Monthly Archives: May 2013

{Real Jewish Weddings} Las Vegas, NV

Posted on May 8, 2013 by Alison in Real Jewish Weddings

I had the honor of gushing over one of my best friend’s weddings and am so excited to feature it on The Wedding Yentas! Harmony and Conor and their wonderful families were the stars of a luxurious evening that showcased jaw-dropping details. And they definitely made sure our tummies went home full! After a family-style served meal with some of the most amazing food I’ve ever had, we were then treated to tray-passed desserts like handmade ice cream cones and popsicles, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich bar, and a donut buffet where they were freshly made before our eyes. Our menus were on clear specialty paper that were placed under opaque chargers so that all guests could read about the wonderful food ahead before dinner service began and was a unique touch. The ceremony was extremely personal since Congresswoman Shelley Berkley, a family friend of Harmony’s, customized her words and sentiments, allowing for the large guestlist to still feel like they were part of something intimate. Before and after the ceremony, the strings players dazzled the room with their contemporary music that filled the air atop diamond-white, fabric-draped pedestals. The dramatic and glamorous music was stunning, but only second in line to the real stunner of them all: the bride in her Vera Wang treasure that fit her like a glove. On a personal note, it was pure joy to see my Harmony walk down the aisle and check out the picture of her catching my eye as we both sparkled in glee (you can’t see my face, but I swear, even my tushie was smiling!)

Words about the wedding from the bride herself:

Conor and I wanted the black tie wedding to be elegant, classy, and beautiful, but wanted it to be fun, above all else. That was why we had the dichotome of violinists during the ceremony, and a DJ at the reception, and small desserts and a wedding cake shot instead of an actual wedding cake. Our white dance floor had our logo on it, but then lounge/club seating around the dance floor so guests could be comfortable and still enjoy the party. The Four Seasons is known for the amazing food, but we wanted the food to be different and unique so we had them create a new type of menu for us. I got the idea because we have enjoyed so many family dinners. I wanted all of the proteins (fish, steak, and tofu) to be served by the wonderful staff, but then wanted all of the sides to be family style. Of course we had to include mac and cheese, because Conor and I love it! The overall vision for the whole wedding was for everything to have a fun little twist.

While it wasn’t a traditional Jewish wedding, we had several elements that represent Jewish traditions and culture: the chuppah where my parents, Conor’s parents, and all of our brothers stood with us, of course Conor stepped on the glass, and both my mom and dad walked me down the aisle. Former Congresswoman Shelley Berkley married us and talked about different elements of Jewish tradition and kind of explained things for those who were not Jewish. It felt so warm and personal and I loved everything she did!

Photographers: John Michael Cooper and Dalisa Cooper at Altf Photography
Venue: Four Seasons Las Vegas
Wedding Planner/Floral Studio: Destinations by Design
Bride’s Dress and Veil: Vera Wang Beverly Hills with David Friedman
Bride’s Shoes: Chanel
Bridesmaid’s Dresses: Amsale from Bella Bridesmaid
Tuxedos: Tuxedo Junction
Mother of the Bride and Grandmother of the Bride Dresses: Neiman Marcus Las Vegas, Lindsey Bernay, Personal Shopper
Mother of the Groom and Grandmother of the Bride Dresses: Saks Fifth Avenue
Electric Violinists: Bella Electric Strings
Donut Machine: The Four Seasons
Hair Color: Amy Ho at Square Salon Las Vegas
Wedding Party Hair: Katie Lantz, Lauren Anderson from Square Salon Las Vegas
Wedding Party Make-up: Kim Katunis from Square Salon Las Vegas
Photobooth: Shutterbooth
Officiant: Congresswoman Shelley Berkley

A Mother of the Bride’s Perspective

Posted on May 6, 2013 by Alison in Inside Scoop, JDate, Jewish Traditions

Remember beautiful Dara and handsome Michael’s Kansas City Jewish wedding from a couple weeks ago? Well, Dara’s mama has something to say about her daughter meeting the man of her dreams and the wedding day that came to be! It’s always so special to have a new point of view and there’s nothing like the view of our (Jewish) mothers!

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A Jewish Doctor!! Thank You Mom and JDate!

Wichita, Kansas isn’t exactly the Jewish dating mecca, even if you have the most wonderful daughter in the world. I’m not knocking Wichita. There is a nice, small Jewish community, but at the time most of the members were older, married, or still in elementary school, and the few Jewish boys she grew up with were more like brothers than perspective love interests.

Dara’s dad and I were hopeful she would find a Jewish man at KU, but it didn’t happen. Again we were hopeful when she moved to Kansas City, but each time she brought a boy home we began to realize this was not happening, and she made it very clear she had no interest in joining JDate.

My mother, Dara’s grandmother, passed away in May 2009. We were sitting shiva at my brother’s home on Long Island. Towards the end of day three, my brother’s friend engaged my daughter in conversation in an effort to set her up with his nephew. To pique her interest, he wanted to show her his photo on JDate. My niece powered up her computer, loaded the JDate website, and as she was handing the laptop to my daughter, a free membership sign flashed across the screen. In unison, we burst into laughter and screamed that it was Grandma at work already. Dara joined JDate that day, and the rest is history.

I loved Michael from the moment I met him. He was warm, confident, intelligent, possessed a sense of humor, and when he came to NY for Thanksgiving, it was as if he had been part of our family right from the start. My daughter was blessed! She had met a wonderful man with an amazing family that adored her and she adored them right back. Upon meeting them for the first time, I understood why. When my best friend asked me, “So what are they like?” I answered, “I would want to be friends with them even if they weren’t Michael’s parents.” To which she responded, “Wow! That’s wonderful.” Wonderful is right!

About a year later, Dara and Michael were engaged. It was a match made in heaven. My daughter was not only going to marry a Jewish man, but a Jewish doctor! I will never forget the day my daughter called:
“Hi Mommy, are you sitting down?”
“Yes, why?”
“Michael asked me to marry him! I said ‘Yes!’ WE’RE ENGAGED!”

What followed was a whirlwind of planning, shopping, tasting, trying, calling, crying, laughing, stuffing, mailing, eating (best tasting wedding cake ever), fitting, starving, AKA, the best mother-daughter time ever!!

I would describe the search for “The Dress” to be, at first, exhilarating, quickly going from confusing, to what we described as wedding dress blur. You know when your daughter has tried on so many dresses, each one looking more fabulous than the next but not quite “The One” and they all start blurring together and you can’t remember which one has which detail? Well, I kept asking Dara, “How do you feel in it?” and from the top of Mount Wedding Dress Blur, Dara yelled “Why do you keep asking me that? I don’t know what you mean. I feel like I am trying on wedding dress. How am I supposed to feel? Please stop asking me that.”

And then… Then that magical moment happened. She stepped out of the dressing room and we looked at each other both knowing this is The One and the tears began to fall. I know every mother thinks their daughter is the most beautiful bride, and that is the way it should be, but my daughter really was.

There are no words to describe the flood of emotion as I watched my daughter marry her new best friend. Dara and Michael were so happy, the way they looked at each other, we knew everything was going to be OK. I have never seen a couple have as much fun during their wedding ceremony as Michael and Dara. It was a spectacular event, and would have given us enough memories to last a lifetime, but we were not finished.

Although, Michael was born in the United States, his parents were born in Israel, and still have many close relatives and friends living there. Many of them were unable to attend the wedding in Kansas City. Michael’s parents, with the help of his fabulous aunt and uncle, made a second wedding reception in Haifa at the Dan Carmel Hotel, overlooking the Mediterranean Sea.

It was a stunning affair, truly fit for royalty as approximately 200 family members and friends came to wish the newly married couple much “nachus” and to share in this joyous celebration of love.

So, I end as I began, with gratitude for bringing this incredible man named Michael into my daughter’s heart and head, a man who values family as much as he does life, who calls me “Mom,” and makes me happy to have another fabulous son, but most importantly, who adores my daughter and strives to make her happy everyday.

Thank you Mom, thank you JDate.

Respectfully submitted by,
Barbara Rose

Your Futuristic Wedding

Posted on May 2, 2013 by Alison in From The Yentas, Planning

My husband and I went to an amazing wedding of our closest friends this past weekend. It was the epitome of lovely and as usual, weddings put us in a nostalgic mood for our own wedding, which was almost five years ago. We were talking about what our wedding would be like if we were getting married NOW; as in, in 2013 instead of 2008.

While our wedding was one of the best days of our lives, would it be different if it were being planned now? Yes. In 2008, it was perfect, so I’m not regretting much of anything. But it’s interesting to think about what the aesthetics might be like, who the vendors would have been, and the make up of the guest list in our fake 2013 wedding.

Take the guest list, for example. There are people in our wedding photos who are no longer as close to us for various reasons (changes in life, distance, etc.). More importantly, there are lots of people MISSING from the photos because we hadn’t met or reconnected yet. One reason we wish we could do it all over again is so that we could include those people who, just five years ago, were not present in our inner circle of wedding guests. We’ll make sure they make the list for the 50th anniversary party in 2058. They’ll arrive by flying car, right?

Photo booths were just coming into play in 2008. I wish I would have had one! I had no idea it was a “thing!” And now that I get the privilege of reviewing hundreds of weddings a year for publication on The Wedding Yentas, I now feel inspired to wear colorful peep toe heels at my fake future wedding! I wore white sandal heels and looking back, I wish I’d worn a pop of color on my shoe. There are vendors I’ve connected with since that I would have hired because I’ve come to love them as people as well as their work. Little things would have been different. Other things would stay the same. Loved my venue, for example (Spanish Hills Country Club) and I’m still obsessed with our florist (Happy Flowers).

When it comes down to it, your wedding day is really a snapshot in time. It’s a living museum of who’s important to you and what your style is like. Embrace the timeless traditions you will uphold and make your mark to represent you and your partner as a couple. Your wedding will be the most perfect reflection of you … ON YOUR WEDDING DAY. You’ll fast forward years later and find that things would be different if you were doing it all over again and that’s OK! Make your wedding day the best version of life as you know it. You’ll have fun reminiscing about what you’d change and what you’d keep in years to come.

So all this is to say: Put your heart and soul into your wedding — that’s fine! But don’t fret about making sure you’re making all the right choices to represent your lifetime as a couple. In a handful of matters, trends will be different, priorities will change, and your lives will be going in unpredictable directions. Care only about the moment of now.

The only thing that really stays the same over time is who you kiss goodnight at the end of the day.

This photo would have been more adorable if I’d been wearing a hot pink shoe! (photo by: Eight20 Photography)

{Real Jewish Weddings} Boca Raton, FL

Posted on May 1, 2013 by Alison in Real Jewish Weddings

Woodfield Country Club Wedding {Jessica and Jason} 1.26.13 from Bridges Cinema on Vimeo.

Jessica and Jason traveled to South Florida from New York to celebrate their wedding day with family and friends. They chose the Woodfield Country Club as their venue for their high energy wedding celebration. Jessica and Jason are both so much fun and you can see from their pictures how much fun they had at their party. The Will Bridges Dance Band performed during their celebration.

The toast given my the MOH is beautifully delivered and reflects the number sense comparison since the lovely couple are two accountants marrying each other.

Mazel tov, Jessica and Jason!