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A Vera Wang Bride for a Magical Outdoor Jewish Wedding at The Vineyards in Simi Valley, California, USA

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We are absolutely and unequivocally in love with today’s gorgeous outdoor Jewish wedding. The garden chuppah, the California vibes, the perfect summer light… just WOW. Miki and Sonja Photography captured it all SO perfectly, and videographer Stavro Productions made such a moving recording.

But this awesome celebration was about so much more than the magnificent surroundings. Lisa, a therapist who works with Holocaust survivors in addition to running her own concierge practice, FeelingConfidential, and Alexander, a personal injury attorney, also made sure their big day was full of unique personal touches.

For instance, we love how the duo designed their ceremony programs to be folded into fans, so that guests could use them to keep cool during the outdoor ceremony.

And how sweet is it that Lisa recorded herself reciting a blessing, and then arranged to have it played while guests (and the groom, of course) were waiting for her to walk down the aisle?!

Now over to beautiful Lisa, who looked like an absolute modern day princess in her gorgeous Vera Wang… 

Jewish wedding The Vineyards in Simi Valley, California, USA_0012 

Jewish wedding The Vineyards in Simi Valley, California, USA_0012

Jewish wedding The Vineyards in Simi Valley, California, USA_0012
How We Met

Lisa, the bride: Although we both lived in NYC at the same time, lived in Israel at the same time, and attended various parties and events over the last 10 years, we had never met.

3 years ago Lisa was living in Los Angeles, and Alex in his hometown of Las Vegas. My best friend and Alex’s best friend set us up the old fashioned way. We went on our first date in Las Vegas on the strip… the date lasted 7 hours 🙂

Flash forward a few months later, Alex knew he couldn’t take the LA girl out of LA, so he quit his job, passed the CA state bar, and started anew in LA to be with me. The ultimate sacrifice for love 🙂

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Real Jewish Brides: Jay’s Getting Married in Less Than a Month!

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Jay will be marrying Tom on 24th November 2018 at Hyatt Churchill, London, UK. Click here to read all Jay’s planning posts to date.

THREE FACTS: Jay and Tom met on Tinder (Tinder For The Win!) (2) These two are planning a big fat Jew-ish wedding (Jay is Jewish, Tom is not) but in Jay’s words: “Tom was brought up in Edgware and has more of a love for chopped liver and bagels than I do!” (3) Jay is a Personal Trainer and Fitness Instructor and Tom works at Facebook.


The End is in Sight 

As the big day gets closer, I have been feeling every different emotion under the sun! I have loved every minute of planning this day and will be quite sad when it is all over, but at the same time I have been overwhelmed by it all. The wedmin doesn’t seem to end, every day there is something else to tick off my to do list. As I have mentioned previously, I am a bit of a perfectionist and sometimes make things harder for myself!

That being said, there may have been a few sleepless nights but now everything is coming together, and I am looking forward to passing it all over to the Function Band, who will be coordinating the day in addition to performing.

Jewish Wedding Thornton Manor UK
Image by Jon Bird from Haley and Boston‘s wedding

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A Rebecca Schoneveld Bride for a Super Stealth Surprise Jew-ish Wedding at Salvage One in Chicago, Illinois, USA

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We’re totally obsessed with this super cool SURPRISE Jew-ish wedding. Ariel and George told guests they were throwing an engagement party, but it turns out the sneaky duo had actually planned a stealth wedding, just three months after getting engaged!

An hour into their “engagement” do, the pair slipped away and changed into their bridal attire while guests were ushered into a previously gated off area that just happened to contain the ceremony setup — chuppah and all!

Ariel, a renewable energy business developer, and George, a software developer, wanted to stay true to their own style in planning their big day — totally our kind of couple — and they knew a long engagement wasn’t for them.

They wanted a fantastic party to celebrate their love with their nearest and dearest, and that’s exactly what they got — once guests got over the shock, everyone seems to have had a pretty epic time, if the photos from Bill Shayaka of Eivan Photography are anything to go by.

Another way this cool couple made their big day totally them? Paperless invitations from Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Greenvelope. Ariel and George loved that Greenvelope’s evites helped them keep their big day ecofriendly, not only by avoiding paper but also because Greenvelope donates to help preserve forests. What a great way to incorporate their dedication to the environment into the wedding!

Now over to Ariel, who looked so elegant in her classically bridal gown from Rebecca Schoneveld…

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How We Met

Ariel, the bride: We met at a startup incubator that both our companies were out of. The incubator hosted happy hours regularly so the companies could network with each other. George saw Ariel from across the room and made it his goal to speak to her by the end of the night, and he accomplished that goal and so much more. We have both since moved out of that incubator, but that place will always be dear to both of us.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

Real Jewish Brides: Gaby’s Wedding Planning Update

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Gaby will be marrying David on 26th May 2019 at Trinity Buoy Wharf, London, UK. Click here to read all Gaby’s planning posts to date.

THREE FACTS: (1) Gaby and David met at work at an advertising agency in London (2) Gaby is Jewish and David is Christian, and they are planning an inclusive ceremony and party that will embrace both of their cultures (3) They are planning an urban luxe wedding in a converted London lighthouse – we LOVE the sound of this!


Let’s get personal

It’s been a really intense but fun few weeks. With all of the major elements sorted or currently being sorted, my fiancà© and I took time out to research the finer details and personal touches we want to add to the wedding. We want our wedding to reflect our personality which is why we are taking it upon ourselves to make a lot of the elements from scratch.

I have found some amazing websites such as Etsy and Confetti that offer amazing deals and inspiration for those who wanted to add a creative flare to their big day. I truly feel that those cost effective, smaller touches are often the main things people remember so it’s important not to overlook the finer details!


Image by Benjamin Wheeler for Nicole and Daniel’s Jewish wedding

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A Kate McDonald Bride for a Book-Themed Jewish Wedding with His and Hers Rain Ponchos at the Julia Ideson Library in Houston, Texas, USA

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We’re totally in love with today’s literary-themed Jewish wedding. Rachel and Paul took full advantage of their library venue with some super cool touches, like library card save-the-dates (stamped with significant dates in their relationship — awwww!) and a library-style card catalog of place cards instead of a traditional seating chart. Is that the cutest, or what?!

Turns out Rachel, who is pursuing a PhD in art history, and Paul, who works for a marketing software company, are not only adorable, but also clever. They knew they didn’t want to miss out on their fantastic catering, and they also knew that couples often get so busy running around and greeting everyone they don’t get a chance to eat.

So they decided to eat their full dinner meal during their yichud during the cocktail reception, making the most of their special first moments alone as a just-married couple. The best part of all? To protect their wedding clothes from any spills, they opted to wear“His” and “Hers” rain ponchos while eating — you’ve got to check out Grant and Laine Daniels’ photos of this adorable moment.

Oh yeah, and Rachel wore a super cool gown from Kate McDonald, one of our favorite new-to-us finds at New York Bridal Fashion Week earlier this month! We are totally digging the cool damask fabric. Rachel picked out totally awesome (and unexpected) wedding shoes too — you won’t want to miss them! Now over to the bride…

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How We Met

Rachel, the bride: We were set up by our close friends who thought we would hit it off, and I guess they were right! That was five years ago, and it was clear we were right for each other right away.  

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