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A Multicultural Vietnamese-Jewish Wedding at Temple Akiba and Playa Studios, Los Angeles, California, USA

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Michelle and David, Playa Studios, LA, USA

We love it when a couple merges their two backgrounds into a one-of-a-kind LA Jewish wedding – and that’s exactly what today’s duo did! Michelle, an executive search recruiter, and David, a public school teacher and screenwriter, set out to plan a wedding that celebrated both the pair’s shared Jewish faith and Michelle’s Vietnamese heritage.  

Right before their chuppah – which was held at the couple’s synagogue – Michelle and David hosted a traditional Vietnamese tea ceremony. They donned áo dais (traditional Vietnamese gowns) and served tea to their elders and relatives.

We also love that Michelle rocked three different fabulous bridal looks throughout her day! First the áo dài, then a classic ballgown from Rita Vinieris for the chuppah, and finally a fusion look for the reception, pairing a clean, minimalist gown from Jill Stuart with a matching, white khăn đóng (Vietnamese headdress).

Read on for more about this wonderful wedding, plus exquisite documentary photography by Rebecca y las otras…

Michelle and David, Playa Studios, LA, USA Michelle and David, Playa Studios, LA, USA Michelle and David, Playa Studios, LA, USA Michelle and David, Playa Studios, LA, USA
How we Met

Michelle, the bride: We met at a networking event in LA.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A Daalarna Couture Bride for an Autumnal Interfaith Jewish Wedding at Hotel Ella, Austin, Texas, USA

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Jewish wedding Hotel Ella in Austin, Texas, USA_0053
Can you believe it’s Erev Passover this evening? How did that happen already?! And what are you doing for seder night tonight? I’ve just arrived home from 10 days in Israel on a family holiday, and heading to my in-laws in South London for our Erev Seder (I’ll be sharing snippets from our evening over on our Instagram Stories!)

And onto today’s gorgeous Texan interfaith Jewish wedding: Rachel, who works in marketing at Microsoft, and Joshua, an entrepreneur and founder of Standout Authority (#isntsheloveLEEatx), crafted a very special wedding reflecting the merging of their two backgrounds.

The couple had a totally gorgeous chuppah that perfectly combined tradition and modernity in some unexpected but beautiful ways – which Rachel felt was especially fitting in light of the pair’s interfaith relationship (she’s Jewish, he isn’t). Between the gold base, white drapery, and asymmetrical florals, they absolutely succeeded in their goal to come up with something just a little bit different – a perfect reflection of the new chapter of their lives marked by this wonderful celebration.

From the dramatic autumnal jewel tones to the emotion and love, photographer Misty Mclendon and videographer Lauren Maria did such a fantastic job capturing all the moments of this meaningful day.

We love what these two did for their “guest book”: they had a beautiful drawing of a tree and had their guests “leaf a thumbprint” to sign! Now, instead of a book that rarely gets opened, they have a unique piece of art to display in their home. Another great touch? Rachel and Joshua left a box for people to share their bucket list ideas!

Also, how cool is it that the rabbi wore cowboy boots? Doesn’t get much more Texas than that!

We’ll leave it to the bride – who looked so elegant in her Daalarna Couture gown – to fill you in on the rest… Oh, and before we go, Team STG wishes you a very happy Passover, however you’re celebrating!

 
An Austin Wedding

Rachel, the bride: Joshua and I got married at the Hotel Ella in Austin, Texas. We wanted a venue that was in Austin, not too far from the center of the city since we wanted to show our out-of-town family and friends what the city is all about.

We had seen about 5 places before going to the Hotel Ella and the second we saw the room, we knew it was it. We loved the mix of old and new – the colonial feel of the boutique hotel with the eclectic and modern design inside. It really represented our classic and modern attitude with Rachel being from Los Angeles and Joshua being from Texas.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A Kenneth Winston Bride for a Musical Jewish Wedding with DIY Touches at Belsize Square Synagogue and the Liberal Club, London, UK

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Jewish wedding Belsize Square Synagogue and Liberal Club London UK_0039
We all know how overwhelming wedding planning can be. There are so many choices to be made, from color schemes to venues to symbolism and more — and so many vendors to choose from. Of course a wedding planner can be a huge help in sorting through everything that’s out there and focusing your vision, but what if you want to do a lot of the planning yourself?

Today’s couple, Bekka, a lecturer in international relations, and Benjamin, a musician and lecturer in music went for a wedding consultancy session with Smashing the Glass’s own Karen to help and advise with their Jewish wedding.

She directed them toward many of their fantastic vendors, from Smashing the Glass Recommended Vendor Once Upon A Paper, who provided the couple’s beautiful watercolor guest book, to Adams Photography, who captured all the emotion and excitement so exquisitely, to Smashing the Glass Recommended Vendor Prezola registry, which Bekka and Benjamin loved for its wonderful selection of gifts from different stores in the UK, as well as cash funds, Judaica, and charities, to The Wedding Gallery, the world’s first wedding department store, for the groom’s outfit.

All this freed up their time and energy to focus on the many DIY elements the pair incorporated into their wedding.

Bekka and Benjamin designed their invitations themselves and built their own chuppah, but music is where the pair really put their own stamp on the day. For one thing, their ceremony venue, Belsize Square Synagogue, was chosen because Benjamin is the congregation’s music director. So it was only natural that he arranged and composed pieces to be performed during the ceremony, performed by Benjamin’s quartet, bOYbershop, and three (!) choirs that he conducts.

We’ll leave it to Bekka, who looked beautiful in her ivory lace Kenneth Winston dress, to fill you in on the rest…

Jewish wedding Belsize Square Synagogue and Liberal Club London UK_0048 Jewish wedding Belsize Square Synagogue and Liberal Club London UK_0036

Jewish wedding Belsize Square Synagogue and Liberal Club London UK_0036 Jewish wedding Belsize Square Synagogue and Liberal Club London UK_0036
A Venue with History

Bekka, the bride, and Benjamin, the groom: We got married at Belsize Square Synagogue. We chose it as Benjamin has worked there as musical director for 12 years.

The evening was at the Liberal Club (1 Whitehall Place). Bekka found the venue online. The venue had a small personal connection as Benjamin’s grandfather was a member of the Liberal Party, and Bekka’s father is fascinated with William Gladstone.

Mainly, however, we just loved the venue when we saw it. We also loved the idea of a dusky double decker bus ride through London from the synagogue (particularly for our international guests).

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We’re crazy about Ketubot!

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mashing The Glass Ketubahs
Artisan I by Ruth Mergi I $795 I Available to buy from Ruth Mergi 

Here at Smashing The Glass, we’re totally, insanely, ridiculously crazy about Ketubot! Funnily though, when I got married to Mr STG, I didn’t actually realise there were so many amazingly talented Ketubah artists out there. When our Rabbi asked us if we wanted him to source us a standard Ketubah we just said ‘yes of course’ and didn’t think much of it.

It was only after I started Smashing The Glass that I realised there were SO many beautiful Ketubot available to couples and they literally come in a design that will suit EVERYONE.  From luxe, to paper cut, to art deco, to traditional – there really is something for every taste.  What’s also super amazing is that the Ketubah text can be customised for every wedding whether you’re having an orthodox, reform, inter-faith or LGBTQ. 

We are so thrilled (and lucky) to have some amazingly talented Ketubah designers featured on Smashing The Glass over the years, so we have pulled together some of our favourite designs currently available. Let us know which is your favourite in the comments below and of course happy pinning! 

mashing The Glass Ketubahs
Sasson Papercut Luxe – Indigo Ketubah I By Enya Keshet  I $750 I  Available to buy at Ketubah.com

Super Luxe

We love this beautiful cut-out design. This ketubah features the quotation from the seventh blessing of the marriage appears in Hebrew in the cut-out design, and in English, in coloured print, around the ketubah text and vows of commitment and love. This Luxe Collection Ketubah is hand adorned with 23K gold leaf and Swarovski crystals making it literally shine.  Available at the amazing Ketubah.com


Good Earth Circle Botanical Ketubah I By Adriana Sape I $300 I Available to buy at Ink with Intent 

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Freya & Tim | Outdoor Fun ‘n’ Games Jewish Wedding at Ketchum Rotary Park, Idaho, USA

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DIY Jewish Wedding 43
This is a great example of a wedding that shows what you can achieve if you put a bit of time and effort in to doing something, and that a wedding doesn’t have to cost an absolute fortune! With the sun shining and your best friends and family around you, it’s easy to remember that the best things in life are free…cheesy but true.

Freya and Tim are both farmers – Tim is a 6th generation farmer in rural southern Minnesota and Freya is an organic farmer by profession and runs her own small produce business. Agriculture, food, and the outdoors is the core of who they are and being a totally ‘smashing’ couple and  essentially being truly authentic to themselves, these elements came through beautifully and personally in their relaxed outdoor wedding.

DIY Jewish Wedding INTRO
A HOMEMADE, HANDMADE OUTDOOR WEDDING
Freya, The Bride: Our wedding was in Ketchum, Idaho and we held the ceremony and reception in Ketchum Rotary Park along the Bigwood river, the river upon which I grew up and love dearly.  Tim and I didn’t really go for a theme or colour scheme. Everything was very simple and natural and the whole event was homemade and handmade – DIY style – very relaxed, like an afternoon picnic. We had lots of games like bean bag toss, ladder golf, hula hoops, bubbles, etc and these were played by both adult (and little) kids!

We had directional signs, chalkboards and such, all made by my husband. There was not much need for more decoration than that as it was such a beautiful venue.
DIY Jewish Wedding INTRO 2DIY Jewish Wedding GAMES DIY Jewish Wedding 38
MY OWN BRIDAL STYLE
I knew I wanted to be comfortable and feel like myself, not all made-up and princess-like. After trying on too many “cupcake” dresses, I found the “mini-cupcake” and loved it. I paired the dress with Canadian-made handcrafted Boulet western boots, that were a gift from my husband a few months before we got engaged. He knows I love my boots, and the collection keeps growing.

In terms of jewellery, I wore my mothers, sisters, late-grandmothers and my pearl bracelets. It meant a lot to me to have all those women with me under the chuppah….

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