Smashing the Glass | Jewish Wedding Blog

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Real Jewish Brides: Juliette Talks How She Found her Photographer and her Engagement Shoot

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Juliette will be marrying Matt on 9th November 2019 at Ashford Estate in Allentown, New Jersey, USA. Click here to read all Juliette’s planning posts to date.

THREE FACTS: (1) Juliette and Matt met in Hebrew school when they were 16 – aww! (2) Juliette and Matt are both Jewish, but they are having a Jew-ish wedding – Juliette’s dad’s side of the family is Catholic, and they want to make sure everyone feels included on the day. (3) Juliette is a member of Smashing The Glass’s Brides Club – and she calls STG her “secret weapon” in wedding planning!


The importance of the photos

I am an ultra-decisive person. I always know what I am going to eat before the waiter arrives, I pick my outfits out in under 3 minutes each morning, and I never hesitate to tell you I don’t like what you tried on (ask any of my 9 bridesmaids). However, with all the major decisions that wedding planning naturally creates, I find myself hesitating, second guessing, and obsessing. One of my main obsessions took form in the shape of wedding photos.

Every Pinterest page wants to remind you that finding your soulmate is the hardest part of the whole wedding process and you have already done that! These people are obviously not trying to impress and please 250 people whose opinions they trust. I promise I will live in the moment of that day.

However that is not going to stop me from freaking out about the photos. The photos are a huge deal because after it is all over and done and the glitter clears and you can finally eat that chocolate cake your mother told you is off limits (I wish I could tell you I’m kidding) the pictures are the last artefact of the most special day of your life.


All the images of this post are shot by Fred Marcus Studio {offers a free engagement shoot to all members of Smashing The Glass’s Brides Club}

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A Secret Garden Jewish Wedding with an Epic Tree Chuppah at a Private Chateau in Loumarin, Provence, France

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Today’s gorgeous Jewish wedding is giving us some SERIOUS chuppah envy. Amanda and Danny went all in on their luxe garden theme – not to mention their commitment to making the most of their epic Provence setting – by incorporating a beautiful tree on the property into their chuppah design.

Together with their florist, the couple came up with a truly spectacular structure, with the tree’s leaves and branches served as our canopy (so all that wonderful sunlight could shine straight down on them!), with four floral garlands hanging down from the tree to serve as the columns. The stunning photos and video from Studio Ohlala are seriously giving us the urge to book the next flight to the South of France.

We also love that they treated their destination wedding as an opportunity for their friends and family to get to know each other, all while experiencing the best Provence has to offer over a super memorable wedding weekend, from a wine tour to a pool party – speaking of which, you’ve got to see the crystal chandelier they had hanging over the pool!

And did we mention there’s a totally breathtaking ketubah made in Israel by Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Danny Azoulay in the mix?

We’ll leave it to the bride to fill you in on the rest…

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A Wedding in Provence

Amanda, the bride: We got married in the Provence region of France, in a charming village, Lourmarin. The venue was a private chateau. We both wanted to treat our family and friends to an experience for our wedding, where everyone would have the time to really get to know each other. I (Amanda) always loved France, great food and wine, beautiful lavender fields, sense of romance and wonder. Danny was happy to make my dream come true.

We contacted wedding planners, found Stephanie our wedding planner from Wedding Of Excellence in Provence, and she recommended our village and venue. There was a secret garden charm to our chateau that no other venue we toured had or that we thought we could find anywhere else.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A Made With Love Bride for a Destination Jewish Wedding in Tropical Paradise with an Orchid Chuppah at the Conrad Hotel Koh Samui, Thailand

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We’ve got just the thing to get you in the mood for Spring… a stunner of a Jewish wedding right on the beach in gorgeous Koh Samui, Thailand!

Kamina, a marketing specialist and yoga teacher, and Warren, a management consultant, planned the perfect laid-back boho day, and they went all out on the tropical paradise vibes — we’re talking an orchid chuppah, bright tropical flowers everywhere (even in the bride’s hair, natch!), and an all-day outdoor celebration right on the beach. Transport yourself via Julian Abram Wainwright’s exquisitely styled photography and Juno Wedding Films’ wonderful video.

These two also had some of the coolest wedding desserts we’ve seen, ever. For starters, they rented out a traditional Thai banana pancake cart — um, yes please! And Kamina’s 9-year-old cousin, who happens to be a little baking prodigy, made the couple a gorgeous coconut wedding cake (with just a bit of help from the grown-ups) — wow!

Now over to Kamina, who looked so cool (in all senses of the word!) even in the Thai heat in her Made With Love dress…

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A Meaningful Venue

Kamina, the bride: We decided to get married in Koh Samui, Thailand at the Conrad Hotel. Samui is a special island for us – it was my late father’s favourite place. My parents own a villa resort on the island, which is where they renewed their vows on their 25th wedding anniversary, and also where we held an intimate funeral ceremony for him. The Conrad Hotel is part of the Hilton group, which is where my father worked most of his life, so that was really special as well to keep the venue in the Hilton family – that would have meant a lot to him.

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A Hayley Paige Bride for a Garden Jewish Wedding with a Eucalyptus Chuppah at El Molino Del Duque, Marbella, Spain

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We’ve got something really special to share with you today: the gorgeous Jewish wedding of Dan to Ruthie, who is the marketing manager at Smashing The Glass Recommended Venue Kimpton Fitzroy London (where we’re currently running an amazing competition to win a luxe romantic stay for two — do check it out if you haven’t yet entered!).

Ruthie’s Australian, Dan’s Scottish, they live in London, met in Tel Aviv, and got married in sunny Spain (the closest they could come to matching that glorious Aussie sunshine without making their guests fly to the other side of the world) — how’s that for an international wedding?!

Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Optimum Weddings helped the couple plan the joyous, laid-back, and, above, all, totally breathtakingly gorgeous celebration of their dreams, and we love how much attention went into the details…

…From the eucalyptus chuppah (in honor of Ruthie’s Australian background!) to the stunning invitations from STG Recommended Vendor Bigday Designs, with intricately adorned with flowers of the exact same types and shades as the ones in the gardens at the venue!

And we love that the couple placed top priority not only on music for their reception, but also for the ceremony —and it doesn’t get any more special than soulful Jewish tunes from STG Recommended Vendor Jonny Mosesson, who added that extra bit of wow factor to an already incredibly special ceremony (Pssst… Brides Club members – Jonny is doing a Jewish Wedding Music live singing + Q&A inside the private Brides Club Facebook group later today… not to be missed!)

Photographer Mireia Cordomi and videographer Antonio De Perez captured all the emotion and fun of the day so wonderfully — not to mention the lush setting, exquisite details, and that coveted Spanish sunlight.

Now over to Ruthie, who looked so glam in her beaded Hayley Paige…

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How We Met

Ruthie, the bride: Daniel and I met when I was living in Tel Aviv and he was there on holiday. We were introduced by two mutual friends who both quite literally sat on me until I agreed to go and meet him. We had our second date in Paris and then our third date in London. The rest is history!

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A Diary of the First Year Of Marriage

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This is a guest post by Mel Islin, STG Blogging Bride. and a member of STG’s Brides Club.
Her 1 year wedding anniversary was yesterday, 18 March!

Our first year of marriage – by Mel Islin

Our first year of marriage. Even just writing it is mad. It feels like just yesterday I was writing my very first blog as a Smashing the Glass blogging bride, introducing myself and Mitch to all you lovely lot. That was nearly 2 years ago (May 2017)! People say you should enjoy your engagement because the wedding comes around quick, they say you should enjoy your planning because the wedding day is over in a flash… but no one tells you how fast time goes after the wedding.


Images above by Chiko Photography
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