Award winning wedding planner and event designer in Charleston and New York City specializing in destination weddings, wedding and event planning.

Oct 03, 2018

Thank you for joining us on this wedding Wednesday! This was such a yummy cozy special wedding, so we hope you enjoy. This couple were some of the easiest, sweetest, and most fun we’ve had so we loved creating this event for them. Gayle Brooker photographed today’s feature.

This was a true family affair.. the only wedding party were the family’s children. The bride’s ceremony dress was Vera Wang, and her dance dress was by Tadashi Shoji…

The groom, has an affinity for classic cars, which he also collects, so one of his favorites was brought down for the couple to use on their wedding day. After a ceremony at the French Huguenot Church, the reception was held at Runnymede Plantation. Cocktail hour took place overlooking the river banks.

The couple also avid oenophiles, brought a bit of their wine collection for guests to enjoy. We designed a custom wine bar with gold tags on decanters for guests to know what they were drinking. A speciality bourbon bar was also built for partakers. The octagon metallic tags were a huge part of the design throughout the event. Custom pillows were printed with the metallic design to use throughout the lounge spaces.

Dinner tables were set with cozy and handsome suede linens, gold rimmed glassware, and centerpieces full of texture and soft fall pastels. Menus used metallic ink and were emblazoned with the custom monogram Lettered Olive designed for the couple. Escort cards were calligraphied gold tags displayed on a table full of glowing candles and moveable peony vases.

A series of cakes by Jim Smeal were a dinner tent centerpiece. The large cake was covered in oak tree branches dripping with spanish moss in the wedding colors… the side flanking cakes mimicked a design used in the printed materials.

Before the couple enjoyed a late night DJ after party with guests, they enjoyed dinner and dancing under glowing oak trees.

Guest favors were bags of Southern Biscuit mix and home made SC peach preserves from the bride’s hometown packaged with the perfect little wooden spoons!

10.03.18 | TARA GUÉRARD
Bridal Style, Cakes, Charleston, Event Design, Event Planning, Reception, Stationery, Invitations and Pretty Papers, The Lettered Olive, Uncategorized, Weddings | Comments >>

Oct 02, 2018

What To Wear to a Fall Wedding

photo by Corbin Gurkin

Hopefully many of you will be attending a wedding or two this fall… Today we are sharing some of our favorite fall fashion trends and even some links on where to shop. I think definitely one of my favorite looks from guests at some of our recent weddings is the maxi skirt (here, large jacquard florals are so on trend and in a jewel tone palette) and crisp white shirt or fitted turtleneck. This look works for any body type, and age range, but we have seen some of the older ladies wearing this style and it’s screams sophisticated chic. Here are some of our favorite skirt options.

photo by Corbin Gurkin

Of course, color is everything, and right now Goldenrod or Yellow Ochre is the hot hot color of the season… Brights and jewel tones are always mainstays but to me this is a perfect guideline for any fall wedding guest. In fall you can play with all sorts of lengths and textures. For earlier weddings, i.e. cocktail party, you can absolutely get away with shorter dresses. All dresses designed by Dee Hutton.

photo by Perry Vaile

I love both of these options for a black tie or black tie optional affair. Bold oversized florals are having a major moment, and full length black dresses will always be a classic option. Black works well for fall and winter (with navy as an alternative), since it’s great to avoid in the spring and summer months. We like this black dress here, and this floral gown.

photo by Liz Banfield

If you are wanting to invest in a gown that you can use several times, we love a classic but unexpected color like lilac. Great for year round events. Here are a few that would work for year round events… 1.Here 2. Here

10.02.18 | TARA GUÉRARD
Bridal Style, Event Planning, Events, Fashion, Reception, Shopping, Uncategorized, Weddings | Comments >>

Oct 01, 2018

A Lowcountry Indian Wedding

Many years ago, we had the pleasure of working with Dr. Sanjay Gupta and his fiance, Rebecca on their wedding here in Charleston. They both wanted to honor his heritage and family, and celebrate with a traditional Hindu ceremony. If you haven’t witnessed an Indian wedding, there are so many special details and touches that make them truly beautiful.

The ceremony usually takes place (and can take several hours) under a mandap, so for everyone to have a prime view, a ceremony in the round was the best set up.

The Baraat is a key part of the ceremony, where the groom arrives by white horse (or elephant) with his family playing drums and dancing while escorting him.

Brides traditionally wear red in Hindu ceremonies as it’s tied to the sun and means prosperity and fertility. Henna is typically applied by family members the evening before and the intricate designs symbolize joy, beauty, spiritual awakening and offering.

Gold adorned papers decorated the ceremony programs and wrapped the wedding favors; Ganesh idols are necessary symbols at a Hindu ceremony.

Jim Smeal mimicked the Henna designs in gold leafing for the couples’ wedding cake.

The reception took place on at the campus of Ashley Hall school; Guests enjoyed traditional homemade Indian fare like muttar paneer, tikka masala, and naan. Velvet linens, colorful draping, and centerpieces of red roses and delphinium were some of the main design elements.

To incorporate some of the local flair- the bride and groom departed by a Charleston Rickshaw.

Thank you to Liz Banfield for the imagery.

10.01.18 | TARA GUÉRARD
Bridal Style, Charleston, Event Design, Fashion, Flowers, Food and Drink, Reception, Weddings | 1 Comment

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