Tag Archives: Jim Smeal

Apr 03, 2017

Since giving up sweets for Lent, I have them on the brain! So in the spirit of all of our Spring wedding posts lately, I didn’t want to leave out the sweetest part- wedding cake! There are many ways of styling your cake these days, but here are some of our favorite recent Spring cakes. We adorned this simple and textured cake with wedding blooms (tulips and ranunculus) and greenery to give it some depth.

photo by Corbin Gurkin

Jim Smeal crafted sugar hydrangeas and other wedding blooms for a simple and sophisticated centerpiece in the dinner tent. And, instead of using their custom monogram on the cake we made a runner for the cake table.

photo by Corbin Gurkin

Once doesn’t think “green” icing would appear appetizing, but when done in the palest shade and adorned with fabulous flowers, it becomes chic! Cake by Jim Smeal.

photo by Liz Banfield

For a traditional bride wanting a white wedding cake, handmade sugar flowers in all of the spring blooms used at the wedding, gives a statement ruffle almost too pretty to cut. Cake by Jim Smeal.

photo by Corbin Gurkin

For a glamorous gold and cream wedding, intricate details like lace designs and frilly flowers pulled from the bride’s dress were the perfect patterns for the showcase cake. Cake by Jim Smeal.

4.03.17 | TARA GUÉRARD
Cakes, Event Design, Flowers, Food and Drink, Uncategorized, Weddings | Comments >>

Jun 29, 2016

Bits of Lace

We’re celebrating Wedding Wednesday with this ocean side soiree on Kiawah Island. Our bride loved Pinterest, so a lot of the inspiration for her wedding came from lots of her long hours of Pinning. Sweet, vintage, and romantic touches were the main focus, and the bride wanted to incorporate items she had been collecting into the wedding decor. Thank you to Virgil Bunao for the lovely imagery.

A garden trellis draped in fabric helped frame the scenery for the ceremony. Stepping stones painted with “Bride” and “Groom” and all of the wedding party names were laid out for all of the attendants to stand on during the ceremony.

Bountiful bouquets of roses (the bride’s favorite) and dahlias were hand tied with vintage lace. Flower girls adorned tulle fairy dresses, and the bride fashioned a custom birdcage veil.

Groomsmen flowers were tied off with pieces of complimentary lace as well. Bridesmaids’ bouquets were presented in antique hatboxes.

Lace was a design element that Lettered Olive took notes from for the invitation suite. Pearlized paper was letterpressed with an image mimicking a vintage picture frame.

During cocktail hour on the lawn of the Ocean Course, guests were served “Lowcountry Lemonade” out of apothecary bottles tied with lace; the bride collected bits of lace and vintage fabric that was used on trays and tables throughout the food stations. Handkerchiefs were repurposed into cocktail napkins.

An antique baker’s rack was used to house the champagne station. Fresh fruit and purees were available for guests to turn their champagne into cocktails like Bellinis.

Cakes were framed in a fabric covered trellis and a custom made ruffled linen was created just for this girly bride.

The groom is a musician in a local band, so the bride commissioned a resemblance cake topper from Etsy; Tie backs made from fresh roses softened the structure. Cakes by Jim Smeal.

Photos of other brides and family members were displayed in the lounge. Centerpieces for sideboards and other tables throughout were the bride’s bits of lace and bowls of dinner plate dahlias in the perfect dulce de leche shade.

Guests partied into the wee hours to “Who’s Bad” a Michael Jackson cover band.

There is a gentleman on Kiawah Island that offers his antique car and services to drive couples to their accommodations at the end of the party, and who could resist this??? The vehicle and it’s owner are pure perfection!

6.29.16 | TARA GUÉRARD
Bridal, Bridal Style, Charleston, Event Design, Event Planning, Flowers, Food and Drink, Parties, Photographers, Reception, Stationery, Invitations and Pretty Papers, The Lettered Olive, Uncategorized, Weddings | Comments >>

Mar 14, 2016

Creative Cake Tables

photo by Corbin Gurkin; cake by Jim Smeal

It’s been said that weddings cakes are seeing a drop in popularity, but I don’t agree. I still have the majority of brides wanting wedding cakes of some kind and we always like to make their display a showcase for the cake, which is also often a work of art.

photo by Liz Banfield; cakes by Jim Smeal

Serving a variety of different flavors and individual cakes for each guest can be challenging to serve. So, we set up a tiered display and had different flower toppers for each flavor so guests could choose their own.

photo by Liz Banfield; cake by Cakes by Cathy

photo by Liz Banfield; cakes by Jim Smeal

This bride had a love for elephants, so we luckily found these elephant “side tables” that fit a tier just perfectly…

photo by Gayle Brooker; cakes by Peninsula Grill

This bride wanted a mix matched look, and the famous Peninsula Grill coconut cakes. Since those are made as individual tiers, we made our own stacked display with different sized rounds. It was also displayed on a wooden farm table with vintage lace that the bride’s mother had saved from her wedding and we set all of this up inside of a vintage garden conservatory.

photo by Liz Banfield; cake by Jay Qualls Frosted Affair

For this girlie bride we had a luxe flowered ruffled linen custom made.

photo by Liz Banfield; cake by Sylvia Weinstock

This cake was a centerpiece in the reception tent- covered in handmade boxwoods- we used an acrylic table with potted live boxwoods below to look as if it was being held up by the pots and plants.

photo by Liz Banfield; cake by Jim Smeal

This shadowbox cake table was full of sand and shells for a seaside wedding.

3.14.16 | TARA GUÉRARD
Cakes, Event Design, Food and Drink, Reception, Uncategorized, Weddings | Comments >>