Smashing the Glass | Jewish Wedding Blog

Inspired Jewish Weddings

An Intimate Jewish wedding at Villa Mangiacane, Tuscany, Italy, with a Bespoke Gown by Inbal Raviv, the Bride’s Sister

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The number one ingredient for a swoon-worthy wedding is a healthy serving of romance, and Amir & Shiraz’s dreamy Italian ceremony had romance aplenty, both in the aesthetic and the obvious deep, deep love between the two of them.

The pair, originally from Israel, met during their mandatory IDF army service. Amir comforted Shiraz through her homesickness and a best friendship blossomed into true love.

The couple were living in the US at the time of the wedding and decided on Villa Mangiacane in Tuscany, Italy, as a central meeting point to bring together their families from around the world.

We absolutely swooned when we saw Shiraz’s breathtakingly bohemian and fashion-forward dress, and were even more wowed to learn that the dress was made by the bride’s sister, Israeli designer Inbal Raviv. No wonder the dress was so flattering, as it was made with love for the bride by someone with bucket loads of talent and the benefit of knowing her so well.

Roses adorned the chuppah and were a consistent feature in the theme — a meaningful nod to the first flower that Amir gave Shiraz. 

The magic of the day was captured by photographer, Edoardo Agresti, and make sure you also check out the stunning, cinematic wedding video by Milaneschi Films at the bottom of the post.

We’ll hand over to Shiraz now for the full story of her perfect Jewish wedding day.

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How we met

Shiraz, the bride: We met while doing mandatory service in the army in Israel. I was very unsettled and homesick, Amir became my friend and gradually we fell in love. He was always there for me and he still is to this day. My best friend!

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10 Chic Valentine’s date night outfit ideas with Karen Millen

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It’s no secret that I’m a massive Karen Millen fan. I’ve been a loyal and enthusiastic customer ever since I can remember. I shopped there when I fancied myself as a glam London girl about town. I wore Karen Millen for dates in my single days and still wear Karen Millen for date nights with Mr. STG to this day. I wear Karen Millen to work events, business meetings, weddings (Karen Millen makes fabulous wedding guest outfits)… did I mention I’m a fan?

So I thought it was about time that I wrote my long-overdue love letter to Karen Millen on this blog — and since Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, I thought I’d make your Valentine’s Day outfit choices just that little bit easier (unless, like me, you fall in love with everything!)

Here are my top ten Valentine’s Day date night looks from the Karen Millen SS17 Collection.

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Navy jumpsuit

A perfect work-to-evening look for date nights after a busy day in the office. Style it down with a blazer during the day for a more professional look and style it up with some classic jewellery and a sleek clutch to stun for a Valentine’s date.

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Lily print dress

We love this flirty, floral and feminine pencil dress. The off-the-shoulder design adds just a hint of sex appeal to a classic look.

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Frill blouse

A casual date night go-to blouse for an evening at the movies or a post-work date. Dress up with a lovely skirt or culottes or dress down with a pair of skinny jeans and heels for a no-fuss (but all-frills) outfit.

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Burgundy ruffle midi dress

With its sexy v-neckline and deep, sultry burgundy shade, this is the perfect dress for a chilly date night and a wonderful choice to wear from dinner to cocktails or anywhere else you might want to go.

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Searching for an exceptional wedding planner? It has to be Lamare London

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Liesl-Lamare-London-Wedding-PlannersWow, 1st of February already. How did that happen? 2017 is going so fast but I hope our newly engaged readers are still in that blissful day-dreamy phase.

When you let your mind wander, what would your guests say about your fantasy wedding? Would they say it was chic, smart, brilliant and SO YOU? Will they be talking about those gorgeous, thoughtful touches that brought the whole occasion together?

Please meet Lamare London. These extraordinary wedding planners specialise in getting just that reaction. They plan and craft weddings in the UK that are brimming with style and personality.

And no matter what the size of your wedding, every event gets the same TLC treatment. For Lamare London, this means ‘Touches of Luxury and Character”. I love that.

Lamare London works on a “luxury is in each detail” principle. And that’s got everything to do with it’s founder Liesl Lamare. 

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About Liesl Lamare

Liesl, who’s been organising weddings and events for ten years, is an unshakeable, detail-led and supremely creative, planner. She’s zeitgeisty and brings this to her work. Her influences include emerging interior design trends, fashion, travel and exhibitions. She’s got taste, folks. Lots of it.

Liesl is also actually a good friend of mine. We met through the industry and have spent loads of time together over the last couple of years. She’s amazing — such a lovely person but also so sophisticated, stylish and graceful. You know those people who just ooze understated glamour and are always well put together?

Unsurprisingly, the weddings she plans with her team at Lamare London are as crisp and gorgeous as the woman herself. 

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Why Use a Wedding Planner?

You could SAVE money, gain control over your wedding and take away a whole lot of stress.

For most, your wedding day will probably be the first major event you’ve organised and it’s one hell of a learning curve if you go it alone.

So what can you expect to gain with a GOOD wedding planner like Lamare London?

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An autumnal Jewish wedding with a bride in a Melanie Potro dress at the Intercontinental on Park Lane, London

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Jewish-Wedding-Intercontinental-on-Park-Lane-London Fall has arrived early on STG! If you’re already missing all the seasonal colourful leaves, chunky knits and spicy drinks, then settle in and relive the season with Frances and Rudi’s magically autumnal real wedding, captured by photographer Elegant & Wild. 

Beautiful bride, Frances, wore an astoundingly stunning bespoke gown made by much-loved Smashing Supplier, Melanie Potro. The gown evoked echoes of Audrey Hepburn, and Frances looked like an absolute dream. We’re totally in love! We also highly approve of Frances’s choice to pair the dress with gorgeous, glittery gold heels.

Talented Frances was also able to harness her creative side, crafting the entire autumnal stationery suite for the wedding and even launching her own website selling her gorgeous products.

Melanie Potro wasn’t the only Smashing Supplier at Rudi and Frances’s big day. Amazing party band, Sensation Band, also played at the reception, even saving the day by keeping everyone entertained during a temporary mishap.

We also want to mention the beautiful, sentimental chuppah idea of using tallis from the bride and grooms’ respective grandfathers. The story behind this is so moving and it was a really wonderful way to honour generations of  their families. 

I’ll hand over to our gorgeous bride to tell us more. Take it away, Frances!  

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How we met

Frances, the bride: We have lots of mutual friends, we were friends on Facebook and knew each other from parties over the years, but in the end it was that good old matchmaker, Tinder, that got us together.

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An appropriately named venue: Intercontinental on Park Lane in London

We got married at the Intercontinental on Park Lane, quite simply because it was central and big enough to hold 300 people. My Dad gave a nod to its significance in his speech, commenting on the ‘intercontinental’ nature of our wedding. Rudi’s family is from Iraq and mine from London, although prior to that Austria, Russia and Poland. We had guests from all over too.

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A fun festival Masorti Jewish wedding with a bride in an Alice Temperley dress at South Farm, Hertfordshire, UK

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Every now and then, one of those real weddings lands in the STG inbox that just genuinely looks like so much fun that we wish we would have been invited too!

Between the vintage funfair games, pink flamingos, glamping, bouncy castle, ice cream truck (in that order, we hope) and photobooth, as well as providing a crà¨che for their friends’ kids, this conscientious couple could not have put more effort into keeping their guests entertained.

Charlotte and Dan’s fun-filled, laid-back, festival-style wedding took place at South Farm in Royston, Hertfordshire and was shot by photographer Kristian Leven.

Bride, Charlotte, wowed with fresh flowers in her hair and an an Alice Temperley dress fit for a boho bride (and for a quick go on the bouncy castle!).

Charlotte and Dan didn’t let the disappointment of their outdoor ceremony being rained off spoil their big day. Instead, they ran with their plan B, moving the ceremony to the barn. Forget crying babies, this couple had to contend with oinking pigs and crowing cockerels, making their Masorti ceremony all the more interesting.

Equality was also an important factor in the planning of the day. The Masorti ceremony was chosen due to its inclusivity and Charlotte delivered a speech, as did her close, female friends. Who runs the world?

In true festival style, the party went on until the early hours — a roaring success all round. Let’s hand over to Charlotte to tell us more about her and Dan’s special day.

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How we met

Charlotte, the bride: Dan is my big brother Paul’s best friend. Naughty naughty…

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A quirky, outdoorsy venue at South Farm in Royston, UK

We chose to get married at South Farm in Royston due to its laid-back style and country feel. It was the only venue we looked at because we knew exactly what we wanted. We aren’t into fussy formal weddings and we wanted everyone to feel relaxed and happy.

The venue is quirky yet beautiful and we had free range to personalise it which was really important to us. I grew up in the country and am quite outdoorsy and so wanted the venue to reflect that.

South Farm is not too far from London (50 minutes) but still has that rural feel. We wanted to make the wedding as stress free as possible for everyone especially seeing as were married on a Monday.

Everyone that worked at South Farm was so passionate about the venue, in particular the incredible chef Matt and our beyond amazing event organizer Becky. I could not have asked for more helpful, dedicated and lovely people to help plan the day with.

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