Smashing the Glass | Jewish Wedding Blog

Inspired Jewish Weddings

A Needle & Thread Bride for a Laid-Back Outdoor Jewish Wedding at Spring Road Park and Leonda by the Yarra, Melbourne, Australia

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We are ALL about bride Ashleigh’s ultra-romantic Needle & Thread dress today. That floral beading! So. Much. Pretty.

Ashleigh knew she wanted something low-key yet beautiful, and we’d say that’s a spot-on description of the style of her laid-back Jewish wedding to Brett.

If you’re in the market for a vintage-inspired dress, Needle & Thread is absolutely worth a look. They’ve got some fantastic, stand-out options for brides on a budget, and they also offer some fab styles for brides on the hunt for that ever-elusive modest wedding gown — check out Smashing the Glass Recommended Vendor Jeremy Blode’s many fab shots highlighting all the lovely detailing for evidence of this!

And aren’t Jeremy Blode’s images divine? Everything he seems to snap up just turns into wedding gold, and you’ll see precisely what I mean when you take a peek at the pretty below. 

Ashleigh, an aspiring psychologist working as a program coordinator in the nonprofit sector, and Brett, a doctor, were set on holding their chuppah outside in nature, in their local park – so much so that they went through with their original plans even after an unexpected downpour the morning of the wedding! Love that dedication, guys! Now over to lovely Ash, who’ll fill you in on the rest…

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How we met

Ashley, the bride: We met at a family friend’s bar-mitzvah when Ash was 15 and Brett was 17. We were seated on the same table and ended up in a competition on who would appear on the slideshow the most — Brett won.

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Real Blogging Brides – Harlie: Finding My Dream Wedding Dress

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Harlie will be marrying Ben on 19th August 2018 at the Landmark Hotel, London, UK. Click here to read all Harlie’s planning posts to date.

THREE FACTS: Harlie met Ben on an ‘Aish’ trip to Israel during their university years (2) They will be bringing in lots of Spanish influences into their London wedding, for a variety of reasons, not least because that that’s where they got engaged! (3) They will be having a fairly traditional orthodox London wedding, but are including lots of modern twists.


A lone and eventful journey!

Unlike some girls, I never dreamt about my fantasy wedding when I was younger, and I certainly never thought about my dream wedding dress. Even when I got engaged, I still had no idea what sort of wedding dress I would choose as I couldn’t even imagine myself wearing one. Never did I imagine that finding my dress would be the most stressful part of wedding planning, or that it would lead me on a very long and eventful journey!

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In My Dreams by Caroline Castigliano (STG Recommended Vendor)

October 2017

The engagement party was over and the venue was booked, so I set off on my quest to find ‘the one’ (which took just 13 appointments, over 70 dresses and 4 months of searching). I started to gather some ideas on a Pinterest board with my bridesmaids, with a relatively clear idea in mind of what I thought I wanted.

My mum booked a few appointments at some bridal boutiques that she had been recommended, which seemed like a good place to start as it meant I was not limited to just one designer.

Originally, I was looking for quite a particular style: a tightly fitted fishtail shape with a low back and spaghetti straps. The first dress I tried on at The Bride was exactly this; it was a beautiful Suzanne Neville dress in a delicate lace with buttons down the back.

To try on something different, a classic princess-style Sassi Holford gown followed, then an understated, vintage-esque Jenny Packham. I really thought that the first dress was the one for me as it fitted my very fixed brief, but my mum didn’t want me to settle for the first dress I tried — I can only thank you now, mum!

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A Mori Lee Bride for a City Chic Jewish Wedding at St. Pancras Renaissance, London, UK

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Okay, how much do we love Natasha and Tal’s wisteria chuppah?! SO romantic, and yet somehow also understated, since the couple kept everything else about the structure super simple. What a great reminder that you don’t necessarily have to go all out and do something super dramatic and involved to have a beautiful, memorable chuppah at your Jewish wedding.

There’s so much more that was beautiful and memorable about this day, too — you’ve got to check out Smashing the Glass Recommended Vendor David Pullum’s photos of all the action. But if you just see one, make sure it’s the pic where Natasha’s being tossed six feet in the air (!) on a tablecloth – scroll a bit, and you won’t miss it. It’s pretty dramatic, and we’re not even a little surprised that guests are still talking about it.

From that photo alone, you can probably guess that Natasha and Tal had a pretty rockin’ party. That was partly thanks to Smashing the Glass Recommended Vendor The Function Band, who the couple describe as “truly show-stopping.” They made sure the dance floor was packed all night, and guests are still remarking on their fantastic performance.

Now we’ll turn you over to Natasha, who looked stunning in her Mori Lee dress…

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Jewish wedding St Pancras Renaissance London UK_0019

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A London Venue

Natasha, the bride: We got married at St Pancras Renaissance. We were struggling to find a venue that we agreed on. We walked up to the front of the venue and were instantly wowed. We walked around imaging the photographs and knew it was going to be the one.

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An Eddy K Bride for a Modern Vintage Jew-ish Wedding at Sixth & I Synagogue and Loft at 600 F, Washington, DC, USA

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We always love hearing from couples who’ve used Smashing The Glass as a wedding planning resource, and today is no exception. Beautiful bride Kiki reports that she loved STG for the real wedding inspo and vendor suggestions, and especially the Jewish 101 sections, which she found super helpful in planning her Jew-ish ceremony. Aw, thanks Kiki!

It was important to Kiki and Rob to plan an inclusive Jew-ish wedding that would be equally welcoming to Rob’s family, who are Jewish, and Kiki’s, who are not. They found the perfect spot in the historic Sixth & I Synagogue in their hometown of Washington, DC — you’ve got to check out the gorgeous photos from Ryan Hicks of Lily & Lime — with the reception nearby at Loft at 600 F, another cool historic building, just the thing for a modern vintage-themed wedding!

Also perfect for the modern vintage aesthetic? Kiki’s stunner of a gown by Eddy K, a strapless lace low-backed number with a dramatic train.

But the visuals are far from the only thing we’re loving about this wedding. Kiki and Rob incorporated all kinds of personal touches into the day. Our favorite: before the wedding, their rabbi had them each write ten things they love about each other and email it to him. Then, on the day, before the seven blessings, he talked about the pair as a couple and mentioned the things they had said about each other. Isn’t that the sweetest?!

Before we hand things over to Kiki, we’ve got to mention that we’re so pleased we were able to help guide Kiki and Rob toward Smashing the Glass Recommended Vendor Ink with Intent for just the right ketubah. In Kiki’s words, working with them was “nothing short of amazing,” with customer service that went above and beyond.

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Sixth & I Synagogue and Loft at 600 F, Washington DC, USAHow we met

Kiki, the bride: We met when I started working at George Washington University in fall of 2013 and became friends first through lots of happy hours with coworkers and mutual friends. He now works at NIH in research imaging and I work at GWU assisting in patient care. We started dating that December, and got engaged while on vacation in Florida in December 2016 on the beach at sunrise.

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Engagement Ring Inspo {Our Top Picks from Browns Family Jewellers}

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Helen Warner Photography | IG: @helenwarnerphotography | Facebook : @HelenWarnerPhotography

Alright, hands up – how many of you out there are sneaking peeks at STG while waiting to get engaged? Well, today we have something special for you lot: engagement rings! They’re one of the most fun aspects of engagement, but one that we don’t tend to talk about too much here on the blog. 

That’s all changing now, because we have an awesome collection of our top picks for engagement rings from STG fave Browns Family Jewellers. Based in the UK but shipping worldwide, Browns has got a fantastic selection of engagement rings to suit all styles, from vintage to modern, simple to ornate – and  if you’re looking to branch out from the standard diamond, they’ve got some amazing options featuring colorful stones. They’re known for their fantastic and attentive customer service, too. 

We’ve chosen our favorites from their extensive range, and we’re so excited to share them with you – there are some seriously stunning rings on offer, with some really unique styles that will make you stand out from the pack of engagement selfies on Insta – and some classics too, of course! Read on to find your perfect engagement ring from Browns Family Jewellers. 

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