Oh how BEAUTIFUL this wedding was – the couple, their families, their guests, the weather, this venue, the decor…. OH MY- the beauty!

Katie and Adam are so amazing- they had their wedding at the Callawassie Island Club in Okatie, South Carolina- originally from New Hampshire- they had the best of both worlds this weekend.  Their hearts hold Vermont and South Carolina very dear, so they brought Vermont here to the South for the most memorable day in their lives!

They specifically wanted a ‘Northwoods’ feel – but they added in fabulous personalized details.  Father of the bride made custom votive holders out of birch trees cut from their own home in New Hampshire.  The were so lovely.  We created centerpieces using rock salt in the base to carry our snow feel up the vase, cranberries, pine cones, iced birch branches, and added in white stock and tube rose florals to make it all come together.

Behind the sweetheart table and for the seating cards, we used a great variety of tree that perfectly fit the feel of our ‘Northwoods’.  Table names were all landmarks in Vermont  and each guest place setting was topped with a large South Carolina pine cone that held a ‘Thank you’ charm.

The amazing bouquets and bouts were created by Southern Stems, who sadly has now relocated to Atlanta, Georgia (lucky brides). The beautiful ‘birch tree’ wedding cake was created by Brown Sugar Custom Cakes.  Another Northern tradition they incorporated is the ‘home-made cookie bar’ .  Friends and family created delicious cookies for guests to take home as a lovely snack.

And one of my favorite touches….the martini luge!!!!!  This was a huge hit as always.  The couples last name begins with ‘L’ so as you will see, it was perfect- see below.

For a fabulous finishing touch, guests signed the couples snow board guest book – it was GREAT! 

We got to work with the wonderful photographers from Vermont, Daria Bishop Photography.  Lee Edwards of Lee Edwards Entertainment (Charleston) kept this great group dancing all night!!!  All of this took place at the phenomenal Callawassie Island Club in Okatie.  Holly and her staff were so AMAZING and I look forward to working with them again.  This venue was breathtaking and exquisite.

Very candid photos:

Inside shot during the day…

Another angle of the dining room…

One more angle- LOVE the beams…

Table shot- we also place custom made wood boxes around the room containing more branches to add that ‘feeling’ in.  You can sort of see it behind the arrnagement.  You can see the table names in the gold frame-

One of my favorite bouquets- I love the fiddlehead fern…

Another angle….

Close up onthe pine cone favors with the ‘Thank you’ charm.

I just loved doing this- seating cards hung, you can see the snow board in front of them for guest to sign.  We used tons of pine cones all around for accents…the adorable bears were a gift from the mother of the bride a few years ago for when her daughter married.

The famous cookie table- isn’t it just AMAZING!

I took a quick shot out of a window of the ceremony – the view was so beautiful and the weather matched it perfectly.

The ‘birch tree’ cake by Brown Sugar Custom Cakes.

A shot of the snow board guest book.

AND….the martini luge in the shape of “L’ and a heart!!!!

The fruit and cheese display in front the roaring fire

Their memory table for those that are not here!

And an attempt at an evening shot- it was so warm and romantic!!  I LOVE this look and feel.

And one last shot of the back pattio- through the window (sorry) before it was totally dark.

I just wanted to share this- these are unbelievable – take a look….WOW what a gorgeous couple and wedding Ruth, you have outdone yourself!!!

http://www.rackleyphotography.com/blog/

One of the best parts of this wedding, and it was all fabulous, but the fact that the bride is the sister of one of my previous brides!!!!  We planned/coordinated Ashley’s wedding over 2 years ago in Charleston, so it was such a wonderful treat to see and work with this loving family again.

Carla and Justin had their wedding at the gorgeous Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens in Belmont, North Carolina.  These gardens are phenomenal.  They decided to have their ceremony outside in the White Garden, with cocktail hour in the Crepe Myrtle Garden then the reception in the Great Hall.

The day threatened rain and drizzled on and off all day- but the couple were very serious about holding the ceremony outside.  We did get things started outside however we had to move inside due to rain.  Everything went beautifully!!!   Sadly we did not get to enjoy cocktail hour in the Crepe Myrtle Garden….

The reception was in the Great Hall and it was gorgeous- the soft pink and rich chocolate brown linens were lovely topped with beautiful arrangements varying in height created by Party Blooms.  We place tones of candle light to make it even softer.

The catering was by Best Impressions Catering -and I can sum it up one word…”WOW” – absolutely amazing.

As a fun and enjoyable treat, we set up a monster candy bar- see below

 The White Garden set- just before the processional.

The lovely card box created by the groom!

One view of the Great Hall

Another angle…

One other angle before we raised the screens

You can see their sweet heart table covered in pink pintuck almost center- and the cute groom’s cake with Clemson topper

Lovely cake!!!!

And here is the fabulous candy bar- we created the custom lables for each variety.

…and gave it a little variety with different tables.

And a close up.

This past weekend, we were presented with transforming a National Guard Armory into a romantic reception for 260 lovely guests.  The bride got married in her home town of Hampton, SC and with such a large guest list, the options were limited for location in this quaint town.  The armory had the space but did not exactly fit her ‘vision’ for her reception   So she brought us in to totally transform this venue!

This project was a custom creation from start to finish….the couples colors were ivory and a deep red, so she wanted a billowy ivory fabric – but with such high ceilings, the standard height draping would not work – so B.I.O. created custom panels to hang in the armory. We soften the ceiling with lights and draped points.  It was a grand undertaking- the project took 3.5 days to complete with all the different aspects involved.

We also transformed the stage for the couples sweetheart table as well.  We topped it all off with lovely up lighting along the walls.

**The floral designs and accents were created by family friend of the bride.

The photos below give you before and after photos- as you can see, there was lots of stuff within the space, however it all turned out just lovely.

One angle of the room before clean up.

Before- from the entry doors…

After: From the entry

After: One angle.

Before: Looking at the stage.

After: Closer shot of the stage.

After: Facing the stage and sweetheart table.

Before: From the stage and sweetheart table.

After: Now this is taken before the set up was completed from the sweetheart table and without the specialty lighting- so please keep that in mind – so many vendors coming and going, hence why draping is pulled back in areas!

And their candy bar we set up.

WOW- that is what sums up this wedding and reception!!  Working with this couple and their families was a perfect experience as a wedding planner!!!  They are all so loving and caring and we worked together to create an event for their friends and family that is unforgettable!

I know I am bias but they picked one of my absolute favorite venues when they chose Historic 701 Whaley Building.  This space is breath-taking and you just have to let your imagination run wild.  Ashli and Jioni wanted a modern chic feel in this historic venue.  Bright colors paired with a more ‘fall feeling’ went hand in hand for this evening reception.

Catering was provided by the wonderful Capital City Catering- the couple wanted some of Capital City Catering’s signature items like the fresh squeezed lemonade station and their beautiful fruit tree.  During a meeting, I made a fun suggestion of having a ‘late night snack’ – later in the evening, after guests had been dancing the night away, Capital City Catering set up a new food station of fresh made grill cheese sandwiches (which were beyond amazing) and individual servings of their home-made tomato soup!!!  It was a MONSTER success!!!!

Ruth Rackley photographed this lovely event- it was just wonderful working with her again!!!  She had the opportunity to take the couple upstairs to the gallery and take some of the most amazing shots- I can not wait to share a few!!!

The yummy wedding cake was by Vintage Bakery!

We had some really fun elements incorporated into their reception- B.I.O. created a custom ‘photo booth’ for the couples’ guest to have a blast with!  Along with fun props- this was a hot item ALL night.  We also created two separate lounge areas and covered the dance floor with lanterns that perfectly matched the flowers.

…and speaking of flowers – Southern Stems did THE MOST amazing job creating a romantic feeling with a great ‘wow’ factor.  These flowers were so awesome- photos do not do them justice!!!!!!!!!

One other fabulous treat that we incorporated was a cigar bar- Jionni loves cigars so we set up a great bar outside with some wonderful varieties and of course a rich bottle of Brandy.

I want to send a BIG thank you to Ashley Brokop - she was working in 701 Whaley that day and was so very kind to come take a few set up shots for us- they  are included below along with our very CANDID shots…..

Photo by Ashley Brokop

Photo by Ashley Brokop

One shot of one of the lounge areas

Fresh  squeezed lemonade station

Food display

Photo by Ashley Brokop – one of the table center pieces.

Photo by Ashley Brokop- the other center pieces.

Candid shot of the ‘photo booth’

Props for the ‘photo booth’

Cake by Vintage Bakery

Photo by Ashley Brokop – candy bar

Of course- Children’s table….

Owner of Capital City Catering, LeeAnne, working hard on the ‘midnight snack station’ of grill cheese and tomato soup.

The cigar bar – B.I.O. had the brandy snifter already so we used it to float orchids and candles on this bar, it was a great touch