Category Archives: The Lettered Olive

Tara Guerard Soiree by Adrienne Page

This wedding has us all getting ready for beach season! This couple married overlooking the beach on Seabrook Island, where the bride’s family has a home. You could see the love between them, and having fun was their top priority. Good thing everyone kept their cool when a blackout happened that day causing the entire island to loose power- which means A.C. (at the end of July in Charleston no less).  Adrienne Page provides the lovely images.

Accessories collage

Wanting something different, when we found the fabric we were going to use throughout the wedding decor, we decided to have clutches made for the bridesmaids to carry as well.

Flower girl collage

The flower girls wore crowns made with the same summer flowers, and were gifted Charleston Sweetgrass baskets.

Ceremony collage bridesmaids

Bridesmaids wore mossy green linen shift dresses by JCrew, and carried airy summer bouquets fit and hearty enough for a seaside ceremony.

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The flowers were a mix of summer blooms like zinnias, dahlias, lisianthus, and maidenhair fern.

Food collageThe guests dined at stations with Lowcountry and Mexican influences. When doing stations, I like when the dishes pre composed and already plated, so that guests can easily grab a dish and eat it while maybe having to stand or with a drink in hand. Desserts accompanying the cake were Caramel Flan, and mini Churros in Chocolate.

favors

Favors were little peach baskets filled with local South Carolina peaches.

Printed Collage

Lettered Olive designed a logo that was used throughout the wedding printing that included die cut shapes and signage mimicking the logo. A green “burlap” pattern was also created to bring in the wedding palette and materials.

Reception Collage

A lounge was created on the porch for guests to enjoy the beach views. Sea elements were a small detail- coral votives and the centerpiece stems were covered by mixed shells resting in the vases.

Cake

 The wedding cake by Jim Smeal featured burlap rings with green growing vines…

Lanterns

Going away Collage

For the couple who were moving to Texas after the wedding, we surprised them with Texas state flags that guests waved as the couple departed by golf cart.

7.02.18   |   TARA GUÉRARD
Bridal Style, Cakes, Charleston, Event Design, Event Planning, Flowers, Food and Drink, Reception, Stationery, Invitations and Pretty Papers, The Lettered Olive, Uncategorized, Weddings | 1 Comment
Jun 06, 2018

Scenery Collage

Today, we are celebrating Wedding Wednesday down at Palmetto Bluff Resort. This is one of our favorite wedding venues and luckily we find ourselves here a few times per year. As you can tell from the scenery alone, it’s a pretty special place.  One of the many draws are the accommodation options for guests to all stay on property where the events take place(individual adorable cottages, and now a full service inn)… so it truly feels like a destination wedding. All photos are courtesy of Perry Vaile.

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On the wedding day, guests woke up to a homemade breakfast delivery of biscuits, jam, yogurt, and granola, with custom tags and packaging to match the rest of the wedding printing by Lettered Olive.

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Our gorgeous bride, Caroline-blogger of Stay the Bomb, wore an intricate applique gown by Kate McDonald. For the ceremony and photos she wore an added skirt for more glamour, which was then removed for dinner and dancing.

Bridal Collage

Invitation Collage

Lettered Olive created a watercolor image of the chapel at Palmetto Bluff where the couple would marry to use on the save the dates. We found the most amazing marble paper that the bride fell in love with, so we were able to use it in many place throughout the wedding design.  The first of which being as the backing on the invitations. A die cut lace belly band (mimicking the bride’s dress design) completed the invite suite.

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After the bride dressed in her cottage with her mother and maid of honor, she met her groom in one of the many green spaces for their “first look”.

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The bride’s non plus yet refined bouquet was hand tied with vintage ribbon that we sourced on one of our office trips to New York. The ribbon’s colors actually changed in different lights!

Wedding party Collage

Kate McDonald also did a hand painted gown for the mother of the bride, and lavender grey silk dresses for the bridesmaids.

Ceremony Collage

Shades of pinks, purples, and creams adorned the wedding chapel. We added a floral arch to mimic the existing architectural landscape of the chapel window. A watercolor image of the arch was also included in the miniature ceremony programs by Lettered Olive.

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A stunning moment in the ceremony was when a member of the gospel choir sang The Lord’s Prayer a capella.

Cocktail hour Collage

After the ceremony, guests enjoyed a lounge on the lawn overlooking the river. Fluffy lemon leaf was a simple but statement piece for the front of the cocktail bar. The Plantation Singers gospel choir sang a joyful playlist – love this concept for cocktail hour music.

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Caligraphied escort tags with the marbelized paper backing were displayed on decorative cork boards.

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The sailcloth dinner tent was simply decorated with wrought iron cage lights woven with greenery, and a mix of long dinner tables with rounds.

Table Collage

I loved, loved. loved the clipboard menus we made for dinner. The marble paper served as the backing to caligraphy printed vellum menus and name tags.  We wrapped glass candle vases in the marble paper with gold painted table numbers.

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We like to do nice little adornments for the bride and groom chairs, and the greenery and rose garland was just perfect for this decor scheme.

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After dinner, guests moved into the ballroom for an after dinner dancing lounge. Greenery garlands hung from the ceiling helped bring the natural elements the bride loved so much into the otherwise basic space.

Cake Collage

The wedding cake was displayed under a cascade of flowers, and for the music loving groom a rock and roll cake was showcased in front of the decorative mantle.

Getaway Collage

After a quick change into a romper that this bride could perfectly pull off, guests sent them off to sparklers by way of tandem bicycle.

This wedding was also featured on the Southern Weddings blog, seen here…

6.06.18   |   TARA GUÉRARD
Bridal, Bridal Style, Dresses, Event Design, Event Planning, Fashion, Flowers, Photographers, Reception, Stationery, Invitations and Pretty Papers, The Lettered Olive, Uncategorized, Weddings | Comments >>
May 23, 2018

Tara Guerard Soiree by Liz Banfield

Can you tell how ready we are for summer and beach season over here? Today we are sharing this Sea Island wedding full of seagrass and shell details.  Surprisingly, while we are located in Charleston, SC we are rarely able to do any beachside weddings as they aren’t allowed here.  So, when we are working with a client hosting a beach wedding we do like to make use of the surroundings.

Tara Guerard Soiree by LIz Banfield

The ceremony itself took place at a local chapel before guests made their way to the Ocean Forrest Club at Sea Island.  I love that this guest really got in the spirit with her woven and seashell motif Nantucket handbag.

Tara Guerard Soiree by Liz Banfield

Hearty flowers are a must for outdoor weddings. These bouquets included summer blooms such as tulips, roses, ranunculus, and cymbidium orchids.

Tara Guerard Soiree by Liz Banfield

Being held at a private beachside club afforded photographer, Liz Banfield, the chance to get some amazing shots of the wedding party on the beach. That light was so incredible!

And, I love the coastal groomsmen ensemble- white gabardine pants, navy blazer, crisp blue oxfords, and Vineyard Vines tie that coordinated with the girls’ dresses.

Tara Guerard Soiree by Liz Banfield

As a nod to the brides’ family’s Scottish heritage, a bagpiper greeted guests as they entered into the cocktail tent.

Tara Guerard Soiree by Liz Banfield

Woven seagrass beach bags with local food treats, and maagzine, waters, and emergency hangover kit, and koozies for guests to use on weekend boating and beach adventures.

Food and drink Collage

Using the local bounty available, we created a seafood ice bar with the catering team at Sea Island. Southsides (a favorite of the couple) were served beachside, head here for a recipe.

Tara Guerard Soiree by Liz Banfield

Each guest was seated at tables named after actual seashells and a coordinating shell was affixed to their card, giving guests a nice little take home memento.

Tara Guerard Soiree by Liz Banfield

This was easily one of the most difficult tent drapes we have ever done, but one of the most rewarding. The tent ceiling is made from woven sheets of seagrass, normally a hearty material, but in the blustery conditions of a tent about 100 feet off of the beach, it was beyond challenging. Guests couldn’t believe it when they saw it though (and it had an amazing natural scent).

Tara Guerard Soiree by Liz Banfield

In order for guests to have the best view of the ocean during dinner, we had the tent flooring raised up several feet, giving guests a literal beachside lounge.

Tara Guerard Soiree by Liz Banfield

Tara Guerard Soiree by Liz Banfield

One of the main design showcases of the evening were shadowboxes containing sand and shell displays.  And, those are icing sand dollars and shells on the cake by Jim Smeal.

Tara Guerard Soiree by Liz Banfield

Tara Guerard Soiree by Liz Banfield

The bride and groom departed by a vintage car adorned with ribbon streamers and orchid blooms.  Happy Wedding Wednesday!

5.23.18   |   TARA GUÉRARD
Bridal Style, Cakes, Event Design, Flowers, Food and Drink, Photographers, Reception, Stationery, Invitations and Pretty Papers, The Lettered Olive, Weddings | Comments >>