Tara Guerard - Southern Weddings: New Looks from the Old South

Southern weddings

New Looks from the Old South

Tara Gurard with Holly Burns

Photography by Liz Banfield

Southern Weddings

New Looks from the Old South

Digital Edition 1.0

Text 2012 Tara Gurard

Photographs 2012 Liz Banfield except where noted otherwise.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced by any means whatsoever without written permission from the publisher, except brief portions quoted for purpose of review.

Gibbs Smith

P.O. Box 667

Layton, Utah 84041

Orders: 1.800.835.4993

www.gibbs-smith.com

ISBN: 978-1-4236-1393-0

It was my intent in creating this book that you as readers might find inspiration in its pages for your own perfect day. A big thank you is owed to each of the featured brides, who trusted me, motivated me, and allowed me to execute many of my crazy ideas!

Of course, it would have been impossible for me to orchestrate any of these weddings without my devoted, professional, hard-working staff. Thank you, most especially, to Martha Patrick Robbins (my left arm!), Jason Robbins (my everything!), Heather Santucci (flower designer extraordinaire), Susan Kelly, Lindy Shealy, Caroline Mancill, and Lexi Ritsch, along with our fabulous interns; Elizabeth Reeves, Erin Foster, Elli Thomas, Mary Helen Peacock, and Tziporah Schwartz.

Im so grateful for the help and support of Mandy and Billy Reid, Charlie Poulnot, Elizabeth Porcher Jones (the calligrapher), Kate Badger Little, my union boys Chief Buddy, William, Brad, and others!, Tracy Pelham, Mary Patrick, Jon Robbins, Cami Warren, Quin Johnson, Joel Kirven, Hillary Ingle, Aunt Terri, Mom, Chef James Burns, Tara Thigpen, and the Snyder crew.

Thank you also to Richard Gee of Gee Creative and Julia Shuman (the best graphic designers ever!),, my best friend Nicki Clendening, and all my family in Camden (my hometown) and in Charleston, S.C. And, to my husband, Russell: Thank you for all of your love and support.

A bride shows off her bouquet of pink peonies, miniature calla lilies, and sweet peas.

Jackie and Tige Howie share a kiss during their wedding dinner.

Jenny Hackenberg Keenan waits to walk down the aisle in the parlor of Drayton Hall Plantation.

A white lounge adorns the garden of the William Aiken House.

Chef James Burns prepared pistachio encrusted duck served on a cornbread crouton.

Seagrass floor ottomans atop white mohair rugs along with floor glass cylinders lit a poolside rehearsal dinner.

Kathryn Koebel Donovan reflects for a moment on her wedding day.

Guests enjoy after dinner music provided by the Right On band.

Combining the natural beachside beauty of a barrier island with a signature color palette of bright teal and chocolate brown, this elegant wedding brought grown-up grace and charm to this couples favorite vacation spot.

Chocolate seagrass ottomans offer an element of surprise for an oceanside ceremony.

When I first met with Lauren and Keith, high school sweethearts who had dated on-and-off in college and then rekindled their flame after graduation when they both moved to New York, it was immediately obvious how in love they were. It was also a pretty busy time for the Carifa family: while spending a romantic weekend in Stratton, Vermont, Keith had popped the question after a morning walk, while unbeknownst to Lauren, her twin brother, James, was proposing to his girlfriend as well!

Though both she and Keith grew up in New Jersey and had lived and worked in Manhattan for some time, Lauren knew immediately that she wanted to hold her wedding on Kiawah Island, twenty-five miles southwest of Charleston. Having spent every summer there since she was three, she had shared its beauty first with her family and then with Keith, whod often join her there for vacations during their courtship. They had so many memories of the island together that it was a perfect choice.

The six-tier chocolate-chip cake was created by Wedding Cakes By Jim Smeal and finished with the signature crest.

White letterpress programs were tied with a teal ribbon and emblazoned with the Carifa crest

To get some insight into the couples tastes, I sent Lauren to Kates Paperie in New York to pick out some paper in colors that appealed to her. We decided on a bright teal to become the foundation for our theme. For Thursdays rehearsal dinner at the Carifas Kiawah beach house, we matched it with beautiful burgundy peonies, which we placed in tall white porcelain vases down the length of the table. Our tent, which rose over the pool, was a custom sheer white organza with teal dupioni silk edging.

For Friday nights oyster roasta laid-back affair at Briars Creek Golf Club, with a lowcountry buffet and a bluegrass bandwe paired the signature teal with yellow; it was a combination Id seen in the couples apartment, so I knew theyd appreciate a little taste of home! We had vases of little yellow mums everywherethey just say fall to methat were offset beautifully by hanging lanterns.