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A Backyard Jewish Micro Corona Wedding in Katamon, Jerusalem, Israel

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Beth and Mattan, Corona wedding, friends garden in Katamon, Israel
We were totally blown away when we first saw the photos by Mama from this gorgeous Jewish corona wedding. When Beth, a special education teacher at an American school in Israel, and Mattan, a lawyer at a high-tech company, realized they were going to have to overhaul their wedding plans due to COVID-19, they turned to Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Michal K. Events Israel to plan the micro wedding of their dreams.

With only fifty guests legally allowed to attend – and some VIPs, including the groom’s parents, were sadly unable to fly in from the US – Beth and Mattan’s wedding looked pretty different than the one they’d originally planned. But after swapping out their original venue for a friend’s backyard and implementing some creative measures to make sure everyone could celebrate safely, it was just as beautiful and memorable a day as any big pre-COVID bash.

With some clever touches – like serving each guest a boxed kids meal from a local burger place (planner Michal’s idea!) – and plenty of socially distanced dancing, this wedding was one for the books. And those who couldn’t be there in person were able to watch the ceremony on  Zoom (you can catch the recording here). 

If you’re planning a micro wedding of your own, you won’t want to miss the masterclass that their planner, Michal, is leading inside Smashing The Glass’s Brides Club tomorrow, Thursday July 9! She’ll be covering everything from platform options and tech to how to make a socially distanced Hora fun and beyond – and based on this incredible wedding, there’s no one we’d trust more on the subject!

There’s lots more we could say about this joyous wedding, but we’ll leave it to the bride – who looked lovely in Michal Taylor – to tell you the rest of the story…

Beth and Mattan, Corona wedding, friends garden in Katamon, IsraelBeth and Mattan, Corona wedding, friends garden in Katamon, IsraelBeth and Mattan, Corona wedding, friends garden in Katamon, Israel
How we met

Beth, the bride: We met through a friend. Mattan had just gone out with her, and I was friends with her. However, we had both lived in Washington Heights, NY, at the same time and had similar social circles. We even had Shabbat meals in each other’s apartments when the other wasn’t there.

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A David’s Bride for a Dreamy Outdoor Jewish Wedding Just Before Lockdown at HaGiva, Giv’at Brenner, Israel

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Naomi-and-Daniel-HaGiva-Israel

Smashing The Glass Brides Club member Naomi and Daniel are one seriously lucky couple. Their ridiculously gorgeous Jewish wedding in Israel took place as the COVID-19 crisis was becoming increasingly more serious, just days before the country banned gatherings of more than ten people. And while the bride, a physics teacher, and the groom, an aerospace engineer, didn’t have their big day go untouched by coronavirus – there was plenty of stress about increasing restrictions and whether family and friends from the UK would be able to make it, and in the end many guests weren’t able to make the trip – their close relatives made it out to Israel in time, and most of the wedding went to plan.

And it was an awesome plan! We’re in love with the garden vibes of their gorgeous venue, Giv’at Brenner, and we’re obsessed with the efforts these two made to personalize their day, like making a list together of seven things to pray for and then reading and praying for one item each time Naomi circled Daniel under the chuppah, and finding ways to honor female guests in their Orthodox ceremony.

And how cute is it that the couple got matching personalized Converses to wear for the reception?! The photos from Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Herschel Gutman Photography are so full of love and emotion, with each moment captured so beautifully.

Now over to the bride, who looked radiant in her simple David’s Bridal dress (the first she tried on!), which she had altered to add in sleeves and a higher neckline…


Naomi-and-Daniel-HaGiva-IsraelNaomi-and-Daniel-HaGiva-IsraelNaomi-and-Daniel-HaGiva-IsraelNaomi-and-Daniel-HaGiva-Israel
How we met

Naomi, the bride: We both grew up in London, with similar social circles, same year group but never knew each other, it wasn’t until we both made aliyah that we met!

We first met at a party in Jerusalem a few days after I had made aliyah, we chatted for about 5 minutes and Daniel wanted to ask me out but felt it wouldn’t be fair on me as I needed time to settle into the country. Over the next couple of months he hadn’t forgotten about me but some friends had told him they knew a girl who they thought would be good for him.

He agreed to meet her at a Purimseudah but thought to himself that if it didn’t go well he would try to find the number of the girl from the party. But when he walked into the Purim seudah he was surprised and delighted to find the girl from the party, me, sitting there. The rest is history! He proposed to me in September and I proposed to him in October. Continue ReadingContinue Reading