Moss Bros Archives - Smashing the Glass

A Monique Lhuillier Bride for a Modern Rustic Jewish Wedding at The Grove Hotel, Chandler’s Cross, Hertfordshire, UK

07/06/2019 by Karen Cinnamon 1 Comment

It’s always a special day when we get to blog the real Jewish wedding of one of our wonderful Brides Club members, and today it’s Sami’s turn!.

Sami and Toby (#happilywebberafter) had the most wonderful big day, and we’re so thrilled to be able to share it with you. We’re also totally blushing at Sami’s kind words about the club:

“It was so heart-warming to have lots of lovely ladies around you sharing the build up and excitement. I feel like it is one big family and everyone wants the best for everyone else and their wedding!”

We think Brides Club is pretty special too – and the doors are open for new members to join (we now have almost 200 members!). Do come on in and join us too! If you’re planning a Jewish or Jew-ish wedding, it’s truly an incredible resource and community and we are offering 30 free days to every bride-to-be if you join before this Monday 11 June!

But back to Sami’s wonderful wedding – we’re pretty jazzed that she and Toby worked with so many of our very favourite UK-based Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendors, from the amazing Jonny Mosesson, who sang during the chuppah (and we totally agree with Sami’s description of him as having the voice of an angel!) to The Function Band, who created an electric atmosphere that kept everyone dancing from start to finish, and videographer Denee Motion, who not only captured the emotion and energy of the wedding so perfectly (don’t miss their trailer!) but also developed a wonderful friendship with the couple over the buildup to their wedding.

We’re thrilled that Sami had a fantastic experience shopping for her Monique Lhuillier gown at Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor The Wedding Club – she’d had a preventative double mastectomy prior to the wedding, so it wasn’t a given that wedding dress shopping would be smooth sailing. In fact, Sami’s experience was so wonderful that since the big day she’s left her old job in fashion buying to work for The Wedding Club, where she’s now store manager and runs operations for both of their London boutiques!

As joyful as this wedding was, the fact that Sami’s mum tragically passed away from cancer 5 and a half years prior cast a bittersweet shadow. We love that Toby bought Sami a locket with a photo of her mum to attach to her bouquet so they could still walk down the aisle together – what a meaningful touch.

There’s so much more to this fab celebration, but you’ll have to read Sami’s beautiful writeup (and immerse yourself in Paul Toeman’s wonderful photos) for the rest…

How we met

Sami, the bride: Toby and I met in a club in Birmingham, he was in his first year of university and I was on my gap year. We got on straight away, although at the time I was with somebody else. It started as an incredibly strong friendship, and after a year and a half (by which time my other relationship had ended), it turned into love, and we haven’t looked back since.

Real Jewish Brides: Rebecca’s Only Got Two Weeks To Go!

25/09/2018 by Smashing The Glass

Rebecca will be marrying David on 7th October 2018 at a secret location in Israel! Click here to read all Rebecca’s planning posts to date.

THREE FACTS: (1) Rebecca and David met on JSwipe (so old school we know 😉 ) (2) They are having a destination wedding in Israel at a secret location! (3) They are getting married on Rebecca’s grandparents wedding anniversary (who have been married for 64 years). We LOVE that!

Almost There…

Well, we made it! Two weeks to go! And what a journey this has been.

I must say whilst it has been crazy.. David and I have learnt a lot about ourselves and have worked together well to get everything ready in time for the big day. The flat is FINISHED, it was a race against time but everything has arrived and I am almost fully moved in now, ready to leave West Hampstead when we come back from Israel. It’s been hard work doing lots of the work ourselves but we did it!

David had his Stag Do in Kent which he enjoyed (I’m happy to say he came back in one piece!). Lots of the boys came from all over including the US and Israel so he was really touched they made the journey.

Image by Tom Webb and Dan McCourt from Rachel and Josh’s wedding (soon on Smashing The Glass)

Destination Jewish Wedding with an Italian Feast at Grand Hotel Royal, Sorrento, Italy

15/11/2017 by Karen

Picture the scene: it’s Italy’s breathtaking Amalfi coast. The sun is beaming down over a stunning, long aisle towards a beautifully decorated chuppah, with a sea view, no less. Sounds like a dream, right? Well it was Aimee and Richard’s reality! Their Jewish destination wedding was truly a sight to behold.

Complete with a vegetarian Italian feast and Limoncello favors (as well as kippot, provided by one of our amazing Recommended Vendors – Hebrewear), the wedding paid constant homage to the location, and brought some of the sea into the color scheme, with its baby blue and sparkling hues.

The wedding was ALL about family, with family forming the main wedding party (and two ADORABLE flower girls stealing the show), as well as the couple honoring lost loved ones, with special memorial candles by the chuppah.

It’s not easy to plan a wedding from overseas, but the happy couple pulled it off with aplomb, with the help of wedding planners, Sorrento Sunland.

Aimee looked gorgeous in her Morilee dress, which was totally meant to be! We won’t ruin the story for you, but do read on. We’ll pass you over to Aimee for that, and other wonderful wedding anecdotes now, accompanied by perfect pictures by photographers The Bros Photography.

Put on the kettle, or pour yourself a glass of wine, sit back and let us transport you to sun-soaked Italy… ahhh…

How we met

Aimee, the bride: Rich and I went to the same Jewish primary and secondary schools in Barkingside. We actually properly met for the first time at Rich’s house, around 10 years ago. My best friend was going round to sing for him and she insisted I come with. We did date a little, but remained good friends. We officially got together seven and a half years ago, when I got back from travelling for a year.

A Sassi Holford bride for a Jewish destination wedding at The National Hotel, South Beach, Miami, USA

19/05/2017 by Karen

Whether or not you believe in fate, I think we can all agree that Rubie & Ben make a good case for its existence. In fact, fate wouldn’t leave these two alone. It threw them together in chance meeting after chance meeting, insisting that these two lovebirds were meant to be.

Their beach-themed, Miami destination wedding was an absolute dream. Who could ask for more than to get married, barefoot, sand between toes, in idyllic surroundings? And it was very much a family affair, with everyone offering their help. From wedding-planning siblings and parents, to hair-styling sisters, Rubie and Ben’s loved ones certainly did not let them down.

Sit back, and soak in the sun, sea and sand, as well as the stunning details, such as the beachy driftwood Chuppah overlooking the sea and the stunning seaside-inspired buttercream cake, all captured with dedication by photographer, Paul Toeman.

Breathtaking bride, Rubie, looked a vision in her timeless gown by STG Recommended Vendor, Sassi Holford. And speaking of the STG family, the couple flew in two more of our amazing Recommended Vendors. Wedding band, Totem, and the tear-jerking wedding trailer you absolutely must watch (below) is by Denee Motion.

<span data-mce-type="bookmark" style="display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;" class="mce_SELRES_start">ï»¿</span>
How we met

Rubie, the bride: We met aged 17 at the final of a school business competition, nine years ago. We came from two very different worlds, and kept bumping into each other: first at the school competition where we didn’t even get each other’s names, then at an open day lecture at Leeds University, again not exchanging names and then, finally, I ran into ben in a crowd of 250,000 people at Reading music festival later that summer. After the third fateful meeting, we decided we should exchange names and have our first date: a cup of tomato soup from the Salvation Army tent… and the rest is history!

A Rosh Hashanah-themed Jewish wedding with a Suzanne Neville bride at Braxted Park, Essex, UK

01/05/2017 by Karen

Anyone else have goosebumps? Scroll down. How about now? The sensation you’re experiencing is a result of extreme wedding prettiness combined with the unparalleled artistic prowess of much-loved STG Recommended Vendor and photographer extraordinaire, Blake Ezra.

In fact, Tash & Jason’s magical secret garden-inspired wedding was a total STG Recommended Vendor-fest, with an appearance from fabulous makeup artist Philippa Louise. The couple also won their photo booth with Mega Booth in a Smashing the Glass competition.

Now that we’re done blowing our own horn, let’s talk about the wedding horn (shofar) which was also blown (yes, smooth segue, we know). The wedding was Rosh Hashanah themed, with beautiful fresh fruits incorporated into the wildflower floral arrangements, honey pot and honey cake recipe favours and the blowing of the shofar during the ceremony.

Gorgeous bride, Tash, is an art director and, as such, was delighted to be let loose on a wedding theme – and boy, does it show. Tash’s expert eye and attention to detail created a cohesive, overwhelmingly beautiful (and delightfully purple) theme that looks outstanding in photographs. And that wildflower-adorned Chuppah – a masterpiece! Bravo, Tash! If you fall in love with the images below and simply can’t get enough, check out her Instagram!

We also adore Tash’s customised Suzanne Neville gown, with little embellishments to bring in her own personality and tastes.

Tash and Jason’s Badeken and ceremony were full of heart and meaning, especially as the couple hadn’t seen or spoken to each other in a whole week! What willpower! We also adore the couple’s joint words of wisdom at the end of this post – so much fantastic advice.

We’ll let Tash take over now to tell you all about how her and Jason’s big day came together. Tash – the stage is yours!

How we met

Tash, the bride: Despite having huge amounts of friends in common, and probably attending the same parties during our university days, we didnt meet until after uni, at a mutual friend’s birthday party, where else but Camden?

We were in a Blues Bar and got chatting. The instant Jason heard that I love to bake, and did gluten-free cupcakes (he was GF at the time) the match was made, and we set our first date after partying the night away! Our relationship hasn’t really changed. I still bake for him, and our worlds pretty much centre around food, family and friends.