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Philippa & Andrew | Romantic City Chic Jewish Wedding at the Mandarin Oriental, London

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Mandarin Oriental Jewish Wedding 6Philippa and Andrew’s big day is the epitome of romantic elegance. The exquisite colour scheme of purples, greys, golds and pastels pervades everything in their wedding; it’s present in Philippa’s  luscious bouquet (that frankly looks good enough to eat) and their beautiful dessert table too… right down to the invitations, menus and lighting.

And how gorgeous is our bride, Philippa? Doesn’t her Audrey Hepburn / 50s inspired Stephanie Allin dress look immense? And I am swooning over her awesome Lulu Guinness ‘lips’ bag (her lovely husband actually surprised her with it on the day… so cute)

Anyway I won’t delay you any further; go on check out Philippa  and Andrew’s splendid day for yourselves: ogle over the gorgeous imagery by Mark Seymour  and, at the end of the post, the wonderfully atmospheric film by The Dreamcatchers.
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A BALLROOM VENUE WITH BEAUTIFUL PARK VIEWS
A countryside wedding was our original plan, however this was proving difficult because at the time we had 200 guests to invite. We didn’t want to go to a beautiful countryside manor and have to use a marquee — what’s the point of going to a stunning location to be put in a marquee and have to spend thousands dressing it? So we decided that interior was key and the Mandarin Oriental  was the perfect answer. We had the best of both worlds, a beautiful ballroom with Hyde Park literally on your door step.
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THEME + STYLE
We went for a  ‘romantic and elegant’ theme. Being a makeup artist I love to mood board so this was always going to be a fun task . The colour scheme and the style of the wedding was so important. Purple was the chosen dominant colour used throughout the wedding on the invitations, menus, flowers, ties etc) with greys, golds and different coloured pastels to compliment. The ballroom was dripping in gold and had lots of huge mirrors inside and so the romantic mood was enhanced with soft purple and pink lighting. Candelabras were placed on every other table with a small floral display on top & pastel coloured scattered petals on the mirrored base. The alternate tables had a low flower display with tea lights and scattered petals so not to block anyone’s view. Purple was used throughout the flowers in different shades to enhance and compliment the mood.

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Joanna & David | Amazing Jewish Wedding at the London Transport Museum

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London Transport Museum Jewish Wedding 2This morning I have the ideal antidote to the stormy weather and the general sub zero antics that appear to be going on outside.  Steve from Newlywed Films  recently contacted me to share one of his favourite wedding films from 2013 and it’s perfect for brightening up a particularly inclement day such as today.

There are so many details that I love about this wedding, from the groom’s theatrical top hat and the bride’s Vivienne Westwood-esque  dress (especially that bustle) to the fact that their reception took place in the London Transport Museum – how fun and fabulous is that?! Their guests chatted and ate on the different buses throughout the museum and as Joanna, the bride, says, “The London Transport Museum had never held a wedding reception before which meant it was a really fun and creative process for us and felt very unique and special.”

Beforehand they held their ceremony in David’s old school, UCS in Hampstead, and it featured an absolutely beautiful chuppah with the most vibrant coloured flowers and talit.

Anyway, enough from me, check out the wedding film for a sun-in-your-heart Thursday feeling.

http://vimeo.com/75596726

Joanna, the bride:  We don’t have an exciting/romantic backstory in terms of using the London Transport Museum as our wedding venue – we just came across it when we were venue searching and then nothing else seemed to compare!

We didn’t want a sit down meal but we also wanted our guests to be occupied the whole time so a museum space with fun exhibits seemed perfect, especially as we knew that there would be kids at the reception. It turns out that it was the adults who probably enjoyed it the most though! Also, the transport museum had never held a wedding reception before which meant it was a really fun and creative process for us and felt very unique and special.
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Victoria & Oliver | Super-Creative Back Garden Jewish Wedding in Highgate, London, UK

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Today folks we have back garden glamour abound, with a wedding hosted in  the bride’s parents’ home followed by a reception at the bride’s grandparent’s home. How lovely is that?

There’s loads of super creative DIY, a gorgeous Alice Temperley bride, a Routemaster bus, some swimming pool action, and some immense photography from Richmond Pictures.

Victoria, a creative arts therapist, and Oliver, a theatre producer, met during their time at the Newcastle University Theatre Society where they played two drunks in Kebab! The Musical . What an awesome ‘how did you meet’ opener!
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VENUE + LOCATION
Victoria, the Bride: We had the ceremony in my parent’s garden in Highgate. They have a lawn down some garden steps, which makes it feel like a secret garden almost. We then took red London buses to my Grandparent’s house, also in Highgate, as they too have a lovely garden – we had a marquee here. I grew up in both these gardens so both venues had a lot of sentimental value and my fiancà©e loved the gardens too. (My Grandpa died a few years ago but my Grandma was thrilled to host everyone — she danced all night. This was particularly special as she passed away 6 months later. We have such great memories of her as hostess with the mostess!)
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Sara & John | Incredible ‘Granny Chic’ vintage Jewish wedding, Kidbrooke Park, Sussex

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Jewish Vintage WeddingSara is one incredibly beautiful and  creative bride. And I’m talking creative with a capital ‘C’ folks. Yep all the amazing decor and imaginative touches you see in the pictures below were all hand  made by Sara. It’s one big explosion of colour and thrills with lots of vintage prettiness everywhere!

As the bride herself says,  “With our wedding it was more “what did you leave alone?” than what did you create! It was the biggest project of my life but I was so happy with the way it all came together!”

Sara and John met at work in Sara’s first ever contract job as a copywriter. She left the job pretty soon afterwards but kept a special souvenir!

Over to Sara for the story of her gorgeous W-day.
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VENUE
Sara, the Bride: Our wedding was at Kidbrooke Park in Sussex. We chose this venue because it’s actually my old school. At first I’d ruled it out because I thought it would be strange to get married just outside the room in which I sat all of my exams, but the first venue we booked fell through when they insisted we use their preferred caterers who priced us right out of our own wedding and wouldn’t do a simple meal for us citing colours and presentation (or something silly).

After that I revisited the idea of getting married at my old school and suddenly felt like it would be really great to say “I do” somewhere so close to my heart. There is a beautiful, crumbling outdoor theatre which is covered with flowers in the spring and summer, and I suddenly had a vision of making my entrance through the doors of the theatre. It was such a nice daydream that I booked immediately!

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Michelle & Richard | Jewish/Celtic Winter Wedding at Babington House, Somerset, UK

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Babington House Wedding
I have no words for Michelle and Richard’s wedding. Truly. I will run out of adjectives trying to describe how magnificent everything is. The details are quite astonishing, the setting is magical, and I love the embracing of both the Scottish and Jewish cultures. The mix of traditions meld surprisingly beautifully (think the  Hora  followed by the  Ceilidh; haggis bites served alongside potato latkes.. you get the picture – and it works!).

Scroll down and you will see bagpipers playing in the snow, exquisite floral designs,  a stunning balletic  Mira Zwillinger  wedding dress, the most awesome and thoughtful wedding favours, and an incredible video by  Gorgeous Films  that may very well have you  shedding a tear or three with its sheer beauty and sensitivity.
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Now on top of that I admit that I whooped, hollered and clapped my hands with glee when I found out that with this wedding I’d be  showcasing  Especially Amy‘s sensational photography. She captures all the details of the day so emotively and she is a well-deserved Smashing Supplier.

So the lovely Michelle and Richard married back in January of this year (apparently the snowiest January on record) at one of my favourite places in the world, Babington House  (part of the Soho House group) in Somerset. They chose this breathtaking venue, not only for its beauty, but because they could also take over the whole place and share the experience with friends and family over a couple of days.

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A JEWISH / CELTIC THEME + A BEAUTIFUL VENUE

Michelle, The Bride: The theme of our wedding was to bring both of our cultures together, so essentially  to have a Jewish/Celtic mix. Rich is Jewish, and I am half Irish, half Scottish, so it was important that all cultures were represented. So for instance we had a Ceilidh followed by the  Hora; we had haggis and Irish soda bread, but equally we had Chanukah doughnuts; we had a rabbi, and we had our friend singing Ave Maria…  etc etc. In terms of a colour scheme, we based it loosely around Weathered Kennedy Tartan (which made my Dad very happy!)

Our chosen venue was  Babington House  because it’s so very beautiful and because we could take over the whole venue and have our friends and family stay with us overnight and continue the celebrations the following morning.

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