Mirror Mirror bridal boutique Archives - Smashing the Glass

How to Find the Perfect Dress for Your Jewish Wedding

30/06/2022 by Karen Cinnamon

Photo by Varna Studios

Wedding dress shopping… it’s one of the most exciting parts of wedding planning, yet it can also be one of the most overwhelming. For those of us who aren’t in a position to buy couture on the regular, wedding dress shopping will likely be a whole new world. There’s lots to learn – and, potentially, lots of pressures to navigate, too.

That’s why I’ve chatted with Maria Yiannikaris, cofounder of beloved London bridal boutique Mirror Mirror London, about some of her top tips for making your shopping experience as smooth as it can be. Mirror Mirror is one of the very best options for finding your dream dress in London – or even, dare I say it, the entire world!

And with over 30 years of experience running Mirror Mirror, Maria knows more about the ins and outs of wedding dress shopping than just about anyone. Plus, her ethos of helping each bride to look and feel her most beautiful, confident self on her wedding day couldn’t be any more aligned with ours here at Smashing The Glass!

Photo by Voyteck Photography

Do Your Research

Get a Sense of Your Preferred Styles

Figuring out what looks you like best -and which brands design them- will make it easier to decide which bridal salons to hit up. You can find inspo on Pinterest, in bridal magazines, in past real wedding features on Smashing The Glass, and on boutiques’ websites. And be sure to note any designers (and even style numbers) you’re particularly smitten with.

Knowing which designers you like and which don’t speak to you as much will also make it easier to figure out which shops to visit. A lot of boutiques will carry the full spectrum of styles – Mirror Mirror carries a fabulous range of 8 international designers, showcasing styles from classic minimalism to soft boho vibes or a truly opulent gow – but some have a more narrow focus.

Photo by Voyteck Photography

Shop Your Closet

Well, not exactly. But taking a look at the clothes you already own can be helpful in trying to decide what silhouettes will work best for you. If there are certain similarities in a lot of the items you already own, let those elements guide you. It can also be helpful to think about physical features you’d like your dress to highlight.

Photo by Varna Studios

Brush Up on Dress Terminology

It’ll be easier communicating your preferences at appointments if you know a mermaid from an A line.

Photo by Varna Studios

Know Your Wedding Theme and Venue

Knowing your venue and vibe before you start shopping will make it easier to choose the right dress.

Photo by Varna Studios

Find Out about Religious Restrictions

If you’re having a religious ceremony, check with your rabbi to find out if there are any attire guidelines you’re required to follow, such as covering your shoulders for the chuppah.

If you do find yourself in need of a chuppah coverup to add to your bridal ensemble, it’s smart to shop someplace where the team is experienced working with Jewish brides. Mirror Mirror, for example, has a wonderful, longstanding relationship with London’s Jewish community, and all of their stylists are well-versed in the needs of brides from Orthodox to Jew-ish.

Photo by Varna Studios

Figure Out Your Budget

Before your first appointment, figure out how much you’re able to spend on your gown – and choose where to shop accordingly. For instance, Mirror Mirror offers gowns ranging in price from £1850 – £8000.

Photo by Varna Studios

A Nicole Milano Bride for a Jewish Wedding Inspired by Musical Theatre and the Tottenham Hotspurs at Deene Park, Corby, UK

01/11/2021 by Karen Cinnamon

We’re totally and completely obsessed with the fabulous Jewish wedding of Miri, an ex-performer-turned-singing-teacher, and Danny, who works in financial risk – and not just because they worked with some of our very favorite Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendors!

These two planned a wedding inspired by two of their biggest loves (aside from each other, of course!): music, and especially musical theatre; and football team Tottenham Hotspurs! While this might seem like an eclectic combo, Miri and Danny pulled it off to perfection – they even got their wonderful stationers, Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Big Day Designs, to design them a custom wedding logo based on the Spurs emblem of a cockerel balancing on a football – only instead of a cockerel, there was a music note!

Music being a big deal, the band was the very first thing these two booked – they slotted everything else in around it! Who did they choose? None other than Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor XS Showband! In Miri’s words, “Not only did XS tick all of the boxes, but they were so flexible and helpful with all the extras and personal touches I had arranged with friends, colleagues and pupils singing throughout the day – as well as my own surprise number that I performed!”

As always, we’re in love with the luminous, emotion-packed photos from Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Claudine Hartzel Photography – Claudine’s visual storytelling skills are second to none, and scrolling through her beautiful images we feel as if we were right there with Miri and Danny.

Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Fews Marquees – who the couple knew they wanted to work with even before they settled on their venue – just happened to be the chosen marquee supplier for Deene Park, where Miri and Danny eventually opted to make it official. And they did SUCH a fabulous job.

Finally, how gorgeous is Miri’s Nicole Milano gown, purchased for 50% off(!) as a sample from beloved Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Mirror Mirror in Angel? Needless to say, the fab team at Mirror Mirror perfectly customized the dress to Miri’s every specification.

There’s so much more we could say about this exquisite day, but we’ll let the bride tell you the rest…

How We Met

Miri, the bride: We met on J-Swipe; amused that I must have ‘completed’ all the single Nice Jewish Boys in North West London, I extended my location settings to Paris. No, this wasn’t a long-distance Parisian courtship. I immediately realised that this would create more hurdles, rather than less. So I gave up on France. Instead, I lowered the age range on my dating profile (by two and a half years). Turns out, I hadn’t actually completed all the NJBs after all. #Danny

His words regarding our first meeting :
“Miri greeted me with a hug that was befitting of a long lost friend and the first half an hour or so was somewhat of a sensory overload, as I took in both how beautiful Miri looked and how quickly she spoke.”Continue Reading

The Hottest Wedding Dress Trends for 2021/22 {Instagram Live with Mirror Mirror}

13/07/2021 by Karen Cinnamon

With weddings on their way back in a BIG way, it’s time to get excited about bridal fashion again! And to help us do exactly that, I’m turning to the best of the best: this Thursday, July 15, at at 8 pm GMT / 3 pm EST / 12 pm PST I’ll be going live on Instagram with Maria Yiannikaris, owner of beloved London bridal boutique Mirror Mirror and designer of in-house bridal line Mirror Mirror Couture, all about what’s going to be in as we get back into the swing of weddings!

Image courtesy of Pronovias

Maria’s got the scoop on some of the season’s hottest gowns: she’ll be giving us the very first reveal of some luxe pieces from Pronovias’s exquisite EDEN 2022 line, modeled by members of the fab Mirror Mirror team!

Image courtesy of Yolancris

She’ll also be sharing some dresses from Yolacnris’s new collection, plus an exclusive first look at a brand new Mirror Mirror Couture style (so fresh off the presses we can’t even share a photo with you yet)!

Image courtesy of Yolancris

We’ll also be chatting about how to make your dress your own, whichever style you choose – Mirror Mirror are the absolute masters customization, so whether you need some tweaks for a little extra coverage under the chuppah or whatever else, they’ve got you!

Image courtesy of Pronovias

We’ll be chatting in real time, so you can ask Maria and me anything you want during our live broadcast, or you can submit a question in advance by emailing karen@smashingtheglass.com.

Tune in this Thursday 15 July, at 8 pm GMT / 3 pm EST / 12 pm PST to instagram.com/smashingtheglass

Real Jewish Bride: Sarah on the Last Two Years of Wedding Planning

09/06/2021 by Smashing The Glass

Sarah will be marrying Rich on 19th June 2022 at Tikitano Beach, Marbella, Spain. Click here to read all Sarah’s planning posts to date.

THREE FACTS: (1) Sarah knew Rich was the one when he brought a gift of dog treats for her toy poodle Nuala along to their fourth date! (2) They are crafting an amazing destination wedding weekend in Marbella with beloved Smashing The Glass Recommended vendor optimum weddings as their planner. (3) Sarah is a member of Smashing The Glass’s Brides Club!

As I sat down to write this, my last blog as a blogging bride for Smashing the Glass (I will still be a member of Brides Club), I took a quick minute to reflect on the past two years. I say two years because that was when I first became a blogging bride and signed up to Brides Club. I was full of excitement talking about all things wedding related, learning about dress fabrics, booking dress shopping appointments, booking flights to Spain to find our wedding planner and venue and creating multiple spreadsheets to keep track of the infamous wedding budget. It was summer 2019 and it is safe to say that I had no idea what 2020 would bring!

So, on that note let’s take a little trip down memory lane and reminisce on the good, the bad and the lessons I have learned over the past two years!

Luxe Winter Jewish Wedding Inspo at the Four Seasons Hampshire, UK

25/05/2021 by Karen Cinnamon

You know what doesn’t get enough love? Winter weddings, that’s what. Sure, you don’t get the long daylight hours, and you might find your selection of flowers a tad more limited. But there’s something just so magical and cozy about holding your Jewish (or Jew-ish) wedding in this under appreciated season.

That’s why we’re so delighted that master wedding planner and Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Michelle Jacobs of Elegante by Michelle J decided to spearhead a gorgeous Jewish wedding-themed shoot that’s basically an ode to the winter wedding.

Set at #STGvendor Four Seasons Hampshire, a gorgeous luxe countryside venue that’s not far from London but feels a world away, the shoot brought together a fantastic team of wedding professionals, including some other beloved #STGvendors like stationer Bigday Designs, makeup artist Philippa Louise, bridal boutique Mirror Mirror London, and Judaica purveyor Contemporary Judaica!

Being a classic country venue, Four Seasons Hampshire‘s obviously got beautiful gardens and grounds (how magnificent is the Walled Garden?!) – and Paulo Santo Photography took full advantage of that fact in capturing some sublime couples’ shots like the one above.

But Michelle and her team really wanted to showcase the venue’s incredible indoor event spaces – and just how memorably they can be dressed up for a totally unique Jewish wedding. (If you want to see what Four Seasons Hampshire looks like for a summer wedding, check out the incredible Jewish wedding of Jessica and Philip that we featured a couple years back!)