Written By Melissa Reardon
Photographs By Lucy Cuneo
A transplant from Virginia, Weston “Wes” McAfee vividly remembers the first time he saw his future bride-to-be. Charleston native Dana Elaine...
“If you ask local wedding photographers Ben and Tiffany Timpson (of Bent Studio) how they met and fell in love, they will say with a grin ‘In a dark room’,” says Toni Reale of Blue Planet Green Events (BPGE). That was in Kansas City, Missouri, where the couple taught at an art center before packing up and moving to Charleston in 2008.
The two, says Toni, immersed themselves in the Holy City’s art scene and soon, during Ben’s opening show one night at Scoop gallery, he dropped to one knee and proposed to Tiffany. The wedding they planned was an artist’s dream, rife with handmade and environmentally friendly details.
First, they built an altar from reclaimed antique doors found in their attic. Next, given Tiffany’s ginger locks, a thrift-store edition of You’re in Love, Charlie Brown (about falling for the red-headed girl) made for a great guest sign-in book. From there, the bride and her mother fashioned 200 fabric flowers with vintage button centers, which were placed in mix-and-match collected vases. A credenza from the couple’s home became a backdrop for a dessert bar of pie pops, and the portraits each had done of the other reserved their sweetheart seats. And welcoming guests? An entrance marked with a pair of antique suitcases from Benjamin’s grandfather and the couple’s tandem bicycle.
“We wanted to incorporate as many reused, recycled, and repurposed items as possible,” Tiffany told Toni. “We wanted to keep our wedding as green and thoughtful as it could be.” That mindfulness explains why the couple paired with BPGE. Known for sustainable sourcing and pairing crafty touches to verdant affairs, BPGE staged the wedding on the banks of the Folly River. They supplemented the fabric blooms with in-season ranunculus, zinnias, and eucalyptus from Thackeray Farms on Wadmalaw Island and, says Toni, the windows hung in surrounding tree branches created a “church-like” effect. With the light filtering in, and all the personal touches, it was a memorable setting for a memorable couple.
Vendor List
Catering: EZ Catering; www.e-zcatering.com
Coordination and Design: Blue Planet Green Events; www.blueplanetgreenevents.com
Desserts: TwentySixDivine; www.twentysixdivine.com
Florist: Blue Planet Green Events; www.blueplanetgreenevents.com
Musician: Peter Jackson
Photographer: MacKensey Alexander Photography; www.mackenseyalexanderphoto.com
Rentals: Ruths House Event Rentals; www.ruthshouseinc.com
