Open-Air Elegance



WRITER CREDIT: 
PHOTOGRAPHER CREDIT: 
Open-Air Elegance | Head to Spring Island for a stunning open-air fete where style meets sweet Southern details

Caroline McMahon &  Edward Taylor

May 11, 2013, Spring Island Tabby Ruins

 

Caroline McMahon was born in Winnetka, Illinois, but she seems meant to be a Southern belle. Case in point: the first time the Southern Methodist University grad met Clemson student Edward Taylor, she told him she was from Beaufort. “No, you’re not,” said the native of the sleepy fishing village, “I know every girl in town.” Caroline’s wishful thinking wasn’t pure fiction; she’d grown up visiting nearby Spring Island, and her parents have lived there for years. Add in SMU, and she says she was just trying on her Southern persona. It was a great fit with Edward, and the two were pretty much inseparable after their first encounter. Two weeks later, he picked her up by boat to meet his family, and a year after that, he proposed on his parent’s dock. Spring Island had been Caroline’s dream wedding spot since girlhood, and “that Edward was born and raised in the area sealed the deal,” she says. Aiming for an outdoor wedding in view of the 1850s plantation house tabby ruins there, the couple recruited Katie Huebel of WED to build a tented dining hall and dance club in the otherwise bare fields. “Though it involved a lot of logistics and the anxiety of an entirely outdoor ceremony and reception,” says Caroline, “Katie and WED did a phenomenal job of relieving us and our families of any ounce of stress.” The final verdict on the day vows were exchanged? “It was beautiful,” says Caroline.


Island: Spring Island
Distance from Charleston: 90 miles south
Personality: Barrier island golf resort
Best Bet to Wed There: Resort membership or sponsorship by a member
Info: SpringIsland.com; (843) 987-2200
Like Spring Island? You’ll Also Dig: Kiawah Island Golf Resort (800/654-2924; www.KiawahResort.com); Runnymede Plantation (843/737-6117; www.EventsatRunnymede.com)


Vendor List:

Bride’s Gown: Romona Keveza from Maddison Row, www.maddisonrow.com

Bride’s Shoes: Tory Burch, www.toryburch.com

Bridesmaid’s Attire: Amsale from Bella Bridesmaids, www.bellabridesmaids.com

Cake: Wedding Cakes by Jim Smeal, www.weddingcakesbyjimsmeal.com

Catering and Pie Baker: Spring Island, www.springisland.com

Ceremony Music: Ian Grimshaw

Ceremony and Reception Location: Spring Island Tabby Ruins, www.springisland.com

Flower Girl’s Attire: Janie and Jack, www.janieandjack.com

Florist: HB Stems

Groom’s Attire: Berlin’s for Men, www.berlinsclothing.com

Hair: Aqua Medspa and Salon, www.aquamedspaandsalon.com

Linens and Specialty décor: WED, www.charlestonevent.com

Photography: Elisabeth Millay Photography, www.elisabethmillayphotography.com

Reception Entertainment: Quiana Parler & Friends, www.quianaparlerandfriends.com

Rentals: Ooh! Events (www.theartofcreating.com), Snyder Events (www.snyderevents.com), TEC (www.technicaleventcompany.com)

Stationery: Studio R, www.studio-r-design.com

Wedding Design and Coordination: WED, www.charlestonevent.com

 

The Wedding Row

April 5 2019
Jessica and Jay met online and dated long distance (she was here in Charleston, he was in Connecticut) before she made the move up North. The two came back to visit the Holy City often, though, and...

April 4 2019
Food plays a part in every aspect of this Atlanta, Georgia, couple’s relationship, from the first time they met to their Big Day at The Gibbes Museum of Art. It’s fitting, Alex says, as he owns that...

April 3 2019
We’ve all seen photos of Nick Jonas and Priyanka Chopra’s Jodhpur, India, nuptials by now, thanks to how social media was lit up with the bright colors and ornate designs of their festivities. But...

April 2 2019
When the bride owns a wedding and event planning company, you know her Big Day will be something remarkable. Such was the case for Liz, owner of Elegant Aura in Boston, Massachusetts. After her...

April 1 2019
Usually no one gets a word out of a barkeep regarding his or her personal life, so today’s an extra special treat considering the groom du jour is Jayce, longtime bartender and bar manager at Edmund’...

March 29 2019
Jackie and Conor both went to College of Charleston, but they didn’t meet until the New Year’s Eve after graduation. That’s when both were secretly set up by mutual friends (and Jackie’s sister) at...

March 28 2019
Magic brought Mary Jane and Alex together. No, really, it did—they met while working at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, part of Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida. Five years later, while on...

March 27 2019
Here’s how the writer-bride talks about meeting her now-hubs on their wedding site: “Liz and Chris lived in the same apartment complex. The ‘boys upstairs’—as they were lovingly known by the girls in...