I first saw today’s wedding on photographer Assaf Friedman ’s Instagram feed. I was totally smitten by Danielle and Aaron’s couple portraits in the snow, and I just knew I had to feature their entire Valentine’s Day affair on Smashing The Glass .
Danielle and Aaron are a super stylish couple with really great taste – I’m particularly loving their accessories! I’d like Danielle’s leather jacket AND her heart-shaped sunnies please. And Aaron looks dapper with his slick tux, patterned socks, and polka dot pocket square (and he wore the coolest pair of personalised Nike Hi-Tops that Danielle surprised him with too).
Aaron and Danielle chose to engrave each other’s wedding bands with a surprise inscription and decided that neither of them would see this message until after the ceremony when they were finally man and wife. And would you believe it, they had both engraved each other’s rings with the same beautiful message! These two are meant to be together…
Read on for lots more treats, surprises, advice, tips and a really wonderful account of a truly stylish, luxe Jewish wedding.
How we met
Danielle, the Bride: Aaron and I met online. We had our first date at a small craft beer bar in Toronto. On our third or fourth date, Aaron asked me if I was dating other people. At that point, we decided to be exclusive. Things moved fairly quickly and I think that after a few weeks of dating we knew that one day we would get married.
Choosing to get married in Toronto
We got married in the Artifacts Room at The Liberty Grand in Toronto, Canada. We were looking for a modern ‘warehouse’ feel and they have a very cool ‘white’ room with concrete floors and amazing lighting. We also loved the location – it is in Exhibition Place, which is right on the water. The building is heritage, built in 1926. It was restored as an event venue in 2000. We loved having the historic exterior and the modern interior.
A Valentine’s Day Wedding with monochrome details
Our colour scheme was mostly white with touches of black and grey. I am a big fan of neutrals so I knew a monochromatic colour scheme was the way to go.
Our wedding fell on Valentine’s Day so we wanted to include a few fun touches that played off of the holiday.
Our wonderful wedding planner
Marsha Baker was our planner and she did an outstanding job of making everything run smoothly on the day of the wedding. She was also amazing at scheduling the entire day and evening and helped us out with whatever was needed. She had fantastic recommendations and was such a pleasure to have there on the wedding day!
Stationery
Like the wedding, our invitation design was minimal and classic. We were looking for something clean yet elegant, with the design impact being in its simplicity. We knotted a thin black cord around the invitation and inserts to add some interest and to keep all of the pieces together.
Hair + make-up
I decided to go with Fancy Face for hair and make-up, I loved that they do both. I wanted to look like the best version of myself so I opted for a subdued and classic look. For makeup, I love that soft bridal look with that extra glow. Brittany L did the most amazing job with my makeup, giving me a soft and natural look that was still a little bit glam! I chose to wear my hair down for the wedding (I normally wear my hair down, so it still felt like me). I wanted my hair to look natural so I chose soft, loose waves. I couldn’t have been happier; I felt amazing the entire day.
The search for a dress
After going to about four bridal stores in Toronto and one in NYC, I hadn’t found anything that I truly loved. I had tried on countless beautiful dresses, but none of them felt right. When originally pinning and looking at dresses, I had been drawn to lace with low backs but, after trying them on, they just seemed to fall flat on me.
It wasn’t until I tried on Amy Kuschel ‘s Lennon dress at Mrs. Bridal Boutique in Toronto that I truly felt like a bride. Mrs. Bridal Boutique carries dresses by unique designers that aren’t readily available in Toronto. It is the simplicity of Lennon that made me fall in love with it and that made it a stand out in my mind. The dress has beautiful lines and the fabric is a luxe silk mikado.
A veil designed by the bride and her mother…
The veil – I have always loved cathedral length veils. I love the impact they have when you’re walking down the aisle. I have also always thought about making my own veil. Since my dress was so simple, I knew that I wanted my veil to highlight the simplicity of the dress without overpowering it.
My mum and I set out to fabric stores and chose an ivory tulle and we began experimenting. I had tried on a veil with raw edges at one of the bridal shops I went to – I knew the raw edges would be perfect with my dress (it also made it easier for us to sew :). It was very special to walk down the aisle in the veil that my mum and I made together.
….and a leather jacket
Since, we were married in the winter and I knew we would be taking a few photos outside (it was -23 Celcius), I brought along my beloved leather jacket. I have lived in it for the last 10 years.
Wedding Shoes
Since my dress was simple, I knew I wanted a pair of shoes that were intricate and detailed. When I first spotted these metallic leather laser cut shoes, I knew they would be perfect. I loved how they were ornate but still very modern.
The handsome groom
Aaron wore a Hugo Boss Tuxedo with a hugo boss shirt, with a black Dion bowtie and a B+W pin dot pocket square. He wanted a timeless look. I have never seen him look more handsome. Later in the evening, he changed into a pair of personalized Nike s that I surprised him with on the wedding day.
Bridesmaids
I had four bridesmaids and two junior bridesmaids. My sister was my Maid of Honour and my bridesmaids were my two sister-in laws and one close friend that I have known since I was six years old. I knew that I wanted them to wear something they could wear again. I gave them the guidelines of a long black dress so that each of them could choose something they loved. I also had two junior bridesmaids. Since they are nine and eleven, I didn’t want them to wear black so I chose a charcoal colour.
The wedding ceremony
Aaron and I chose to engrave each other’s wedding band with a surprise inscription. We decided that neither of us would see this message until after the ceremony when we were married. Something really special happened – we both engraved each other’s rings with the same saying. We also had quite the Horah!
Chuppah design
I wanted something very soft and ethereal. We decided to go with a simple white draped chuppah with twinkle lights. I loved the idea of walking down the aisle by candlelight so we decided to dim the lights and line the aisle with candles.
White Flowers
I have always loved white. I knew there was only one choice for floral colour scheme for our wedding – all white. We used the Toronto Florist Shop as our florist. Sandra is lovely and did an amazing job! For my bouquet I decided to go with a cascading arrangement. Sandra made my concepts come to life using a combination of ivory roses, lisianthus, ginestra, astilbe and eucalyptus. The bouquet was stunningly beautiful. We kept the bridesmaids’ bouquets soft and simple with all baby’s breath.
For the tables, I decided to go with some tall arrangements and some short clustered ones. For the tall arrangements, we chose baby’s breath as we loved the softness and the wintery snow feel. For the short arrangements, I wanted to fill each vase with one type of flower. We chose babies breath, commercial mums and hydrangeas. I loved how having one type of flower in each vase gave the arrangements a sleek and modern feel.
Our fabulous photographer
Our photographer was Assaf Friedman . After meeting Assaf, I knew he was the perfect choice. His photos are incredible and he has the warmest personality. I think it is so important to choose a photographer who you click with since you spend so much of the wedding day with them. Assaf took so many incredible photos and captured so many moments. We couldn’t have been happier!
A Valentine’s Day Krispy Kreme doughnut tower
Since our wedding was on Valentine’s Day, we knew we wanted to have a Valentine’s Day themed ‘cake’. We decided on a tiered Krispy Kreme doughnut tower. Krispy Kreme was great to work with. We personalised the icing colours and combinations. My mum’s friend is very talented and she created the beautiful floral topper for us and arranged all of the doughnut, which were a huge hit!
A live band
We selected the band Saturday Night Jive . They were AMAZING! They rocked the house and created an awesome party atmosphere. They brought so much energy to the room. The dance floor was packed from the beginning to the end of the night. Our guests couldn’t stop talking about how awesome they were!
Advice to brides and grooms currently planning their wedding
On the day of the wedding everything has already been decided on, so there really isn’t any reason to stress. The most important thing is to ENJOY the day! One thing to remember is that if something doesn’t go quite as planned only you will know. It is so important not to get caught up in the small stuff. Leading up to the wedding, I thought I might be nervous on the day. Much to my surprise, I was so happy and excited that I didn’t feel the slightest bit anxious. I couldn’t wait to see Aaron and to walk down the aisle!
One piece of advice that was given to me over and over again is that the day flies by incredibly fast – every so often, take a few moments to step back, look around and take in all the amazing things happening around you.
Danielle & Aaron’s little white book
Encircling Blessings Ketubah – Ketubah.com
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