Smashing the Glass | Jewish Wedding Blog

Inspired Jewish Weddings

Suzanne & Doron | Beach Party Jewish Wedding Weekend at Bayit Al Hayam, Jaffa, Tel Aviv, Israel

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Hello weekend party people — this is Captain Karen speaking. Welcome aboard Smashing The Glass Airways. Hope you’ve packed your flip flops and party pieces as we’re going to Tel Aviv for a weekend long wedding!

This is the perfect post for a Friday, Not only because it’s beachy and full of sunshine and smiles — perfect for lifting our spirits on this dull January day — but also because it will breeze you into the weekend party spirit. I’m telling you, this folks, this is how you do a beach party wedding!

Suzanne and Doron (or Dozanne as they branded themselves for their wedding) are the smiliest and most fun-loving couple, and both hailing from London, they decided to have themselves a total party-fest of an Israeli destination wedding. The main affair took place in Bait Al Hayam, in Old Jaffa, and furnished Suzanne and Doron with the stunning vistas they were after with breathtaking views of the Tel Aviv coastline and Mediterranean sea. But they also incorporated all sorts of activities outside of the wedding itself, like Beach Olympics a couple of days before the wedding to give all the guests a chance to meet and get to know each other, and a Bedouin Beach BBQ to soak up the hangovers, the day after!

Suzanne is one sexy bride – that hair, those shoes, the dress! Her frock fits her like a glove and she shines in every single photo. And that Doron is pretty cute too…

Liron Erel captured the party vibes and good energies brilliantly with both the incredible wedding film at the end of the post (you have to watch it), and all of the wonderful photos.

Happy Weekend Smash-ers!

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

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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 2026, 2027 and 2028 to avoid for a Jewish wedding plus a 12 Month Wedding Planning Monthly Checklist

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Photo by Lacy Gabrielle Photography

Mazal tov on your engagement! There’s so much to do before the big day (start with trying out Brides Club, our ultra-supportive community for Jewish and Jew-ish brides), it can feel overwhelming to keep track of everything. That’s why I’ve condensed it all into one neat checklist, laying out the biggest tasks that need to be taken care of in chronological order. You’ll find that further down the page, but first things first – you need to pick a date! 

DATES TO AVOID FOR A JEWISH WEDDING IN 2026, 2027 + 2028

Below you can see all the dates that should be avoided for your Jewish wedding in 2026, 2027 and 2028, according to the Jewish calendar.

Jewish Wedding dates to avoid in 2026

Avoid Purim: March 3rd, 2026 (at sunset) to March 4th 2026

Avoid from Passover:  April 1st 2026 [from sunset] to April 9th 2026. 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 2026 falls on 4th May (from sunset) to 5th May 2026

Avoid the 3 weeks leading up to and including Tisha B’av: July 2nd 2026 (from sunset) to July 24th 2026. 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 11th (from sunset) to September 13th 2026

Avoid Yom Kippur: 20th September (from sunset) to 21st September 2026

Avoid Succot: 25th September (from sunset) to 27th September 2026

Avoid Simchat Torah:  2nd October (from sunset) to 4th October 2026

Jewish Wedding dates to avoid in 2027

Avoid Purim: March 22nd, 2027 (at sunset) to March 23rd 2027

Avoid from Passover:  April 21st 2027 [from sunset] to April 29th 2027. 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 2026 falls on 24th May (from sunset) to 25th May 2027

Avoid the 3 weeks leading up to and including Tisha B’av: July 21st 2027 (from sunset) to August 12th 2027. 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: October 1st (from sunset) to October 3rd 2027

Avoid Yom Kippur: 10th October (from sunset) to 11th October 2027

Avoid Succot: 15th October (from sunset) to 22nd October 2027

Avoid Simchat Torah:  23rd October (from sunset) to 24th October 2027

Jewish Wedding dates to avoid in 2028

Avoid Purim: 11th March (sunset) – 12th March

Avoid from Passover:  10th April (sunset) – 18th April. 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 2028 falls on 13th May (from sunset) to 14th May 2028.

Avoid the 3 weeks leading up to and including Tisha B’av: 1st July (from sunset) to 1st August 2028. 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: 20nd September (from sunset) to 22nd September 2028

Avoid Yom Kippur: 29th September (from sunset) to 30th September 2028

Avoid Succot: 4th October (from sunset) to 11th October 2028

Avoid Simchat Torah:  12th October (from sunset) to 13th October 2028

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Dani and David‘s Jewish wedding | Photo by Derek Preciado Photography

 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. If you’d like a more comprehensive guide, you can download our Ultimate Wedding Checklist here.

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

  • Join Brides Club, our members-only community for Jewish and Jew-ish brides to be, for tons of support, guidance, and inspo as you delve into wedding planning!
  • 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, above in this 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!

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Gaby and Alex‘s Jewish wedding | Photo by Mike Garrard Photography

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

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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…

French Riviera Jewish wedding at Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild, Cap Ferrat, South of France
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.”

French Riviera Jewish wedding at Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild, Cap Ferrat, South of France

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

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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…

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