Rachel Flax Archives - Smashing the Glass

Elegant Museum Jewish Wedding Inspo at the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, UK

12/08/2021 by Karen Cinnamon

Here at Team STG, we love a museum wedding (even our founder Karen had one!). And when it comes to Jewish weddings, museum venues don’t get much better than Oxford’s Ashmolean. The Ashmolean Museum, set in the heart of Oxford – the city of dreaming spires – is a magnificent venue for Jewish weddings. The neo-classical architecture, iconic entrance, grand sweeping staircases and opulent galleries offer a wonderful range of stunning and romantic spaces, each offering its own unique backdrop for your special day.

And we’re obsessed with this stunning styled shoot the Ashmolean events team put together showcasing their Jewish wedding prowess – featuring amazing Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendors Rachel Flax Events, Liv and Luc, and Contemporary Judaica (all of which happen to be run by fabulous Jewish women!).

Dating back to 1683, the Ashmolean is the oldest public museum in the world. Displaying half a million years of art and history, all of the museum’s galleries are licensed for daytime and evening ceremonies. Opt for an intimate celebration during the day, or wait until the museum’s magnificent tall blue doors close to daytime visitors, when the Ashmolean can be exclusively yours for an impressive evening reception complete with dinner and dancing.

Since the Ashmolean joined the STG community last year, we’ve been so impressed by their commitment to hosting stunning, unique Jewish weddings.

In the words of Wendy Ball, Head of Events at The Ashmolean, “From our initial conversations with Emily (client relations at STG), we knew we’d found a perfect fit! STG are renowned for helping couples create ‘Your Jewish (or Jew-ish) Wedding, Your Way’ and we are a world-class museum, that values the art of telling human stories across cultures and across time. Adding to this an experienced, diverse and passionate team of event professionals who take time to really listen to couples, getting to know their stories and wishes, we have helped create many memorable and unique celebrations.”

Whether an intimate ceremony with loved ones, an Oxford city elopement, or a luxury wedding reception, the Ashmolean’s spaces, inside and out, provide a stunning and romantic backdrop for a wedding.

Country House Jewish Wedding Inspo at Offley Place, Hitchin, Hertfordhsire, UK

19/05/2020 by Karen Cinnamon

Who doesn’t love an English country house wedding? Here at Team STG, we sure do! So we were pretty excited when we found out that some of our very favourite Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendors – photographer Rafe Abrook, planner Rachel Flax Events, and makeup artist Katy Angelidi – had teamed up to organize a gorgeous styled shoot at Offley Place in Hitchin, North Hertfordshire.

Offley Place is a totally gorgeous venue in North Hertfordshire – one of those magical places that hits that tiny spot on the Venn diagram where classic English countryside meets proximity to London.

It’s a favorite with STG readers – and our Brides Club member Shelley‘s interfaith Jewish wedding to Chris last spring just happens to be the very first to take place in the newly opened Hester Ballroom (with capacity for 250 guests!).

And they even used one of our very own smash glass pouches!

Plus, how cool (and rare) is it to see a Jewish-themed styled shoot?

All the stationery and signage used in this shoot was created by wonderful Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Liv & Luc!

And that gorgeous gown (as well as the others used in this shoot) came from another beloved Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor, Morgan Davies Bridal!

How dreamy is this tablescape? We’re obsessed with the chic florals by Sian Ryan Design, who created all of the stunning arrangements used in this shoot.

A Riki Dalal Bride for a Wedding Planner’s Own Jewish Wedding at Merrydale Manor, Knutsford, Cheshire, UK

13/01/2020 by Karen Cinnamon

We always love seeing what Jewish wedding pros choose when it comes to their very own big days, so we were excited for the beautiful wedding of beloved Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Rachel of Rachel Flax Events to groom Mikey, a property lawyer (#friendsforever, in honor of their new shared surname!) – especially after hearing the tantalizing tidbits she’s shared with our Brides Club!

Naturally, Rachel opted to plan her own wedding, and she really ended up with the perfect English country garden wedding with a touch of modern sophistication. Take her Perspex chuppah – it was chosen so that guests could have an unimpeded view of the ceremony as they were seated in a circle surrounding the structure, but there’s no denying it also added a hit of contemporary style to the pastoral surroundings.

Photographer David Stubbs and videographer YSD Media captured everything so beautifully, and naturally. Also, how cool is it that the pair had a chuppah painter on hand to paint the ceremony as it was happening?!.

We’re also obsessed with Rachel and Mikey’s gorgeous pocket fold invitations by Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor E.Y.I Love in the bride’s trademark colours of dove grey and pale pink, with the couple’s logo in gold on the front to tie it all together.

Rachel and Mikey took advantage of the honeymoon planning prowess of Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Abby Taubman to organize their upcoming trip to Japan – we’re sure it’s going to be totally fab!

There’s so much more we could say – we haven’t even gotten to the fact that the couple gave each and every guest a personal handwritten note on the day… and the guests were also treated to a bonfire at the end of the evening with a s’mores table!

Let’s hand you over to the bride, who looked gorgeous in a bespoke gown from Israeli designer Riki Dalal…

An Outdoor Wedding

Rachel, the bride: We got married in Merrydale Manor which is a new venue in Knutsford, Cheshire. It was incredibly important to me that my wedding venue felt as homey, exclusive and modern as possible. As a wedding planner, it was also key for me to have our wedding at a place that I hadn’t worked in before, which was a challenge!

A Made with Love Bride for a Tropical Jewish Wedding at The River Rooms at The Mermaid, London, UK

03/07/2019 by Karen Cinnamon

A tropical wedding in London? Sounds crazy, you say? Well, you might want to wait until you see the gorgeous Jewish wedding of Michelle, a fundraising manager at Battersea Dogs & Cats Home, and Joel, a property developer, before passing judgment.

Inspired by their engagement in Curacao, these two knew they wanted a relaxed Caribbean party vibe filled with beautiful tropical plants and colours – and they didn’t see their desire to wed in their hometown of London as a barrier.

And with some help from fantastic wedding planner Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Rachel Flax – who Michelle says “seriously saved my sanity” during the last few months! – they pulled it off and then some.

From their fab tropical chuppah with its lush green canopy and soft pink florals to the balloon installation in tropical pinks and peaches by the bar (not to mention the giant flamingo balloon at the corner of the dancefloor), we’re totally getting those beachy Caribbean vibes. Photographer Martin Phelps captured the day SO perfectly in his trademark documentary style.

Michelle and Joel chose fabulous Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Totem to make sure their big day not only looked like a party but felt like one too. It’s no surprise that Totem created a killer atmosphere and kept guests on the dance floor all night long – but what was a surprise was that they secretly worked with the groom on a musical performance of his own! Much to Michelle’s surprise, Totem announced Joel onstage and accompanied him as he sang‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’ ! There’s nothing like a fun surprise element to make your day super memorable!

Now over to the bride, who looked radiant in her Made with Love dress and Hollywood glam look courtesy of Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Pamela and Andrea Makeup…

How we met

Michelle, the bride: We met on a Sunday afternoon in the pub, The Kings Head in Crouch End. We were both with friends having a chilled afternoon and got talking and the rest is history!

A Nurit Hen Bride for a City Chic Urban Jewish Wedding at 8 Northumberland, London, UK

01/03/2019 by Karen Cinnamon

We knew we were going to love Francesca and Brad’s London Jewish wedding the moment we learned the couple found inspiration for their gorgeous white floral chuppah (the perfect place to put their Smash Glass pouch to use) right here on STG — do these two know the way to a wedding blogger’s heart, or what?!

Of course, it doesn’t hurt that Francesca, who works in finance as head of customer service, and Brad, who works for Linzi, his family’s shoe business, worked with some of our very favorite Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendors, from the wonderful Mirror Mirror, where the bride found her fishtail Nurit Hen gown, to powerhouse band Totem — as Francesca says, “no one gets a party started like they do”!

And then there’s the couple’s wedding planner, Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Rachel Flax. She brought their dreams of a fresh white ballroom aesthetic to life — and, even more importantly, took the stress right out of planning. So much so that Francesca’s top tip for other couples planning weddings is “get a Rachel Flax”!

Oh.. and did we mention that we love how these two met?! You never know where love is going to strike you…

Photographer Benjamin Toms and videographer AtMotion captured all the excitement of the big day so perfectly — read on for all the fun details from Francesca!

How we met

Francesca, the bride: We had always known each other from school although we were in different years, but we met and started talking in a Tesco car park on my 17th birthday and have been inseparable ever since.