and luckily went back!

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2021 we are ready for you!

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KAREN-CINNAMON

Ready to put 2020 behind you? Yeah, I thought so!

We’ve all got a lot of big hopes for 2021 and I want to make sure you get the year started on the right track.

So starting this Monday, January 4, I’m running a five-day wedding wellbeing challenge designed to get you feeling good about planning and empowered for whatever lies ahead.

The five-day wedding wellbeing challenge is free…but only if you’re a member of Smashing The Glass’ Brides Club.

Brides Club is the place for community, identity, belonging, and planning your Jewish or Jew-ish wedding your way.

Not a member yet? Join Brides Club now… and even better you can currently join on a free 30 Days promotion to access:

  • Community (online and IRL… across the globe!)
  • Connection
  • 1:1 wedding planning guidance with me
  • 100s of Jewish wedding resources
  • Extensive library of pandemic planning resources covering EVERYTHING
  • 100’s of handpicked discounts and gifts
  • Weekly Yoga classes
  • Crafting & Kvetching
  • Live Bridal Masterclasses
  • Social get-togethers
  • Everything you need to get through this emotionally challenging time
  • And the excitement you deserve to feel when you’re wedding planning!

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My advice to you as we close out 2020

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Image: John Nassari

If you could travel with your love and get married just the two of you in a magical setting right now, would you?

It could be tempting, but then tomorrow you might feel completely differently and want that big celebration for 200 loved ones, and a Hora so crowded your dress gets trampled on, and your face glistens with sweaty glee!

Such a tough time – and you must allow yourself to feel however you’re feeling.

And no one can tell you what that feeling should be.

You’re allowed to feel sad, lost, excited or anything else on the scale of Coronacoaster emotions.

Then take a deep breath and remember that the reality this pandemic is awakening some of us to, is that life DOES throw us curveballs.

How we manage them is a benchmark for how we manage life.

The current moment is a real test for us to find out how flexible we can be, and how we can manage, at a time when our lives are so deeply disrupted.

Managing the uncertainty

Times of uncertainty make us feel incredibly disempowered – and that’s not how anyone wants to feel.

Under normal circumstances, being a bride- or groom-to-be is often a very empowering experience – we get to make plans to create the day of our dreams, and while all that choice can be overwhelming, it’s also exhilarating.

Now, the situation has been flipped on its head. It feels like everything’s been taken out of our control as we’re forced to radically reimagine what our weddings might look like.

Adding insult to injury, a lot of us are also facing financial struggles we’d never have imagined.

A shift in perspective

To regain a sense of control and empowerment in your life – and your wedding plans – it will take a shift in perspective. And coming to terms with what we can and cannot control at this time is in itself an act of empowerment.

The silver lining in all of this? Life’s not going to stop throwing those curveballs, and dealing with them as a team is a skill you’ll need to have in your toolbox throughout your life together as a couple.

Learning to work together with your partner to get through a crisis sooner rather than later can only set your marriage up for success.

I hope you’re feeling ok. I have opened up my Brides Club for you to benefit from it for free for 30 days if you feel you need advice or someone to chat to. Just click here and you’ll be inside in moments.

Wishing you so much love and endless amounts of only good things.

Love Karen x