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Your Judaica, Your Way: Register for the Judaica of Your Dreams with the Jewish Museum Shop

21/07/2022 by Karen Cinnamon

In Smashing The Glass’s Brides Club, we’re always fielding questions about where to register for Judaica that suits your style. Your bridal registry is a perfect opportunity to begin your new life together with unique and beautiful Judaica, and while there are so many options out there these days, it’s not always easy picking out pieces that work with your lifestyle and aesthetics – not to mention finding a one-stop shop where you can register for all the Judaica you might need to round out your collection.

Enter the Jewish Museum Shop. Located inside New York City’s Jewish Museum, on the Upper East Side’s Museum Mile, the Jewish Museum Shop specializes in Judaica and gifts that fit all tastes and lifestyles, from traditional, to contemporary; from formal for special occasions to casual and modern – and they offer international shipping, too. They also do gift cards, which are just the thing to give or get as wedding presents!

Their tastefully curated selection makes it a pleasure to pick out the pieces that are right for you – and the Jewish Museum Shop’s universal registry, which can by synced with registries from other retailers through MyRegistry.com, makes the process convenient and seamless. And best of all, every purchase supports the Jewish Museum – total win-win.

Shabbat Shalom

So what kinds of Judaica do Smashing The Glass couples love to register for? With the Jewish Museum Shop, the sky’s the limit, but items to enhance your Shabbat table are a much-loved place to start. Shabbat is a beautiful end to a busy week, and a meaningful way to bring Judaism into your home, and the Jewish Museum Shop has an incredible selection of candlesticks, kiddush cups, and challah plates, knives, and covers.

Gear Up for the Holidays

You can also make sure you’re covered for all of the holidays:

  • Purim’s a great holiday for entertaining and celebration, and whether you’re in the market for a fun grogger, some adorable hamantaschen earrings, or artsy masks for easy costuming, there’s a super fun selection.
  • It always seems Passover‘s here before we know it! Seder plates, haggadot, and matzah plates, covers, and bags are all wonderful ways to beautify your holiday.
  • For Rosh Hashanah, grace your table with a special honey dish – maybe even a dipper too!
  • Come Hanukkah time, the Jewish Museum Shop’s got menorahs aplenty – whatever style you could possibly wish for, it’s a pretty sure bet they’ve got it.

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Top Jewish Wedding Planning Tips

18/07/2022 by Karen Cinnamon

Jewish wedding Osea Island, Essex, UK_0041
Jasmine & Brett’s wedding featured on Smashing the Glass | Photo by Claudine Hartzel

So you’re planning a Jewish wedding – mazal tov! Wedding planning is exciting, no question, but it can also be seriously overwhelming. There’s so much to learn, so much information to sort through and, in many cases, so many opinions to contend with. 

But having the right tools goes a long way! And that’s why we tapped into our fabulous network of wedding planners to share their top tips for a smooth wedding planning journey. Read on for some essential Jewish wedding wisdom!


Charlotte from La Fete says

Make sure that you are really clear with your parents from the start on their involvement in your big day. Are they expecting certain things – do you have any non-negotiables? The clearer you are earlier on, the easier and smoother the whole process will be. 

Rebecca & Emmanuel, Villa Luisa, Seville, Spain

Rebecca & Emmanuel‘s wedding featured on Smashing The Glass | Photo by Juan Luis Morilla

 Michelle from Elegante by Michelle J says

We are very fortunate that the Jewish marriage ceremony is very poignant and meaningful;  so my advice to all of my couples is to make it especially so,  the highlight of your wedding day. It’s all too easy to get caught up with the dinner florals, the entertainment, the food and of course they are important (and as a wedding planner I also love to get caught up in all of these details). But everyone is gathering together to witness the two of you entering into the commitment of marriage. So this should be considered “the main event”. Everything else that follows is a celebration of the beautiful wedding that your guests have had the privilege of witnessing.

Chloe & Danny‘s wedding featured on Smashing The Glass | Photo by David Bastianoni

Yana Andreev from Craspedia Events says

Create an email account that will be designated for wedding things only. That way you’ll have all the corespondence in one convinient location, you both have access to and it won’t mix with work and personal stuff. 

Jewish wedding Bayaar, Hadera, Israel

Shelly & Harel‘s wedding featured on Smashing The Glass | Photo by Noa Magger

Luba from Primavera Dreams says

My #1 tip for a destination Jewish wedding: Make sure that your planner knows the traditions, understand the particularity of a Jewish wedding and can actively help to source what may be needed (from chuppah and rabbi to challah, to kosher food and wine, etc. if needed). Or it may cost you a lot of money and stress.

Rita-Daniel-Granite-Links-Quincy-MA-USA
Rita & Daniel‘s wedding featured on Smashing the Glass | Photo by Tatiana Blanco Photography 

Dyana from Dyana Dessar says

Do remember why you are getting married, because you love each other!  it is not a military manoeuvre and whilst it is important to have a good timeline don’t sweat the small stuff, stop take a moment and take the day in as it will be over all too soon, and to make sure it all runs smoothly employ a professional wedding planner! 


Jolanda & Jack‘s wedding featured on Smashing the Glass | Photo by The Love Hunters

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The Ultimate Guide to Planning a Destination Wedding in Israel

14/07/2022 by Karen Cinnamon

Laura and Elad‘s Jewish wedding in Tel Aviv | Photo by Ronen Boidek

Laura and Elad‘s Jewish wedding in Tel Aviv | Photo by Ronen Boidek

Some of my very favorite Smashing The Glass real weddings have taken place in Israel. I always dreamed of getting married there myself, and even though in the end we decided to get married in our hometown so that my husband’s 97-year-old grandmother could be at the center of our celebration, I love living vicariously through all our gorgeous Israel brides.

In addition to being such a meaningful place to hold a Jewish wedding, Israel also happens to be pretty unbeatable when it comes to sunny weather, unbeatable food, great views – from lush green forests to pristine beaches, vast deserts to stunning mountain – and the best parties I’ve ever been to. Just check out our real Israeli weddings section if you need any more proof!

Photo by Valeri Prochin

Photo by Valeri Prochin

The downside? It can be more than a little overwhelming to plan a wedding long distance, in a country whose language you might not even speak, and with somewhat different cultural norms than the US or UK. There’s also some tricky bureaucracy to contend with. But never fear! I sat down with Gev Rotem of Bebke, one of the very best Israeli destination wedding planners around, to demystify the process of planning the Israeli destination wedding of your dreams, one step at a time.

Bebke are known for planning some of the most creative, vibrant Israeli destination weddings around – you can see some we’ve featured on Smashing The Glass here – and there’s no one I trust more than Gev to be on top of all the up-to-the-minute ins and outs of crafting your perfect wedding in Israel from abroad. 

Photo by Moran Mayan

How Do You Find Vendors?

It can be really daunting trying to find vendors overseas, especially when there are language/cultural barriers, although most Israelis do speak good English. When you’re less familiar with the landscape, it can also be trickier to make sure you end up with a trustworthy team you can depend on to bring your wedding dreams to life. 

Recommendations from friends and family can certainly be helpful, but we also have a handy list of Israeli Recommended Vendors, carefully vetted to get you started, and, again, our past Israeli real weddings come with a vendor list at the end of each post, so if you see something you like, you can get in touch.

Even better is working with a trusted planner like Gev, who can not only source fantastic vendors you can trust who’ll be the perfect fit for your version, but will also make sure you get the best rates possible. 

Photo by Jen Sladkov

How About a Venue?

When it comes to nailing down that perfect venue, Gev shared some great insights – including one reason for working with a planner that you may not have considered: “There are lots of great villas and private properties open to hiring themselves out for weddings, but the problem with these tends to be that after a couple of events, their neighbors start complaining and they end up needing to shut down. For this reason, we hold lots of weddings at one-off locations where we can fly under the radar – and we have a team constantly looking for new options.”

Photo by Jen Sladkov

While there are also plenty of gorgeous established venues in Israel, Gev notes that your typical Israeli venue holds an average of 250(!) events per year – which means they tend to offer only set packages geared toward Israelis, leading to cookie-cutter events  which may not be quite in line with what couples from abroad are looking for. These venues often aren’t open to the kinds of bespoke touches those of us coming from the US and UK might want to include to craft a wedding that truly reflects them as a couple. 

Laura and Elad‘s Jewish wedding in Tel Aviv | Photo by Ronen Boidek

What Kinds of Unique Venues Can I Find in Israel?

Gev loves to help connect his couples with unique, only-in-Israel venues like olive and pecan groves, open fields, glamorous villas, old houses in Jaffa or ancient structures in Jerusalem, and locations amidst atmospheric archeological ruins. Israel’s got so many fabulous spots so full of character that are unlike anything you’d find at home, and Gev strongly believes that if you decide to get married there you should take advantage, rather than try to find a venue that imitates a New York club or an English garden.

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A Sareh Nouri Bride for an Elegant Black Tie Jewish Wedding on the Water at Wequassett Resort, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, USA

11/07/2022 by Karen Cinnamon

Paige & Ross, Wequassett Resort, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, USA

Who could do with a day at the beach right about now? You too? Well, we’ve got the next best thing for you: the fabulous waterfront Jewish wedding of Boston couple Paige, who works for a non-profit, and Ross, in venture capital. These two held their Jewish wedding right on the water in beautiful Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

Cape Cod is not only a totally idyllic spot for dreamy photos (see Rebecca Love Photography’s wonderful images for evidence), but also a great spot for a “local destination wedding” for New Englanders, a place you can gather your loved ones together for a full-on weekend away from it all without long-haul flights. Which is exactly what Paige and Ross did.

During her wedding planning, Paige was also a member of Smashing The Glass’s Brides Club, and we love hearing how much she benefitted from not only the support and amazing ideas shared in the community, but also the help finding vendors! Paige and Ross found their ketubah designer, Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Melanie Dankowicz, through the group, and they adore both the finished product and the experience they had working with Melanie.

We could go on and on about this elegant wedding – like, how chic did Paige look in Sareh Nouri?! – but we’ll turn you over to the bride for the rest of the story…

Paige & Ross, Wequassett Resort, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, USAPaige & Ross, Wequassett Resort, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, USAPaige & Ross, Wequassett Resort, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, USAPaige & Ross, Wequassett Resort, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, USA
How we Met

Paige, the bride: We met at work! We actually didn’t talk much until we were sent on a work trip to Austin, Texas. During that time, we were able to have conversations while walking and that was it.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

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Jewish Joy to the World: Making the Holiday Season More Inclusive with Hanukkah Decor

06/07/2022 by Karen Cinnamon

Have you ever gone shopping and seen tons of fun Christmas decor but absolutely nothing for Hanukkah? I know I have – and it’s made me feel excluded from all the seasonal festivity.
 
You might wonder why I’m talking about Hanukkah in July. It’s because we’re partnering with Hanukkah Decor – a business on a mission to change that feeling of being excluded during the holiday season – and they’re running a kickstarter campaign this month that we are getting right behind!
 

The Story 

When Mark Perryman’s three-year-old daughter, Carlie, felt left out after seeing her neighborhood aglow with Christmas decorations, he was inspired to design a line of 5 outdoor light-up Hanukkah inflatables to bring seasonal cheer to Jews of all ages – menorahs, dreidels, even Zayde’s Kitchen complete with latkes frying!
 
These durable and long-lasting outdoor inflatable can be proudly displayed in your front yard, year after year – to paraphrase my favorite Hanukkah sweater, “Tis the season to let everyone know you’re Jewish,” after all!
 
And thanks to the Kickstarter Mark and his wife, Katie, started to get their new business off the ground, you can back the campaign to help Jewish children and families celebrate Hanukkah and make new memories and traditions each year. 
 
If the Kickstarter is successful, next year Hanukkah Decor will be not only expanding their outdoor collection but also adding a line of super fun indoor Hanukkah décor in classic and modern designs. 
 
But if the Kickstarter doesn’t reach its goal by July 26, none of this will happen – so be sure to back the Kickstarter today at hanukkahdecor.com/Kickstarter if you want to bring inflatable Jewish joy to the children and grownups in your life!

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