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A Maggie Sottero Bride for a Contemporary Cool Jew-ish Wedding at Le Meridien Chicago, Illinois, USA

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Jewish Wedding Le Meridien Chicago USA
Today is a special day for all of us at Smashing The Glass: it’s our first time blogging the Jew-ish wedding of one of our very own Brides Club members! Jeanette had the SWEETEST things to say about the inspiration she found in the Club and on Smashing The Glass:

I absolutely adored Smashing The Glass. The personal outreach, appeal to a specific group of brides, detailed blog posts, and overall eye for uniqueness and quality made it a much more visited website and Facebook page than other wedding blog. I used Facebook Lives and articles from STG to aid in my planning process, such as in writing my speech, deciding on a veil, buying a smash glass (and knowing how to use the pieces after), designing a cake, picking songs, and many other elements I’m forgetting! I can’t think of anything missing from the blog!”

Aw… we’re blushing now… Jeanette, a speech-language pathologist, and Chris, an architect, are all about contemporary minimalist design, and they channeled their passion for all things modern into an ultra-unique wedding aesthetic.

From the geometric hanging centerpieces (!) to the striking cake with metallic geometric dividers between the layers to the stylish stationery (100% designed by the groom!), this wedding has some serious flair. Jennifer Hyde of JHyde Photography did such a fantastic job capturing all the cool touches.

We’re so thrilled that the couple credits STG with helping them do everything from picking songs to writing speeches, but one thing we can’t take credit for? Jeanette and Chris’s brilliant idea to “table hop” during dinner: instead of staying in one place for the whole meal (or, alternately, running around frantically with no time to eat), they chose four tables to sit at, one for each course. That way, they were able to spend time with more of their guests, in a relaxed way. Such a smart setup!

Now over to Jeanette, who looked stunning in her tulle-tastic blush pink Maggie Sottero gown (and matching rose gold hair!)…

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How We Met

Jeanette, the bride: We met in college at Southern Illinois University, at a party one of my now-bridesmaids convinced me to go to!

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A Suspended Floral Chuppah for a Festive, Glitzy Jewish Wedding at Dock 5 in Washington, D.C., USA

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Jewish wedding Dock 5 Washington DC USA_0017 You know there’s little we love more than a distinctive chuppah design at a Jewish wedding.

At first glance, today’s version may look like a fairly standard-issue floral design… but look again. Specifically, look at the poles – or, more precisely the lack thereof.

That’s right, Jillian, a reporter at the financial news site MarketWatch, and Steven, a dental student, went for a suspended chuppah for their big day, with asymmetrical greenery and white flowers descending from each of the four corners but stopping a good few feet from the floor. How cool does it look in Sam Hurd’s glam photos?!

The non-traditional (yet still permissible according to Jewish law — the couple checked with their rabbi) chuppah is just one of the wonderful ways Jillian and Steven merged Jewish traditions with their own 21st-century sensibilities.

For example, the pair liked the tradition of a pre-wedding tisch (a ceremony for the groom and male guests) and kabbalat panim (for the bride and female guests), but weren’t crazy about the gender segregation thing. Their solution? During the cocktail hour, they held both ceremonies, but made each gender-neutral so that all of the guests could experience both — and get in some valuable time with the bride and the groom. We LOVE that.

There’s so much more to say about this fun, festive wedding, but we’ll let Jillian — who looked so glam in her custom gold lace gown designed by family friend Sharon Wilkes — take it from here…

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How we met

Jillian, the bride: We first met through mutual friends – a close friend of Steven’s from growing up was one of my roommates in college – but then began dating while working together at HuffPost in New York, shortly after graduating from college. And of course our relationship continued through job changes and Steven’s career left turn into dentistry!

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A Monique Lhuillier Bride for a Texan Jewish Wedding with a Beer Bar at the Driskill Hotel, Austin, Texas, USA

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Happy Wednesday, y’all! Today we’re headed to super cool Austin, where Meredith and Phillip held a Texas-themed wedding for the records. Marrying at the iconic, historic Driskill Hotel in the city center, the couple had one objective: to make their day “as Texas as possible.”

They incorporated their fab theme in so many ways, but our favorite has got to be the beer bar! They had 6 local Texas beers on tap for guests to sample — no generic alcohol for this pair! And as a surprise, Meredith’s parents had customized glasses made as wedding favors for the guests, with the couple’s names and wedding date as well as following text: “Something old, something new, something borrowed, something brewed” How clever?!

Neither Meredith nor Phillip being huge cake fans, they decided to buck tradition and serve pie for their dessert instead — so on-theme, too! They had four luscious-sounding flavors: blueberry, strawberry rhubarb, chocolate, and pecan. We’d like a slice of each, please! And they still did a traditional cutting picture — just with pie.

Cory Ryan Photography captured all the details of the day beautifully. Now we’ll turn you over to Meredith, who looked gorgeous in her classic lace Monique Lhuillier gown…

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Jewish Wedding Driskill Hotel Austin Texas USA_0007

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How we met

Meredith, the bride: We met in college at the University of Richmond, at a Hillel event. We were together for nine years and three cities before tying the knot.

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A Maggie Sottero Bride for a Beachy, Bohemian Jewish Wedding at La Costanera Montara, California, USA

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Alright folks, we’ll level with you – a few tears were shed in the editing of today’s real wedding, and we suggest you reach for the tissue box, because Melinda and Tobin are so ludicrously cute, we guarantee you’ll well up at least once.

Melinda and Tobin took a leap of faith, and moved in together after a long-term relationship was born during a volunteering trip to Israel. Their heartfelt and family-oriented Jewish wedding day was a real reflection on their obvious adoration for each other.

This is also evident in the beautiful vows Melinda has shared with us, at the bottom of the post. If you’re dry eyed after reading them, then we don’t know what will crack you!

Not only was it an emotional day, but the beachy, bohemian vibe and shades of lavender and purple color scheme made it a real visual treat, too. From the floristry to the bridal party, everything looked absolutely picture perfect. 

The couple opted for an equality-driven ceremony, with both bride and groom circling each other and smashing a glass, which, as regular readers will know, we’re crazy in favor of! We also love that the wedding celebrations included volunteering, which is a wonderful way to start married life, by giving something back.

Melinda was the belle of the ball in her Maggie Sottero gown, with a dreamy back showed off by her side swept hair and carefully chosen accessories. Just gorgeous! 

All of this was captured magnificently by Stacy Able Photography, as you can see in the divine spread of images below.

We’ll leave you with Melinda for the full writeup. Like we said – it’s a weepy one! You have all been warned!

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How we met

Melinda, the bride: Tobin and I met in Israel while working at a clinic for African refugees. Tobin went to medical school in Israel and was doing a rotation at the clinic, and I was volunteering there as a nurse. I had taken a leave of absence from my job in Seattle to volunteer in Israel as a nurse for six months. We both coincidentally are originally from California.

I met Tobin the last month I was in Israel and never thought I’d see him again. We stayed in touch, visiting each other often once he started his residency in Indiana. When I decided to move to Indiana, I had never lived in the same place as him except that one month in Israel, so I was taking a big risk. Glad it all worked out!

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A Jew-ish fairy princess garden wedding with an Allure gown at Old Red Museum, Dallas, Texas, USA

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We love a bit of magic and whimsy on STG, and what could be more whimsical and delightful than a fairy princess garden theme?

Evan and Jeremy met at college where they became friends, and were later reunited when a work opportunity brought them back together.

Evan was adorned with precious family heirlooms, including her mother’s veil and jewellery from both grandmothers and her great-great grandmother, and shoe lovers who lack self control should shield their eyes now (don’t say we didn’t warn you) because you’re definitely going to want to splash out on a pair of the bride’s stunning, crystal-embellished Badgley Mischka heels. Can we say ‘bling’?

The couple had a Jew-ish wedding – an interfaith ceremony that integrated both Christian and Jewish traditions, honouring both the bride and groom’s respective backgrounds.

This gorgeous fairy princess garden themed wedding took place at idyllic venue, Old Red Museum in Texas, USA and all the details were expertly captured by AR Photography.

Let’s hand over to Evan to fill you in on every last detail!

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How we met

Evan, the bride: Jeremy and I met at Texas State University in San Marcos, TX when he was a junior and I was a freshman. We became instant friends, and had a great (completely platonic) friendship for the rest of my college career. When spring rolled around my senior year, Jeremy reached out to me in regards to a job opportunity at his company.

He was living in Houston, Texas and I was targeting Austin, Texas. I got the job in his company’s Austin office. Shortly after, we began talking consistently. He then asked me to meet up with his friends and go camping one weekend. After that, the rest is history. Four months later he got a job offer in Seattle, and that is where we decided to start our lives together. A year and a half on from our move, he proposed.

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