Hyer Images had more from the Heart Ball, so be sure to check out their amazing work on their Awesome Blog

We Love nothing more than to give back, and the 2010 American Heart Association Heart Ball was perfect for us.  This event is put on in cities across the nation annually to raise local dollars for heart and vascular research and education.

One thing Charleston is not short on is amazing artists, and to see so many amazing pieces auctioned for the cause was invigorating!  Rare finds of specialty wines and jewels were also placed on the block for this incredible organization.

Couldn’t make the evening, check out the memories captured by our dear friends at Hyer Images.

Many of our industry friends lent their support in the form of volunteer time and original centerpieces to show their interpretations of our awesome theme (if we do say so ourselves, lol) “Art Growing Wild.”

Thanks to such an amazing outpouring of support, the 2010 Heart Ball raised six figures over last year, and we had so much fun we are already looking forward to 2011!

As I mentioned, a lot of amazing vendors gave time to this wonderful cause, so here goes:

Thanks to Other Brother Entertainment and Technical Event Company.

The following amazing members of our industry took our request for centerpieces inspired by the featured painting and went above and beyond: Cafe Catering, Country & Lace Florist, Wildflowers Inc, Petals by Pamela, Eventa Bella, Events by Duvall,  JW Weddings and Events, inventivENVIRONMENTS,  Stem/Southern Protocol, Simply Eventful, Branch/Susan Gough, Luke Wilson Special Events, and yours truly.

We also had some great silent auction monitors in volunteers from: Newton Farms Catering, Ergonomix PR, and Katherine Miller Events.

We spent Martin Luther King, Jr. weekend at the Navy Yard at Noisette helping to sponsor the inaugural Riverfront Race Festival. The race benefits the Youth Endowment for the Arts (YEA), which helps keep music programs in Charleston County schools.

The rain held off until the bitter end and everyone had a great time! Volunteers, sponsors and runners alike kept warm with the help of bonfires (started by a fabulous volunteer!) and yummy shrimp and grits from Charleston Bay Gourmet. The festival consisted of the Hunley Hustle 5k, a 10k and a half-marathon, and boy did it start off with a bang!

PBC Sports Photography, LLC

PBC Sports Photography, LLC

PBC Sports Photography, LLC

How cute are the members of the North Charleston Dolphins Track Team?! They led the way in the Hunley Hustle 5k, and we loved watching them!

PBC Sports Photography, LLC

There were bands set up throughout the course to encourage the runners, while the amazing Sol Driven Train stayed behind to entertain the volunteers and finished runners. We’ve never seen someone pull off a track suit quite like the men of Sol Driven Train!

PBC Sports Photography, LLC

We had a great time at the Riverfront Race Festival, and we look forward to working with them again next year!

We know you’re excited about being engaged and you want many people to share in your special day, so start the guest list off right!  The length of the guest list can quickly become a sticky situation between the couple and the families, so my advice to you is to be pro-active!  The guest list determines many of decisions about your wedding day, the venue and the total cost are at the top of that list.

So, to get started, write down everyone you can think of that you would want to see on your wedding day and then cut from there.  Ask your parents and future in-laws for their lists too.  Then, throw a dinner party and ask everyone who has a stake in the wedding guest list to attend.  (all things are better discussed over food and wine!).  There will be people that everyone agrees must  be in attendance; there will also be potential guests who everyone does not agree on.  Take a few things into consideration: your relation to the guest, how long its been since you last saw then, and my “golden rule” of guests lists, would you be upset if you weren’t invited to their event.

I do not believe in the “B-list!”  …and of course I’m going to tell you why:

1. Charleston is a destination city. Many of your guests will treat it like a vacation, s0 you can usually only account for about 10% of guests not to show.  That is a significant difference from the national average of 20% no-shows.
2. You can end up over your guest count.  We all know that everyone isn’t punctual with reply cards.  You can easily go over your target guest count if you extend B-list invitations and then some A-listers show up you didn’t count on.
3. B-list invites are obvious.  Let’s just say we all know when we’ve gotten those last minute apologetic phone calls.

Once you’ve got it all narrowed down, I suggest using notecards to keep track of your guests.  Using these note cards will help you keep track of your guest count, what you’ve sent them, and their gift.  Keep all of these notecards in a recipe box in alphabetical order–easy to transport and nice to keep from engagement through honeymoon!

So, don’t let the guest list get you down or family members worked up.  Your wedding is a time for celebration and whoever is in attendance on the big day will make it special…just stay pro-active and organize from the beginning!

It was wonderful meeting so many of you great brides last month!  For those of you who couldn’t brave the weather, here are some shots you missed.

I really wanted to throw out some of the great dress up photos, but I can’t show future brides in the look for their big days!

Be on the lookout for the next one to check out some fun new wedding pros!

Thanks to all of the great vendors for sharing their advice D’lish Desserts, Wildflowers, Lella Foster, Action Media, Karson Photography, Belle Couture Bridal, and us!

By popular demand, here are a few more shots from the Chamberlains’ December 5 nuptials!

Richard Bell Photography

Richard Bell Photography

Oh boy!  So Jill and JB are fun, and on top of that, they have fun friends.  With a crowd like this , focus on amazing lighting and food and let them do the rest!

(c) 2009 charophoto.com

Things started off with an elegant ceremony at historic St. Luke’s downtown.  Charo was on-hand early, so not a second of the day would be missed, and she caught some FAB shots!

(c) 2009 charophoto.com

Every element of the day was about providing guests with a memorable party from the fab cocktails that greeted them at the entrance to the Boone Hall Cotton Dock to adding some time to allow for lots o’ shaking tailfeathers!

(c) 2009 charophoto.com

Throw in a classic black mustang driven by 7-year itch Marilyn, and you have to be fun to have a tiered cake of funfetti!

(c) 2009 charophoto.com

Rick Dean Photography

After dinner things got crazy and all of the beautiful people hit the dance floor.  It was not an option to leave out these amazing shots of the action!

There is nothing more amazing than the sound of the waves as a back drop to your ceremony.  Not so in love with the sand and shell decor that tends to be par for the course?  Nix it!

For Cheri and Bob, the ocean and colors of the setting sun were some of her faves colors so we deepened them and pumped things up with some rich fabrics to offset the chill in the air on the December 5 big day!

Gorgeous starfish and the Citadel Beach House still made an appearance to give their guests the souvenirs and memories they needed for their trip, of course.  Driftwoods were traded for darker woods like manzanita.

Finally, with a beautiful backdrop, sometimes it’s cool to leave it just as that, so a simple bamboo arbor and moss  and ivy  didn’t block the ocean view.  Naturally, Yoj ordered up the perfect weather!  Hello!  We take care of it all.

Be on the lookout for more details in later blogs including some awesome details from Cru Catering, Ashley Bakery, Super Deluxe, Country & Lace, specialty furniture rentals from Duvall and a serious party crowd

So a few months ago, we were with one of our beautiful brides in Belle Couture for a fitting. Sarah Black mentioned how so many of her clients had so many little questions. Naturally, we wanted to help!

The M’Aidez Soiree is a great way for you to stop by and sample some treats, dresses, and planners with no stress or formality.

This coming Soiree includes desserts from Molly Lawson of D’lish, free advice from us (you know we’re full of opinions), florals from Wildflower, Lella Foster’s gorgeous baubles and the latest and greatest of Sarah’s lines in Belle. Not to mention, some other vendor pals will be dropping by with some samples and portfolios to check out.

What better way to wash away a long Thursday than cocktails and some girl time?!

Special Thanks to Evan Laettner’s amazing photography!

Vintage does not mean stuffy in any sense, and when I met Lacey and JB, vintage came out of her mouth about 20 times.  She conveyed her thoughts about their style by saying she wanted it to feel like a grandma’s estate.  This being the most hilarious description of a formal Charleston wedding, I was thrilled she chose to work with us!

When you grow up in Louisiana, grandma’s house can definitely have some cool style, and Lacey and JB wanted their guests to get a taste of Charleston but feel right at home.  We focused on rich colors and fabrics, warm lighting and creating a beautiful outdoor room with a tent the likes of the William Aiken House had never seen!

The moving frescos of St. Mary of the Annunciation created the romance desired and permitted an evening ceremony.  With such beautiful surroundings, I was a kid in a candy store picking candlesticks and rich colors and fabrics to fit the beautiful period style of the house.

A True Keeper of a Guestbook: Lacey and JB love their good juice, so guests left memorable messages on corks to fill one wall of their new downtown kitchen.

Favors for Fun: Crowd pleasing custom-banded cigars are much better than a matchbook!

Everyone danced the night away, and Lacey amped up the late night party with her change from the elegant custom dress from White into a sassy minidress by LaRoque!  OF course those amazing Lella Foster pearls stayed on all night.

As the witching hour approached, the blaring horns of The Second Line let everyone know it was time for a true New Orleans-style departure; complete with hankies and umbrellas.  We had a great time, Lacey and JB, and as they say in the Big Easy “L’aissez les bons temps rouler!”