UK Archives - Smashing the Glass | Jewish Wedding Blog

A Sassi Holford Bride for an Elegant Countryside Jewish Wedding at High Billinghurst Farm, Surrey, UK

30/03/2020 by Karen Cinnamon

We just love it when our readers work with our amazing Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendors to make the Jewish wedding of their dreams a reality – like Katie, who’s a fundraising manager for an education charity, and Max, an officer in the British army, did in planning their gorgeous outdoor countryside wedding in the beautiful Surrey countryside.

These two knew their top priority was making sure their wedding would be fun for each and every one of their guests – and one of their best decisions was tapping Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Louise Perry to plan the big day. Louise and Natalie brought together the couple’s vision for a relaxed but elegant day focused on connecting with friends and family SO perfectly.

Katie and Max wanted to make sure their ceremony was inclusive too, so they worked with Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Rabbi Paul Glantz to craft a chuppah that made everyone feel involved. Rabbi Glantz made sure to explain what was happening at each stage of the ceremony so guests of all backgrounds could follow along – and he did such a good job that lots of non-Jewish guests commented afterward that they wished they could have had a Jewish wedding ceremony!

We’re also obsessed with the pair’s beautiful nature-inspired ketubah by Rachelle of Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor The Delicate Brush, as well as their birch tree chuppah decorated with white flowers and greenery – don’t miss Brett Harkness’s beautiful photos!

Putting your guests first means making sure you’ve got not only a beautiful ceremony but also a rocking party, and Katie and Max knew Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor The White Keys were just the band to keep their guests on the dancefloor all night long.

There’s so much more to say, but we’ll let the bride – who looked so elegant in Sassi Holford – tell you the rest…

HOW WE MET

Katie, the bride: We met during our first year at Newcastle University in 2009. Neither of us remember the moment that we first met but we know it was during our very first week in Newcastle when me and the girls on my floor ventured to the floor below to meet the boys living below us.

A Countryside Wedding

We got married at High Billinghurst Farm in Surrey. It was the first venue that we saw and we fell in love with it, even on a rainy January winters day. It ticked all of our boxes, a beautiful barn, countryside location, easy for our family and friends who travelled from around the world to get to and enough space for all of our guests. Once we saw it we knew that was the venue we wanted and did not even think about looking anywhere else.

An Anna Georgina Bride for a Foodie’s Dream Winter Jewish Wedding at the Corinthia Hotel, London, UK

13/03/2020 by Karen Cinnamon

Welcome to the glorious winter Jewish wedding of Smashing The Glass Brides Club member Rebecca, an event coordinator, to groom Danny, a plumber.

In addition to an absolutely mouthwatering menu (HOW delicious do Chiko Photography’s incredible captures of the food look?), we love the fact that, in memory of a close friend, they opted not to have any flowers at the wedding, and instead to donate the money they would’ve spent to Chai Cancer Care. Not only is this incredibly moving, the alt décor they came up with – focused on candles and tealights for the tables – looks so good we’d hardly even have noticed the absence of flowers if they bride hadn’t brought it to our attention!

We’re also in love with Rebecca’s perfect wintry glam bridal look, with a dreamy longs-sleeve gown by Anna Georgina and impeccable makeup by Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Susan Yates – who Rebecca praises for taking the time to understand each bride’s preferences AND, crucially, her skin type as well.

Now over to the bride!

Luxurious Surroundings

Rebecca, the bride: We got married at Corinthia, London – working in events I wanted to choose somewhere that a) I haven’t worked at a lot, I didn’t want to associate my wedding with work and b) somewhere totally luxurious. I may work in hotels, but I don’t often stay at them, so I checked in the day before with just my siblings and parents, it was such a treat and we had the best time just the six of us.

An Essense of Australia Bride for a Romantic Country House Jewish Wedding at De Vere Latimer Estate, Buckinghamshire, UK

17/02/2020 by Karen Cinnamon

There’s nothing like a beautiful Jewish wedding in the English countryside. And Samantha, who works as a voiceover agent, and Adam, the CFO of a gaming company, could not have picked a more perfect spot for theirs than De Vere Latimer Estate. Nestled in the rolling green hills of the Buckinghamshire countryside, it ticks all the boxes – historic manor house, breathtaking grounds, and that quintessential English countryside feel without requiring London-based guests to travel too far.

And of course the couple’s photographers, Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor LUZ, recorded the day perfectly, in their trademark artistic, architectural style. We’re obsessed with the way the team captured the blend of traditional and modern that made this day so uniquely wonderful.

There’s so much more we could say, but we’ll let the bride – who looked absolutely stunning in her Essense of Australia gown – fill you in on the rest.

How We Met

Samantha, the bride: We met through mutual friends on a night out in London.

A Flora Bride for a Fairy Tale Destination Jewish Wedding at Cluny Castle, Inverurie, Aberdeenshire Scotland, UK

31/01/2020 by Karen Cinnamon

We love it when a couple goes out of their way to make their guests feel extra loved at their Jewish wedding – especially when they’ve traveled across the world to celebrate together. But today’s couple, Anna, an architect, and Nir, a PhD student in economics with an online tutoring business, Israelis who opted to wed in Scotland, really amped it up to the next level.

With an intimate crew of just 26 guests, who traveled from Israel, the US, and Canada, Anna and Nir went all out, planning not just a wedding weekend but a full wedding week of classic Scottish activities, from Highland games and clay shooting to visits to Loch Ness and distilleries – and castles.

Although given the venue – not only was the wedding held at the majestic Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Cluny Castle, but the guests were also able to stay at the castle for the entire week – it’s hard to see a need to leave the grounds of this stunning spot. Catom Photographers captured the splendid setting in all its glory – not to mention the love and emotion of the big day.

Anna and Nir couldn’t possibly have picked a better place to make their guests all feel like princes and princesses for the week – and in pursuit of this goal, they even hired makeup artists and hairstylists to take care of each and every one of their female guests on the wedding day!

Now over to the groom, who’ll fill you in on all the details…

Theme

Nir, the groom: The theme was a “fairy tale” and Scottish wedding. We tried our best to make sure each guest would feel like a price/princess for the entire week. We planned a schedule for the week so each day would include a classic Scottish activity: Highland games, distilleries, clay shooting, castles, Lochness etc. The guests even saw her majesty the Queen and Prince Charles from a very close range at the highland games.

A Jesus Peiro Bride for an Elegant Jewish Wedding with a Roaming Band at New West End Synagogue and One Marylebone, London, UK

27/01/2020 by Karen Cinnamon

We’re super psyched to be featuring our very first Jewish wedding with the amazing acoustic roaming band and Smashing The Glass RecommendedVendor Balagan! This incredible group – formed by another beloved Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor, Sensation Band (who also performed, keeping the dance floor packed all night long in their signature style) – is the UK’s first and only roaming band to offer Jewish sets, and we can’t get enough of the fun, personalized vibe they bring to any big day.

STG Brides Club member Ella, a project manager at a branding and digital agency, and Matt, head of data at a life insurance start-up, say booking Balagan was the best wedding planning decision they made, and we’re not at all surprised – they are a truly incredible group!

And until February 7, you have the chance to enter to win an epic performance from Balagan for your very own wedding! Head over to this post for full details.

So obviously the music at this wedding earns top marks… but believe it or not, that’s only the tip of the iceberg of this wonderful day. First off, we can’t get over the fact that Matt built the couple’s birch wood chuppah as a tribute to his late grandfather who taught him about woodwork (and how sweet is it that after the wedding the pair donated it to a nearby synagogue for other couples who may need it?).

And then there’s Ella’s impeccable bridal style. She found her gorgeous dress at Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Morgan Davies, who worked with her to combine two Jesus Peiro dresses into the style of her dreams. Ella’s got nothing but rave reviews about the team at Morgan Davies – and the result could not have been any more perfect. We’re also obsessed with the tulle Savannah Miller cape the bride wore to cover her shoulders during the Orthodox ceremony.

Photographer Barney Walters (who the couple found right here on Smashing the Glass) and videographer Ben Foster captured this beautiful wedding so perfectly – it’s really not to be missed. Do read on for Ella’s full writeup – there’s far more good stuff going on than we have room to mention here!

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How We Met

Ella, the bride: Matt and I met on none other than Tinder. When I came across Matt back in 2015, Tinder said we had around 90 friends in common which I assumed was a glitch with the app. It turned out we grew up around a mile away from each other and did have many friends in common. We must have both been at various parties in the past but had never met.

When we matched I messaged two close friends to ask what they thought of him and they both said he was a real mensch. One week later we’d been on our first date and that was that! Because of all of our mutual friends there were definitely more than a few people walking around our wedding claiming that they’d made the shidduch.