optimum weddings Archives - Smashing the Glass

Planning A Wedding Without My Dad

30/10/2019 by Smashing The Glass Leave a Comment

Sarah who will be marrying Rich on 21th June 2020 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!

So this is an emotional post, it’s heartfelt and it’s raw and it hasn’t been easy to write. I suppose that my main aim of writing it is in the hope that other brides to be realise that they are not alone in their feelings if they have lost someone special and that there is nothing wrong with having mixed feelings at such a happy time because it is normal. So here goes…

I lost my dad when I was five years old and I also lost my mums sister last year and my nanny, uncle, grandparents and very close family friends over the past 26 years.

For the most part I have always accepted this and been ok with it, even though I have really missed dad and my other loved ones at landmark events on special occasions like graduation, my first job, when I needed a male perspective on various boyfriend dilemmas, when I watched a father of the bride speech at a wedding or a father daughter dance at a wedding. However, I never expected the wave of emotions which hit me when I got engaged.

Getting engaged was one of the best days of my life, I knew that it was the start of a wonderful life with my best friend and the man that I love. However, I had this overwhelming sense of emptiness and loss. I couldn’t understand what was wrong with me? How could I be feeling down at such an exciting and happy time, maybe I’m just not normal?

2020 Real Jewish Brides: Introducing Sarah + Rich: How They Met To The Present Day…

11/09/2019 by Smashing The Glass

Today on the blog we’re introducing our 3rd gorgeous bride from our crop of 2020 Real Jewish Brides! Please give a warm welcome to Sarah, who will be marrying Rich on 21th June 2020 at Tikitano Beach, Marbella, Spain.

How We Met

My fiance Richard and I met on the dating app J-Swipe. At that time, Richard was treating dating like a prospective business transaction and I was totally over the dating scene! However, my best friend was determined for me to meet someone and so she took my phone and signed me up to J-Swipe without even asking me! Before I knew it, she was swiping “yes” to all the prospective men that she deemed suitable and Rich was one of them!

I was acting at the time and once we got chatting and Richard’s opening line to me on J-Swipe was, “If you could play any character in a TV show or film, who would it be?” I replied, “the fierce and sassy Olivia Pope from Scandal!” I was secretly impressed with his different opener and thought he was worth a shot!

A Liz Martinez Bride for a Beachside Destination Jewish Wedding at La Cabane, Los Monteros, Marbella, Spain

05/06/2019 by Karen Cinnamon

We just might have a new all-time favourite chuppah. Seriously, could you imagine anything more perfect for a sundrenched Spanish seaside wedding than this symphony in white and green? We’re pretty sure we can’t.

Georgia and Joel’s big day is really something, from start to finish. Despite living in London and not being able to get out to Spain as often as they would’ve liked, the wedding was planned perfectly down to the very last detail thanks to the wonderful Dyana of Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor optimum weddings. The bride reports that Dyana and her team were “amazing from start to finish” – even sticking around all night until the wedding ended at 3 AM!

This is truly a stunning wedding – you don’t want to miss the gorgeous, luminous photos and trailer from The Love Hunters (recommended by Dyana). And we’re obsessed with Georgia’s stunning dress by Israeli-French designer Liz Martinez.

And whilst we’ve got you, you MUST tune into SmashingTheGlass.com tomorrow, Thursday, for a very special announcement with amazing freebies for every bride-to-be! See you back here, tomorrow, Thursday – same time same place for the big reveal!

How we met

Georgia, the bride: Joel and I went to the same high school but did not know each other during this time. It wasn’t until he left the school that I became friendly with his group of friends! We then met outside of school and dated for 9 years before he proposed!

A Louise Marie Bride for a Sunshine Party Jewish Wedding at Finca La Concepcion, Marbella, Spain

08/05/2019 by Karen Cinnamon

This glorious Jewish wedding in Spain is truly the stuff destination wedding fantasies are made of – and no wonder, given that Charlotte, an EA at a financial services firm, and Simon runs his own business, SB Jewellery, assembled a total dream team to help them pull off planning from abroad.

From Dyana Dessar Simmons and her team at Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Optimum Weddings – who led the couple to their jawdroppingly gorgeous venue – to photography by Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Jeremy Standley and his assistant Ruth Blamire-Brown – who captured everything from that smashing the glass moment to the wild Israeli dancing perfectly – Charlotte and Simon had all the Jewish wedding expertise (not to mention creative talent!) you could ask for.

Getting the Jewish element just right was extra important to these two given that the bride had recently converted to Judaism, and she wanted to make sure her family felt included in the big day despite being new to Jewish weddings.

Happily, these two had a super supportive rabbi, who made sure everyone felt a part of the ceremony – and we love how they made some of our favourite Jewish wedding traditions their own, with lovely touches from a birch chuppah to a beautiful bespoke ketubah from Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Danny Azoulay that the couple picked out when visiting his shop on a trip to Jerusalem.

Now over to Charlotte, who looked stunning in her bespoke lace gown from Louise Marie…

How we met

Charlotte, the bride: Simon and I met and University of Birmingham both doing a Chemistry degree, it wasn’t until our final year that we got together after being friends from the start.

We had been together 4 years when Simon proposed in the Four Seasons in Johannesburg the first night of our holiday in South Africa just before starting our safari. He arranged the whole thing with the hotel to have our room all decorated and champagne and canapes laid out for us. It was perfect and I really was surprised.

A Hayley Paige Bride for a Garden Jewish Wedding with a Eucalyptus Chuppah at El Molino Del Duque, Marbella, Spain

20/03/2019 by Karen Cinnamon

We’ve got something really special to share with you today: the gorgeous Jewish wedding of Dan to Ruthie, who is the marketing manager at Smashing The Glass Recommended Venue Kimpton Fitzroy London (where we’re currently running an amazing competition to win a luxe romantic stay for two — do check it out if you haven’t yet entered!).

Ruthie’s Australian, Dan’s Scottish, they live in London, met in Tel Aviv, and got married in sunny Spain (the closest they could come to matching that glorious Aussie sunshine without making their guests fly to the other side of the world) — how’s that for an international wedding?!

Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Optimum Weddings helped the couple plan the joyous, laid-back, and, above, all, totally breathtakingly gorgeous celebration of their dreams, and we love how much attention went into the details…

…From the eucalyptus chuppah (in honor of Ruthie’s Australian background!) to the stunning invitations from STG Recommended Vendor Bigday Designs, with intricately adorned with flowers of the exact same types and shades as the ones in the gardens at the venue!

And we love that the couple placed top priority not only on music for their reception, but also for the ceremony —and it doesn’t get any more special than soulful Jewish tunes from STG Recommended Vendor Jonny Mosesson, who added that extra bit of wow factor to an already incredibly special ceremony (Pssst… Brides Club members – Jonny is doing a Jewish Wedding Music live singing + Q&A inside the private Brides Club Facebook group later today… not to be missed!)

Photographer Mireia Cordomi and videographer Antonio De Perez captured all the emotion and fun of the day so wonderfully — not to mention the lush setting, exquisite details, and that coveted Spanish sunlight.

Now over to Ruthie, who looked so glam in her beaded Hayley Paige…

How We Met

Ruthie, the bride: Daniel and I met when I was living in Tel Aviv and he was there on holiday. We were introduced by two mutual friends who both quite literally sat on me until I agreed to go and meet him. We had our second date in Paris and then our third date in London. The rest is history!