Category Archives: Fashion

Tara Guerard Soiree by Corbin Gurkinphoto by Corbin Gurkin 

Today I’m sharing tips on ways you can be prepared and how to avoid some of the unexpected disasters that we’ve experienced in the past. For one wedding, during the pre ceremony family photos a bride was holding an infant who had a bit of a diaper disaster, leaving quite the mess on her dress!

photo by Corbin Gurkin 

Katherine McDonald dress maven of LulaKate and Kate McDonald Bridal tells us that (appropriately) baby wipes are the BEST kept secret to getting stains out of dresses and they have them on hand at all times in the studio.  Dusting baby powder or going over the water stain with white chalk and a small bristle brush helps distract from the removal of the original stain.  Luckily we keep a bridal preparedness kit on hand at all times and being a mom of 3 I’ve learned the wonder of baby wipes, so we dabbed out the stain and had her photo ready walking down the aisle!

Tara Guerard Soiree by Corbin Gurkin

photo by Corbin Gurkin 

You are on weather.com everyday for two weeks leading up to your wedding. Planning, plotting, and praying for that sunshine and no rain report! Well, here in Charleston and the Lowcountry outdoor weddings are one of the main reasons people chose to get married here.  But in our humid climate frequent showers are inevitable. We’ve had to hold a ceremony off for 45 mins, keeping guests under shelter and on buses until the rain stopped and we could dry off the seats. Here large golf umbrellas helped shelter the guests and couple after a shower popped up at the end of the ceremony.

Tara Guerard Soiree by Adrienne Pagephoto by Adrienne Page

We keep a fleet of solid white umbrellas on our trucks for all of our outdoor affairs just in case…

photo by Elizabeth Messina

Here in Charleston, many couples elect to use vintage cars for their getaway. They obviously make for lovely photos, but can often be unreliable and finicky. We have had several situations where they simply didn’t start or had some complications and often we don’t know this until it’s time for the driver to arrive at the wedding to pick up the bride and groom!

photo by Gayle Brooker

 Several tips to avoid being stranded at the end of the evening are schedule your car for at least an hour minimum prior to your wanting to leave. That way if there is a problem your coordinator or whoever has been your point person can have plenty of time to problem solve (hopefully without you being the wiser!). Another option is to make sure to have a back up- several of our taxi companies here have different or unique vehicles, and since it’s a taxi are readily available and often can be cancelled with little or no penalty. Or, does a friend or family member who will be attending the wedding have a cool car that they would be willing to let you drive around the block in just for the send off photo opp? Then, you can hop in another vehicle out of sight from the guests!

7.31.18   |   TARA GUÉRARD
Bridal, Bridal Style, Dresses, Fashion, Uncategorized, Weddings | Comments >>

Kerr Collage

photos by Liz Banfield

Who needs an excuse to wear two dresses in one night??? While I definitely appreciate many of our brides wearing their ceremony wedding dress throughout the entire evening, I also love the idea of getting more comfortable for dancing, or honoring the tradition of the departing dress. Here is a roundup of some of our favorite before and after- meaning ceremony dress into going away dress! Above, the first and second dresses are by Nardos Imam.

photos by Corbin Gurkin

Our bride, who lived in Dallas at the time of her wedding used locally based Nardos Imam for her two custom dresses. We love a feathery frock for dancing and departing!

Reed Collage

photos by Liz Banfield

For a beachside wedding on Kiawah Island, our bride wore a strapless gown by Augusta Jones.  While on a family trip in Europe during the planning process, Lisa and her mother made a side stop at Christian Dior in Paris, and found the perfect send off dress (with a little story behind it, which we love!).

photos by Corbin Gurkin

One half of design house, Dee Hutton, Stephanie wore two custom dresses both designed by her best friend and other half of Dee Hutton Bridal.

Carrabba Collage

photos by Liz Banfield

We love how this bride remained classically bridal all night with a lace covered gown and Little White Dress, both by Monique Lhuillier.

Davis Collage

photos by Corbin Gurkin

Of course, the departure dress doesn’t have to be shorter… We love this beaded flowy gown worn by Annie after her Issa London confection earlier in the evening.

Dendy Collage

photos by Gayle Brooker

Our bride Dr. Dendy Engelman, celebrity dermatologist, looked flawless in a Priscilla of Boston gown before changing into a white hot little number by Peter Soronen.

photos by Corbin Gurkin 

I love the traditional route our bride Katie took on her wedding day. After a mermaid style Amsale with sheer sleeves, she departed in a crisp and classic Armani Suite- very Grace Kelly!

7.23.18   |   TARA GUÉRARD
Bridal, Bridal Style, Dresses, Fashion, Reception, Shopping, Weddings | Comments >>
Jul 11, 2018

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This amazing seaside ceremony and reception in Newport, RI was such a fun event for us to do, as we had planned the bride’s best friends’ and business partner’s wedding a year prior. Also, the coastal landscape here is so different than ours on the Southeast coast, so it was great having such a lovely backdrop.  The ceremony held at a private home owned by friends of the family and a reception followed at the New York Yacht Club. All of the gorgeous images are by Corbin Gurkin.

Bridal Collage

Dress Collage

As her something old, the bride’s wore her grandmother’s pearl earrings, and something new was the gown designed by the bride with her matron of honor and business partner in Dee Hutton/Dee Hutton Bridal.  For something borrowed, a diamond bracelet from best friend was perfect, and her sapphire engagement ring was of course “something blue”.

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Having family from France, that was a huge influence on much of the design… From lavender used throughout the floral design to the Chantilly lace in the bride’s gown, French elements were predominant throughout.

Printed Collage

Lettered Olive took the coordinated pastel color palette and made modern and whimisical influences on traditional wedding stationary.  The guest bags were drawstring bags printed with a hand drawn map of Newport… Lots of sweets and treats like swedish fish as a playful nod to the coast, and NYC black and white cookies for a hometown fave.

bridesmaids CollageInstead of having the wedding party in matching gowns, the ladies wore shades of pastels in different styles by Dee Hutton. That way, when all together, stylish “rainbow” array came together.
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ceremony Collage

Heel savers and umbrellas were available to guests for walking across the grand lawn of the ceremony venue.

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A custom bridge lined with boxes of lavender buds was built across the pool making a breathtaking aisle and entrance for our bride.

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A spectacular view of boats in the harbor made for an amazing ceremony… this is one of my favorites we have ever done!

Cocktail Collage

Cocktail hour Collage

Guests enjoyed Rose and Seafood on the lawn overlooking the water, at the New York Yacht Club. So thankful for the gorgeous weather we had all weekend. We even able to use our lovely fabric lined umbrellas to shade the lounge seating and oyster bar.  The escort “cards” were housed in a French farmer’s market… cones of toile paper holding stems of lavender were calligraphied with guests’ names and table numbers.

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A grand tent with curtains revealing sweeping  sunset views housed dinner and dancing. We even built a little “porch” off of the main tent for part of the after dinner lounge… A little way for us to bring the south to Newport!

Dinner Collage

The bride wanted a summery pastel wonderland, so draping the ceiling in complimentary shades transformed the huge white tent. Long tables with French toile linens lined with varying centerpieces containing lush blooms like peonies, roses, hydrangea, and ivy greens.

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Lounge Collage

Confectionary Designs provided a tired cake with perfect pink rose accents, along with a variety of rainbow macaroons and other sweets served with vintage china.

263-2016_Stephanie_Peter_1999Dancing Collage

After a night of dancing on a custom dance floor (mint green and white checkered), the bride changed into a second  Dee Hutton Little White Dress. also designed by best friend and business partner.

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The couple said goodbye with a sparkler send off and departed in a vintage yacht. A late night after party was held at the Tennis Hall of Fame where the couple soon joined guests into the wee hours…

7.11.18   |   TARA GUÉRARD
Bridal, Bridal Style, Dresses, Event Design, Event Planning, Fashion, Food and Drink, New York, Press, Reception, Uncategorized, Weddings | Comments >>