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A Caroline Castigliano Bride for an Elevated Cocktail Party Jewish Wedding with a View at ERIA Sausalito, California, USA

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Sarah and Joe, ERIA Sausalito, Sausalito, California, USA

Stunning venue alert! Sarah, an attorney, and Joe, an engineer, live in the San Francisco Bay Area, which isn’t exactly short on gorgeous views. But they found something really special in Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor ERIA Sausalito, just across the Golden Gate Bridge. The space overlooks the water with sweeping views of the city, which formed the breathtaking backdrop to the couple’s chuppah. Don’t miss it in the wonderful photos by Victoria Kurkina.

Sarah and Joe can’t stop raving about their experience with ERIA. In the bride’s words, “ERIA isn’t just a venue—it’s a fully immersive experience. Having so much handled in-house made everything feel effortless, cohesive, and incredibly well-executed. We worked with Nikita Khandheria, founder of ERIA Events and owner of the venue, and she was truly extraordinary. From the very beginning, we felt an immediate connection—she intuitively understood our vision and brought it to life in a way that felt effortless. Her level of creativity, organization, and taste is incredibly rare.”

We love that Sarah and Joe went for an immersive cocktail party vibe for their big day, full of rich plum tones and dark, romantic florals—and, of course, delicious food. Instead of a seated dinner, the duo opted for an interactive dining experience with multiple stations. How fun is that?!

We’ll turn you over to Sarah, who looked so chic in her ivory silk gown by Caroline Castigliano, for the rest of the story…

Sarah and Joe, ERIA Sausalito, Sausalito, California, USA Sarah and Joe, ERIA Sausalito, Sausalito, California, USA Sarah and Joe, ERIA Sausalito, Sausalito, California, USA Sarah and Joe, ERIA Sausalito, Sausalito, California, USA

How We Met

Sarah, the bride: We met the old-fashioned way—through wonderfully meddling Jewish aunties. A mutual family friend set us up despite us living in completely different places at the time (Texas and Portland). Our first date was in Sausalito at Bar Bocce, and we dated long distance for several years, including a stint when Joe moved to Switzerland for work. Eventually, we couldn’t stay apart—I left my role at the Justice Department, moved to be with him, and we got engaged in Ticino near Lake Como. We’re now back in San Francisco, living the dream.

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A Caroline Castigliano Bride for an Elegantly Romantic Summer Jewish Wedding at The Queens Hotel, Leeds, UK

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Sophie and Joe, The Queens Hotel, Leeds, UK

Get ready for a seriously joyous Jewish wedding! Sophie, a nail technician, and Joe, a chartered surveyor, had the most wonderful celebration at The Queens Hotel in the bride’s hometown of Leeds.

The couple’s vision for their big day was romantic elegance with a modern, summery twist – and tons of personality and warmth. We love their Perspex chuppah, adorned with soft florals in shades of pink, white, and peach, and how special is it that Sophie’s 91-year-old grandpa read the couple’s ketubah aloud?

Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor XS Showband brought the party to life in their inimitable signature style, and Guy Barzily’s incredible voice sounded all the right notes during the chuppah and the Israeli dancing – in Sophie’s words,

From start to finish, XS Showband were phenomenal, the energy was electric, and the dance floor was never empty, even during dinner and benching!

We were thrilled to hear that the couple found their photographer, Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Kate Swerdlow, right here on Smashing the Glass. As Sophie says,

Her photography style is so natural and full of emotion, and she was absolutely perfect for us. From our very first meeting, we knew she would capture our day beautifully, and she did just that. Kate caught every angle, every moment, and every emotion, creating the most stunning gallery that allows us to relive our wedding day over and over again.

Read on for all the details from Sophie – who looked simply smashing in her Caroline Castigliano gown…

Sophie and Joe, The Queens Hotel, Leeds, UKSophie and Joe, The Queens Hotel, Leeds, UK Sophie and Joe, The Queens Hotel, Leeds, UK Sophie and Joe, The Queens Hotel, Leeds, UK

How We Met

Sophie, the bride: We first met through mutual friends when we were 11, but we really got to know each other when we started at the same school in Year 8, aged just 12!

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A Caroline Castigliano Bride for a Super Stylish Jewish Wedding with Shabbat Dinner Vibes at Kin House, Wiltshire, UK

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Ben and Lauren, Kin House, Wiltshire, UK

We are totally and completely obsessed with Lauren and Ben’s super stylish Jewish wedding. Their vision for the big day was modern countryside with Shabbat dinner vibes – how awesome is that?!

Kin House in Wiltshire, England, with its combination of classic country exterior and quirky, modern interior, was the perfect setting for the celebration – and the couple’s fabulous florist, Sarah of Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor The Way to Bloom, put together the most exquisite arrangements (not to mention a stunner of a chuppah) that added Lauren and Ben’s unique stamp to the space.

In Lauren’s words,

We both agree that Sarah and her floral arrangements, were the highlight of our wedding. Sarah doesn’t know the word “no” — she was always ready to try a new idea, offer some advice, and take charge where needed. We are forever grateful to her and her expertise for making our wedding shine, and we are lucky to still consider her a friend to this day.

For their band, Lauren and Ben chose another amazing Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor, The White Keys. Their 8-piece band – including both a saxophonist and an electric violinist – kept the dance floor packed all night (including an epic 12-minute hora!).

Lauren and Ben’s wedding day fell on Shabbat, and we love the fact that they wanted their wedding breakfast to feel like a giant Shabbat dinner. The couple lit the candles, their rabbi led the blessings, and they even had a challah tug-of-war! Spoiler: Lauren won. Don’t miss it in the incredible photos by Natalie J Weddings and video by John Taylor Films.

We’ll let Lauren fill you in on the rest…

Ben and Lauren, Kin House, Wiltshire, UK Ben and Lauren, Kin House, Wiltshire, UK Ben and Lauren, Kin House, Wiltshire, UK Ben and Lauren, Kin House, Wiltshire, UK

How We Met

Lauren, the bride: We met on a dating app in 2020. Fun fact – after our first date, I called my mom and told her, “I met my husband!”

Ben proposed in Dulwich Park in October 2022. A truly special place for us both, it reminds us both of Central Park in NYC, which is where I lived before moving to London and Ben spent a lot of time as well. We always called the bridge in Dulwich Park our “happy place” so it was fitting to get engaged there.

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A Caroline Castigliano Bride for a Classic and Elegant Jewish Wedding at The Biltmore, London, UK

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Ella-and-Josh-The-Biltmore-Mayfair-UK

Who could use some extra Jewish joy right about now? We certainly could – and that’s why we’re bringing you the beautiful London Jewish wedding of Ella and Josh. The bride and groom, both business owners, brought SO much love and emotion to their big day, and we hope you’ll feel as inspired as we do by their ultra-moving photos by Robert Shack and video by Andrei Weddings.

The Biltmore in London was the perfect setting for Ella and Josh’s timeless and traditional Jewish wedding, and their classic décor, filled with white florals and abundant greenery, complemented the space so exquisitely – as did Ella’s gorgeous modern gown by Caroline Castigliano.

Music is such a big part of the atmosphere at a Jewish wedding, and Ella and Josh couldn’t be more thrilled with their choice of Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Matzoh Boys. In Ella’s words, “They were fantastic! The atmosphere was just the best – they really brought the London and Manchester crowd together. We loved their Israeli music sets especially and the chuppah was beautiful.”

Read on for all the details of this very special day in the bride’s own words…

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How We Met

Ella, the bride:  We met through mutual friends – I was living in Birmingham and Josh was in Manchester. 

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A Caroline Castigliano Bride for a Whimsical English Countryside Jewish Wedding at Langley Park, Cotswolds, UK

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Alice-Micael-Langley-Park-Cotswolds-UK

We couldn’t think of a better way to close out the year than with the fabulous English countryside Jewish wedding of STG Brides Club member Alice, who works in advertising, and Micael, founder and CEO of a licensed medical cannabis producer!

The pandemic forced these two to postpone four times, and to make a pretty drastic pivot in locale from Israel to the UK – but you’d never know it from how absolutely picture-perfect their big day turned out! While COVID meant a long-haul destination wedding wasn’t in the cards, Alice and Micael opted to keep that destination feel by booking Langley Park in the Cotswolds for an all-weekend bash.

Alice was a member of Smashing The Glass’s Brides Club during her wedding planning, and we’re so touched by her kind words about the group:

The biggest thing in Brides Club was the support network. During the pandemic, it felt as though we would never have a wedding. It was very reassuring to be amongst people going through the same thing and there were lots of resources to help navigate through it the best way possible! We also got a discount with the brilliant Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Big Day Designs, who printed our invitations. It was the first Jewish wedding for the majority of our vendors and Smashing the Glass was great for giving them all the information they needed.

We’re absolutely obsessed with the glam photos by Elena Popa and second shooter Emily Rose Hamilton – can you believe it was their first time photographing a Jewish wedding?!

There’s so much else to say about this beautiful day – from the surprise South African touches Alice added for Micael, who had lots of guests from home who sadly weren’t able to attend in person due to the pandemic; to the incredible private badeken the pair shared after not seeing each other for a full week; to the sweet custom illustrations Alice and Micael commissioned from The Millustrator. But we’ll leave it to Alice to fill you in on all that…

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How we Met

Alice, the bride: We usually just say long story! But we met in 2009 at a party in London. He is South African and was visiting his cousins who live in London. He never actually spoke to me on the night but later messaged me on Facebook. We dated long distance for several years whilst he was at university in Israel. He finally moved to London and we had a few make ups and break ups before getting engaged in 2019.Continue ReadingContinue Reading