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...
EASY, PEASY
Area specialty rental companies have made things super simple for the super busy bride (and for out-of-towners planning from afar) with revamped websites. Polished! (www.PolishedTabletop.com) features their vintage china and crystal in tablescape galleries organized by palette. Te eclectic inventory at Ooh! Events (Rentals.www.TheArtofCreating.com) is now cataloged online with a wish list option. You can create a style board to share on the EventHaus (www.EventHausRentals.com) site. And besides efortless ordering, Snyder Event Rentals’ (www.SnyderEvents.com) includes foorplans for 33 venues, tent planning guides, and oodles more.
SITES TO BEHOLD
Loads of venues have opened of late; here’s a handful of favorites: The Gadsden House, a 1798 restored mansion on East Bay Street; The Hyatt Place hotel, Upper King’s new gem (posh event hall included); the Hilton Garden Inn, which boasts a rooftop event space (45 Waterside on Lockwood) with the best new views of the Ashley River; The Spectator Hotel, a swank boutique hotel in the midst of the ever-bustling Market area; Mossy Oaks Farm, an Edisto Island plantation with its own manor house, stable, and horses; The Parsonage, a manse (one-time clergy quarters) on Hasell Street that’s now a haven for weddings; and 190 4th Avenue, a secluded, private residence on the water for rent in Mount Pleasant through Island Realty.
CUTES!
Sweet Lulu’s Bakery on Wheels (843/793- 7377; www.SweetLulusBakery.com) has moved into an adorable little white camper that sure would look swell at your reception. When booking, pre-order guest favors, like heart-shaped tarts flled with strawberries and Firefy Distillery’s Peach Cobbler liquor. Another new charmer on wheels? Te Little White Box Traveling Photo Booth (304/841-4370; www.LilWhiteBox.com), a pearly white VW bus that’s a photo booth on the go. Check it out for reception fun.
BRING IT!
Te folks at the Summerville-based rental outft Ruth’s House (www.RuthsHouseInc.com) and its sister online retail shop, RH Signature Co. (www.RHSignature.com) have been busy prepping pretty fnds just for you. First, their hand-blown glass cake stands (Estelle, $98) are now ofered for purchase in new colors from yellow to blue and amethyst. And their rental catalog now includes a collection of reupholstered vintage and mid-century lounge seating in a rainbow of velvets ranging from jewel tones to pastels.
DON’T MIND IF I DO ...
On the way to your next shower, stop by Out of Hand (843/856-3585; Shop. www.TheArtofCreating.com) for the perfect hostess gift: custom-made letterpress coasters that the shop recently commissioned. With sayings like “Fill me up, Buttercup,” “Don’t Mind if I Do,” and “Yes, Darlin’,” the surceys are so very Charleston.
ROCK ON
Diamonds Direct (843/606-2558; www.DiamondsDirect.com/Charleston) just opened a 6,500-square-foot showroom in Mount Pleasant where diamonds (loose and mounted) come straight from the Israeli Diamond Exchange; no middleman means you save. Other boons? Tacori, Henri Daussi, and more are in stock, too.
TOP OF THE POPS
Want a reception sendoff that’s fabulously festive but is thoroughly eco-friendly, too? Hand out PushPops—available locally at The Silver Starfish (843/818- 4292; www.TheSilverStarfish.com). The little cannons shoot water-soluble confetti wherever each is aimed.
