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Simon & Nik | ‘Black & White and Chic All Over’ same sex Jew-ish wedding at Sunbeam Studios, London, UK

14/01/2015 by Karen

Today I have a double dose of gorgeous grooms with Simon and Nik, who held their Jew-ish wedding at Sunbeam Studios in Ladbroke Grove not far from London’s famous Portobello Road. This super cool venue is a photographic studio by day (Mario Testino shot this Vogue cover there) and holds weddings and events by night. The building was originally the UK’s first ever purpose built car factory and is the perfect blend of classic historical and creative cool.

Their wedding theme was inspired by the venue (always a great starting point for a theme!), in particular, its monochrome interior. Yes, these two limited their colour palette exclusively to black and white, and they weaved it through every last detail including their entire outfits, and that of their guests, which I must say is really effective! Black and white is such a chic theme and relatively simple and easy to work with, and these guys let their creative juices run wild with statement details like their extraordinary black and white wedding cake! It’s by Choccywoccydoodah and it will set your taste buds and creative sparks alight. Honestly folks, I have yet to post anything quite like it on the pages of Smashing The Glass — I can’t wait for you to see it!

And with Simon being a fashion blogger (check out his site, The Very Simon G) it wasn’t surprising that the two grooms looked super hot in their haute couture black and white ensembles, my personal favourite detail being Simon’s studded Christian Louboutin shoes. Super epic.

The wedding film below, courtesy of one of my hand-picked Smashing Suppliers, Denee Motion, will make you laugh and cry, as will the images by STG regulars, Reportage By.

The report today is written by both of our grooms. Enjoy!

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Dates in 2020, 2021 and 2022 to avoid for a Jewish wedding plus a 12 Month Wedding Planning Monthly Checklist

09/01/2015 by Karen

Mazal Tov on your engagement! There’s so much to do before the big day that it’s nice to have it all condensed into one neat checklist. I’ve laid out the biggest tasks that need to be taken care of in chronological order further down the page, but first thing’s first – you need to pick a date!

DATES TO AVOID FOR A JEWISH WEDDING IN 2020, 2021 + 2022

Below you can see all the dates that should be avoided for your Jewish wedding in 2020, 2021 and 2022, according to the Jewish calendar.

Jewish Wedding dates to avoid in 2020

Avoid Purim: March 9th, 2020 (at sunset) to March 10th 2020

Avoid from Passover: (April 8th 2020 [from sunset] to April 16th 2020) to Shavuot: (May 28th 2020 [from sunset] to May 30th 2020). Traditionally, no Jewish weddings take place between Passover and Shavuot except on Lag B’ Omer (that’s the date I chose for my wedding in 2013!) which in 2020 falls on May 11th [from sunset] to May 12th.

Avoid the 3 weeks leading up to and including Tisha B’av: July 8th 2020 (from sunset) to July 30th 2020. Jewish marriages are not allowed during the period of three weeks leading up and including to the Fast of Tisha B’av.

Avoid Rosh Hashana: September 18th (from sunset) to September 20th 2020

Avoid Yom Kippur: September 27th (from sunset) to September 28th 2020

Avoid Succot: October 2nd (from sunset) to October 9th 2020

Avoid Simchat Torah: October 10th (from sunset) to October 11th 2020

Jewish Wedding dates to avoid in 2021

Avoid Purim: 25th February 2021 (from sunset) — 26th February 2021

Avoid from Passover: (27th March 2021 [from sunset] to 4th April 2021) to Shavuot: (16th May 2021 [from sunset] to 18th May 2021). Traditionally, no Jewish weddings take place between Passover and Shavuot except on Lag B’ Omer (that’s the date I chose for my wedding in 2013!) which in 2021 falls on 30th April (from sunset) to 1st May 2021.

Avoid the 3 weeks leading up to and including Tisha B’av: 27th June 2021 (from sunset) to 18th July 2021. Jewish marriages are not allowed during the period of three weeks leading up and including to the Fast of Tisha B’av.

Avoid Rosh Hashana: 6th September (from sunset) to 8th September 2021

Avoid Yom Kippur: 15th September (from sunset) to 16th September 2021

Avoid Succot: 20th September (from sunset) to 27th September 2021

Avoid Simchat Torah: 28th September (from sunset) to 29th September 2021

Jewish Wedding dates to avoid in 2022

Avoid Purim: 16th March (sunset) – 17th March 2022

Avoid from Passover: 15th April (sunset) – 23rd April 2022. Traditionally, no Jewish weddings take place between Passover and Shavuot except on Lag B’ Omer (that’s the date I chose for my wedding in 2013!) which in 2022 falls on 19th May (from sunset) to 20th May 2022

Avoid the 3 weeks leading up to and including Tisha B’av: 17th July (from sunset) to 7th August 2022. Jewish marriages are not allowed during the period of three weeks leading up and including to the Fast of Tisha B’av

Avoid Rosh Hashana: 25th September (from sunset) to 27th September 2022

Avoid Yom Kippur: 4th October (from sunset) to 5th October 2022

Avoid Succot: 9th October (from sunset) to 16th October 2022

Avoid Simchat Torah: 28th October (from sunset) to 29th October 2022

12 Month Wedding Planning Monthly Checklist

So now you are in the know about dates, let’s lay out the biggest tasks that need to be taken care of in chronological order. I’ve used a 12 month timeline as that’s the length of the average UK and USA engagement. It’s just a guide obviously – I myself only had 6 months to plan my wedding and others will have a lot longer.

9-12 months before the wedding

Create a wedding folder and a Pinterest board and start collating ideas for the style of your wedding that appeals to you.
Determine your budget and work out how expenses will be divided.
Reserve a date (see Jewish wedding dates to avoid at the bottom of the post) and send out a save the date. This could be beautifully designed card or e-card and set the tone for your event, or it could be a simple beautifully worded email.
Start to envision your ceremony. Do you want it to be long and symbolic or short and sweet? Do you want to include all the traditions or just a select few?
If you have a particular rabbi in mind, book him or her once you’ve decided on a date. If you haven’t got one in mind, find a rabbi or officiant who suits your style and spirit.
Start a guest list and work out an idea of the number of guests you’ll have as this will generate the most accurate cost estimates.
Brainstorm ceremony and reception ideas and book a venue.
Decide on whether you want a wedding planner, and if you do, hire one.
Research photographers, videographers and entertainment. The really good ones can get booked up early so be sure to commit when you find a supplier you love.
Ensure that any band or DJ you book plays Jewish wedding music.
Research caterers and decide if it’s important for you to have a kosher menu or a non-meat ‘Jewish friendly’ ‘inoffensive’ menu.
Start thinking about your wedding dress and enjoy the experience of shopping and finding your dress!

Looking for a truly unique London wedding venue?Â RSA House may just be ‘the one’

08/01/2015 by Karen

Image by Allister Freeman Photography

Finding a venue for a London wedding can be a complete minefield. There are so many generic venues out there that will ‘do the job’, but if you’re looking for something truly awe-inspiring, versatile and sophisticated, then I would enthusiastically recommend RSA House.

RSA House offers a huge assortment of breathtaking spaces for an unforgettable wedding celebration in the heart of the capital. From the chuppah ceremony to the reception, to a post-wedding brunch, they create truly special customised events that rival all other London wedding venues.

Your venue will set the tone for your entire wedding, so it’s important to find a place that you love, and fits your style. As one of London’s most exciting wedding venues, RSA House would love to show you around on Saturday 17th January 2015 on a personal tour at their exclusive VIP Open Day, so that you can see for yourself what makes their venue so exceptional.

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Clockwise from top left: Martin Beddall, Allister Freeman, Allister Freeman, David Pullum, Allister Freeman, Allister Freeman, Julie Kim, Jessica Alexander, Allister Freeman, Richard Ford, Allister Freeman, Julie Kim

Renata & Jonathan | A Monique Lhuillier bride for a 3-day French Riviera Jewish wedding at Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild, Cap Ferrat, South of France

06/01/2015 by Karen

Weddings by the sea are my absolute favourite, so I’m a little bit obsessed with today’s gorgeous French Riviera Jewish wedding coming to you from the à¼ber-glamorous Cap Ferrat — a quite breathtaking part of the world that I was fortunate enough to visit last summer.

When STG regular, Polly Alexandre revealed the sneak peak to me, I just knew that Renata and Jonathan’s three day wedding extravaganza would be seriously fun to blog. This gorgeous destination wedding has more than a touch of class about it and I thought it would make for the perfect pick-me-up in the first week of January. Thoroughly elegant and sophisticated, the flowers in particular are unbelievably dreamy, with lots of beautiful pink and white peonies, roses and hydrangea. I’m also loving the sweetheart table, the macaroon pyramid, the suite of ‘magnificent garden’ themed stationery (complete with flower seed sachets!), and the jaw-dropping ceremony backdrop.

It’s quite the fashion fest too. I love the classiness of an outdoor black tie wedding, and Jonathan’s Tom Ford tuxedo is an absolute showstopper. Renata chose a Monique Lhuillier gown paired with Manolo Blahnik shoes, and then changed into a bespoke Femmes Fatales dress by Ella Tatarinova for the evening. I told you it was a fashion frenzy!

I’ve got the wedding film for you from Allora Visuals at the end of the post, as well as all the breathtaking imagery by the supremely talented Polly Alexandre. Take it away Polly and Renata…

How we met

In the words of Polly Alexandre, their photographer, Renata and Johnny’s love story involves two jetskis, two cities, one sea urchin, 40 spikes and a hospital.

Polly Alexandre, “This may seem like an unusual story and it’s definitely one of the most original I have heard for sure, but like all good fairytales it has a happy ending. The couple met on a group holiday in Kenya where Johnny persuaded Renata to come out on a jetski ride with him. However Johnny *may or may not* have gone a little bit fast and consequently Renata was thrown from the jetski into the shallow waters. She stepped on the seabed to catch her footing and “ouch!” immediately trod on a sea urchin that immediately shed over 40 spikes into her foot. So it was off to hospital to have them removed.”

“Feeling slightly responsible for her fate, Johnny arranged to take Renata for dinner in London a few weeks later, by way of apology. Except that this was a little more than an apology as rumour has it Johnny actually booked several restaurants for this rather special date…… finally opting for dinner at Daphne’s. The connection was immediate and soon blossomed into a beautiful romance. Despite living in different countries, the couple took it in turns to fly to each other for the weekend so they could be reunited each week.”

Jessica & David | Outdoor, rustic, relaxed Jewish wedding, full of handmade and DIY details, at The Bivouac, Swinton Park, North Yorkshire, UK

02/01/2015 by Karen

I was so thrilled when the talented wedding dress designer, Sally Lacock, alerted me to Jessica & David’s unbelievably beautiful and creative Jewish wedding. I’m almost at a loss as to where to start when talking about it — I’m like a New Year’s Eve Catherine Wheel spinning off in a hundred and one different directions wanting to tell you about each and every one of the exquisite details that make up their Yorkshire Dales wedding (and it’s actually the first time I’ve featured a wedding from this corner of England (NB. Please submit more from this region!)

We’ve got floral crowns, a highly personalised ceremony, a patchwork chuppah made by all the couple’s friends and family, sewn together by the groom’s mum, and decorated with Yorkshire wild flowers, fantastic music choices, the smiliest bride I’ve ever seen, a “Balkanistic” boogie dance band, beautiful wild blooms, a jukebox filled with 100 of the couple’s favourite songs that guests played between sets and throughout the weekend, tipis, personal touches, and not surprisingly, it looks as if everyone had an absolute hoot judging from the beams on all the guests faces. Every picture is wonderfully happy and fun-filled and smiley and exactly what a wedding should be.

Bride Jessica’s report is a joy to read, and Alex Brenner‘s images will make you feel all warm inside and put a lovely big smile on your face. Without further ado I give you one of Smashing The Glass’s most immense weddings yet. Jessica and David, I take my hat off to you…