There are wedding trends that are quite simply JUST trendy, and then there are trends that are actually functional and wonderful!

I am loving the dessert displays that have been making the rounds in weddings over the past few years. Not that a beautiful wedding cake doesn’t have a place, but how great for guests to be able to pick up their own small bites and come back as they’d like throughout the night?

Kiften and Will opted for cupcakes from Sugar Bakeshop and various chocolate-covered pretzels (their favorite treat) and it was both completely lovely and exceptionally tasty!

Many thanks to Jim Smeal for the use of his beautiful driftwood stand and to Josh Drake for his fantastic photos:

love!

You know, this wedding epitomizes is why sometimes it is a great idea to have a February wedding here in Charleston… the city is less crowded, the air is crisp and the spartina glass brilliant against the marsh, guests are ready to party after a long winter!

Michelle and Mark were the sweetest, sweetest couple and it was such a pleasure to work with them on their February 2011 wedding at Bethel United Methodist and The Historic Rice Mill. One thing we always say is that we LOVE that each bride has her own tastes and LOVE when a bride knows what she wants…. Michelle loved jewel tones and peacock feathers and so we took it and ran with it Aren’t the bolder colors a fun alternative for winter?

Thanks so much to our friend and sweet supporter Della for the great write up and post, and for the super talented duo Amelia + Dan for the photos!!

Ceremony Venue . Bethel United Methodist Church

Reception Venue . Rice Mill Building

The Dress . Casablanca from Jean’s Bridal

Bridesmaid Dress . Priscilla of Boston, Vineyard Collection, Bella Bridesmaid

Hair + Makeup . Allure Salon

Florals . WED

Band . Mo Money

Caterer . Good Food Catering

Cake . Jim Smeal

Do y’all remember this super fun couple from last winter…

Well, what a pleasure to see their rehearsal dinner featured on The Wedding Row today!! Thanks so much to Della for the sweet words and to all the vendors for their hard work in helping up create this great event.

Check it out here!

Sarah and Kevin… oh, my goodness, what a couple! What a wedding! What a party!

We always love when a bride has a very clear aesthetic for her wedding (and a gorgeous one, at that) and Sarah loved all things light, airy, and vintage-inspired.

I would write about it more but really these gorgeous photos by Juliet Elizabeth really do speak for themselves:

And one final favorite photo… yowza!

The players:

Venue: Legare Waring/Lowndes Grove Plantation
Event Designer: W.E.D.
Event Coordinator: W.E.D.
Makeup: Bride did her own makeup
Hair: Affair Hair By Tanesha
Cake/Dessert: Jim Smeal
Caterer: Fish
Florist : Sara York Grimshaw
Officiant: Chris Montovino
Ceremony Musician : Ian Grimshaw
DJ/Band: Joe Clarke Big Band
Wedding Dress: Monique Lhuillier
Veil/Hair accessory: Vera Wang
Jewelry: rings: Croghan’s jewel box, Sarah’s earrings were vintage estate jewelry.
Shoes: Jimmy Choo
Bridesmaids’ dresses: Amsale
Groom’s suit: Berlin’s
Groom’s shoes: Berlin’s
Groomsmen’ suits: Berlin’s
Stationery: Chocolate Butterbean
Transportation: Absolutely Charleston

Congrats, Sarah and Kevin!!!

In Charleston we have a GREAT networking group in the wedding industry that hosts quarterly Wedding Planners Luncheons. Education and open communication are the purpose and highlight of these luncheons and I for one very much appreciate the open dialogue and friendliness among a group of should-be competitors who are actually all friends . Our very own Ellen Cohn Robinson was the key note speaker and we were so proud of her wealth of knowledge on Jewish weddings from both personal experience (her parents ad other family member’s weddings)  and over 12-years experience planning Jewish weddings. Go, Ellen!

This past luncheon was focused on Jewish weddings! Tradition is back in style in general, but Jewish wedding are some of the most richly-steeped in wonderful tradition. From the Kiddushin to the Ketubah to the Chuppah and Challah bread, Ellen covered it all with a perfectly concise and informative (and funny!) presentation. Here she is in front of a more modern chuppah made by SYG Designs:

The challah bread!

Gorgeous flowers from SYG Designs:

Ellen’s family heirloom- the Bride’s Prayer Book. She, her sister and her mother all carried it in their own weddings. And since Hebrew is written/read right to left, the book isn’t misprinted wrongly like it may appear

More family heirlooms from Ellen’s parents wedding:

The beautiful ketubah:

Way to go, Ellen! You did WED proud!

I really feel like I have felt the most honored/humbled when my personal friends ask me to help with their weddings. It’s true, huh? If they really know you well and still trust you to plan their big day then they must really trust you, right?

Camille worked for WED for years helping out with events (and unfortunately eventually had to take a “real” job after graduating college, too bad for us!)  and when our sweet friend became engaged to her incredible husband, she called us in to help her out.

Rain didn’t dampen this girl’s spirit… it POURED all day, but the heavens opened up and the skies cleared just in time for the ceremony. It was a perfect compliment to the sunny and fresh decor at Pepper Plantation.

Weddings Unveiled Magazine’s blog Completely Unveiled featured the event and I thought you might want to check out the very kind words in their feature… and check out these beautiful photos!!

Credits:
Photography: Captured by Kate. Second Photographer: Jake Drake. Gown: Fabulous Frocks. Bridesmaid Dresses:Bella Bridesmaid. Wedding Coordinator and Decor: Hannah Alexander with WED. Printed Goods: designed by the Groom. Ceremony Venue: Palmetto Presbyterian Church. Reception Venue: Pepper Plantation. Florist: Sara York Grimshaw Designs. Rentals: Snyder Event Rentals and Snyder Lounge. Lighting: TEC. Caterer: Granville’s. Cake:Wedding Cakes by Jim Smeal. 

When our old friend Christy Roper invited us to have lunch with Bricklane Catering’s owner and executive chef, all four of us (me, Ashley Wenz, Ellen Robinson and Katie Huebel) cleared our schedules in a skinny minute and were thrilled to try out a fantastic “new” caterer in town!

The food was absolutely bursting with flavor and yet also so clean and concise in its presentation. Would you care to hear what we had? Here’s the fabulous menu:

First Course

Yellow Grape Tomato Panzanella Stuffed Johns Island Tomato

Baby English Cucumbers, African Blue Basil, Fresh Mozzarella,

Balsamic Soy Glaze, EVOO

(DELICIOUS. We all cleared our plates. Nothing wrong with this kind of thing, and the chef made sure to note that he had grown the tomatoes and basil himself. Love that.)

Second Course

Quatre Épice Rubbed Breast of Duck

Curried Quinoa Salad, Turkish Apricot, Poached Black Cherry, Radish Sprouts, 

Sweet Indonesian Soy

(I didn’t even know I liked duck before this… so tender and perfect. I’m also a huge quinoa fan so this was right up my alley)

Third Course

Pan Seared Pork Tenderloin

Butternut Squash Puree, Sautéed Baby Yellow Beets, Purple Fingerling Potatoes,

 White Truffle Black Pepper Madeira Demi-Glace

(Can I be perfectly honest… I had never had sous vide-cooked meat before. I always run from it ever since my favorite Top Chef Carla totally blew it in the finals with her sous vide steak that the judges hated. But this has made me a believer. Absolutely delicious.)

Fourth Course

Belgian Chocolate Bourbon Mousse

Raspberries, Grand Marnier Pastry Cream, Tangerine Coulis,

Pistachio Brittle, Red Velvet Dust

WHAT a meal… thanks so much to the Bricklane Catering folks!!!

(all photos from Bricklane except the last, from our iphones

At this backyard wedding in Darlington, SC. TEC did this fabulous lighting and the beautiful bride Chelsea and her family basically did all the rest… they made their own linen, the bride crafted her beautiful bouquet… pretty awesome.  The rain came down that night but when the skies cleared, Josh Drake was able to capture these incredible photos of each one of their guests (including myself!) having a blast.

How amazing!

Love these two…

Gosh, we love The Wedding Row. Della always writes up the most inspiring posts and we so very much appreciate the shout outs! THANK YOU!

She just posted a two-part blog post on the rehearsal dinner and wedding of a fabulous couple, Katie and Jason. They were so laid back, so family-oriented and yet also sophisticated and cool. I miss their whole family!

Take a look at the blog posts here and here… Richard Ellis documented the day to perfection.

The rehearsal at Mingo Point:

And the gorgeous wedding at The Sanctuary:

Richard Ellis and his crew were amazing- we appreciate the beautiful photos!

Last week we stopped by The Beaufort Inn for a quick lunch at their restaurant Southern Graces and were completely wowed by what Chef Christopher Hewitt created! Isn’t that the best… to go out for a quick lunch and then leave feeling like you just had a gourmet meal?

The food was so pretty that we took out our phones to take photos- ha! Here is the BEAUTIFUL and delicious “Vertical Cobb Salad:”

“A dramatic stacked salad with layers of avocado, tomato, eggs, bacon, blue cheese and fried shrimp with black pepper buttermilk dressing.” Yes, please!

Another winner was the “Beaufort Bay Shrimp Wrap:”

“Fresh local shrimp stuffed with sausage and lump crab meat wrapped in a wonton skin and flash fried- Served with Garlic Sweet and Spicy sauce. A Three-time winner at the Beaufort Shrimp Festival!”

The restaurant offers a truly diverse menu (I was also eyeing the montecristo sandwich, cheerwine BBQ and fried green tomato and pimiento cheese BLT)- if you’re in Beaufort, you will definitely want to make a stop.

We also were able to spend a few minutes with The Beaufort Inn’s event director Juliann Myers, a total sweetheart and amazing event manager for the space. The Beaufort Inn and their additional venues hosts all kinds of events from bridesmaids brunches to weddings and everything in between. Make sure to check it out here!