Cheers to That

Fall/Winter 2013

WRITER CREDIT:

PHOTOGRAPHER CREDIT:

Cheers to That | With help from her family and husband-to-be, a crafty Summerville bride pulls together an exquisite—and mostly handmade—reception at Harborside East

Charleston Wedding wedding Big Day chapel budget Shop wine diy Flowers Harborside East gown MUSC restaurants Vera Wang

PAPER, GOODS: Melissa designed the stationery on CardsAndPockets.com; Stephen’s mother helped assemble them.

STROLL ON: Chalmers Street, between Church and Meeting streets, proved the perfect spot for Melissa to play princess.

MY GIRLS: Bridesmaids wore pale blue-green Bari Jay gowns in the same sweet colors as the receptions' paper flowers.

BOSOM BUDDIES: The flowergirls wore sweet frocks from Pretty Flower Girl.

DRESS UP: The bride wore Allure, available through Jean’s Bridal and Bridals by Jodi, while the groom sported a Vera Wang tux, available through Men's Warehouse.

WHAT A HANDFUL: Summerville’s On a Limb Floral Designs made the bridal bouquet.

BOTTLED UP: Bottles—with the bases sliced off—became vases. To make paper flowers, search www.WeddingChicks.com for steps.

BOX SET: Succulents tucked into wooden window box centerpieces can accent your home long after the reception.

TOASTY TIMES: The couple gathered more than 4,000 corks from area restaurants for wedding crafts. To make this lantern, place a tall votive holder in a vase, then fill the space between the two with corks before slipping a tealight into the inner vase.

LIGHT THE NIGHT: Tealights covered with bottles (with the bases cut off) became votives.

SPECIAL TOUCH: To add cohesiveness to the reception (where florals were comprised of branches sprouting paper flowers the bride crafted from antique maps), Melissa accented the cake from McKenzie’s Bake Shop with the same blooms. She added a wire cake topper—a nod to the couple’s love of biking—from HeatherBoydWire.com.

Photographs by:

Landon Jacob Productions

Melissa Vause & Stephen Feetham
December 1, 2012
St. Luke's Chapel & Harborside East

When Stephen Feetham gifted Melissa Vause a blender, she knew their betrothal was seconds away. How? A long-running joke of the couple’s held that the kitchen tool was fit only for wedding registries. Soon after Melissa said, “Yes,” the couple got to work creating an eco-friendly, budget-conscious Big Day. Among other things, they designed save-the-dates (which doubled as bookmarks), created flowers from upcycled maps, and wrangled spent corks for décor from area restaurants. “You’d be surprised at how resourceful you can be,” Melissa says, adding they tackled 90 percent of the wedding on their own. After outsourcing the catering, music, and the bridal bouquet, the Summerville couple gave the elements they’d fashioned and detailed instructions to day-of coordinators Felicia Byers and Caoimhe Higgins of Lady In Waiting Events. The final ingredient? “Our supportive friends and family,” says Melissa. “They made it the most joyous event.”

Vendor List

Baker: McKenzie’s Bake Shop, www.mckenziesbakeshop.com
Bridal Gown: Allure, available through Jean’s Bridal (www.jeansbridalcharleston.com) and Bridals by Jodi (www.bridalsbyjodi.com)
Bridesmaids’ Attire: Bari Jay, www.barijay.com
Cake Topper: Heather Boyd Wire, www.etsy.com/shop/HeatherBoydWire
Caterer, Bar & Wine Service, & Linens: Cricket & Kyle, www.cricketandkyle.com
Ceremony Location: St. Luke’s Chapel, www.academicdepartments.musc.edu/stlukeschapel
Florists: On a Limb (www.onalimbsummervillesc.com) and Horst Wholesale Florist (www.horstflowers.com)

Flower Girl Attire: Pretty Flower Girl, www.prettyflowergirl.com

Groom’s Attire: Vera Wang, www.menswearhouse.com
Makeup Artist: Dannon K. Collard, www.dannonkcollard.com

Musicians: Classical Charleston (ceremony, reception, choir),www.classicalcharleston.com; DJ Sinclair Ray (reception), www.themusicmaker.org
Photographer: Landon Jacob Productions, www.landonjacob.com
Reception Venue & Rentals: Harborside East, www.harborsideeast.com
Stationery, Signage, Paper Flowers, Cork Décor: DIY by the couple

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