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An Elbeth Gillis Bride for a Modern and Sophisticated Jewish Wedding at the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel, London, UK

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Cool chuppah alert! London couple Tamara, who works in marketing, and Reuben, a broker, opted to skip out on flowers (partly to avoid aggravating the bride’s hay fever), and did they ever find the perfect way to craft a standout chuppah, no blooms required.

Letting their venue, the stunning St Pancras Renaissance Hotel, set the tone, Tamara and Reuben opted for a simple, elegant Perspex chuppah, covered with Reuben’s grandfather’s tallit. It was the absolute perfect complement to the Art Deco-style ballroom where the wedding took place – as was the couple’s choice of black linen and Perspex candelabras for the tables at the reception.

Music was a top priority for Tamara and Reuben, and they found the perfect fit in the amazing Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Sensation Band, who handled both production and live music throughout the night, with Guy Barzily who blew everyone away with his chuppah singing and simcha set. The duo wanted a mix of 80s, 90s, and soul for the dancing sets, and Sensation delivered that and so much more.

The couple’s photographer, the incredibly talented David Pullum, captured everything flawlessly – and Tamara and Reuben report that he was an absolute dream to work with throughout the day.

Now over to Tamara, who looked so chicly elegant in her Elbeth Gillis dress…

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How We Met

Tamara, the bride: We had mutual friends and our paths had crossed in our teenage years but we “officially” met on JSwipe nearly 8 years ago.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A Classically Elegant Jewish Wedding Full of Personal Touches at the Langham Boston, Massachusetts, USA

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We love it when a couple puts their own stamp on their wedding – which is exactly what Lyndsay, a PharmD working in the biotech industry, and Eric, who works in finance, did! When planning their Boston Jewish wedding, the duo prioritized making the day a true reflection of their unique story, incorporating so many lovely personal touches and meaningful details.

How cute is it that Lyndsay and Eric put together a wedding newspaper they shared with their guests, incorporating stories, games, guest awards, and a guide to the Jewish wedding? They even brought Lyndsay’s maiden name, Golden, into their classic color scheme of white, black, and champagne gold. Don’t miss it all in the wonderful images from Lee Asher Photos!

And we’re obsessed with the couple’s seating chart, which consisted of an envelope for each guest with their name and table number containing a personalized letter. What a special way for Lyndsay and Eric to show their gratitude for the people in their life on the big day!

Read on for more in the bride’s own words…


How We Met

Lyndsay, the bride: An excerpt from our wedding day newspaper: As Eric likes to say, this love story began the ‘good old fashioned way’….with a swipe on JSwipe in 2022. Unknowingly, Lyndsay and Eric were essentially neighbors and only lived about a 7 minute walk from each other. Their first date was a simple coffee and tea outing in the Boston Seaport with their now shared corgi, Lulu.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A Desert Bohemian Jewish Wedding with Circus Elements at Smoke Tree Stables, Palm Springs, California, USA

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We love a good theme wedding – and Rena and Alexander’s was doubly great, having not just one theme but two! While their venue, Smoke Tree Stables in Palm Springs (where the groom worked for over a decade), lent itself to a Western theme, they also opted to add in circus elements by hiring a stilt walker and face painter and setting up games like horseshoe and cornhole.

Rena and Alexander worked with Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Rabbi Leah Richman to craft a custom ketubah involving elements from her Desert Oasis Sunrise Ketubah with desert animals, such as the mule deer, big horn sheep, and California Rosy Boa snake. She also added hedgehog cactuses with blooms of deep magenta in the foreground, and in the background the San Jacinto mountains, beneath which the Smoke Tree Stables are nestled.

We love that the duo opted for an egalitarian Kabbalat Panim, where both bride and groom were surrounded by their loved ones, in separate ceremonies, to share stories and memories. Don’t miss it all in the wonderful photos by Kathleen Geiberger Art.

Now over to the bride…

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How We Met

Rena, the bride: We met on Bumble—one success story amid myriad tribulations. Alex was nervous to get on the phone, since he is often quiet when meeting someone new. However, Rena immediately put him at ease sharing stories of backpacking in places like Catalina, the Green Mountains, and her favorite pastime—finding hard-to-reach natural hot springs. For their first date, Alex drove four hours from Palm Springs—where he worked as a horse wrangler at Smoke Tree Stables—to Anaheim to meet at the Hidden House Coffee shop.

They talked for hours and decided on a second date: a moonlight hike in the Cleveland National Forest. They hiked Upper Hot Springs Canyon to Falls Trail under the full moon. Rena didn’t think to bring food, which turned out to be a good thing, as Alex had packed a charcuterie board and four types of wine since he didn’t know her preference.

From that moonlit picnic at the waterfall, Alex knew he wanted to marry Rena. From then on, he drove four hours for many more dates while Rena finished her postdoctoral position at the University of California, Irvine.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A Maison Signore Bride for a Colorful Jewish Wedding Focused on Fun at Claridge’s, London, UK

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Rebecca and Peter, Claridges, London, UK

When Rebecca and Peter set out to plan their London Jewish wedding, they knew they wanted their day to be fun. And was it ever!

Focused around the idea of a big party at Claridge’s with all their friends and family, Rebecca and Peter opted for a vibrant color scheme of hot pink and orange, a chuppah overflowing with bright blooms, and spectacular giant paper flowers as décor.

In the bride’s words,

The centerpiece of the wedding was our amazing band, Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Sensation Band, and a custom black and white dance floor – we knew we wanted our guests dancing all night. Sensation Band gave us a fantastic party, with DJ Benny from midnight to 1am for the afterparty. Sensation Band also led a phenomenal Israeli dancing set.

Instead of a formal seated dinner, Rebecca and Peter opted to keep things casual, starting with cocktails, canapes, and a champagne trolley, followed by a taco and tequila station, passed bowls, and sushi trolleys.

The couple’s photographer, Blake Ezra, captured all the emotion and fun of the day so beautifully – keep scrolling for some serious eye candy, plus more fab details in the bride’s own words…

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How We Met

Rebecca, the bride: We met on JSwipe back in 2016! Peter, a New Yorker, was working as a journalist in London for two years. We actually met three times, the first two never quite working with timings, but the last time we dated for five months before Peter moved back to NYC. After two years of long distance, Rebecca, a British diplomat, got posted to New York for work, while Peter started law school, and is now a practicing lawyer in NY.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A Martina Liana Bride for a Relaxed and Romantic Jewish Wedding at The Last Drop Village & Spa, Bolton, UK

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We love it when a couple centers their Jewish wedding around friends and family – which is exactly what Justine and Elliott did, and we absolutely adore the way they brought their loved ones into the big day.

The couple live in Hertfordshire, but it was always a given that they’d marry up North near the bride’s hometown of Liverpool. One of Justine’s cousins, Rabbi Alby Chait MBE, officiated, and another cousin, Charles Chait, was the chazzan – how special is that?!

Justine and Elliott wanted to make sure all of their guests had a blast, and Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Jam Hot Showband was the absolute perfect entertainment choice. Their 10-piece band was, in the bride’s words, “just WOW! The musicians, the energy and the organisation was outstanding. They had a quick room turnaround time from chuppah to main dinner which was seamless. Guests commented on how much they loved the band’s musical medleys and the dance floor was completely packed all night; we could not have asked for a better party!”

The duo chose another wonderful Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor, Kate Swerdlow, to photograph their day, and they couldn’t be any more thrilled with their choice. As Justine put it, Kate is “so creative and energetic, her photos are beautifully natural, not overly posed, and perfectly capture the essence of our day.”

Read on for all the details of this beautiful day in the bride’s own words…


How We Met

Justine, the bride: We met in 2017 after matching on JSwipe! I was studying Musical Theatre at drama school in Guildford, while Elliott, who had graduated from the University of Leeds, was working at a financial advisory firm. Elliott traveled to Guildford for our first date, and the rest is history! Seven years later, I am now the Director of Drama at an Independent School in Radlett, and Elliott is an Independent Financial Advisor. We live in Elstree & Borehamwood.Continue ReadingContinue Reading