Smashing the Glass | Jewish Wedding Blog

Inspired Jewish Weddings

Win a pair of tickets to Etsy’s Wedding Fair!

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Calling all UK brides! One of my very favourite wedding resources for unique and personalised finds, the amazing Etsy, is  holding its  very own  wedding fair  in central London next month.  There’ll be an amazing selection of original and  beautifully-designed  wedding dresses, accessories, hairpieces, decor and favour ideas all under one roof, and you’ll be able to speak directly to sellers to order something completely custom-made, as well as picking up ready-made pieces on the day.

When is the Etsy wedding fair?

Saturday 16th May 2015 | 10am — 6pm
Sunday 17th May 2015| 10am — 5pm

Where is it?

Oui 2 Rooms, 89 Titchfield Street, London W1W 6RN.

How do I buy  tickets?

All tickets include a complimentary drink and are £12 each. You can buy your tickets here but I’m giving away a  pair of tickets to one  reader and their companion of choice.

How do I get a pair of free tickets?

To enter to win a pair of tickets to the  Etsy wedding fair  simply follow Smashing The Glass on Twitter and retweet this tweet.  If you don’t use Twitter, comment below and that will count as an entry. The competition ends on Friday  17th  April. Good luck!

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Let your story start here… visit London’s celebrated RSA House at their VIP Open Day on Saturday 18th April 2015

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Image: Fiona Kelly  Photography

Ok, hands up who loves a good story? Right now, some of the wedding venues that excite me the most are the ones with tantalising tales to tell. And RSA House — holding a VIP Open Day on Saturday 18th April — is overflowing with stories of epic invention, legendary creativity… and history being made.

Not that ANY day in history will be as important as your special day, of course (we have our priorities spot-on here, at Smashing the Glass). But beyond the breathtakingly elegant Georgian faà§ade near the Strand and Trafalgar Square, lie a range of beautiful, opulent (and often surprising) rooms and spaces, just waiting for your story to start.

Holding your wedding at  RSA House  connects you and your guests to some of the greatest creative thinkers, scientists and artists who have shaped our world. And with 13 different rooms, a capacity for between five and 220 guests, a combination of period detail and contemporary style — and the magically shifting ambience between rooms — it’s a wonderfully versatile venue for your celebrations.

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Carys & Baz | Super glam, super stylish destination Jewish wedding ‘in the desert’ at The Parker Palm Springs, California, USA

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How about we all jet off to Palm Springs to revel in the à¼ber glam destination wedding of Londoners, Carys and Baz?

Carys is half Welsh, half American (with Jewish heritage) and Baz is half English, half Persian, and they had the most exquisite wedding full of stylish, creative details and more than a hint of Palm Springs glitz and glamour.

It’s swoon-inducingly pretty… I just love every element — from Carys’s entire outfit — a divine gown by Israeli wedding dress designer, Berta, a sweeping, full length veil, and glittery Louboutins — to the pink ombre wedding cake, the glittery details, the dreamy flowers, and the Mexican mariachi band that played during the cocktail hour. It’s all just so much fun and beautifully stylised.

One thing that might not have gone so much to plan was the breaking of the glass… A member of the cleaning staff had mistaken the bulb and napkin for rubbish, but fortunately the groomsmen spotted the slip-up at the last minute before Carys and Baz had even noticed, and the equipment was saved!

This wedding proves that you don’t necessarily need to hire a destination wedding planner for a big day abroad. Anything is possible if you have a clear vision, great suppliers, and some helpful friends.

Let’s hand over to Carys for the inside story, but before I do, I must just mention Mi Belle who took all the gorgeous imagery on the page today.

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Jessie & Craig | Spectacular book-themed Jewish wedding at the New York Public Library, New York, USA

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I’m not sure you can get much cooler than Jessie and Craig’s New York City nuptials. Their Jewish wedding has it all. The glamour, the style, the chic, and the unique. I almost died when I first clapped eyes on their chuppah design — I’m telling you, it’s one of the best I’ve ever seen, and you’ll have to excuse me for including so many pictures of it.

Prepare to be green eyed folks as I cannot possibly deny that this W-Day may cause some serious wedding envy, namely because of the exquisite fashion that bride Jessie sported on the day itself. Firstly there are her Christian Louboutin clear heels with silver studs, swiftly followed by her divine Reem Acra dress. Honestly Jessie has the most wonderful sartorial taste.

And what with getting married in the iconic New York Public Library, I haven’t even begun to tell you about how well-executed their literary bookish theme is. I’m talking real-life librarians helping guests find their seats, library card catalogue escort cards, and a chuppah made entirely out of antique books! But wait, it gets better. Their chuppah was topped with hundreds of lightbulbs, so when it came to smashing the glass at the end of the ceremony, the groom picked out a light bulb from their chuppah to smash, and swiftly stamped on it. Have you ever?

So if you want to take a page from Jessie and Craig’s wedding (see what I did there?!), now’s the time, as I’m handing over to the beautiful bride for the story behind her big day. All of the fantastic photography is by the wonderfully talented Dave Robbins, and design is by AaB Creates.

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Intimate and Joyful Israeli Wedding Organised in Just 3 Months at Lawrence Gallery, Old Jaffa, Tel Aviv, Israel

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I have a real sweet treat of a Jewish wedding for you this afternoon folks. Set amidst the boats and charm of Old Jaffa in Tel Aviv, today’s W-Day was planned in just 3 months (nope, I’m not even kidding!) and is bursting at the seams with lots of personal and thoughtful touches.

Rachel and Moshe both come from Modern Orthodox backgrounds, yet it was important for them to make their ceremony as egalitarian and personal as possible. For example, for the Sheva Brachot part of their Jewish wedding ceremony, they invited couples to come up to the chuppah together. The man said the traditional blessing, whilst the woman wrote a personal blessing. Rachel says, “hearing the personal blessings written by the closest women in our lives was so moving and special. They are words that will accompany me throughout my life.”

They also loved the concept of having a procession with klezmer musicians parading through the alleys of Jaffa, leading them to their chuppah in a park overlooking the city and the sea. To them, it felt very timeless, reconnecting to a special tradition that doesn’t happen so much anymore.

Today, not only do I have the usual dose of W-day eye candy for you, taken by the super talented Noa Magger (in particular I am loving the Jaffa harbour images, and the ‘party faces’ of the guests – you have to check them out!) but for those of you that may be stressing over every minute detail in the run up to the big day, Rachel’s words are both wise and super helpful. I particularly love what she says at the end of the post: “I think the biggest piece of advice is to find ways to incorporate friends and family in a meaningful way —  I think it makes for the best memories.”

So true… Let’s hear more from Rachel and Moshe, a smashingly creative, fun and outgoing couple.

Jaffa Wedding
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