Search Results for: bridesmaids charlotte

A Graces Loves Lace Bride for a Rustic Outdoor Jewish Wedding at Acacia Ridge Winery, Yarra Glen, Yarra Valley, Australia

04/04/2018 by Karen Cinnamon

Today’s super cool couple dreamed of a destination Jewish wedding at a winery in South Africa. When logistics got in the way, Lori, a medical student, and Josh, an accountant, found the next best thing: a venue in their home country of Australia that feels a world away from bustling Melbourne.

Lori and Josh knew from the beginning that they wanted a pared-down day with the focus on only the things that mattered most to them: a fun, chill day with the people they love the most, great food and drinks to keep the party flowing, and, above all, the ceremony.

Fun as the reception was, there’s no question that the highlight of the couple’s day was looking out from under their chuppah and seeing all the people they love supporting them in their marriage. As Lori says, “It’s the people that make the wedding, not the things.”

That’s not to say the duo skimped on the details. In honor of their love of Japanese and Mediterranean food, their day boasted sushi and sashimi stations, plus a souvlaki bar — and that’s just the tip of the iceberg of their foodie fantasy!

Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Jeremy Blode Photography did such a fabulous job capturing the raw emotion of the day. He made Lori and Josh feel totally comfortable, both in the lead-up to the wedding and on the day itself, and they’re in awe of not only his passion for his work and uncanny ability to capture authentic moments but also his people-wrangling skills!

And even better, wonderful Jeremy, who works in both Australia and Italy, is also offering a 10% discount on any package to members of our VIB [Very Important Bride] Club!

He’s just one of many handpicked vendors offering discounts or free gifts to members of our Club (who also receive around-the-clock support and advice from my team and me, plus all kinds of cool bridal extras and goodies.) If you haven’t joined yet, don’t delay as we’ll be closing membership for this quarter shortly!

Beautiful bride Lori claims to have hated wedding dress shopping, but it’s hard to believe given how effortlessly lovely she looks in her Grace Loves Lace gown, don’t you think?! Now over to her…

How we met

Lori, the bride: We met through a mutual friend at a nightclub in Melbourne six years ago.

A Pronovias Bride for an Elegant Jewish Wedding at the Corinthian Yacht Club, Tiburon, California, USA

02/04/2018 by Karen Cinnamon

Talk about a venue with a view! Today’s couple, Maggie and Keith, got married at the Corinthian Yacht Club, in beautiful Tiburon, California, just north of San Francisco.

As if the location right on the water weren’t enough, their venue has THE most stunning view of San Francisco. Especially at night, with all of the city lights, it’s really something to behold. For maximum impact, they opted to hold their Jewish wedding during the full moon!

One very cool way Maggie and Keith made the most of being surrounded by the people they love is by opting to set their chuppah up in the middle of the ceremony room, rather than at the front as is common. They felt this was a more intimate setup, and we totally agree! Always love to see couples making traditions their own like this.

And Maggie and Keith give their amazing planner, Cassy Anderson of Cassy Rose Events, full credit for helping them make their vision for the day a reality. They wanted their wedding to be fresh, classic, and elegant, but not totally traditional — and, most of all, they wanted it to reflect who they are as a couple. Cassy totally nailed it.

The pair were thrilled with their photographer, Robin Jolin too, not only for her incredible eye but also for how comfortable she made them feel on the day. And Maggie looked so elegant in her chic Pronovias gown — can you believe she found it at a sample sale, her very first (and, as it turned out, last) dress shopping stop?! Now over to the bride herself…

A Venue with a View

Maggie, the bride: we got married at the Corinthian Yacht Club in Tiburon. The water and spending time together on the Bay is a huge part of our lives, and we loved that we could share that with our guests. The view of San Francisco was a big part of why we picked the location. My dad helped us set the date by selecting a full moon evening. We are so glad we did.

Both of us grew up in the Bay Area and the majority of our friends and family live in San Francisco or elsewhere nearby. We wanted to have an inclusive event that our guests could could make a weekend out of, or alternatively just take a cab over and enjoy the evening.

Not the most romantic theme of all time, but we wanted to day to feel easy, fun, and special for our guests! We selected a location that would be beautiful and interesting for those coming into town and also allow them to easily walk from their hotel to the rehearsal dinner to the hotel to the venue the next day. Our goal was to allow people to fully enjoy the weekend, without having to get in a car.

A Suzanne Neville Bride for a Super Chic Seaside Jewish Wedding at Rosh Hashanah, Bait al Hayam, Jaffa, Israel

30/03/2018 by Karen Cinnamon

Can you believe it’s Erev Passover this evening? How did that happen already?! And what are you doing for seder night tonight? I’m on holiday and we’re having our Seder in Tel Aviv, celebrating with my family in Israel, so it seems appropriate to post a gorgeous Israeli wedding today!

And today’s real Jewish destination wedding fully embraced another beautiful Jewish holiday: Rosh Hashanah.

London-based bride Jamie, a PR and marketing manager for a cancer charity, and groom Joel, who works in finance, opted for a chic outdoor destination wedding in sunny Jaffa, Israel, during the High Holiday season.

Opting to marry at gorgeous seaside venue Bait al Hayam, the couple had an outdoor rooftop chuppah overlooking the city of Jaffa and the sea, with the party in a beautiful air conditioned room beneath — a big deal given the Israeli climate!

In honor of Rosh Hashanah, Jamie and Joel had mini honey pots and apples at each place setting — isn’t that sweet?! We love that this couple incorporated Jewish tradition into their day in ways that were totally authentic to them.

For instance, even though, as Ashkenazi Jews it would have been customary for them to have their badeken separately from the chuppah, they chose to do it on the aisle, because that’s what spoke to them.

And the pair opted to follow the Jewish tradition of not seeing each other in the week leading up to the wedding… that takes some real dedication!

Their wedding also had some incredibly cool touches inspired by sources other than Jewish tradition: for one, as part of their entertainment they had a flower stall where guests could have flower wreaths, bracelets, hair slides, and boutonnieres made! Isn’t that lovely? And a great alternative activity if you’re not into some of the more standard options like photo booths.

Photographer Ronen Boidek captured the day in all its effortless elegance and the insanely talented STG Recommended Vendor Portnoy Brothers brought emotion out of all of the guest through their incredible acoustic sound and beautiful traditional songs. We can’t recommend the Portnoy Brothers enough, one of our absolute favourites! Jamie, who looked super glam in her old Hollywood-style silk Suzanne Neville gown (seriously, we’re all a little bit obsessed with it at STG Towers), will fill you in on the rest.

Hag Sameach – enjoy your matzoh ball soup wherever you’re celebrating this evening!

How we met

Jamie, the bride: I always knew of Joel… I lived with his brother at university, but I met Joel properly once I moved to London, at a friend’s birthday. He carried me out of the bar over his shoulder and we’ve never looked back! 😉

A BHLDN Bride for a Rustic Outdoor Jewish Wedding at Beckendorff Farms, Katy, Texas, USA

28/03/2018 by Karen Cinnamon

This is SUCH a perfect country wedding. It’s got it all: a barn venue, a rustic chuppah, plenty of homespun touches, and wide open spaces as far as the eye can see – we are in Texas, after all

And it’s got oodles of sophistication too…. Jenna, the program director at a breast cancer education non-profit, and, Elan, who works in finance at an energy company, crafted a day that embodies effortless rustic elegance. They wanted their day at beautiful Beckendorff Farms in Katy, Texas, to have a comfortable, natural feel, plus a super personal ceremony, and that’s exactly what they got.

To keep the focus on their splendid outdoor surroundings, the couple opted to keep their chuppah simple. But its fresh, rustic looks bely its status as a bona fide family heirloom: the poles were built in Israel by a family member of Elan’s and had been used in multiple family weddings, and the tallit used as the canopy – also used in many family weddings – belongs to Elan’s father. And the tallit that Jenna and Elan were wrapped in during the ceremony belonged to Elan’s late great-grandfather.

As if this pair didn’t bring enough family into their ceremony with that remarkable chuppah, their rabbi was none other than the bride’s brother-in-law (her sister’s husband!). He conducted their very personal ceremony, featuring the couple’s original vows and a ketubah combining the traditional text with their own promises to each other written in English.

Jenna opted for a soft and dreamy gown from BHLDN, but the coolest thing by far about her wedding look was her shoes: custom blush suede 3-inch heels with a peep-toe and cross ankle straps, courtesy of her brother, who co-owns shoe company Huma Blanco. His design was super chic while still comfortable enough to wear all through the dancing.

And there was some hardcore dancing. The couple’s super energetic hora included not just the standard lifting of the couple on chairs; they were also lifted on tablecloths and thrown in the air!

The day was captured so beautifully by Elisheva Golani, who, along with her team, tackled both photography and videography. Now over to Jenna…

How we met

Jenna, the bride: My first job out of college, I worked with Elan’s sister and brother-in-law at the same summer camp/year-round retreat center that Elan grew up attending. We first met one weekend at a retreat. A month later, Elan’s sister had a baby, and we reconnected at his bris! Thanks to that nephew, Elan and I have been together ever since.

An Oleg Cassini Bride for a Multicultural Jewish Wedding at Jumeirah Carlton Tower Hotel, Belgravia, London, UK

26/03/2018 by Karen Cinnamon

Today’s couple, Monica, a surveyor, and Damon, an e-commerce manager, had a beautiful multicultural Jewish wedding smack bang in the center of London. Their glam day featured a champagne color scheme, stunning flower arrangements, and a super cool Perspex chuppah.

Bride Monica converted to Judaism, and it was important to the couple to incorporate traditions reflecting all of their families’ heritage into the day. They had musicians from Sweden, Germany, Israel, and London brought in to perform songs in Arabic, Greek, Hebrew, and English, and their singers even learned some Greek to make sure they really mastered the performance!

Keeping with the theme of family, they chose their venue, Jumeirah Carlton Tower Hotel in Belgravia, partly because it’s where Damon’s sister got married previously, and they loved having that connection. The couple got their mothers to team up on the welcome speech, Monica’s dad not being much for public speaking! And Damon’s touching speech, including a musical performance by the groom himself (!) made every guest in the room tear up.

Their amazing photographer, Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor David Morgan, was likewise chosen partly because he had worked on a previous family wedding – but also because when the couple met with him they just clicked. Monica sings his praises as not only a super calming influence on the day who “saw beauty in moments you wouldn’t expect,” but also a huge support in the lead-up to the wedding.

Lucky for you UK brides-to-be, David is also offering a 10% discount on any package to members of our VIB [Very Important Bride] Brides Club! He’s just one of many handpicked vendors offering discounts or free gifts to members of this very special group, which also features a private members-only Facebook group with around-the-clock support and advice from my team and me, plus all kinds of cool bridal extras and goodies. If you haven’t joined yet, don’t delay as we’ll be closing membership for this quarter shortly!

Monica and Damon were also delighted with their videographer, Jamie Horton at Yours Truly. Jamie had never worked on a Jewish wedding before, but he was excited to learn about a new set of wedding customs.

In the VIB Facebook community, we hear from a lot of brides who are unsure about using vendors new to Jewish weddings, and this just goes to show that so long as the vendor in question is willing to learn about new wedding traditions there’s really no reason to worry.

Here’s more from Monica, who was just gorgeous in her sparkly Oleg Cassini gown…