Charleston Destination Wedding at The Notebook Hotel
A destination wedding was always something Laura & Eric planned on exploring since their engagement in April of 2015. In order to find the perfect location, Laura & Eric traveled all over — from Austin, Newport, Nashville and Charleston in hopes of finding their ideal wedding weekend locale.
While visiting Charleston, South Carolina, the couple went for a walk to dinner and witnessed a wedding taking place at a gorgeous historic mansion in the heart of the city. They instantly fell in love with the property claiming it looked to be “out of a movie” and both said “we’re getting married here” while signing the venue the next day. The William Aiken House was in fact “out of a movie” — a scene in The Notebook was filmed there!
As Partner and Brand Director of DineAmic Group, the bride knows all about hospitality — and boy were guests in for a treat with this southern charm meets polished glam wedding. The couple set a date of September 23 and set out to host one big cocktail party with 150 guests.
Opposing a seated dinner, the duo desired a cocktail format and casual flowing reception for guests to walk around freely and enjoy expansive assortments of southern-style appetizers, Chef carving stations, raw bar displays provided by Patrick Properties, and coffee and desserts. Unique personalized signs added a little flair to each food station.
Live music by Steel Toe Stiletto and the 30x30ft custom logo dance floor was the intended focus of the night since the couple curated a hand-picked playlist to keep guests dancing all night long.
Amongst the crowd, while special guests performed “Sweet Home Chicago,” miniature snack boxes filled with Chicago-style hot dogs, french fries and coca-cola were passed and mini Garrett’s Popcorn boxes were displayed for a departure snack.
Small tidbits of brand customization like the couple’s wedding logo, personally designed invites & programs, hand-drawn menu chalkboards, coffee cup sleeves, snack box and popcorn box labels and a custom ice sculpture was the passion project of bride who found her trade and industry expertise helped immensely during the wedding planning and attention to detailing process. If you asked her, that was the easiest part!
Loluma helped piece the couple’s event together by providing planning services, decor, florals. They also helped provide the unique wedding decor rentals you’ll see in their wedding pictures alongside Snyder Events and Ooh Events.
Now for the fashion, the bride looked absolutely stunning in her lace, low-back BERTA gown from Ultimate Bridal, Monique Lhuiller cathedral veil, Jimmy Choo shoes and Kendra Scott jewelry. Paper Dolls provided the bride’s hair and makeup, while the groom looked dapper in his tux from Balani Custom Clothiers.
The newlyweds had a super fun exit –> they departed their historic southern-style affair on a tandem bike while guests lit a sparkler exit pathway and the bride & groom met their guests at their after-party destination just a block away. The energetic dance party lived on until 2 a.m.! Once Like A Spark captured all of their special moments.
It was a steamy evening in Charleston in September, but the energy, love and support that surrounded Laura & Eric on that night warmed their hearts forever.
