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Natalie & Eli | Informal DIY Boho Jewish Wedding at House Plantation, Texas

17/07/2014 by Karen

I think it took me exactly 3.6 seconds from the moment I first read Shaun Taylor‘s email, detailing Natalie and Eli’s wedding, to thinking oh yes, this has crashed through my submission barriers — I’ve got a killer Smashing The Glass wedding on my hands here!

I love that Natalie made her own dress and wore cowboy boots. I love that Natalie’s mum made her jewellery. I love that the couple flew out their photographer, Shaun Taylor all the way from Derby to Texas because they loved his work so much. I love what Natalie says about working together with your fiancà© as a team in the planning stages. And I love that it rained and then rained some more, but far from letting the weather dampen their spirits, they embraced it and the results are even better than they imagined, as Natalie describes below.

You’ll also see the most exquisite henna tattoos covering Natalie’s arms. A traditional Yemenite henna party is a popular pre-wedding ritual for Sephardi Jews and you can see theirs in full swing over on Shaun’s blog. It just goes to show you can stamp your personality onto your wedding weekend and dig deep into your culture’s traditions too. The two are not mutually exclusive and that’s exactly what this blog is all about.

Dana & Stuart | Autumn city rustic Jewish wedding at the spectacular Angel Orensanz Foundation, Lower East Side, New York City

19/06/2014 by Karen

Dana and Stuart’s wedding has Autumn completely wrapped up. Long farm tables with flowers and candles, orange and cream colours with pops of russet inspired by Dana’s amazing auburn hair, and a total sense of joy, warmth and tenderness thoughout.

Our bride is so very elegant but at the same time clearly having the time of her life… That smile – it’s so infectious! And what’s one of my favourite moments? When Dana swaps her jewelled Manolo Blahniks for white low top Converse when the former falls off during the Hora – so down to earth! I also love the little creative details like classic movies of their favourite Hollywood icons playing in the background during the cocktail hour.

Oh… and have you ever heard of ‘Dudesmaids’?! Dana had two – see them posing with the girls above?!

All the fantastic photography is by the one and only Karen Wise.

Mikah & Alex | Brunch themed Jewish wedding with lots of personal touches (and a juggling rabbi!) at the Berkeley Oceanfront, NJ, USA

21/05/2014 by Karen

Who says weddings have to be afternoon or evening affairs? Late morning is absolutely open too–and if your favourite meal of the day is brunch (like Mikah and Alex’s is) then you need look no further for inspiration for creating a really personal brunch wedding than right here.

And there are so many great reasons to serve brunch for your wedding food. It’s a great way to stick to your budget, a safe bet for picky eaters, and, hello…waffle bar!? And if you don’t think a brunch wedding can feel formal or special, Mikah and Alex’s w-day will totally prove you wrong. Grab your mimosa and ogle over Adia Photography’s gorgeous images, and watch out for some really fabulous touches like 14 different cakes for their table centrepieces (genius), ‘advice cards’ instead of a guest book, über-personal wedding favours, and best of all… a juggling rabbi!

HOW WE MET
Mikah, the Bride: Firstly, I have to say that since my friend’s Sarit & Ari’s wedding was posted on Smashing the Glass, I have followed your site religiously. I love it! Alex and I met online. In April 2010, I received an instant message from a law student on OKCupid. Alex listed one of his favourite books as Flowers for Algernon, and I was intrigued. At the time, I usually limited first dates to no more than 20 minutes. When Alex and I met in-person for tea a few weeks later in DuPont Circle, we had an immediate connection: not only did we go out for tea, he asked me out to dinner that same night, which I agreed to, and he walked me home. I always tell him that while the date was great, it was the fact that he grabbed my hand to hold it on the walk back to my apartment that made me swoon.

Cheryl & Ernest | Super-special + meaningful Jewish wedding at The Long Center, Austin, Texas, USA

13/05/2014 by Karen

Sometimes I think we forget that a wedding is about more than just the Bride and Groom. Weddings are also about two families coming together; the start of a new generation — but also about appreciating the older generation who have loved you and supported you through the good and the bad times.

Cheryl and Ernest’s wedding is a real celebration of that. Their chuppah (pictured above — and isn’t it one of the most beautiful you’ve ever clapped eyes on?) is the most meaningful and moving one I’ve ever seen, and I’ve seen many! It’s a tribute to Cheryl’s mother who tragically passed away just as Cheryl and Ernest were embarking on their wedding planning, and it’s exquisitely made out of Cheryl’s mother’s clothes and other momentous pieces including her grandmother’s wedding dress and a shirt her mum had kept of her grandfather’s after he had died.

How special is that?

I also have to mention that they dreamed up a brilliant idea for their ‘conversation starter’ escort cards — scroll down to see what I’m talking about — in fact these two made sure that they spoilt their guests with little treats here and there throughout their entire celebration ensuring that everyone had a day to remember.

Enough of me, I’m going to hand over to our gorgeous Bride, Cheryl, and the fabulous images of Daniel C. Photography, and let you lovelies experience this heart-warming, life-affirming, hearty big day for yourselves.

Niki & Will | Super-fun + frolicsome Jewish Wedding at Santa Margarita Ranch, California

21/04/2014 by Karen

Ok lovely people, we are starting the week at TRULY EPIC on the wedding spectrum. So get ready. ..

The bride and groom are both into comedy (Niki is a writer for The Office and Will is an actor) so they ramped up the fun factor to the extreme. In fact their wedding slogan was ‘Have fun. Get Messy’ and their monogram was two back to back guns that together formed a heart. ADORE! The couple made up personalised plastic bibs for their guests incorporating the Have fun. Get Messy logo too! How can you not have a ball at a wedding where bibs get handed out for goodness sake?!

The venue, Santa Margarita Ranch, is beyond incredible, and watch out for the couple’s chuppah too. I guarantee it’s one of the most unusual you will EVER catch sight of. Let’s just say that it’s essentially made up of shabby-chic-esque screen doors adorned with multi-coloured paper spiral flowers, and what’s more, a reading from Quentin Tarantino’s True Romance was one of the readings recited under it!

OK enough of me, right? Let’s hand over to our fabulous (and utterly gorgeous) bride, Niki, for the story of her and Will’s W-Day, and feast your eyes on onelove’s photographic delights..

AN INSANE PARTY
Niki, the Bride: The one thing we wanted to make sure we had was a fun freakin’ party! We didn’t want the vibe to be stuffy or serious, so we tried to let that be known from the get-go with our jokey save-the-dates. Will and I are both into comedy, so we wanted there to be some silly aspects to both the ceremony and the reception. And the after-party. And the hotel lobby.Continue Reading

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