sample bride

This is the story of: The Bride, Karin Rubinstein, a 30 year old actress from Tel Aviv. She married her partner of five years, Shachar, a 32 year old horse trainer. They married three months ago, at Mandy's at Tel Aviv's Yarkon Park, in a reformist wedding.

The topping: Karin dreamt of a special wedding dress. She went to seamstress Leah Curlman from Holon ("I saw some of her amazing work."). She had no idea as to the character of the dress ("other than cream color and a plunging backline"). Together with Leah, reading magazines and listening to her body, she decided what the dress would look like ("I completely trusted her."). Together they splurged on expensive fabrics and the price met expectations. The result was astounding ("I especially enjoyed it when all future brides asked me: 'where did you get that dress?'").

The curls: She decided on a simple and comfortable style, by her regular hair stylist Roni Frankel. She decided to forego the trial hairdo ("I knew we had a good connection and he'd make me look the best I could."), the final hairdo was decided upon on the wedding day ("you shouldn't decide in advance, but only when you see the dress."). The hair was loosely held up, with no pins or styling agents, but a silk bow ("Roni made me look my best, and not like a dress-up bride."_

Powder my nose: She used hot red with light pink and brown toned makeup ("subtle, just like I wanted."). She usually doesn't use makeup, but on her wedding day she did, for the photographer ("I checked with the photographer whether it looked good in pictures."). In this case she also sufficed with a talk instead of a trial makeup session ("when you trust your service supplier, you can be sure they will make you as pretty as possible."). Makeup artist Karen Frenkel left her the lipstick for touchups. In spite of concerns about the Tel Aviv heat and humidity, the makeup lasted through the night without any runs.

Cinderella: Golden high heels, decorated with hearts, from "Mango" (I bought them long before the wedding, for another event"). For reasons of convenience ("I am not a high-heels girl"), she switched to flat 3-diamond gold sandals from "Or Hakala" for dancing.

Ring around the rosy: Not conventional, a golden antique ring from "Tabaot" ("my partner and I have the same ring"), the engagement ring is pearl and gem set, from designer Efrat Kasouto, and the earrings are pearl from Or Hakala.

Lowfat, please: Diets are a part of life ("can't help it, you have to be continuously on guard.") She doesn't believe in diets for one evening ("the amount of alcohol you drink alone puts on all those kilos you've lost."). She lost one kilo ("maybe") out of excitement.

Tan: An entire summer spent on Matzizim Beach ("and sometimes on Saturdays, at the religious beach") paid off.

Flowers: a bouquet of simple white orchids at a cheap flower shop "Love Bouquets - at Billi's" ("Si Heiman's sister") cost NIS 150 and included 4 orchids surrounded by green leaves.

Pop-up: The dress had a deep neckline and backline. In the middle of the back there was a bra-shaped closing and no bra was necessary. The dress was made especially for her body ("and thanks to my mother's genes, which have brought me to this point in life.")

The best tip: Don't skip breakfast ("preferably with your friends, and maybe have them take pictures for a Channel 2 news item") on the wedding morning ("from that moment on, you don't eat a thing.")

Pedicure / Manicure:  All preparations took place at Roni Frenkel's hair salon, including beauty treatments. Toenails ("the toes peeped out of the sandals") and fingernails were painted red ("I have short nails - dark polish was best."). She didn't want false nails ("too artificial").

Karin's message: "A wedding is just a party after all, and in a party, the important thing is to have a great time."