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A Jewish Outdoor Destination Wedding With a Groom in Suit Shorts at Suikerbossie, Cape Town, South Africa

10/07/2017 by Karen

Strap in, folks, because we’re about to jet off to Cape Town for an all-inclusive trip to Barbora and Adam’s divine destination wedding.

Chosen for its stunning outdoor offering, the pair tied the knot in a boho-casual Jewish ceremony at gorgeous Suikerbossie, Hout Bay, Cape Town. The laid-back style was set by groom, Adam, who fulfilled his dream of wearing suit shorts – we do love a groom in suit shorts!

Adam and Barbora proved that nothing is a disaster. From a bridal dress swap, just a fortnight before the wedding, to bridesmaids’ dress dramas, nothing kept these two from their dream day.

A wedding photo booth is always an amazing thing to have, but we’re particularly enamoured with the cute caravan exterior – what an utterly steal-able idea.

The day was full of fun, heart and personality – by the end of the party, even grandma was out of her wheelchair and swearing enthusiastically into the microphone, singing along to old-school music. What a sight that must have been to behold!

Massive props to Paul Toeman Photographers, for capturing such a big, beautiful production so beautifully and sensitively, and stay tuned for groom Adam’s brilliant and entertaining writeup of his big day with his beloved Babs. Over to Adam!

An outdoor experience

Adam, the groom: We got married at Suikerbossie, which is a wedding venue in Hout Bay, Cape Town. We loved this venue, mainly because of the location, and our plan was to try and create an outdoor experience, so this place was perfect.

The garden also had a really cool swing that Babs fell in love with from the moment she saw it! On top of that, the venue offer a Kosher menu, and also played a big role in the on-site management of all suppliers.

A bohemian Jewish wedding bringing the outdoors inside at Lourensford Wine Estate, Cape Town, South Africa

27/03/2017 by Karen

Today’s stunner of a real wedding comes all the way from Cape Town, South Africa, and is, unbelievably, only our second STG South African real wedding. Needless to say, if this is the level of wedding pretty coming from that part of the world, then we’d definitely like to see a lot more, please!

When presented with a chuppah this breathtaking, it seems ludicrous not to talk about it first, and, frankly, this divine design deserves all the positive adjectives. Decadently draped in fresh flowers, it’s so astounding that you’d be forgiven for almost failing to notice the awe-inspiring mountainous backdrop of Gavin and Kelly’s Jewish ceremony.

Beautiful bride, Kelly, looked a million bucks in her sublime custom-made, boho-inspired dress, flanked by no fewer than 12 bridesmaids.

With a natural ethos in mind, Kelly’s brief for wedding planner, Veronica, from Petals Group, was to bring the outdoors inside, which Veronica managed with aplomb.

The day was immortalised in images by much-sought-after photographer, Shanna Jones who did such a phenomenal job that she earned one of the most passionate reviews of a supplier we’ve published on these pages. We can certainly see what all the fuss is about — just look at this spread, a picture of perfection.

We’ll pass you over to Kelly’s capable hands to tell you more about her and Gavin’s ethereal and whimsical wedding day.

An idyllic Cape Town venue

Kelly, the bride: We got married at Lourensford Wine Estate in Somerset West, Cape Town. Gavin is originally from Cape Town, which really is one of the most beautiful places in the world, so we decided to look at venues there. We loved the relaxed and informal, homey feel of Lourensford and we knew we wanted to get married there from the second we viewed it.

Bringing the outdoors inside

We knew what we wanted from the beginning. We wanted a very earthy, natural boho look and feel. We wanted it to be understated and nothing over the top. We knew we wanted flowers, but, more so, we wanted greenery. If we could have done the whole wedding outside we would have, but with Cape Town weather being temperamental it wasn’t worth the risk, so we wanted to try bring outside inside. We used, Veronica, from Petals Group. She was outstanding and we could not have done a thing without her. She really guided us throughout the process.

Overall, what we really wanted was our wedding not to be a big show. We wanted it to be small, intimate and authentic and really just to celebrate our love. Every part of my day felt sincere and genuine and all the love and care for me and Gavin was so present. I think people felt that sincerity, and enjoyed the evening because of it. That’s what made it special to me.Continue Reading

Yukie & Jason’s Moroccan-themed destination wedding, with three designer dresses, at Caesar Yam, Caesarea, Israel

28/11/2016 by Karen

Yukie and Jason’s Moroccan market-themed Israeli destination wedding was an epic, four-part production, thanks to super helpful mother-in-law, Victoria and their incredibly talented planner, Adena at A to Z Events.

Bright colours abound with lavish gold accents, maximalist patterns and oh my goodness, check out that cake! At Smashing the Glass HQ, we’re also loving the drama of those fantastically opulent thrones for the bride and groom (move over Posh and Becks), and these brilliant stylistic choices are matched only by the loveliness of the couple’s story.

For anyone out there who is living the sometimes taxing reality of the old adage, absence makes the heart grow fonder, take heart – this loved-up pair have proved that long-distance relationships can have a truly happy ending. With a groom from New York, a bride from Tokyo, the groom’s parents from Moscow but living in Israel and most of the guests taking their first trip to the Holy Land for the couple’s wedding, this is a love that brought together cultures from all over the world for a truly beautiful celebration.

The ceremony was custom built for Yukie and Jason. While it was important to them to have a ceremony that was “official” according to the religion, with Yukie having recently joined the tribe, they also wanted it to reflect their own feelings and personal connection to Judaism. Some of the personalised details included a reciprocal ketubah, and when the groom smashed the glass, the bride simultaneously smashed a plate. The rabbi composed his speech by asking the bride and groom for three important memories and three reasons they were each other’s one and only — from this, he created an incredibly moving tribute to their relationship.

Oh, and if you’re not already sick with jealousy over Yukie’s amazing Oscar de la Renta gown, she also had two more gorgeous dresses for the evening parties! Feast your eyes on it below, all perfectly captured by photographer Shabi Kedem and Levi Dovid.

How we met

Yukie, the bride: I am Japanese and spent my entire life in Japan before I met Jason. We met nine years ago in Tokyo while he was on vacation with his brother.

Although at first I thought he wasn’t my type, once we started talking we got along so well that we had a date every day for the week he was in Tokyo. We kept in touch after he left – he called me every day for the next two years.

We visited each other any time we could — he even came to live in Japan for a year. We kept our long-distance love going for for years between Tokyo and New York.

Then, four years ago, I finally decided to move to New York and we started living together.

Spectacular destination wedding at Ronit Farm, Kfar Shmaryahu, Herzliya, Israel

27/09/2016 by Karen

I promise you what you’re about to see is truly epic. This folks is how to do a super cool, super chic lavish destination wedding in Israel.

Montana and Justin, from South Africa, married at Ronit Farm (Havat Ronit), one of Israel’s most dazzling wedding venues. What’s more, the clever team at Danny Marx brought to life something I have never seen before: Montana had decided that she wanted to walk down the aisle to the chuppah while everyone was already seated at their tables, so all the guests were seated at one giant ‘S’ shaped table that also served as the ‘catwalk’ down to the chuppah (I mean REALLY!).

There are so many things I love about this wedding that I’d be here until midnight listing them all for you but I will say that I love a bride who chooses a black colour scheme (so different) and 17 bridesmaids dressed in black! I also love that the couple chose the same first dance song as Montana’s grandparents had. Her grandparents have been married for 60 years and joined them on the dance floor for the first dance. So special, right?

Montana and Justin certainly know how to throw a party. And throw a club-like Ibiza-style party they did, complete with pyrotechnics, dancers covered in lights, fire flames… THE LOT! Just wait until you see the photos by Eran Beeri and Eyal Gaziel and wedding film by Aleksey Malev.

Oh and I love the array of favours handed out… from selfie sticks to fans to sandals to hip flasks filled with different cocktails that guests could enjoy on their coach ride home. See? I told you this wedding is EVERYTHING!

Montana and Justin, take it away…

How they met

Montana, the bride: Justin and I met when we were 14 years old. We were in the same class in our first year of high school. We were best friends and over the years it developed into a love story. We dated on and off throughout high school and reconnected again after school when we were 22. The rest is history — we have never looked back!

Choosing to get married in Israel

We got married at Ronit Farm in Israel. We attended a wedding there a few years ago and I decided then and there that I would get married there. As a South African, it is hard to have a local wedding that is special and different so we thought a destination wedding would be best. And what better place to get married than in Israel!

A Modern Trousseau Bride for an intimate ‘dinner party-style’ Jewish wedding at Kettle Cove and Five Fifty-Five Bistro, Maine, USA

13/09/2016 by Karen

Lauren and Aaron met online (they’re actually one of several online dating success stories featured on STG!), and Lauren says she knew by the second date that she wanted to meet Aaron under the chuppah… 😉

…And when it came to deciding how they would celebrate that eventual meeting under the chuppah, they knew they didn’t want a traditional wedding with bridal parties or first dance formalities. All they truly wanted was simply to marry one another with the people they love close by their sides.

I love it when couples make their weddings a representation of who they are and feel free to remove anything that just doesn’t fit them, and Lauren & Aaron’s Big Day is exactly that — a wedding that reflects who they are and what they wanted, which was a truly intimate outdoor ceremony on the water, followed by a small ‘dinner party style’ reception at a local restaurant.

From the farmhouse they rented in Southern Maine that housed their closest friends for a week,to the intimate ceremony on a peninsula jutting out into the foggy Atlantic, and the cosy dinner in downtown Portland, Maine where they could turn in their chairs to talk to anyone in attendance, their entire wedding was an intimate, homely, warm affair.

And since their wedding was held in a public park (Kettle Cove), they knew that they needed a simple chuppah that they could transport, put up, and take down easily. They ended up purchasing four tall birch branches and using Aaron’s tallit for the top of the chuppah. Aaron is great at engineering solutions and mechanical design, so he created a tension-free system using twine, the tallit, and four small hooks in each of the birch branches to create the chuppah of their dreams. Who said Jewish boys are no good at DIY?! (Oh, and if you want to build your own chuppah for your wedding, there’s a lovely tutorial on the blog, right over here).

Lauren and Aaron joke that their wedding theme was a “wedding-themed dinner party.” They knew that they wanted to be able to spend quality time with their families and closest friends, and wanted their ceremony to incorporate the beauty and experience of the outdoors, with a cosy reception with great food where they could spend time appreciating their family and guests.

All the pretty and emotion has been captured perfectly by Sarah V. Martinez. Enjoy!

How we met

Lauren, the Bride: Aaron and I met via a dating website and exchanged a few witty emails before meeting in person at a coffee shop called ‘The Thinking Cup’, right off of the Boston Common. After coffee and tea, I asked Aaron if he was hungry, to which he replied “of course,” and we walked through the Common to a pizza shop on Charles St. The rest is history…

An outdoor experience

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An idyllic Cape Town venue

Bringing the outdoors inside

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How we met

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How they met

Choosing to get married in Israel

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How we met

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