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Home > Boho wedding

Shoshana & Sam | Outdoor Bohemian DIY Jewish wedding at River Bend in Lyons, Colorado, USA

12/01/2016 by Karen

Bohemian-DIY-wedding
“It’s like rai-ayy-ann on your wedding day…” Alanis Morissette famously sang. And it’s not ironic, it actually doesn’t matter one jot! This wedding proves that, for one, you’ll end up with some incredible pictures (today’s images are by the awesome June Cochran). I’m talking happy guests dancing in the rain, colourful umbrellas adorning the ceremony, and a whole heap of merriness and creativity totally untroubled (hell, even enhanced!) by the showers.

Shoshana and Sam mixed Jewish tradition and boho chic together effortlessly, and handcrafted so many thoughtful details for their W Day. They are also testament to the fact that wedspiration can strike anywhere: their colour scheme was inspired by coffee packaging they came across at their local grocery store!

As will as bringing their own creative talents into play, they called upon family and friends to play a very central part, both in the lead-up to the wedding, and on the day itself. As Shoshana puts it (and I SO agree with her) “Ask for help… people really want to be a part of your celebration so don’t be afraid to assign tasks.”

And doesn’t Shoshana look beautiful? Her French lace Sarah Seven dress is divine and I love how she’s accessorised her look with fresh flowers in her hair — she looks sensational.

Tragically, Sam’s grandmother died a few days before the wedding but the couple  knew even before the event that she wasn’t in a position to travel. So they chose a beautiful white latticed blanket that belonged to her as their chuppah covering. Sam told me, ” I was extremely close with my grandmother, so it was very meaningful to have a tangible token from her with us. And that it was covering us during our ceremony was even more poignant.”

This detail is so very special and an illustration of exactly why I started Smashing The Glass — to inspire you with the most beautiful, creative and symbolic ways to personalise your Jewish (or Jew-ish) wedding from start to finish. Shoshana and Sam’s W Day has it in bucketfuls. Take it away you two!

Bohemian DIY wedding
how we met

Shoshana, the Bride: Sam and I met in graduate school at NYU while studying Food Systems. We actually had a mutual friend in common (that lived in Colorado) that told me to look for Sam in one of my classes. I spotted him, eventually introduced myself, became friends for about 6 months and then started dating. Much more to the story than that but that’s the simple story!

Bohemian DIY wedding
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A Boho, nature-inspired DIY Jewish wedding at Estates of Sunnybrook, Toronto, Canada

24/11/2015 by Karen

DIY-Jewish-wedding
I’m so thrilled to be bringing you today’s thoroughly gorgeous DIY Jewish wedding. Not only are the creative details ALL lovingly crafted by the bride, groom, their friends and family, but Shannie’s write up of her and Steve’s day really comes from the heart; as did Shannie’s efforts for her entire wedding.

All of the DIY details are divine… the centrepieces, the table numbers, the sweet treats, the astonishingly beautiful ketubah made by Shannie, and how can I forget the creative guest book alternative? Plus I’m sure you’ll notice so much more, it’s one of those weddings I think you’ll need to view multiple of times to take it all in!

Oh, and the dog. Don’t even get me started… Storm played a huge part in originally getting Steve and Shannie together (see their ‘How We Met’ story below), so much so in fact, that Shannie even incorporated an illustration of their beloved hound into her ketubah design!

And on a totally separate note, let’s not forget Steve who looks super dapper in his jeans – yes he totally rocked the laid-back look!

Shannie’s boho head piece and an Indian-inspired hand piece (both made by her very talented mama!) are to-die-for and her Catherine Langlois gown is just a dream. She bought her dress at The Brides’ Project  in Toronto, a bridal boutique where all the proceeds go to cancer charities. There’s another branch of The Brides’ Project in America, but as yet, one doesn’t exist in the UK. I would love to help set up a branch in the UK (potentially London) and if anyone reading this can help me kickstart this idea, please do get in touch. I would love to donate my Stephanie Allin wedding dress in the first instance.

But I digress… Please do take a moment to read through Shannie’s account of her planning and creative ideas — there are some really lovely DIY projects and a generous helping of brilliant advice at the end – plus you’re going to swoon over Niv Shimshon‘s phenomenal photography.

All of this awesomeness was planned in just four and a half months…

Happy Tuesday folks!

DIY Jewish wedding
how we met

Shannie, the Bride: I will try to keep this story as simple as possible, but it may be tough a job! Steve and I had known each other for almost seven years prior to the first time we actually ever said a sentence to each other. My parents own a jewellery shop in the same plaza mall that Steve opened his restaurant. My mum (being the yenta that she is) did try to introduce us when he first opened his restaurant, but I was very shy, I thought he was very handsome. Apparently he was just as awkward and couldn’t find the words to say to me. For years we would eye each other. I would often help my parents at their store and see Steve. He would see me, but we never actually spoke.

Years later it was my moving day, the day and I was packing and moving from my condo in Toronto. I remember walking down the street, towards my building, carrying boxes that towered over my 5”1 frame, that I suddenly felt a push and something knocked down my boxes out of my hands. It was Steve’s dog, Storm. She must have escaped from underneath her fence, ran towards me, and Steve right behind her chasing her to grab her. We realised that we had been neighbours for the last three years without even knowing it. It took us seven years and a dog to finally give us the courage to actually start a conversation with each other. The rest, as they say, is history!

DIY Jewish wedding
A DIY wedding with lots of creative and personal details

Most of our wedding was pretty much projects that I assigned for myself to do as well as my mother and Steve. Being an artist, I specialise in doing everything last minute! So the week before the wedding I was hit hard with how much work I set aside for myself.

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Natalie & Eli | Informal DIY Boho Jewish Wedding at House Plantation, Texas

17/07/2014 by Karen

RUSTIC-DIY-WEDDING
I think it took me exactly 3.6 seconds from the moment I first read Shaun Taylor‘s email, detailing Natalie and Eli’s wedding, to thinking oh yes, this has crashed through my submission barriers — I’ve got a killer Smashing The Glass wedding on my hands here!

I love that Natalie made her own dress and wore cowboy boots. I love that Natalie’s mum made her jewellery. I love that the couple flew out their photographer, Shaun Taylor all the way from Derby  to Texas because they loved his work so much. I love what Natalie says about working together with your fiancà© as a team in the planning stages. And I love that it rained and then rained some more, but far from letting the weather dampen their spirits, they embraced it and the results are even better than they imagined, as Natalie describes below.

You’ll also see the most exquisite henna tattoos covering Natalie’s arms. A traditional Yemenite henna party is a popular pre-wedding ritual for Sephardi Jews and you can see theirs in full swing over on Shaun’s blog. It just goes to show you can stamp your personality onto your wedding weekend and dig deep into your culture’s traditions too. The two are not mutually exclusive  and that’s exactly what this blog is all about.
Outdoor Boho Jewish Wedding at House Plantation, Texas
Outdoor Boho Jewish Wedding at House Plantation, TexasOutdoor Boho Jewish Wedding at House Plantation, TexasOutdoor Boho Jewish Wedding at House Plantation, Texas

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