The Wedding Row liked Ike and Ange’s fun afternoon! click here

Ike and Ange, or Ikelina, as they came to be known in the planning process, do not get a lot of free time together.  For their May nuptials, all they wanted to do was kick up their Kentucky heels with a great day for guests in downtown Charleston.

In the planning process, ‘organic’ was a word that kept coming out with them, so we kept things simple and beautiful.

Instead of a tent, clean ivory umbrella tables fit into the lovely garden of Thomas Bennett House, which only made the surroundings pop.  I love taking my sketches to Country & Lace, because she always turns out a perfect version of the vision.

Add some bourbon lovers and the bluegrass sounds of Blue Plantation, and you’ve got a relaxed evening of good times ahead.

Fresh herbs and garden roses made things look as if they were there to stay, and the fresh local menu from Gourmet Bay was just as mouthwatering as it was fresh and light.

I loved designing this wedding almost as much as I love the images I got from Karson Photography of it!

Jennifer and Jeremy knew a few things about their big day when we met: good music, bright colors of spring, and the oh-so-lovely Legare Waring House.

First, I must say when Val at RIchard Bell Photography is shooting, I know the memories will be beautiful and amazing, and she did not disappoint!

Bring in Debbie at Country and Lace Florist who totally understood Jen’s need for the beautiful and different from hello.  With Jen loving so many beautiful bright florals, linens needed to let them speak, so clean wipe swept through the tent with an awesome green and white print that we whipped into satin trimmed overlays to anchor the centerpieces with a nod to all of the beautiful lawn surrounding their big day.

Being two J’s, that overtook the symbol for the day from the stationery to the moss adorning the entry to the gate.  My crazy friend Hayden at the awesome Ashley Bakery brought nice and tasty culmination of the style into their cake.

Throw in Kathleen Wilson of Aquaharp to serenade everyone through the ceremony, which ended with them being pronounced married and Spiritually Yours bursting into “Oh Happy Day” as they escorted guests across the lawn into cocktail hour.

With Cafe Catering feeding everyone and DJ Bryan cranking out the tunage, it really couldn’t be topped.

With all of those cute touches, what more could a couple ask for but a crowd of guests ready to have a good time and celebrate with them!  Luckily for Jen and Jeremy, they happily obliged.

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So everyone thinks it’s hilarious when a planer is planning.  While seemingly relaxed during my year long engagement, the hubs thought it hilarious to keep me on my toes by letting me the wedding had to be resched 3 months before the date!!!  I know, it was INSANITY.  It was doable, however, and with the military or any other important cause, you do what needs to be done.  With good partners in crime, anything is possible, and I’d like to thank the wonderful people below that I am also honored to call my friends and colleagues in the industry.

* Every amazing image below courtesy of Tomme Hilton.

I couldn’t possibly cheat you out of the opportunity to judge me for yourself.  About us: we’ve spent the past four years meeting up in various corners of the globe and exploring, then heading back to normal life, apart.  While we still, although married, have not figured out how to live in the same geographic location, we are, nonetheless, blissfully happy.  I do warn people now that if they want movie romance, they should prepare themselves for a lot of airport scenes.

So here’s the deets:

First impression thanks to my dear friend, Bethany of Thistleberry Press in Savannah.  Fantastic custom letterpress!

Belle Couture lined Modern Trousseau up to help create the tea length number to fit our war wedding, as we aptly named it, since we had 3 months to replan when we found out my hubs couldn’t make our original date thanks to duty calling.  Of course Lella Foster had to help me accessorize and Ann at Charleston Stems made everything colorful and gorgeous!

Thanks to Hampton Park Gazebo and the infamous Trae at Granville’s for good food and good times!

Our signature:  We paid homage to our traveling ways with vintage luggage for displays and the ever-present-in-my-life airmail boxes as centerpiece containers.  Erich is a diver  and on his travels, he  sends me a shell from every dive, so those definitely had to be shown off!

Molly from D’Lish Desserts gave me the amped up red and clean lines to fit perfectly and my happy Manolos made it a truly a cinderella evening-* that and having the perfect prince charming *I’m assuming I get brownie points for the last line.

DJ Bryan Mahanes kept us rocking all night!

Of course, the most thanks to my team, the Yoj gals!

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.

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!”

Charleston offers amazing venues–plantation homes, harbor views and historic buildings–so why cover them up?  Shelley and Jon celebrated their wedding on Memorial Day weekend at Stella Maris and reception at the Thomas-Bennett House in Downtown Charleston.  The Thomas-Bennett House has a vibrant garden that is covered in vines, blossoming trees and lush grasses.  With such an amazing space for their wedding day, the couple really wanted to show it off!  Choosing a neutral color pallet of tan, white, and green allowed the guests to focus on the amazing colonial home and grounds.   From the moment I met Shelley and John their main focus was that their guests had a great time.  The recipe for their happy guests: a rockin’ band, huge dance floor, and 5 hours of party!  It was a success!  Every guest danced their heart out and sang along with the band.  The combination of simple decor and a focus on the guests blended for a stunning day in the sun.   

A night on the town deserves some shine!  Since I covered my cell phone with my self-made rhinestone encasement in high school (back then we did not have 50 fun covers for our Zac Morris phones),  rhinestones have always been a fun way to take things over the top.  If you’re looking for elegance and want to take it up a notch, a little bling, goes a looooong way!  Take a great old ballroom into the 21st century some shine and the light to make it happen.   Sparkles take the cake against clean white lines. I Love napkin rings.  They make the best tea light holders. Up lights and custom art define the space as yours and no one else’s. Click for details.