Israel Archives - Smashing the Glass

A BHLDN Bride for a Laid-Back American-Israeli Jewish Wedding with a Touch of Glam at Al HaYam, Sdot Yam, Israel

16/10/2025 by Karen Cinnamon

We love a multicultural Jewish wedding – and American bride Kelly and Israeli groom Guy, who both work in the Tel Aviv tech scene – had one of the best!

The couple wanted to use their big day as a chance to share their love of Israel with loved ones from abroad, and Al HaYam in Sdot Yam was the perfect place to do just that. With some help from their wedding producer Vanessa Events, they crafted a day that perfectly blended the duo’s Israeli and American backgrounds, from the food to the music to the traditions. Don’t miss it all in the wonderful images by Tzahi Shemesh.

One thing we especially love is the unique touches Kelly and Guy’s rabbi helped them add into their ketubah signing: each family member shared one word they wanted to bless the marriage with, then poured their glass of wine into a shared carafe that the pair drank from during our ceremony. How special is that?

This day was filled with so many beautiful details – read on for the full story in Kelly’s own words…

How We Met

Kelly, the bride: I moved to Tel Aviv from the U.S. almost seven years ago, planning to stay for just three months. But as my dad said in his wedding speech, I ended up falling in love twice — once with Israel, and once with Guy.

About three years after the move, we matched on Bumble. It was still during covid, so for our first date, we took an illegal walk around the block. From the moment we started talking, we never really stopped. We’re both night owls, so we’d walk or sit in the park for hours, talking until nearly sunrise. Three years later, Guy proposed on a trip to Greece.

A Winter Jewish Wedding Planned in 80 Days at Grace Events, Rishon Lezion, Israel

29/09/2025 by Karen Cinnamon

You’d never believe it to scroll through their stunning photos, but Elsie and Yonatan planned their fabulous Jewish wedding from start to finish in just 80 days!

The couple, both olim looking to celebrate their love not only for each other but for their home in Israel too, found the perfect team of vendors to make the day of their dreams come true on a tight timeline – in Elsie’s words, “This country is full of people who want to make a simcha happen, and I got so much help from every vendor who was excited to be a part of our day.”

Grace Events – Event Hall in Rishon Lezion provided the perfect setting for the big day – beautiful nature, close enough to Tel Aviv to be convenient for guests flying in from abroad, perfectly sized for the couple’s smaller (by Israeli standards) guest list, and, last but not least, boasting great food!

Elsie and Yonatan knew they wanted Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Herschel Gutman to capture their special day. In Elsie’s words, “Herschel is the most recommended photographer in every bridal group I joined!. His lighting and framing made every photo seem so naturally perfect without the need to retouch or edit them barely at all. He also accommodated our desire to have pictures taken in Jerusalem and meet us at our venue across the entire country in Rishon later that day!” It doesn’t get much better than that!

Read on for the rest of the story in Elsie’s own words…

How We Met

Elsie, the bride: We both got hired to work at Mikes Place, a bar on the beach in TLV, for the summer. I had just made Aliyah and moved into an apartment in Yafo, and while I was getting introduced to the staff, my wallet was stolen. I lost all my American and Israeli IDs and cards and I was so saddened.

Yoni went up and down the tayelet looking to see if it had been dropped – he even pulled up security camera footage at the bar to see if he could spot the person who took it. He instantly became my first real friend in Israel and we’ve been inseparable ever since.

A Studio Myra Bride for a Second Time Around Friday Morning Jewish Wedding at Psagot Winery, Sha’ar Binyamin, Israel

01/09/2025 by Karen Cinnamon

We love that Israeli couple Noa, an ER nurse and the regional director of the Terem chain of emergency clinics, and Laurence, the VP of technical operations for a fintech company, made their Jewish wedding ultra-personal. In Noa’s words, “As an older and second-time couple, we felt very free to set aside all the traditions with which we didn’t connect. We kept our guest list small and intimate, and made sure the people that mattered most to us were involved.”

This included getting married on a Friday morning, involving family and friends in the wedding (especially the couple’s children), and planning the big day in under 6 weeks. Since the winter wedding fell on the shortest Friday of the year, the duo wanted to help their guests out with Shabbat preparations, so as favors they gave each guest a bouquet of Shabbat flowers (that matched Noa’s bouquet) and a fresh challah to take home – how nice is that?!

When it came time to choose the perfect photographer to capture their big day, there was no question that it would be anyone but Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Herschel Gutman. In Noa’s words, Herschel “was the only vendor that I was dead set on. Thankfully he was available, even with our short engagement, and his busy schedule. Our pictures came out incredible! We are so thrilled with our choice of Herschel. He had such a calm vibe and didn’t miss a shot – he was always exactly where he needed to be.”

Read on for the rest of the story in the bride’s own words…

How We Met

Noa, the bride: We met nearly 3 years ago at the backyard pool party of a friend. I immediately noticed Laurence as he was the only person to show up in a button down shirt to a pool party!

That, and I noticed immediately that Laurence was an incredible listener, which made me really want to talk to him. Initially we were just friends, but about 6 weeks later I was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

One of our first dates was a movie, then an MRI at midnight! The technicians were unable to remove one of my ear piercings and Laurence ended up using his teeth! We were able to make jokes and laugh.

You’re always told to choose a partner who can handle the hard things in life with you – for us, that’s how our relationship started. Navigating a new relationship while dealing with a devastating illness, including chemotherapy and multiple surgeries, was not easy.

A Luce Sposa Bride for a Rustic Jewish Wedding at HaAgam, Jerusalem, Israel

18/08/2025 by Karen Cinnamon

There’s no place like Israel for a Jewish wedding. And we love that New York couple Rachel, a program director at a Jewish non-profit running children’s programs, and Tani, a software engineer, opted to make things official at beautiful HaAgam, the Jerusalem Botanical Gardens.

Planning a destination wedding in Israel post-October 7 meant a lot didn’t go to plan. Most of the couple’s family and friends weren’t able to attend due to the war, and even up till the big day Rachel and Tani weren’t sure everything would be able to go ahead. But in Rachel’s words, the experience “taught us to focus on each other and bringing our immediate families together knowing that our wedding would be special no matter what challenges came our way” – and isn’t that really what it’s all about?

When it came time to choose a photographer to capture their special day, Rachel and Tani turned to Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Herschel Gutman, and they couldn’t be more thrilled with the outcome – don’t miss the epic pics from their end-of-night couple shoot in the Old City!

Now over to Rachel, who looked like a princess in her Luce Sposa gown…

How We Met

Rachel, the bride: We met on the dating app Hinge in the summer of 2021 right after I moved from Toronto, Canada, to NYC. Tani is American but made Aliyah to Israel in 2006. He served in the IDF and moved back to the States in 2022.

A Dylan Parienty Bride for a Go-with-the-Flow Jewish Wedding at HaGiva, Givat Brenner, Israel

04/08/2025 by Karen Cinnamon

We love the approach Israeli couple Miriam, a dog trainer, and Moshe, who works in cybersecurity, took when it came to planning their Jewish wedding: their vibe was going with the flow. In the bride’s words, “we didn’t want to overthink it and just wanted to get married!”

HaGiva, with its stunning scenery, delicious food, and incredible staff, was the perfect one-and-done venue to streamline their planning, and Miriam’s simple gown from Dylan Parienty perfectly complemented the mood of the day.

That doesn’t mean this wedding was without personal touches, though – for instance, we love that the couple chose herbs as their centerpieces, and had guests take them home at the end of the night.

Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Herschel Gutman photographed the day in his signature warm, emotion-forward style, and we’re positively in love with his wonderful images.

Read on for more in Miriam’s own words…