Jessica Claire photography Archives - Smashing the Glass

A Monique Lhuillier Bride for a SUPER Luxe Jewish Wedding with an EPIC Colorful Chuppah at Four Seasons Hotel Westlake Village, California, USA

02/01/2018 by Karen

HAPPY NEW YEAR!! 2018 is officially here, and after a little blogging break for the holidays, we’re delighted to be back with a real bang – the explosion of color and floral fabulousness that is Gilda and Shahin’s super, super, SUPER luxe Jewish wedding! (With the perfect hashtag #Gildafindshershah )

We couldn’t start anywhere else if we tried – that chuppah is just BEGGING to be talked about. With its rainbow of stunning color and abundance of blooms, the chuppah was no less than a work of art, created by Celio’s Design, who also provided the divine arrangements for the reception. We are not worthy!

Not only was it show-stopping in its own right, but the chuppah perfectly framed all of the incredible ceremony and wedding party shots captured by photography GENIUS Jessica Claire. If you’ve heard the name Jessica Claire before, it’s because she’s truly one of the very very best in the business, a world-renowned photographer working out of the LA area and an absolute wedding industry legend – we absolutely adore showing off her work on Smashing The Glass.

After Eight Event Productions made the very most of the already unbelievable venue, Four Seasons Hotel Westlake Village, creating a truly outstanding event.

Beautiful bride, Gilda, looked like a designer’s dream in her timeless Monique Lhuillier gown and epic Christian Louboutin heels. Here at Smashing The Glass, we all have serious bridal style envy!

We’ll hand over to 2018’s very first Smashing The Glass real bride, Gilda, for the full writeup – take it away Gilda!

How we met

Gilda, the bride: My best friend, Della, introduced us at a party. She gave me the best gift a girl could ever ask for! Working around our schedules to plan our wedding was hard (I’m a dietician and Shahin is a vascular surgeon) but we did it!
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A Vera Wang Bride for a SUPER Luxe Jewish Wedding with a 20-Person Bridal Party and Epic Chuppah at Bacara Resort & Spa, Santa Barbara, California

29/11/2017 by Karen

OK, we do not say this lightly: prepare yourselves. Seriously, Adriane and Sam’s super luxe Jewish wedding had us rubbing our eyes in disbelief, because it’s genuinely one of the most INCREDIBLE (note the gratuitous and well-earned use of all caps) real weddings we’ve ever featured on the blog. No exaggeration, this wedding is truly something else. There are not enough adjectives in the thesaurus to describe just how divine it is.

Editor Karen found this beauty on Instagram and immediately knew it HAD to grace the Smashing The Glass pages.

Where to start? The dà©cor was simply out of this world, which is no surprise, given that the wedding brought together some of California’s most coveted wedding vendors. The epic two-night celebration took place in dreamy Santa Barbara, California, at Bacara Resort & Spa, with its beautiful view of the ocean. Night one had a whimsical, boho-chic aesthetic (and a two-hour silent disco), while the second night boasted a stunning, clean all-white formal design with an abundance of white orchids and a stunning display of hanging lights.

Their chuppah was the stuff of fairytales, with a romantic, rustic walkway (those doors!!) leading to a showstopper of tumbling flowers and lit candles. It is genuinely gasp inducing and spine tingling in equal measure.

We don’t have enough words of praise for wedding planner Kate Carlson Event, florist Butterfly Floral and LIV Entertainment for forming what is every bride’s dream team and creating something so special it looks pulled from the pages of Vogue. Just amazing.

Words don’t really do any of this justice, but fortunately the happy couple had the one and only, yes THE Jessica Claire (!!) on hand to capture the magic (pro tip, if you’re going to have a larger-than-life wedding, make sure you have one of the world’s best photographers) as well as incredible videographer, David Medill, whose gorgeous, cinematic wedding video you can watch above.

Bride Adriane looked like a Hollywood A lister in her perfect blend of bridal and sexy Vera Wang gown, and with her expert hair and makeup artist team at her side. Adriane also layered phenomenal pieces of jewelry from her own bohemian-chic jewelry company, JAE Jewelry, which she co-owns with her sister, so she really knew her stuff (and you guys should totally check it out)!

Adriane had no fewer than 17 bridesmaids, two bridesmen and one maid of honor, making it a 20-person-strong bridal party!!

OK, if we don’t stop gushing now, we never will. Ladies and gentlemen, please get your best Pinning fingers ready, and give it up for bride Adriane and her fabulous writeup.

How we met

Adriane, the bride: We met at a mutual friend’s birthday in Palm Springs, California. We immediately connected and our story continued from there…

An Alon Livné Bride for a Super Luxe Boho Beautiful Jewish Wedding at Four Seasons Westlake Village, California, USA

16/10/2017 by Karen

Say WHAAAAT? That was our first, and very understandable, reaction to this sensational spread of images from Jasmin and Eliot’s absolutely ah-mazing Jewish wedding day.

After we were done rubbing our eyes in disbelief like cartoon characters, we managed to take in the divine details that made this big day so special. First of all, the unfathomably beautiful venue, Four Seasons Westlake Village, which came with its own waterfall, the perfect setting for a shabbat pre-wedding celebration. No wonder they made a weekend out of it!

The waterfall was matched only by the epic, cascading floral arrangements, tumbling from tables, adorning the tipi-inspired chuppah – we’ve never seen anything quite like it, so you’d be forgiven for Pinning so fast your fingers start smoking a little.

Everything about this boho-beautiful big day was perfectly matched with the theme – the naked cake, the sweet, contemporary stationery, the aisle made from layered vintage rugs. There was not a dà©cor item out of place.

Beautiful bride, Jasmin, looked ridiculously incredible in her truly unique, showstopping Alon Livné beaded dress, and in her first-look gown, a really original photoshoot idea that we simply adore.

Speaking of photography, this stunner of a wedding was shot by an absolute photography legend, Jessica Claire, whose work we are thrilled and honored to feature on the blog. A wedding this luxe deserves nothing less than a photographer who can do it justice, and Jessica Claire did it justice and then some. We are in love!

We’ll hand you over to Jasmin for all of the details about how her and Eliot’s special day came together. Prepare yourselves for incoming wedding pretty – it’s a little overwhelming!

A shabbat dinner by the waterfall

Jasmin, the bride: We got married at the Four Seasons Westlake Village. It was the first place we visited, and the last place we circled back to after looking at over 10 venues.

I am from New York, and Eliot is from Orange Country, so we wanted a destination that was comfortable for our guests for the entire weekend. We threw a big shabbat dinner inside/outside by the waterfall, and Sunday brunch at the venue outside by the garden terrace.