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A Joyous Jewish Wedding Featuring a Personalized Outdoor Chuppah at Sopwell House, St Albans, UK

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We are so thrilled to be featuring the Jewish wedding of our Bride’s Club member Ines today! Ines, a professional chef, wed Andy, a property investor, at Sopwell House in an outdoor ceremony under the most gorgeous personalized chuppah – just one of the many special touches the pair included in their day – and we are all about it.

So about that chuppah… Ines and Andy worked with Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor The Happy Chuppah People on the chuppah of their dreams – which they topped with the most exquisite personalized canopy handmade by Israeli artist Bella Alon – and they can’t stop raving about how much they loved working with the incredibly helpful team.

We also love that Ines opted to wear her mother’s wedding dress on the big day – how special is that?! Ines’s father had tragically passed away from Covid, and wearing her mother’s gown was such a meaningful way to honor his memory and make him part of the day. Don’t miss the incredibly special pics by Leivi Saltman.

Ines and Andy worked with a whole bunch of wonderful Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendors, including Noa Attias, who designed their beautiful ketubah; talented wedding filmmaker Robert of CCS Video, who made the couple’s wonderful wedding video; planner Events by Natasha; and Shir, who Ines describes as “the most amazing band ever!” Shir kept the dance floor packed all night long, and they even taught in Israeli dance lesson to get all the non-Jewish guests in the loop!

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How we Met

Ines, the bride: We met years ago at a friend’s house…  It was instant attraction, but took us around 2 years to start dating… But at the end of our 1st date, we were already deciding what to do on our 2nd date! And our 3rd date we had the most magical weekend in Monaco, staying at the Hermitage Hotel….Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A Laure de Sagazan Bride for an Interfaith Jewish Wedding at Newburgh Priory, West Yorkshire, UK

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We love seeing a couple plan their Jewish wedding, their way – and that’s exactly what today’s lovely couple Talia and Mike did! Combining their religions and backgrounds into one beautiful day was top priority for these two – Talia is Jewish and Mike is Christian – and that’s exactly what they did.

The pair opted to work with a celebrant, rather than have a civil wedding, so that they could mix their cultures and faiths into a one-of-a-kind ceremony that truly reflected their partnership. We’re also obsessed with their gorgeous interfaith ketubah by Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor The Delicate Brush – and naturally the couple loved the experience of working with artist Rachelle. Don’t miss it – and all the other gorgeous touches – in the luminous photos from Chris Milner.

For music, Talia and Mike went for Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Shir – who’d played at Talia’s bat mitzvah years earlier! The couple wanted Israeli dancing but were worried that their mostly non-Jewish guests might not be into it. With Shir in charge, those worries were totally unfounded – the band led three amazing dance sets that got everyone dancing, and afterward guests couldn’t stop raving about how much fun it was!

Now over to the bride, who looked effortlessly chic in Laure de Sagazan…

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How we Met

Talia, the bride: We met at the University of Manchester where we both studied medicine. We actually initially met 10 years ago in our first tutorial group in first year but only became a couple at the start of our third year. We now both work as doctors, and have moved to Leeds, and now London since then.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

An Outdoor Pandemic Jewish Wedding at Ham Polo Club, London, UK

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Sarah and Josh, Ham Polo Club, London, UK

We’re in love with the gorgeous Jewish wedding of Sarah and Josh, who show that it’s possible to have a totally fabulous wedding even as we’re still making our way out of the pandemic.

The couple chose their London venue, the beautiful green Ham Polo Club, specifically so they could hold the festivities outdoors, with plenty of room to space everyone out safely. This meant they were able to have the most guests possible – along with the least COVID worries.

Luckily, Sarah and Josh love the outdoors, the setting was right up their alley. We’re obsessed with the gorgeous photos by Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Kate Swerdlow Photography – in Sarah’s words, Kate “captured the best moments so subtly, and was so lovely to work with.” We couldn’t agree more!

The couple also give credit to their fabulous band, Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Shir Music, for creating an amazing atmosphere – which positively shines through in the fab pics of the Israeli dancing!

Now over to the bride…

Sarah and Josh, Ham Polo Club, London, UK

Sarah and Josh, Ham Polo Club, London, UK
How we met

Sarah, the bride: We met at summer camp aged 16.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

A BHLDN Bride for an Interabled Couple’s Ultra-Personal Egalitarian Jewish Wedding at Finsbury Old Town Hall, London, UK

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It’s no secret that we love seeing a couple who crafts a unique Jewish wedding that’s totally, 100% them. And that’s exactly what today’s bride and groom did. Candy and Max are passionate about documenting their life together as an interabled couple at Riding Everest – Max, an investment analyst, has cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair, and in addition to a career in writing and social media Candy cares for Max, assisting him with all the tasks he needs help with due to his disability – and showing the world that relationships where one partner has a disability are just as loving, normal, and beautiful as any other.

And that seems to go doubly for weddings, based on Kristian Leven’s radiant, joyous photos of the day. This wedding was SO full of love, happiness, and cool personal touches, from papel picado in honor of Max’s Mexican heritage, eucalyptus leaves to reflect Candy’s Australian family, and tiny plastic horses scattered around the venue for guests to find as a nod to the couple’s 2018 horseback trek to Everest Base Camp! And they also worked in plenty of DIY touches, from hand-painted place cards (Max worked with a paintbrush held in his mouth, and Candy took charge of the calligraphy) to homemade gin favors.

We also love that these two opted to get married twice in one day, starting their day at the register office and ending it under the chuppah, which Candy and Max loved because it gave them the opportunity to have both a small, intimate wedding with just family AND a big Jewish wedding where they celebrated with their community.

And then there’s the exuberant Jewish music by Smashing The Glass Recommended Vendor Shir! This mega-talented group not only helped the couple pick their favorite tunes and iron out logistical creases in their day, they also led the Israeli dancing and made sure that everyone – even guests who’d never before attended a Jewish wedding – got involved!

There’s so much more we could say about this awesome wedding, but we’ll leave it to Candy – who started the day in a pale blue vintage tea dress before a secret pre-chuppah costume change into a beaded dress from BHLDN – to fill you in on the rest…

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How we met

Candy, the bride: We met after my masters, when I needed a part time job (an MA in playwrighting isn’t a very lucrative way to get into the job market) and Max needed a PA at work. Then we accidentally fell in love and the rest is history!

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A Jewish-French-Greek-British Animal-Filled Wedding at London Zoo, London, UK

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Before we get started, we need to present today’s bride, Clelia, with a medal for THE most Smashing The Glass-obsessed bride ever to grace these pages. Clelia took an extraordinary amount of inspiration from the blog, including sourcing almost every vendor and having one of our past real brides, Lauren, create her incredible chuppah design.

Helping Jewish brides to plan their weddings is exactly what Smashing The Glass is all about, and Clelia embodies our spirit and ethos and then some! Thanks for making us such a huge part of your journey, Clelia, we are truly honored.

Now back to staring at wedding pretty and getting inspired, which is what we’re all here for. If you’re a fan of adorable monkeys and meerkats (and if you’re not, who even ARE you??) you’ll love today’s into-the-wild venue, London Zoo. We’re SO here for Clelia and George’s animal kingdom selfie competition – what an inspired way to make the most of such a unique venue! 

Clelia and George were full of gratitude for the way their loved ones came together to help make their dream day perfect, and it really shows in the images and Clelia’s moving writeup. We’re all also totally behind Clelia’s words about body positivity and self love, and are so grateful to her for sharing her feelings on this. 

It was also, as we mentioned, a wedding packed with STG Recommended Vendors, including ludicrously talented klezmer band, Shir, wonderful rabbi, Paul Glantz, and ultimate gift-list service, Prezola.

Famed photographer, Laura Babb, and her partner in crime, videographer Peter Wilbourne, did an outstanding job of telling the story of the day through their stunning spread of images and Peter’s cinematic wedding video. We feel like we were there in person! 

It’s finally Clelia’s well-deserved and long-awaited turn to take over the blog for a post. Take it away, Clelia!

Jewish wedding London Zoo UK

Jewish wedding London Zoo UK

Jewish wedding London Zoo UK_0077

Jewish wedding London Zoo UK

Jewish wedding London Zoo UK
How we met

Clelia, the bride: We met in a car park in Northampton when our colleague, Richard, offered to drive us both back to London. Instead of awkward work chat, I asked George every question in the Proust questionnaire. 

When Richard dropped us off at a north London tube station, George asked me out on a date. I introduced him to long haul-holidays, he introduced me to beans on toast and football. I agreed the kids would support Spurs, he agreed the kids would be raised Jewish and proposed under Tower Bridge, a few meters from where he’d first seen me in the office.
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