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Your Chuppah – Everything You Need To Know

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Everything you need to know about your chuppah
This is a guest post by Lauren Dubell-Beadle, founder of The Chuppah Design Co who created the chuppah above
Image: Babb Photo from Clelia & George’s Jew-ish wedding

{If you are a member of Smashing The Glass’ Brides Club , you can watch Lauren’s video masterclass, ‘Everything You Need To Know About Your Chuppah’ here}

Before the dress, before the center pieces and before the personalized cocktails, your guests will see the symbolic chuppah that you will be married under. If you are like me, you will want that first impression to pack a punch and tell a story at the same time.

Why have a chuppah?

The chuppah goes back a long way and holds a lot of tradition within its simple four-posted structure. Its symbolism is vast, but ultimately the chuppah represents a couples first home that they will build together.

It is open on all four sides to represent the open hospitality the couple will give in their home to their family, friends and acquaintances… fitting more than a handful of your guests under the chuppah would be a challenge!

So the open sides help all your guests feel part of your ceremony. Today many non-Jewish couple choose to include a chuppah in their wedding for its symbolic nature and Jew-ish couples (like my husband and I) also want to have a chuppah, but may come across some challenges finding a rabbi who will willingly marry them or bless them under a chuppah.

US couples may not have the same issue, but if you are lucky enough to find Rabbi Paul Glantz free for your UK (or European) based date then make sure you snap him up! The chuppah was the first ‘Jewish thing’ we knew we wanted at our wedding and our insistence on having one led us to planning a wedding that was truly done ‘our way’. We wanted it to be the start of our meaningful and personal day.

Chuppah ideas
Image: The Image is Found from Michelle & Joseph’s Jewish wedding

Where to get inspiration?

So where do you start with planning your chuppah? Most people make the decision if they want to DIY their chuppah or not before they actually decide what they want… and you can definitely do that… we did.

We knew we wanted to make it ourselves in keeping with the idea of the new couple building their home together and we really didn’t want anyone else’s help for this one part of our day. However, it is important to decide what sort of chuppah will fit in with the overall style of your wedding.

Do you want something simple and traditional (that could be relatively easy to DIY) or do you want a massive eye-catching art installation style that will be pinned and shared all over Instagram after the big day? The latter you may wish to get some help with!

There are three places I’d suggest looking for inspiration at this stage; Smashing the Glass (particularly this post), Pinterest and Instagram the hashtag #chuppah always works a treat!

Whilst you’re scrolling you can begin to think of the style you are heading towards and how you might be able to turn those inspirational images into a reality. Here you might decide if you are DIY-ing or looking for some support from a florist and a rental company or a design service (like me!) for the truly one-off personal chuppah.

book-chuppah
Image: Dave Robbins from Jessie & Craig’s book-themed Jewish wedding

How to turn your vision into reality?

So, you are a newly engaged bride-to-be with a massive wedding Pinterest board and a whole load of new hashtags to follow on Instagram… so how do you turn all these ideas into something for your big day?

Do you go for it and DIY the whole thing or get someone in to do it for you? Both definitely have their merits. If you choose to DIY your chuppah then I’d suggest doing a bit of research before you plan it all out.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

5 Things to Make with your Smashed Wedding Glass from your Jewish Wedding {DIY Tutorial}

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This is a guest post by Lauren Beadle :: Image: Our very own smash glass pouch

A wedding day is a crazy day. The patter of advice in the lead up to the big day is always the same… take the time to absorb everything as it will go so fast, don’t forget to have some alone time together, don’t panic about things you can’t change, no-one will know… You have spent so much time working up to this day, it’s exhausting and thrilling and the adrenalin runs through you and adds to your amazing day.

The next day you are running late to catch a Eurostar for your mini-moon, and are clearly about to miss your train and then you literally fall out of the Uber because you’re so tired (sorry was that just me?!). What I’m trying to say is that as soon as the day ends, the tiredness kicks in and you just want to look at the pictures and catch up on sleep. All that stuff you said would be easy to do after the wedding gets put to the side and forgotten. Here I am 7 months post wedding; we haven’t chosen the pictures yet for our album, my wedding dress is still sitting in my childhood bedroom having not yet been to the dry cleaners and I have yet to do something with the glass my husband smashed at the end of our ceremony.

smashing-the-glass-jewish-wedding
Image: Stak Studios
 

The symbolism of smashing the glass

Smashing the glass is such a symbolic part of the wedding ceremony. There are many reasons behind this iconic moment (can be seen here). For me at my wedding it symbolised the breaking of many potential barriers that my husband and I could face in our lives and when he broke the glass we were able to consider the difficult times that may come in our future. It also was a moment when that one damaged item can be turned into something new and exciting. The shattered glass is often thought of as a reminder of negative times in the past and potential rocky situations in the future, but by taking that shattered glass and turning it into something new and beautiful, you are creating a new symbol; one that says the bad times can lead to new and exciting situations. This is why my smashed glass is still sitting quietly on my shelf waiting for me to do something with it… I couldn’t decide what to with it!

It is becoming more and more popular to buy a special glass and send it off to someone after your wedding to have it transformed into something like a mezuzah or a picture frame. I did look into this before our wedding, but to be honest, I couldn’t find anything I liked enough. Especially when I saw the prices!

breaking_the_glass1
Image: Dima Vazinovich

So we decided to utilise my crafty streak and bring along one of the thin and unused glasses we had at home and post-wedding I would make something that we would love to display somewhere in our home. Obviously we forgot the glass and remembered on the way to our venue… cue a panic call to our mothers, who both brought a variety of different glasses to choose from. In the end I think my brother picked a pint glass (apparently it was the thinnest!)

So one day, many months after the wedding I sat down and thought about all the different things I could do with this glass. I came up with a list of about 10 different ideas; some were clearly easier than others. But I love trying new crafty techniques, so thought I would give each of them a go and share the first five with all you wonderful STG readers!

Before I head into the list of ideas I’ll add a little safety note if you choose to try any of these ideas — you are working with sharp smashed glass so be careful and wear gloves (this may seem obvious… but you should have seen my husband dive into the box of smashed glass without his gloves before I stopped him!) If you have access to a multi-tool such as a Dremel, then there are many attachments that work wonders at smoothing the edges. I prepared the glass in a large batch so when I was working with the glass I didn’t have to worry about cutting myself.

DIY What to do with your crushed glass_jewish weddingjpg

DIY 1: Resin Jewellery and Key rings

This is a really good idea if you have lots of tiny fragments left and works even better if you had a colourful glass. It looks really effective and is something you can carry around with you everywhere you go; a perfect reminder of a special moment.

It looks like it would be really difficult to do, but once you’ve got the hang of it it’s surprisingly easy. For this I used this Resin Keepsake Casting Kit that comes with all you need and some extra sparkly bits to add to your work if you wanted to use it too.

After a practice I decided I wanted to use a silicone mould and I found this so much easier to use. The key to success is to read the manufacturing instructions, practice first with something you don’t necessarily want to keep and take it slowly.

The instructions in my kit were very clear for how to mix the resin and pour it, but less clear on how to add elements in. But after watching a youtube video and having a practice I worked out the best way to get the best result. One layer, leave for 20 minutes, add the glass, add another layer slowly and leave to cure for 12-24 hours(dependant on how warm your room is!)

The final step was to add a keyring or a pre-assembled necklace. I always have some of these knocking about.

What to do with your crushed glass

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Hand make your own Chuppah {DIY Tutorial}

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Build-a-chuppah
You all went crazy over on Instagram for real bride Lauren’s handmade chuppah in last week’s real Jew-ish wedding, so today she has kindly taken to the pages of Smashing The Glass with an easy-to-follow DIY tutorial on how to make one yourself. Please give Lauren Beadle, the craft blogger, a warm welcome!

I like to hand make things. So as you can imagine, my Jew-ish wedding was awash with loads of hand made touches.

I always make big plans to create all manner of complicated items for an event, but inevitably I will pare it back and choose a more simple design or technique. I definitely did this with a couple of ideas I had for the wedding. About a month before the wedding I realised I didn’t quite have enough time to make 140 candles and opted for a more crowd-pleasing miniature bottle of a favourite alcoholic drink, with a hand-lettered tag.

One element that I did actually plan well was our chuppah… I wanted it to it be personal, effective and simple to construct.

Handmade chuppah
There are many ideas and opinions about the origins and meaning of ‘The Chuppah’ (some of which can be found here) but for me a chuppah is a physical representation of a bride and groom’s first home together, one that is supported and surrounded by family and friends from two different families and I feel that it should be something that is built together by the bride and groom as a symbol of that first home.

The chuppah that we created for our wedding was designed to represent this and to be constructed easily the night before the wedding or even on the day. If we can do it, then anyone can! We were incredibly lucky to be able to get into our wedding venue and set up the night before.

DIY chuppah tutorial
I had originally planned the chuppah structure to be set up on the day by the groom and/ or the groomsmen alone, so it needed to be relatively simple (I am a teeny weeny bit of a control freak when it comes to making things). In fact many of the construction ideas came from my husband, going slightly against the grain for me. We really wanted this to be something we built together and use our different skill set to do it.

To make the chuppah you don’t really need any major technical skills. You do need some proficiency with an iron… hopefully you have that skill under your belt!

Build your own chuppah
It would be useful if you were able to use a sewing machine, but if you don’t mind a more rustic look, then you could easily get away with some raw edges on your canopy. In fact any part of this ‘how-to’ can be adapted to suit your own skills or style.

What you’ll need

For The Canopy:

  • A selection of images for the underside of your canopy
  • Inkjet printer
  • 2 meters of a close weave lightweight fabric in a colour of your choice (cotton or a lining fabric) – I got all my fabric from Dunelm
  • 2 meters of linen in a contrasting colour (or matching if you prefer) only required if you want to sew a backing to the canopy
  • Iron-on heat transfer paper for light fabrics — I used about 35 A4 sheets, but this would be dependant on the size and number of images you want to use — I used these from Crafty Computer Paper
  • Iron and ironing board
  • Pins and threads in matching or contrasting colours depending on preference
  • Fabric and Paper Scissors/ Pinking shears (if required)

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How To Build A Chuppah {DIY Tutorial}

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How-to-build-your-own-chuppah
My chuppah ideas page is one of the most popular pages on my Jewish wedding blog, and whilst it’s filled to the brim with chuppah inspiration, what’s missing from it is a DIY tutorial on how to build a beautiful chuppah yourself.

And what could be better than making your own chuppah? After all, the chuppah symbolises the home that you and your partner will build together during your marriage, and by making it yourselves, it will feel that much more special standing under it during your ceremony.

You needn’t worry if you’re not particularly green fingered or creative, as the fabulous Fiona from Revival Rooms has come up with a step-by-step guide for a stylish rustic alternative to the traditional Chuppah with a floral canopy which is genuinely breathtaking.

And the best part? It’s relatively simple to recreate… and cost-effective too!

Here’s Fiona’s step by step guide to building a chuppah.

How To Build A Chuppah_0445

What you’ll need

  • 4 Posts and bases
  • Sticks and twigs of various sizes
  • Soap and scrubbing brush
  • Cable ties
  • Chicken wire
  • Secateurs
  • 1mm thick wire
  • Step ladder
  • Flowers – we used white, lavender and purple Stocks and pink Lisianthus
  • Foliage – we used Eucalyptus and Willow

Before you start, it is important to have base poles for your Chuppah. We went to our local B&Q (a DIY supplies store), purchased 4 posts of our desired size, drilled holes into each bottom, and had base plates made at our local hardware shop. The floral canopy can become heavy and it’s important that you have sturdy enough posts to take the weight. Sticks and twigs just won’t be up for the job. Once you have your posts in place you are ready to begin!

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Carmel & Aviv | ‘love carnival in a green house’ DIY Jewish wedding at the groom’s rose farm, Northern Israel

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DIY-wedding
Carmel and Aviv knew that they wanted to make their wedding as personal to the two of them as they  possibly could, so  what could  be better then doing everything (and I mean everything!) themselves? Oh yes —  once these two had decided on a DIY W-day, it was full steam ahead, and then some. Get ready to admire what is probably one of the most DIY’d weddings I  have ever featured on Smashing The Glass. It truly gives new  meaning to the phrase,  ‘labour of love’.

For 6 months, this gorgeous pair made the drive every weekend from Tel Aviv, to the groom’s  family farm in Northern Israel to renovate an old greenhouse from the bone. They straightened the ground, laid  a concrete dance floor, and planted literally thousands of flowers and trees. (To give you an idea, they planted about 400 sunflowers in one field alone!).

And it didn’t stop there. Once the space was ready,  Carmel and Aviv made  everything themselves from  the decorations to the flags to the  signage, not to mention hand-crafting their  invitations, table numbers and place names. There was also  a flower booth on the day, with live flower weaving to decorate the guests. Genius.

The most personal thing they incorporated  though, was a wonderful heirloom — their chuppah canopy.  It has been used  in the groom’s family for two generations for every wedding in the family, and Aviv’s grandmother weaves the names of every  new couple into it. How magical is that?

A immense amount of time and effort has clearly gone into this incredible  wedding, so enjoy all the wonderful  details and get ready for some serious pinterest-induced mania! Both the bride and  the groom have written the report today, and why wouldn’t they when there was so much joint involvement with the wedding planning ? One of my favourite quotes from the groom  is:

Our wedding was full of happiness and love. We guess that when people see  how much love you’re putting into it, they return it with extra.”

I love that.

Their day is exquisitely photographed  by the super  talented  Shai Franco  and don’t miss the highlights film at the end by the equally accomplished  Shahar Lev.

DIY wedding
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