Bella Figura Archives - Smashing the Glass

A Monique Lhuillier Bride for an Autumnal Luxe Jewish Wedding at Cipriani 42nd Street, Manhattan, NY, USA

20/07/2020 by Karen Cinnamon

Okay, HOW incredible is this tree chuppah dreamed up by Julia and Max for their New York Jewish wedding? Despite getting married smack dab in the heart of Manhattan, the couple, both of whom work in finance, love autumn in New York (who doesn’t?) and wanted to bring the feel of the city’s most beautiful season to their decidedly indoor affair.

And they really, really did, through the creative use of lots and lots of gorgeous indoor trees decked out with those signature autumn leaves. That’s where the chuppah comes in – and is it ever a stunner! – but the autumn tree effect extended to the couple’s wonderful centerpieces as well. The overall feel was totally magical – almost like an indoor walk through Central Park on a beautiful October day. Don’t miss Andrew Henderson’s beautiful photos of the day.

And as if that weren’t enough NYC fabulousness for one wedding, we’re also smitten with Julia and Max’s adorable invitations by Bella Figura, featuring whimsical sketches of classic NYC icons – like a subway train pulling away with a “Just Married” sign! Too cute!

There’s so much more to say, but we’ll leave it to the bride – who looked ravishing in Monique Lhuillier – to fill you in on the details…

How we met

Julia, the bride: Max and I met over a summer internship at Morgan Stanley while still in college. The two of us were alphabetically seated next to each other during a week of training in Manhattan, and immediately thought the other was special. Even though we had planned to work on different coasts post-graduation, we made our relationship work long distance. A few years later, Max joined me in California where we’ve now been living together for 4 years.

A Monique Lhuillier Bride for a Neon Jungle Jewish Wedding at the Mandarin Oriental, New York, New York, USA

05/08/2019 by Karen Cinnamon

We are totally obsessed with the neon jungle theme Jessica and Brant chose for their Jewish wedding – it was just the most perfect way to bring the vibe of the tropical destination wedding the couple initially hoped for to their hometown of New York City, where they ended up marrying to keep the big day accessible to their friends and family.

Bride Jessica says she knew from the moment she got engaged she wanted her wedding to be unique, and did she ever pull it off! With bright colors galore, plenty of palms, a tequila bar, neon signs, and so many more Instagramable touches than we even have room to list here, it’s safe to say she achieved her goal of making her guests feel as if they were transported to the chicest jungle. Don’t miss the photos from The Day by Nathan Smith.

Obviously their stunning chuppah was the pinnacle of jungle chic, and we love that, wanting to get the maximum enjoyment out of it, Jessica and Brant opted to repurpose it for the party, displaying their gorgeous cake and a cool neon sign under it.

But don’t let the fab aesthetics make you think these two skimped on the ceremony – far from it. They made it a priority to honor their late grandparents – they used Brant’s grandfather’s tallit under the chuppah, and Jessica’s wedding band originally belonged to her great-great-grandmother (and has been used by all of the women in her family ever since!) – and even got their dog involved with a walk down the aisle. They made it a priority to find a beautiful ketubah that could serve as a cherished piece of art in their home, and opted for a totally stunning paper cut design from Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Danny Azoulay.

We’ll let Jessica – who looked stunning in Monique Lhuillier – fill you in on the rest…

A New York Wedding

Jessica, the bride: We got married at the Mandarin Oriental in New York City. Brant and I always thought about having a warm climate destination wedding, and we looked almost everywhere. However, after a few months of looking, and keeping friends and family in mind, we thought Manhattan (our hometown) would be the best and easiest. Me being born and bred in Manhattan, and Brant growing up on Long Island, the city was our perfect destination. When we walked into the Mandarin ballroom for the first time and looked out those huge windows to see Central Park and the city skyline, it took our breath away.Continue Reading

A Vera Wang Bride for a Super Luxe Fashion-Forward Jewish Wedding at Mandarin Oriental New York, New York

08/12/2017 by Karen

Start spreading the news – because today’s NYC Jewish wedding is the dictionary definition of city chic!

A wedding set against the stunning New York skyline deserves nothing less than the very best vendors – and that’s exactly what happy couple, Marianna and Peter opted for. The celebration was held at the iconic Mandarin Oriental hotel, with floristry by the fabulous Bride & Blossom, who submitted today’s fashion-forward wedding to STG.

We’re totally enamored with the origami crane chuppah – what a great way to fuse wedding traditions from different cultures! We’re also all hearts for eyes over the unique all-red dà©cor scheme, and bold bridesmaids in black dresses. Absolutely sublime! Also take a look at that absolute centerpiece of a cake – we’re both in love with the visuals and very, very hungry!

Gorgeous bride, Marianna, opted for a classic fashionista outfit – a timeless Vera Wang gown with something-blue Manolo Blahnik. So luxe Carrie Bradshaw herself would weep with envy!

Of course, it’s an STG wedding, which means it’s more than likely one of our own was involved! Our brilliant Recommended Vendor, Bella Figura, provided the rose-gold, classic letterpress invitation design.

Photography was provided by none other than absolute wedding photography royalty, the Fred Marcus Studio. We’re massive fans here at STG, and it will soon become clear why as you look at the phenomenal spread of pictures.

We’ll leave you with Marianna for the rest of the details of her and Peter’s stunning big day. Take it away, Marianna!

The perfect NYC venue

Marianna, the bride: I knew I wanted to get married in our favorite city, New York. NYC is also home, having been born and raised here. I wanted a venue to showcase the skyline and central park. We also had our second date at Columbus Circle. Mandarin Oriental was the perfect venue.
Continue Reading

A Julie Vino Bride for a Super Luxe Jewish Wedding with a Breathtaking Floral Chuppah at Current at Chelsea Piers, New York City, USA

23/10/2017 by Karen

STOP EVERYTHING! Have you stopped? Are you paying attention? Good. Because that chuppah deserves to have ALL eyes on it!

That’s right, folks, get your finest pinning fingers ready, because you are not going to be able to stop yourself from saving all of this wedding pretty to boards with titles like “dream wedding, yes please” and “I’ll be having some of that, thanks.”

In fact, it was your epic reaction to a picture of this big day on our Instagram that made us feel we just HAD to blog the whole thing.

The couple’s son and total cutie, three-year-old Cayden, totally stole the show with his smashing-the-glass and chair-dancing adventures. The day was all about family, with emotional moments during the ceremony and a surprise speech by the bride’s mom.

The dà©cor was so cohesive, without a detail out of place, that the big day looked like absolute heaven. From the cake to the stationery, provided by much-loved Recommended Vendor, Bella Figura, everything looked picture perfect and totally fashion forward.

Jeremy and Alese’s chic Jewish wedding took place in New York City, and was the epitome of old-meets-new Hollywood glamor. Alese looked totally red carpet ready in her sensational, sparkling Julie Vino gown and soft side waves – just look at Jeremy’s face in that first-look moment, which can be seen in the stunning video provided by supremely talented photographer and videographer Susan Shek.

We’ll let Alese take center stage now with her wonderful writeup – prepare yourself for an avalanche of wedding gorgeousness that’ll make you want to totally emulate or, if you’re already married, do it all over again (don’t say we didn’t warn you).

How we met

Alese, the bride: We met at a Mexican restaurant in NYC! It was downstairs from my apartment at the time and across the street from Jeremy’s. My bridesmaids threw me a Mexican bridal shower, since that’s where we met!
Continue Reading

Emma & David | Elegant tropical garden Jewish wedding at Boca Raton Resort & Club, Boca Raton, Florida, USA

10/02/2015 by Karen

Emma and David’s big day is absolutely exquisite, and for a summery garden wedding I don’t think you can beat their beautiful colour scheme and all their ‘beachy’ touches. I’m talking Emma’s starfish-topped heels, the elegant palm-patterned wedding stationery, the pretty florals with an almost coral reef-like feel, and the cutest kissing flamingoes cake topper!

Emma’s wise words at the end are nothing short of perfect, reminding us all of the most important things in wedding planning and your lives together thereafter. But never mind that — check out their multi-coloured sprinkles covered cake. O.M.G!

I must also mention that our beautiful bride tragically lost her grandma very suddenly on the morning of her wedding. It must have been unbelievably difficult to genuinely celebrate the day, but these two managed to come through, and their rabbi sensitively incorporated the heartache into their wedding ceremony (which incidentally took place beneath one of the most beautiful chuppahs I’ve ever seen on Smashing The Glass).

Justin DeMutiis has taken some amazing shots that perfectly illustrate Emma’s tale of her big day with David…