Pearls of Wisdom | We’re over-the-moon for this wedding that’s run through with oysters. Learn how to flavor your wedding with just such a theme without going overboard
Charleston native Courtney Long Milster can relate to the pitfalls of planning a wedding in the age of social media. “I am extremely detail-oriented so I over-thought everything,” she says. “With Pinterest and Instagram it’s easy to compare your wedding with everyone else’s and go a little nuts, which I was definitely guilty of. I lost so many hours of sleep obsessing over florals, color schemes, and fonts.” Organizing everything from afar (she and her sweetheart, Erik Milster, lived in Boston during their engagement and now reside in Brooklyn) also had its challenges. But with a Lowcountry-based team including her mom, sister, and planner Ellen Robinson of WED, Courtney’s oyster-infused Big Day was the stuff other brides are sure to “like”—and then some.
Charleston Weddings: Why did you pick Kiawah for your wedding?
Courtney Milster: I grew up around Southern salt marshes and always knew I wanted to get married on the river. Fortunately, I fell in love with a Boston-bred man who shared my affinity for saltwater (and who also happens to be a golfer), so the River Course at Kiawah Island was the dream venue for us.
CW: How did you come up with an oyster theme?
CM: I’ve always associated oysters with the Lowcountry (and my favorite gemstone). Also, my oh-so-brilliant husband pointed out the similarities between finding a pearl in an oyster and finding true love: both are rare and precious.
CW: How did the design come together?
CM: I reached out to Kearsley Lloyd, a watercolorist I found on Instagram whose work I greatly admire, to paint custom oyster shells for us to use on our printed materials and décor.
CW: How did you refrain from going overboard?
CM: Erik had to pull me back a little bit, because I found myself wanting to put those shells on everything! I’m thankful for his editing eye, because our wedding didn’t feel overly themed or kitschy.
PLAY THE SHELL GAME
Branch out. Choose accents that make sense with your central theme. Silver-gray pieces of driftwood, like those on this arbor, are a natural complement to oysters.
Be naut-y.Incorporate nautical maps into seaside weddings. In this wedding, the maps form paper cones for a lavendar “confetti” exit toss.
Dress the part. Ties—whether for the groom, his men, or servers—are a great place to work in thematic designs and colors. This groom and his cohorts donned silks dotted with tiny oysters.
Engage in pillow talk. Upload a graphic from your wedding to Zazzle.com to create patterned fabrics. The watercolored oysters from the invitation ended up as pillows the couple now own.
Dish it. Oysters are having a heyday as ring dishes; gift them to yourself, your guests, and gals.
Read the fine print. Repeat invitation motifs on signage (as on this appetizer tray) to ensure colors and icons are infused throughout the festivities.
If you’ve ever walked down King Street on a Saturday evening, you know Charleston’s the “It City” for bachelorette parties. So when North Carolina native and bride-to-be Cristen decided to hold her...
The latest Charleston Weddings magazine features the journey of Kaitlin and her hubby Allan, who defied the odds and overcame a traumatic brain injury to join his bride at the altar on their Big Day...
When Morgan and her family attended Folly Gras 2015 (a Mardi Gras celebration held annually on Folly Beach), she had no inclination she’d meet her future husband. But when she caught up with her best...
Few things get us through a hump day better than fantasizing about fantastic food and lip-smacking libations. So we thought it was a good time to reach out to Graham Ervin, director of sales at The...
We profiled Hannah and Jonathan’s super lovely wedding in the spring issue of Charleston Weddings, but we weren’t able to include all they had to say, and we had a ton of bonus images to share with...
Samantha Anderson Events teamed up with Lyndi and Jason Photography to turn a no-fun subject—your wedding budget—on its head. The trick? Samantha dressed three tables at three different price points...
Blake, a wedding planner for Pure Luxe Bride, recently had the chance to plan her own Big Day. She and now-husband Charles met in an accounting class at College of Charleston, and a few years later...
Here’s a rare wedding bird these days: A Charleston-raised couple prepping to say “I do” here in their own backyard. As Elizabeth and James keep on with the planning, here’s a little about the...
Give your gown some sparkle, fasten your sash in place, or simply dress up your bouquet wrap. However you enlist them, these keepsake brooches are ready to report for duty
