A Traditional DIY Wedding in New Jersey

July 27, 2011

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Alanna and Benjamin

Alanna and Benjamin's beginnings as a couple were sweetly tentative. They met at Brown University in Rhode Island, where Ben, now a wireless-software engineer, was a freshman and Alanna was a junior. Slowly they found ways to get close. On they went in a shy fashion until they were spending all of their time together. Four years later, in his senior year, Ben was ready to propose.

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The Invitations

The invitations establish a contemporary feeling for the wedding with red letters in a modern font on bright-white paper; Ben translated the English text into Hebrew.

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The Bridesmaids

Alanna selected blouses in her palette of reds, oranges and pinks, and then let each bridesmaid choose the one she would wear. She also gave them all black silk shantung and asked them to select their own patterns for skirts; results varied from a floor-length fishtail skirt to a straight, simple tea-length one.

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Details

When the guests arrive for the ceremony, they find programs with their names inscribed in opaque white ink, or gouache, which shows up beautifully on the colored paper.

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Details

Inside the front cover of each booklet is an envelope holding the guests' seating card for the reception. Ben wrote the program, explaining all the rituals featured in an Orthodox Jewish wedding, and Alanna designed it to correspond with the stationery, making the booklets small enough to fit handily in a suit pocket or small purse.

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The Bouquet

Motivated by her desire to create something long-lasting and unique, Alanna spent much of her engagement to Ben making her bouquet. She crafted the flowers from tiny glass beads, one sparkling petal at a time. "It was a very relaxing thing to do," says Alanna.

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The Boutonniere

Alanna made a beaded boutonniere for Ben to wear -- and keep as a memento.

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Details

To continue the bead theme, Alanna wrapped the stems of the bridesmaids' dahlia bouquets in green beaded wire.

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The Ceremony

Alanna and her parents, Harvey and Aimee Jacobs, are about to set off down the aisle.

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Singers

An a cappella group called the Brown Derbies, from Brown University, the couple's alma mater, gets ready to sing at the wedding.

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Sources

Location: Headquarters Plaza Hotel
Flowers: the Emerald Garden, 973-564-9510
Music: Benjamin Rafaeli Orchestra, 212-861-6280
Ketubah: Avraham Cohen, 888-281-2826
Beads for Bouquets and Boutonniere: M and J Trimming
Invitations: Soho Letterpress, 212-334-4356. By appointment only.

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