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A Winter Jewish Wedding Planned in 80 Days at Grace Events, Rishon Lezion, Israel

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Elsie and Yonatan, Grace Events, Rishon Lezion, Israel

You’d never believe it to scroll through their stunning photos, but Elsie and Yonatan planned their fabulous Jewish wedding from start to finish in just 80 days!

The couple, both olim looking to celebrate their love not only for each other but for their home in Israel too, found the perfect team of vendors to make the day of their dreams come true on a tight timeline – in Elsie’s words, “This country is full of people who want to make a simcha happen, and I got so much help from every vendor who was excited to be a part of our day.”

Grace Events – Event Hall in Rishon Lezion provided the perfect setting for the big day – beautiful nature, close enough to Tel Aviv to be convenient for guests flying in from abroad, perfectly sized for the couple’s smaller (by Israeli standards) guest list, and, last but not least, boasting great food!

Elsie and Yonatan knew they wanted Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Herschel Gutman to capture their special day. In Elsie’s words, “Herschel is the most recommended photographer in every bridal group I joined!. His lighting and framing made every photo seem so naturally perfect without the need to retouch or edit them barely at all. He also accommodated our desire to have pictures taken in Jerusalem and meet us at our venue across the entire country in Rishon later that day!” It doesn’t get much better than that!

Read on for the rest of the story in Elsie’s own words…

Elsie and Yonatan, Grace Events, Rishon Lezion, Israel Elsie and Yonatan, Grace Events, Rishon Lezion, IsraelElsie and Yonatan, Grace Events, Rishon Lezion, IsraelElsie and Yonatan, Grace Events, Rishon Lezion, Israel

How We Met

Elsie, the bride: We both got hired to work at Mikes Place, a bar on the beach in TLV, for the summer. I had just made Aliyah and moved into an apartment in Yafo, and while I was getting introduced to the staff, my wallet was stolen. I lost all my American and Israeli IDs and cards and I was so saddened.

Yoni went up and down the tayelet looking to see if it had been dropped – he even pulled up security camera footage at the bar to see if he could spot the person who took it. He instantly became my first real friend in Israel and we’ve been inseparable ever since.

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A Luce Sposa Bride for a Rustic Jewish Wedding at HaAgam, Jerusalem, Israel

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Rachel and Tani, HaAgam, Jerusalem, Israel

There’s no place like Israel for a Jewish wedding. And we love that New York couple Rachel,  a program director at a Jewish non-profit running children’s programs, and Tani, a software engineer, opted to make things official at beautiful HaAgam, the Jerusalem Botanical Gardens.

Planning a destination wedding in Israel post-October 7 meant a lot didn’t go to plan. Most of the couple’s family and friends weren’t able to attend due to the war, and even up till the big day Rachel and Tani weren’t sure everything would be able to go ahead. But in Rachel’s words, the experience “taught us to focus on each other and bringing our immediate families together knowing that our wedding would be special no matter what challenges came our way” – and isn’t that really what it’s all about?

When it came time to choose a photographer to capture their special day, Rachel and Tani turned to Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Herschel Gutman, and they couldn’t be more thrilled with the outcome – don’t miss the epic pics from their end-of-night couple shoot in the Old City!

Now over to Rachel, who looked like a princess in her Luce Sposa gown…

Rachel and Tani, HaAgam, Jerusalem, IsraelRachel and Tani, HaAgam, Jerusalem, IsraelRachel and Tani, HaAgam, Jerusalem, IsraelRachel and Tani, HaAgam, Jerusalem, Israel

How We Met

Rachel, the bride: We met on the dating app Hinge in the summer of 2021 right after I moved from Toronto, Canada, to NYC. Tani is American but made Aliyah to Israel in 2006. He served in the IDF and moved back to the States in 2022.

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A Miri Couture Bride for an Ultra-Moving Jewish Wedding Bringing Light to Dark Times at Gioia Mia, Kibbutz Nachshonim, Israel

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Amidst the sorrow, anger, and heartbreak, we will never stop celebrating Jewish continuity because that is exactly what we are fighting for. Today’s real wedding is all about bringing Jewish joy into a dark time – something we could all use more than ever this week. 

Israeli couple Dalya, a data analyst, and Zach, a student and sales advisor, were originally scheduled to make things official on October 22, 2023. After October 7, they knew they had to postpone – but when their new Jewish wedding date rolled around in January, they were more focused than ever on bringing the light.

Dalya and Zach’s wedding was an emotional reunion with loved ones from abroad and friends serving in the army who got the night off to join their celebration. A highlight of the chuppah was a special prayer for the protection of the state of Israel and IDF soldiers – including Zach’s beloved brother.

Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Herschel Gutman photographed the day and captured every moment of joy so perfectly. In Dalya’s words, “Herschel delivered on all fronts, capturing candid, dramatic, fun, and natural shots. He was also fantastic at improvising. On the day of our wedding, it was pouring rain, and he creatively used umbrellas to give us some of our favorite shots. He made sure the photos looked stunning despite the weather, capturing the moment and the beauty of the hall perfectly.”

This was such an incredibly special and meaningful day – in the bride’s own words,  “Being able to have a wedding during some dark times in Israel was the greatest way to show our enemies that we will always win and overcome anything they want to challenge us with.” Now over to Dalya…

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How We Met

Dalya, the bride: I moved to Herzliya, Israel on October 22, 2022. During my first weeks in Herzliya, Zach would come up and make small talk. When Chanukah arrived, Zach and his roommates hosted a community event. My roommate messaged me, asking if I was coming. I decided to join my friends at the event. There, Zach approached me, we started talking, and the rest is history. About a week into dating, Zach told me he would marry me, and little did I know that a month into our relationship, we would already be meeting each other’s parents.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A Mia Pava Bride for an Ultra-emotional Jewish Wedding Celebrating Joy at Ein Hemed, Jerusalem, Israel

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Orah-and-Josh-Ein-Hemed-Jerusalem-Israel

Orah and Josh, two olim who met and fell in love in Israel, planned a Jewish wedding that’s an absolute love letter to the country where they’ve built their life together – and also happens to contain some beautiful lessons about finding joy in tough times.

Orah tragically lost her mother the year prior to the wedding. Naturally, that made the leadup to the big day extra emotional. But since Orah’s mom was “all about simcha and joy,” and known for being a happy and positive person, the couple made a conscious effort to emulate those qualities. They focused on joy and love in the face of grief, planning the kind of day they knew Orah’s mom would be smiling down on every second of the way.

The couple’s photographer, Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Herschel Gutman, captured all the emotion of the day so beautifully – and Orah and Josh report he did a stellar job making them feel comfortable and open up to the camera. They also loved that he’s a native English speaker, which meant their families could easily communicate with him.

When it came to their ketubah, bride and groom had competing visions: Orah wanted flowers, while Josh wanted to highlight his favorite color, blue. In the end, the pair decided to mix both ideas by going for both blue rings – which not only met Josh’s criteria but also symbolized Israel – and flowers. They knew Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor BritColors was just the person to make their dreams a reality – and the couple loved working together with the Tel Aviv-based artist to create a unique piece of artwork.

There’s so much more to say about this gorgeous Israeli wedding – but we’ll leave it to Orah, who looked radiant in her gown by Israeli designer Mia Pava, to take it from here…

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How We Met

Orah, the bride: Josh, who had just made Aliyah, was brought to a kiddush through a mutual friend of the host. Which luckily enough turned out to be a best friend of Orah׳s. He saw her from the other side of the room with a smile that lit up the room but was too nervous to walk up and speak to her.

Two days later, after Orah had taken a COVID test at the health fund and was waiting for the bus, Josh just happened to be there too and still couldn’t work up the courage to speak to her, and she was whisked away worried that awkward guy would find her again. Seemingly you’d think losing out but as it turned out she did have Corona!

Fast forward a few months after recovering from COVID, Orah was at a Shabbat lunch with her Ulpan friends. Josh had just finished a call shift at the hospital and was bored so he crashed the meal. In his total lack of sleep he worked up the courage to speak to Orah, and after falling asleep next to her on that couch he couldn’t imagine falling asleep next to anyone else.Continue ReadingContinue Reading