Category Archives: Charleston

Jan 14, 2020

This wedding was such a stunner, that we had to share some of our own favorite details in addition to the feature in the new Charleston Weddings Magazine. Our couple married at Kiawah Island Resort, with an indoor ceremony in a ballroom we transformed, followed by an evening of dinner, dancing, and details. The bride is Mexican, so were able to use a lot of beautiful details as a nod to her heritage, and incorporate glamorous design that represent the couple’s taste. Corbin Gurkin captured all of the lovely images. Wedding papers by Lettered Olive featured gilded paper and inks, a custom monogram and velvet touches. The save the dates were acrylic thumb drives of a styled video the couple made featuring Kiawah Island to get guests excited for the big day.

The bride wore a gown from Kleinfeld Bridal by Pnina Tornai and shoes by Christian Louboutin. We created her bouquet using shades of blushes and white with opulant orchids, garden roses, and lily of the valley hand tied with an embroidered velvet ribbon. Custom cuff links for the groom were engraved with the wedding date.

Classic black tuxedos complimented the bridesmaids lace and silk full length gowns- by Kate McDonald Bridal. I love seeing sleeves for the bridesmaids!

 

We transformed one of the ballrooms at the Sanctuary at Kiawah Island by laying white carpet and bring the outdoors in… We covered golden branches with orchids, and lined the aisle with greenery boxes, and hung white sheer fabric for a beautiful photo backdrop.

A floral covered monogram added pretty detail to the hotel space. Members of the family who couldn’t be there where there in spirit with a remembrance table at the ceremony. In addition to the Virtuosi orchestra at the ceremony, a bagpiper, and Mariachi band provided a variety of music.

Perfectly timed, a confetti cannon went off just as the couple sealed their vows with a kiss.

Cocktail hour featured a salsa and taco station… Covered in greenery, a hotel chandelier makes for a great escort card station. Acrylic cards calligraphied by Penned by Palmer were hung by ribbon.

For this bride, typical chivari chairs just wouldn’t cut it. So, white fabric was woven throughout to give a frilly and extravagant feel.  A centerpiece of the dining room was a large fixture we covered in greenery and draped orchid strands from.

Perfectly piped linens (one of our signatures) provided tailored tabletops with rows of lush floral centerpieces. Delicate glass candlesticks offered a mixture of height. Place cards were embroidered satin ribbons tied to the napkins at each place setting.

Jim Smeal created a modern and elegant cake using two of the main design elements- marble and gold gilding.

Perfectly positioned lounge seating and tables provided guests a place to perch when not dancing.
Marble was an element that kept popping up in the bride’s inspiration photos, so we created a marbleized dance floor as a stand out focal point of the room.

Since it’s seen in so many of the photos, the band’s stage can stick out like a sore thumb, or blend in perfectly. Fabric draped curtains and custom edging create a showcase for the band that show the extra thought that goes into designing the space.

As a send off, the guests were showered by orchids, and departed in a vintage car with the prettiest of petals making the final look as special as the first. Congrats Gaby and Ward!

1.14.20   |   TARA GUÉRARD
Bridal Style, Charleston, Event Design, Event Planning, Flowers, Reception, Uncategorized, Weddings | Comments >>

I am thrilled to share this Fall Fenwick Plantation wedding with you, now that it is officially fall in the south.  This is the 3rd daughter from a family that we have done all three weddings for, which I love because they were all so different and fun to design. This one is full of soft and feminine touches but using lots for rustic and natural elements. Thank you to Corbin Gurkin for all of the photos. Lettered Olive created a landscape scene reminiscent of the grounds at Fenwick Plantation (currently on the market if anyone is interested!), which was printed as the envelope liner on the classic letterpress invitations. Canvas “baskets” were printed with a handdrawn map of Charleston, with all of the weekend festivity locations noted. A custom printed puzzle also gave guests more information about the weekend events. Local snacks and treats filled the basket, including the groom’s favorite fortune cookies, but more on that later…

The bride wore a lace mermaid style gown by Eddy K with a keyhole back and a veil from BHLDN.

Bridesmaids wore gowns from BHLD, and the groom’s suit is from H Stockton in Atlanta.

Letterpress programs were fashioned into fans for the outdoor ceremony, luckily we had a warm beautiful day! After walking down a petal lined aisle with oversized magnolia pieces, the couple married under a magnolia and floral arch.

Cocktail immediately followed in the garden, where guests were greeted with hors d’oeuvres and cocktails named by the couple.  Going with the garden theme, a “planted” escort card display was designed. Galvanized metal tags were calligraphied with guests names and planed in a moss covered box. Dinner under the clear top tent featured a lovely head table with the palest pink linen, and curated tabletop of flowers, differing candles, and elements like antlers and other curios.

Afterwards in the lounge tent, both the wedding cake and a grooms cake were cut. The bride chose a chocolate covered confection by Jim Smeal displayed with a custom monogramed linen… Due the groom’s love of Chinese food, Jim also created a to go box cake with gum paste fortune cookies on top.

The after dinner lounge featured several different seating arrangements for guests to gather… In addition to our traditional bar setup, we built a beer tap wall for the guys… Loved this new addition and it was a big hit with guests… Featuring 4 of the couple’s favorite selections. 

After a night of dancing and mingling with friends, the couple departed to a sparkler send off, in a vintage British convertible.  Congrats Mary and Reid!

11.12.19   |   TARA GUÉRARD
Bridal Style, Cakes, Charleston, Event Design, Event Planning, Fashion, Flowers, Food and Drink, Press, Reception, The Lettered Olive, Uncategorized, Weddings | Comments >>
Oct 22, 2019

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I had the best time planning this wedding… I mean, I love Denia, and miss working with her! A fashion designer and co founder of Dee Hutton based in New York, Denia and Craig knew that coming to Charleston to get married was the perfect plan.  With many personal touches – the upscale “party animal” theme, and the gowns (both bridal and bridemsaids) designed by the bride, this was a magazine worthy collaboration. It was a also a feature on Brides magazine. Photos by Corbin Gurkin.

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Flower Collage

The bride’s bouquet looked just gathered from the garden, with simple long stemmed roses and greenery, hand tied with silk ribbon. A whimsical ring bearer “pillow” makes for a sweet detail, and tailored white roses served on a brass tray made even the groomsmen feel special!

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The bride designed her own dress with a wow factor in mind, the train was reminisce of a royal wedding!  The train was over 7 feet long and when spread 13 feet wide… breathtaking.

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Not wanting your typical bridal party look, custom individual dresses were designed for each member of the wedding party by the bride herself, totally pulling off an uber glam look.

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One of the things that drew the bride to the Fenwick Hall location was the brick facade and the grounds giving the feel of grand homes from a bygone era.

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A bridged aisle was created over the reflecting pond with a lush floral arch full of magnolia greenery and lilies at the ceremony site.

Ceremony Collage

The mother of the bride surprised the couple with a gospel choir singing “You Are the Best Thing” for the couple’s recessional.

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The reception kicked off with a cocktail hour under the spanish moss. The guests got the first nod to the animals with the escort card display, being watched over by good luck elephants.

Dinner Collage

The party continued with dinner under the stars. Long family style tables filled the glowing gold and white tent.  As a surprise to the bride, golden pears held the place cards at each guests’ place setting. The table numbers were caligraphied carafes of wine…

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Oh this gold giraffe, it now lives in our office, but it definitely lived up to it’s party animal reputation that night… At one point in the evening the bride was actually riding it!

Lounge Collage

Guests lounged under the stars, enjoyed dancing, and cakes well into the night.

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2015_Nedenia_0438 Cake Collage

Dessert for the evening- cake and ice cream. A Cake bar with different varieties along with Graeter’s ice cream allowed guests a smorgasboard of options.

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PHoto booth Collage

A TapSnap photo booth allowed guests cute take home photos and also provided the guests sign in book… guests could leave a copy of their photos along with personal notes to the couple.
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A beautiful end to an amazing evening….. Luckily this bride was in our life again as we planned her best friend and business partner’s wedding. Stay tuned for the details on that one coming soon!

10.22.19   |   TARA GUÉRARD
Bridal Style, Charleston, Event Design, Event Planning, Fashion, Flowers, Photographers, Reception, Uncategorized, Weddings | Comments >>