Smashing the Glass | Jewish Wedding Blog

Inspired Jewish Weddings

Home > You searched for ceremony > Page 90

Search Results for: ceremony

Why We Love Kimpton Fitzroy London for Jewish Weddings, from Micro to Mega

by

It’s no secret that the Kimpton Fitzroy London is one of my very favourite Jewish wedding venues. Located oh-so-centrally in Bloomsbury’s Russell Square, the Kimpton Fitzroy London’s combination of historic charm and modern luxury makes it an incredibly elegant spot equally suited for an intimate micro wedding or a post-pandemic celebration with up to 200 guests.

Originally built in 1898 (on the site of Emmaline Pankhurst’s onetime home — how’s that for a bit of feminist history to add to your wedding?!), Kimpton Fitzroy London undertook a two-year, £85 million refurbishment of the hotel before opening it in April 2018 as the first Kimpton property in the UK.

Danielle and Rob‘s Jewish micro wedding | Photo by Mike Garrard

Micro Wedding Bliss

Since then, they’ve hosted some truly exquisite Jewish weddings, from the biggest ballroom bashes to intimate micro weddings like Danielle and Rob‘s that we featured on STG last month. 

For as long as government restrictions on weddings last, Kimpton Fitzroy London offers bespoke micro wedding packages to suit your every need for groups starting at 15 – all while following up-to-the-minute COVID regulations, of course.

Depending on your specific needs, you’ll have your pick of a range of delightful spaces – from the dramatic ballroom to eight-intimate rooms and four restaurants and bars, all flooded with natural light and historic details at every turn. Meanwhile, the Kimpton Fitzroy London is also booking up fast for 100+ person celebrations later this year and in 2022!

And did I mention that the team at Kimpton Fitzroy London couldn’t be more knowledgeable and enthusiastic about Jewish weddings? 

A Space to Suit Every Need

But back to the glorious space that is Kimpton Fitzroy London: The centre of the property — at least when it comes to weddings — is the ballroom, a grand event space perfect for a standout Jewish ceremony followed by a beautiful reception, boasting a private entrance on Bernard Street, original 19th-century architectural details, a full wall of windows, and a mezzanine gallery.

Danielle and Rob‘s Jewish micro wedding | Photo by Mike Garrard

And the adjoining Palm Court is the most magical backdrop for reception drinks, with a soaring glass ceiling that floods the room with light, comfortable clusters of seating, an outdoor terrace, and lots of gorgeous greenery — the vibe is conservatory meets lounge meets members club, and it is exactly as fabulous as it sounds. Intimate yet fun, hip yet classic.

I’m seriously in love with this place and it has got to be the best reception space to go with a ballroom wedding that I’ve seen in London.

Danielle and Rob‘s Jewish micro wedding | Photo by Mike Garrard

Innovative Kosher Catering

For those needing fully certified kosher catering, the Kimpton Fitzroy London is in partnership with Ben Tenenblat as their preferred kosher caterer! And in addition to the stellar in-house team, Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Adam Nathan Catering is available for delectable kosher-style menus.

Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A Jewish Micro Wedding with the Most Breathtaking Floral Chuppah at Jacob’s Pillow, Becket, Massachusetts, USA

by

Gaby and Michael, Jacob’s Pillow, Becket, Massachusetts, USA

We see a lot of cool chuppahs around here, but the one Gaby, a life and career coach, and Michael, an investment advisor, dreamed up for their big day at Jacob’s Pillow in the picturesque Berkshires really takes the (wedding) cake. Filled with gorgeous flowers, centered on an otherwise empty stage overlooking the mountains surrounding the venue, it’s really, truly, 100% #chuppahgoals. We’re absolutely obsessed with the dreamy photos by Lauren Foley of 309 Productions, and we’re guessing you will be too.

Gaby and Michael had initially planned a 200-person wedding, but when the pandemic hit they had to scale their day down to just 20 guests. Luckily, the couple had incredible wedding planner Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Tara Consolati on their team to redesign the day to perfectly fit their new, smaller event. Together, they came up with a unique “interactive” ceremony that included participation by 32 guests (including some of the 300 who attended virtually via Zoom)! Friends and family gave musical performances, mini speeches, and blessings, and lit memorial candles. What an incredibly special way to make guests really feel a part of things – especially those who are physically far away!

Another wonderful touch is that Gaby’s step-sister Rachel painted the most gorgeous border on the ketubah they purchased from Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor ketubah.com, incorporating lots of personal touches with special meaning to the couple.

There’s so much more we could say about this fab day (did we mention that Gaby found her dress by chance off the rack at Bloomingdales, for 1/10 of the price of the bridal gowns she’d been looking at?), but we’ll leave it to the bride to fill you in on the rest…

Gaby and Michael, Jacob’s Pillow, Becket, Massachusetts, USA
How we Met

Gaby, the bride and Michael, the groom: Gaby and Michael met on the dating app, Hinge, in the summer of 2018! After only a few messages back and forth they met for drinks at La Pecora Bianca in Midtown Manhattan. The night was perfect and was filled with many laughs, stories and glasses of wine. Even more fitting, Gaby went to her family home in the Berkshires the weekend afterward, a place that proved incredibly important to our relationship given we lived there for nearly 7 months during the pandemic.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A Stella York Bride for a Classic Country House Jewish Wedding at Hedsor House, Taplow, UK

by

Kim and Josh, Hedsor House, UK

There’s nothing quite like a good English countryside Jewish wedding. And Kim, a secondary school maths teacher, and Josh, a quality manager, threw the absolute perfect bash at Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Hedsor House, which, despite being located conveniently just outside London, feels like it’s worlds away.

Family-run stately home Hedsor House ticked all the couple’s boxes: classic feel; exclusive hire for 150 people; rooms for the bridal party to sleep in, and ability to bring in a great kosher caterer. And if you scroll through the gorgeous images from Richard Galloway Photography, you’ll see that Hedsor could not have been a more perfect spot for Kim and Josh’s special day.

We’re in love with the couple’s exquisite lace effect chuppah (to match Kim’s lace gown!), supplied by Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor The Happy Chuppah People, which has held up by Josh’s ushers during the ceremony.

We’re also totally taken with the couple’s Jenga “guest book,” a custom Jenga tower with Kim and Josh’s names and wedding date engraved into each block, which guests could then write messages on. The pair plans to bring it out for a game every year on their anniversary – how sweet is that?!

Now over to the bride, who looked stellar in Stella York…

Kim and Josh, Hedsor House, UKKim and Josh, Hedsor House, UKKim and Josh, Hedsor House, UKKim and Josh, Hedsor House, UK
How we Met

Kim, the bride: We met online on ‘Plenty of Fish’.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A Pronovias Bride for a Sustainable Backyard Jewish Micro Wedding in Somerville, Massachusetts, USA

by

Leo-and-Alana-private-residence-Somerville-MA

Today’s fantastic couple, Alana and Leo, are always up for an adventure – whether that means marking their 10-month dating anniversary by taking part in The Amazing Race or retooling their plans for a three-day summer camp-style wedding extravaganza in the Berkshires to an intimate micro affair in their very own backyard!  

And do we ever love the way these two ended up leaning into their homey, sustainable low-pressure celebration. From a gorgeous simple chuppah built by a friend a wedding gift to a ketubah handcrafted by a designer friend featuring hand-pressed wildflowers from the couple’s own garden, this Jewish wedding is just chock full of meaningful touches.

We’re in love with Simi Rabinowitz’s luminous, joy-filled photos of the day. And though only a handful of the couple’s original guest list could attend in person, thanks to the professional live streaming services of Bob Antonelli friends and family around the world were able to take part.

Echoing the sentiments we’ve heard from so many couples who’ve married during the pandemic under circumstances very different than the ones they’d expected, Alana says, “We wouldn’t have done our wedding any other way. It was true to us, and felt like a real celebration of our friends and our neighborhood!”

Over to you, Alana!

Leo-and-Alana-private-residence-Somerville-MALeo-and-Alana-private-residence-Somerville-MALeo-and-Alana-private-residence-Somerville-MALeo-and-Alana-private-residence-Somerville-MA
How we Met

Alana, the bride: We met on Tinder in January 2018! And then, right after moving in together six months after we met — all our friends thought we were crazy! — we did something even crazier and applied for The Amazing Race on a whim … and we were cast! It was such a whirlwind. We actually started the first leg of The Amazing Race on our ten-month anniversary!

Racing around the world together wasn’t what convinced us we were meant to be (we’d known that probablyyyy since our third date) but it was such an affirming experience. After you’ve done such wild things with someone and been in such high-stress situations, getting married is a no brainer. We got engaged on our one year anniversary at Walden Pond in Massachusetts.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A Joss Couture Bride for a Romantic Jewish Wedding Weekend at Monate Lodge, South Africa

by

Jess-and-Dan-Monate-Game-Lodge-South-Africa

How incredibly gorgeous is the Jewish wedding of South African couple Jess, an entrepreneur, and Dan, a financial director for a property company?! These two knew from the beginning they wanted to make their big day into a weekend away where they could kick back and enjoy the time with their family and friends, and they opted for a stunning game lodge highlighting South Africa’s stunning nature.

Jess and Dan kicked things off with a game drive and dinner in a candlelit cave in advance of their Sunday wedding, which took place outdoors right in the midst of the South African bush. To make the most of the scenery, the whole wedding, from chuppah to reception, took place outside (luckily, there was no rain!). We’re obsessed with the fact that the couple wed under a gorgeous 400-year-old (!) rock fig tree, and how special is it that Jess’s dad built the chuppah from scratch? And how beautiful are the luminous images from Agape Wedding Photography?

In the leadup to her wedding, Jess joined Smashing The Glass’s Brides Club, and we’re so touched by her wonderful words about the members club:

I have loved every minute of being part of STG Brides Club, the sense of community from total strangers, turned friends is just incredible. There is no better place to ask questions, share ideas, as well as wedding woes and wins than Brides Club! Dare I say the spin off from Brides Club, Smashing Life, is even better! None of us could bear the thought of leaving the community once we got married and it has become a place I often turn to for inspiration or advice.

Now we’ll turn you over to Jess…

Jess-and-Dan-Monate-Game-Lodge-South-Africa

Jess-and-Dan-Monate-Game-Lodge-South-Africa

Jess-and-Dan-Monate-Game-Lodge-South-AfricaJess-and-Dan-Monate-Game-Lodge-South-Africa
How we Met

Jess, the bride: We met on Tinder which was an absolute fluke because I was in another city at the time at my best friend’s wedding and Dan did not usually look outside a certain radius.Continue ReadingContinue Reading