Smashing the Glass | Jewish Wedding Blog

Inspired Jewish Weddings

How To Have a Non-Tacky Hen Do, or Bachelorette Party

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Top image: Melanie Duerkopp
All other images: Jackie King taken from Amy Schreibman Walter ‘s Hen party

Like any woman in her late 30’s, I’ve attended lots of hen parties over the years. At many of them, I’ve watched a friend, surrounded by her close friends and family (and, often, her future mother in law) partake in embarrassing hen party activities. I’ve witnessed sweaty male strippers sitting on the laps of brides-to-be, bewildered future brides eating platefuls of penis pasta…the list goes on…and, honestly, it all makes me cringe a bit. Call me a party pooper, but so many hen parties I’ve attended have felt more like a seedy night out than anything else, an evening where the bride-to-be is coerced somehow into taking on a sexualised role, as are her friends and family.

Often, inherent in the planning process of hen parties is the idea that the bride-to-be should end up at least a little bit intoxicated, or cavorting with a male that is not her future husband. This kind of hen party doesn’t honour the bride to-be for the woman she is. I see the seedy hen party as a wasted opportunity. A hen party can serve an important purpose —it can be a meaningful celebration of your single years — a milestone event that respectfully calls that time in your life to a close as you begin a new chapter. For my hen party, I wanted to gather the women who had been there for me during my single years — friends and family members who had listened to my stories of bad dates and failed relationships, offered advice and support and generally been a positive force. I wanted my hen party to be a chance to pay tribute to my single years and to raise a toast to the women who had been such a part of them.

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Timing is everything

When planning my party, I couldn’t have predicted that it would turn out to be one of the best nights of my life. I arranged the hen party so it happened just a few days before my wedding, which meant that friends who were flying in from other countries for the wedding could attend the hen party, too. Friends then timed their flights to arrive for my hen party and then just stayed on a few more days for the wedding.

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Considering getting married in Italy? Then I’ve found your perfect wedding planner…

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SposiamoVi
I’ve made no secret of the fact that if I were to marry Mr STG again, it would be in the gorgeous ‘boot’ of Southern Europe.  There is simply something magical about Italy. It feeds the soul. It conjures up a world in our imagination and touches so many thanks to it’s art, fashion, culture, food, climate and collection of insanely contrasting but always stunning vistas.

A destination wedding in Italy is one thing but trying to choose where to have it is another.  How to pick from the sun-drenched Tuscan olive groves, Venice and all its romantic splendour, Florence and its history and elegance, Rome and its Dolce Vita cityscape, the sophisticated glamour of the Amalfi coast or snowy, classy Cortina D’Ampezzo?

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But, like reading a book, everyone comes away with their own interpretation of Italy’s best bits.

And that’s why if you’re thinking of having your Jewish wedding there, I think it’s a pretty good idea to turn to a group of experts who can take on the challenge of understanding your vision, building on it and ultimately realising your dream  wedding.

Well today’s your lucky day because I’ve found exactly who you’re looking for:  SposiamoVi  are superior Italian wedding planners who I first discovered through Olivia and Jacob’s breathtaking Jewish wedding  that took place in Florence. I blogged it last year  but  this is a  wedding that will stay with me for a very long time and you must check it out if you haven’t already. The, style,  planning and delivery of it are  simply astonishing. Once  I had seen what SposiamoVi were capable of  with this wedding,  I snapped up them right away  as Smashing Suppliers.

SposiamoVi was set up ten years ago by Alice, an interior designer and Cinzia, an event organiser and they currently boast offices in Florence, Portofino and Amalfi.

They’re an awesome team of high-achieving and inspired wedding planners. Armed with a golden rolodex of trusted suppliers right across Italy, they provide local knowledge and know-how and with a team of creative directors, stylists and designers to hand, they can turn your wedding into an art form.

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A Ritva Westenius bride for a city-chic Interfaith Jewish Wedding at One Marylebone, Central London, UK

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Today’s wedding from One Marylebone in the heart of London, is a masterclass in how to ensure your guests enjoy your big day. In particular, it’s an absolute must-read for anyone planning a mixed faith wedding. Lucy’s report is long — there’s no denying it — but it’s brilliantly written and very much worth scrutinising, particularly the section on how she and Matt developed and personalised their ceremony. It’s clear that Lucy’s Jewish faith is culturally and religiously of deep significance to her, and she and Matt (who’s taken to her Jewish-ness like a duck to water!) incorporated so many symbolic and personal details into their celebration.

And I love this…Six weeks before the big day they invited all of Matt’s friends over to their flat, and hosted a small Israeli dancing lesson as many of Matt’s friends had never attended a Jewish wedding before. Such a brilliant and fun idea!  As Lucy says, “while there is nothing that can prepare you for the sheer madness of running in circles and being thrown up in the air — it was great that the boys had a vague idea of what was going on so that on the day they knew how to get stuck in!”

The attention to their guests enjoyment didn’t stop there… Lucy and Matt really wanted to let their guests know how happy they were that they were there to share their big day with them. So they hand-wrote 200 (yes 200!) individual cards so that each guest had a personal note waiting for them on their place at the table.

Our bride and groom look impeccable stylish — Lucy in a beautifully cut Ritva Westenius gown, and Matt in a three piece suit by Hackett. And whilst we’re talking fashion can I just be frivolous and say that I am loving the gals’ personalised sports bras!

Photography is by Jez Dickson whose work I’m delighted to be featuring on the blog today.

One Marylebone Wedding
how we met

Lucy, the Bride: Matt and I met in the summer of 2010, at a club in Putney. We both had other plans, and as two staunch North Londoners neither of us were particularly enamoured with the idea of an evening so far from home! I spotted Matt on the dancefloor and danced near him, within a matter of minutes he had offered to buy me a drink — we sat in the corner nursing a single drink for the next three hours and had our first official date the next day.

On the Sunday he rang his mother and told her that he had met the woman he wanted to marry — she politely reminded him that I may not necessarily feel the same way after one short meeting. Nonetheless, 6 dates and 10 days later he asked me if I would be his girlfriend, after 4 years of dating he asked me to marry him and then 15 months after that we walked down the aisle!

We have never stopped talking or loving spending time with each other — and going south of the river that one night could not have been more worthwhile! Both of us are complete chatterboxes and one of the questions that everyone always asks us is who speaks when we get home? How do either of us get a word in edgeways? But somehow we’ve managed to find the one person that we can sit in silence with.

One Marylebone Wedding
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“My best Jewish wedding photo” by Babb Photo

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A weekly series where  I ask some of the world’s best wedding photographers to pick out their favourite shot from their Jewish wedding portfolio. This week it’s the turn of Laura Babb of Babb Photo.

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‘The veiling’ by  Babb Photo

I love this picture of Missy’s bridesmaids covering her with a veil before she sees Yoni for the first time. Missy and Yoni were having a multi-faith wedding and they decided to interpret different elements of weddings from their own cultures that were important to them.  This veiling replaced the traditional badeken and other nods to elements from Jewish weddings included the seven non-denominational ‘blessings’ and words of wisdom that were read out by members of both families.

Missy and Yoni were lucky enough to have the renowned Lionel Blue, a friend of the family, speak after their ceremony and he talked about the importance of different cultures coming together in these troubled times. Shared values are where we find common ground and I really love multicultural weddings that celebrate those shared values and two families coming together.”

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10 Brilliant Ways to Personalize Your Wedding

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personalise your wedding
Hello you.. how’s 2016 treating you so far?! I’d love to hear all about what you’ve been up to… For me, January has already brought in some really exciting new projects and my creative juices have been flowing to the max! Creative ideas always excite me so today I want to tell you about some, quite frankly, brilliantly imaginative and fun ways to personalise your wedding day. You’re going to love these! Let me know which ones are your favourites, and if you want even more creative wedding inspiration, head over here.

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1. Custom slogan veil  £35

Say it loud and proud with a slogan veil. This double layered, shoulder-length veil is handmade to order with the word or phrase of your choice (up to 12 characters). I love the idea of having one with your new married name on it!
Custom wedding veilBUY

2. Personalised marshmallow cake toppers / favours
From £1.30 per marshmallow

Print pictures of each of your guests on marshmallows and attach them on a skewer to their dessert! If that’s too time-consuming, how about personalising the marshmallows with a picture of the two of you, or your wedding logo? You could also use them as favours and create mallow pops!
Boomf wedding favours
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3. Personalised cake topper  £56

Have your names, your new surname, or any phrase you fancy stop your wedding cake!
personalised cake topper

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