Smashing the Glass | Jewish Wedding Blog

Inspired Jewish Weddings

How Smashing the Glass Has Impacted My Life

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This is a guest post by Mel Islin, a member of STG’s Brides Club and now Smashing Life.
Above a photo from the Brides Club London Challah Bake meet-up in last October.

It all started with getting engaged…..

When I got engaged in 2016 I was full of emotion and excitement. My boyfriend of 3 years had decided I was the one he wanted to spend his life with – what could be more special?!

We got engaged on holiday so as soon as we got back I went into major planning mode. I couldn’t wait to find our dream venue and set a date. 

It wasn’t until I started planning that I realised what a minefield the world of weddings was. I hadn’t been to many Jewish weddings before, let alone had to plan my own!

It wasn’t long after that I discovered a fabulous website and blog called Smashing The Glass. 

This was the answer to all my prayers! A space to find vendors, understand the customs and traditions of a Jewish wedding, and read all about real weddings. 

A couple of months after discovering this dream site and stalking their Instagram account (which you must follow if you don’t already!) I saw a post about a competition to win loads of Laura Mercier beauty products. I never win anything (not for want of trying) but thought, why not?! So, I entered… and won!

Madness. That was my first interaction with the lovely founder of STG, Karen Cinnamon. 

I then saw a call out for Real Blogging Brides for 2017/18. I’d already thought about blogging my planning journey as I liked the idea of reading back on it in years to come so figured this would be a great way of doing it. I applied and was lucky enough to be chosen. My first blog post went live in May 2017 and I was so excited!

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A Limor Rosen Bride for a Festival Chic Jewish Wedding at The Q, Glil Yam, Israel

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When a bride who’s a design talent in her own right joins forces with a fantastic wedding planner to create an ultra-personalized destination wedding at one of Israel’s most gorgeous venues… well, you know you’re in for something special.

Designer bride Amy and groom Richard, who works in technology finance (#AmyGetsRich), opted to theme their big day around their shared love of music and festivals, and while festival-inspired weddings are by no means uncommon, these two really took theirs to the next level. They combined the basics – candles, gentle lighting, greenery – with some unexpected touches – Amy designed festival wristbands for guests, as well as making over 200 personalised mini dream catchers to use as the table plan/seating cards! And in true boho chic style, the couple’s chuppah was styled like a tent with lace dream-catchers hanging at the back.

That’s just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to all the lovely details incorporated into this Jewish wedding, and the couple’s photographer, Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Jossef Si, captured each and every one of them – not to mention the love between Amy and Richard and the action-packed party following their beautiful ceremony – in his trademark artistic style. As always, we’re obsessed with his stunning work. And videographer Guy Siman Tov’s trailer makes us feel as if we were right there experiencing it all alongside the guests.

Amy and Richard knew it wouldn’t be easy implementing their creative ideas all the way from their home in England, and so they decided to work with beloved wedding planner and Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Vicki Rosen (described by Amy as “the most organised lady you will ever meet”) to make sure everything went to plan, as well as to source the perfect vendors to make the day a success.

Now over to the bride, who looked stunning in her gown by Israeli designer Limor Rosen…

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How We Met

Amy, the bride: Our lives have been intertwined for many years – unbeknownst to either of us we went to Leeds University and graduated on the same day. We even stayed in the same halls of residence in first year. It’s extremely likely we had been in each other’s flat at some point.

However, our paths didn’t quite cross. In our mid 20s we both lived opposite each other in West Hampstead without realising it. But most bizarrely, about four years ago Richard made an offer for a small flat in Kilburn. It turned out someone else had already been successful and had trumped him. Guess who that was? We were in each others lives all along, the world was just waiting for the right time.

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BIG NEWS: Announcing Smashing The Glass’s FREE online Jewish Wedding Planning Party!

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SAVE THE DATE (and get your free ticket!). Wed Feb 12 is approaching and I’m hosting a great big virtual Jewish Wedding Planning Party for you wherever in the world you live!

I know wedding planning can be overwhelming… but it doesn’t have to be, and my online Jewish Wedding Planning Party is all about helping you cut through the overwhelm and have the wedding you really want, stress-free (or as close as you can get).

This is for you whether you’re planning a Jewish or Interfaith Jewish wedding, and whether you’re using a planner – or not and this is what you can expect:

There’ll be presents, and partying, music and (virtual!) drinks, but most importantly I’ll be teaching you exactly how to:

♥ Maximize your wedding budget (whether it’s $ or $$$$$)

♥ Nail your guest list

♥ Solve your seating plan

♥ Handle family conflicts (to get the result you want without hurting anyone’s feelings)

♥ Let go of #JewishGuilt so you can have the wedding YOU really want (whilst keeping everyone around you happy)

♥ Come up with creative wedding ideas for an unforgettable, one-of-a-kind wedding

♥ Craft your perfect Jewish or Jew-ish wedding ceremony + how to make all your guests feel included (especially your non-Jewish ones).

And I’ll be answering every single one of your questions (however big or small!) 

CLICK HERE TO RESERVE YOUR FREE PLACE AND GET A REMINDER

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I’ll be ready and waiting to help you out with every single one of your own wedding planning questions, no matter how big or small.

(And by the way you’ll benefit from the Jewish Wedding Planning Party whether you’re using a planner or not — this is an absolute must-attend for every Jewish / Jew-ish bride-to-be!)

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A Flora Bride for a Fairy Tale Destination Jewish Wedding at Cluny Castle, Inverurie, Aberdeenshire Scotland, UK

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We love it when a couple goes out of their way to make their guests feel extra loved at their Jewish wedding – especially when they’ve traveled across the world to celebrate together. But today’s couple, Anna, an architect, and Nir, a PhD student in economics with an online tutoring business, Israelis who opted to wed in Scotland, really amped it up to the next level.

With an intimate crew of just 26 guests, who traveled from Israel, the US, and Canada, Anna and Nir went all out, planning not just a wedding weekend but a full wedding week of classic Scottish activities, from Highland games and clay shooting to visits to Loch Ness and distilleries – and castles.

Although given the venue – not only was the wedding held at the majestic Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Cluny Castle, but the guests were also able to stay at the castle for the entire week – it’s hard to see a need to leave the grounds of this stunning spot. Catom Photographers captured the splendid setting in all its glory – not to mention the love and emotion of the big day.

Anna and Nir couldn’t possibly have picked a better place to make their guests all feel like princes and princesses for the week – and in pursuit of this goal, they even hired makeup artists and hairstylists to take care of each and every one of their female guests on the wedding day!

Now over to the groom, who’ll fill you in on all the details…


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Theme

Nir, the groom: The theme was a “fairy tale” and Scottish wedding. We tried our best to make sure each guest would feel like a price/princess for the entire week. We planned a schedule for the week so each day would include a classic Scottish activity: Highland games, distilleries, clay shooting, castles, Lochness etc. The guests even saw her majesty the Queen and Prince Charles from a very close range at the highland games.

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Real Jewish Brides: Orli On Dress and Shoe Shopping and Flowers For Her Wedding

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Orli will be marrying Ben on 6th September 2020 at St Pancras Renaissance Hotel, London, UK. Click here to read all Orli’s planning posts to date.

THREE FACTS: (1) Orli and Ben met on Jswipe. (2) Although their venue, the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel, couldn’t be more quintessentially London, Orli and Ben are going for a countryside feel. (3) Orli is a member of Smashing The Glass’s Brides Club!

My Wedding Dress Shopping Experience

As a little girl I had always dreamt of my wedding day. What would I be wearing as I walked down the aisle to meet my Prince Charming? For me, this was all coming true and the next thing I had to do was start looking at wedding dresses.

From the moment we got engaged, my mum was desperate for us to pick a date to go wedding dress shopping, yet I was slightly reserved but couldn’t work out why. Was it going to be everything that I dreamed it would be? Would I put on one dress and know instantly that it was the one, feel like a princess and buy it on the spot?

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