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

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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!

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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…

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A destination Jewish wedding full of creativity, symbolism, and meaning at Fairmont Scottsdale Princess, Arizona, USA

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I have a delicious destination wedding to share with you today, written by Smashing The Glass reader, Mike (yes, I’m proud to say that a plethora of grooms read and love STG too!). He’s written a beautifully detailed account of his marriage to Michal, and his report is LONG, there’s no denying it but it’s well worth a read.

Mike and Michal were invested in the meaning, the spirit, and the energy of the wedding weekend as opposed to the decor (although there are plenty of cool creative details too) so there are many ‘planning nuggets’ and some really great advice throughout.

Their wedding theme was simply ‘us’, and it’s clear to see that they threw themselves into every facet of their wedding (and by their own admission, Mike was more your “typical bride” than your “typical guy”!). Whether it was their late-night welcome bag Photoshop design session, the 10-page ceremony program explaining each aspect and its personal meaning (LOVE this), or the endless communication with their talented Ketubah artist in Israel, everything was their unique creation. Even Michal’s engagement ring was meticulously designed by Mike using family heirlooms, with every detail of the ring telling a story.

At the end of their wedding weekend, as guests headed home, they left Michal and Mike with two of the greatest compliments they could have asked for – “that was the most meaningful wedding I’ve ever attended”, and “I’m only going to Jewish weddings from here on out…”

Now d’you see why this Jewish wedding is a must-read? With thanks to Trevor Dayley Photography for capturing all the memories so beautifully… Enjoy!

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Choosing to get married in Arizona

Mike, the Groom: Being two Canadians living in San Francisco, with family and friends dispersed around the globe, we quickly learned there was no “local” option for our wedding. Whether we wed in Michal’s hometown of Toronto, or in the place we now called home, San Francisco, 80% of our guests would be flying in.

Once the reality set in that our wedding was going to be a destination wedding no matter what, we embraced it and broadened our search, keeping in mind somewhere that would be easy to fly to and that was family friendly. We had both always dreamed of getting married outdoors, and the 299 days of sunshine in Arizona seemed a good bet.

We had visited Fairmont Scottsdale Princess together a year before, and Michal had visited many times prior – once with her parents, once with her best friend, and once for a surprise proposal for another close friend; the place held a special place in her heart, and once our search wasn’t limited to Toronto and San Francisco any longer, I think she secretly knew – or at least hoped – this is where we would get married.

There is something magical about Fairmont Scottsdale Princess – the grounds are set up in such a way that really make it the perfect place for a wedding weekend, where friends and family can come together as a community for a simcha, and really enjoy each other’s company. Michal always wanted a wedding “weekend” where we could together celebrate the lead up to our wedding day and have quality time with all of our guests, and the idea of everyone being fully present and focused on the simcha – everyone essentially on vacation together – was the best arrangement to set the tone of togetherness.

Fairmont Scottsdale Princess made our wedding the best weekend with all of our loved ones, and it was extra meaningful as it was somewhere we knew could come back for years in the future, to celebrate anniversaries, and someday bring our kids to show them to place we got married.

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A Boho, nature-inspired DIY Jewish wedding at Estates of Sunnybrook, Toronto, Canada

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I’m so thrilled to be bringing you today’s thoroughly gorgeous DIY Jewish wedding. Not only are the creative details ALL lovingly crafted by the bride, groom, their friends and family, but Shannie’s write up of her and Steve’s day really comes from the heart; as did Shannie’s efforts for her entire wedding.

All of the DIY details are divine… the centrepieces, the table numbers, the sweet treats, the astonishingly beautiful ketubah made by Shannie, and how can I forget the creative guest book alternative? Plus I’m sure you’ll notice so much more, it’s one of those weddings I think you’ll need to view multiple of times to take it all in!

Oh, and the dog. Don’t even get me started… Storm played a huge part in originally getting Steve and Shannie together (see their ‘How We Met’ story below), so much so in fact, that Shannie even incorporated an illustration of their beloved hound into her ketubah design!

And on a totally separate note, let’s not forget Steve who looks super dapper in his jeans – yes he totally rocked the laid-back look!

Shannie’s boho head piece and an Indian-inspired hand piece (both made by her very talented mama!) are to-die-for and her Catherine Langlois gown is just a dream. She bought her dress at The Brides’ Project  in Toronto, a bridal boutique where all the proceeds go to cancer charities. There’s another branch of The Brides’ Project in America, but as yet, one doesn’t exist in the UK. I would love to help set up a branch in the UK (potentially London) and if anyone reading this can help me kickstart this idea, please do get in touch. I would love to donate my Stephanie Allin wedding dress in the first instance.

But I digress… Please do take a moment to read through Shannie’s account of her planning and creative ideas — there are some really lovely DIY projects and a generous helping of brilliant advice at the end – plus you’re going to swoon over Niv Shimshon‘s phenomenal photography.

All of this awesomeness was planned in just four and a half months…

Happy Tuesday folks!

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how we met

Shannie, the Bride: I will try to keep this story as simple as possible, but it may be tough a job! Steve and I had known each other for almost seven years prior to the first time we actually ever said a sentence to each other. My parents own a jewellery shop in the same plaza mall that Steve opened his restaurant. My mum (being the yenta that she is) did try to introduce us when he first opened his restaurant, but I was very shy, I thought he was very handsome. Apparently he was just as awkward and couldn’t find the words to say to me. For years we would eye each other. I would often help my parents at their store and see Steve. He would see me, but we never actually spoke.

Years later it was my moving day, the day and I was packing and moving from my condo in Toronto. I remember walking down the street, towards my building, carrying boxes that towered over my 5”1 frame, that I suddenly felt a push and something knocked down my boxes out of my hands. It was Steve’s dog, Storm. She must have escaped from underneath her fence, ran towards me, and Steve right behind her chasing her to grab her. We realised that we had been neighbours for the last three years without even knowing it. It took us seven years and a dog to finally give us the courage to actually start a conversation with each other. The rest, as they say, is history!

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A DIY wedding with lots of creative and personal details

Most of our wedding was pretty much projects that I assigned for myself to do as well as my mother and Steve. Being an artist, I specialise in doing everything last minute! So the week before the wedding I was hit hard with how much work I set aside for myself.

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