They created a festival vibe with details such as wristbands on arrival, stretch tents, festoon lighting, rustic letters saying JFest, a chakra necklace tree, acoustic music and, of course, the street food — a BBQ and waffle stand. Some of the furniture and the bar were in rustic wood from Olivier Desargues. There was also a large festival flag made by Kellmat, hanging candles, wild flowers, a flower garden, glitter tattoos by Glittery Eva, straw bales, logo-embossed blankets, table tennis, an arm-wrestling table, bandanas and glow sticks.
In the run-up to the big day, Issy was “excited and stressed with so much to organise” — but Jake “was completely calm, which made me more nervous,” she says. “As the day got nearer, I realised I needed someone to help me. This help came in the form of Matthew Henning and Deepak from Dream Events.
“They were invaluable in every way, both calming, organised and a pleasure. I had tried to do everything myself and succeeded until the last four weeks, when I realised I could not do it all on my own on the night. Once I sat and had a chat with Matthew, I knew there were lots of things I had not considered, such as the layout, if there were any problems on the night… it really needed a professional eye.” The ceremony took place at The Liberal Synagogue Elstree. Issy wore a white trouser suit; her daughter, Lola, wore a blue lace skirt and top from Dresswise and husband Adam and Jake wore suits.
“When I saw Jake up there reading, I felt emotional and proud of the way he carried himself.” says Issy. Grandmother Carol felt “grateful for having such a wonderful grandson... and sad that his grandpa didn’t live to share his barmitzvah.” When Jake read his portion, she was impressed he did so well and excited to see him reaching this stage of his life.
For the party, Jake and his father wore jeans, blazers and trainers. Lola was in a maxi skirt with a cropped top made in Israel and Issy wore a long gold dress with tasselling. Carol chose trousers and a top, with lots of jewellery to get into the festival mood. “I left most of the barmitzvah planning to my mum and dad — but I knew I did not want to follow the conventional format,” says Jake, “it is just not me. I did not want to do a sit-down dinner or a big walk-in that other people do.
“The festival theme meant it was more relaxed. I had no idea what to really expect. But I thought it looked really cool when I saw it all together — Mum and Dad really had done a good job!” The original caterer had cancelled, two months before the event. But this was almost good fortune, says Issy, as she was thrilled with the replacement. “We decided on street food and were super-lucky to secure Eliott Gold from Meat Street BBQ. To this day, people are still commenting on how fabulous his food was.
“We also had a tiki-style bar called Waffle Wands, who did the most gorgeous waffles on sticks with an array of toppings.” As the first course, sushi platters were handed round by waitressing staff, with pink gin and mixed berries or prosecco. Adam also brought out frozen limoncellos at the reception.
Bradley Collins and Harry Portman from Uptown ran the music, with a guitarist/vocalist performing and Jake himself played a 45-minute DJ set. A broken hip did not stop Carol from fully enjoying the party — she made it on one stick and even managed to hit the dance floor.
Unfortunately she also broke her little finger on the night but she enjoyed “being together with friends and family” and “loved the theme they chose; it was fitting for them and was different to others I have been to”. Jake’s favourite parts of the event were his best friends’ speeches and being able to DJ.
“The singer was very good and was right for the theme we had and Bradley and Harry were cool,” he says. “They knew exactly how to get everyone up dancing and keep them on the dance floor.” “I remember everyone telling me how fast it goes and to try and enjoy it,” says Issy. “I really tried to live in the moment and at one point just stood upstairs in the barn, watching a jam-packed room, full of dancing and laughing people.”
Most of all, she cherishes “the love and warmth of friends and family who truly make it everything you need. Good food, lots of booze and a great crowd.”
