My sweet friend Jenn, who some of you may know as the social media leading lady at The French Quarter Inn + Harborview Inn, tied the knot this past Fall in a seriously gorgeous Lowcountry affair. Now, Jenn and I both graduated from the University of Georgia, so we both have a deep love for all things red and black, so it was no surprise that our favorite color scheme left a mark throughout her Legare Waring House wedding day! I’m totally in love with her gorgeous dress, that adorable cake topper and their romantic outdoor ceremony under the Avenue of Oaks. Thanks to Richard Bell Photography for sharing all the details!

Tell us a little bit about how you met your husband…

Cory and I were set up by our co-workers. I worked with Drue Ford at HarbourView and Drue’s girlfriend (now wife) worked with Cory. They set us up on a semi-blind date, Cory and I had met, but never hung out before, and the rest is history! Drue was ordained online and performed our ceremony.

Something old: Set of pearls given to me by my Grandmother when I was born

Something new: dress

Something borrowed: cameo brooch pinned to my flowers from my mom/Grandmother

Something blue: I totally forgot to have something blue!

Tell us all about your engagement...

Cory and I were planning on going out for dinner and drinks one Friday afternoon at the end of September, on our way downtown, Cory pulled off into the Ashley Marina and didn’t say a word. He led me to a boat, where he had rented a private sunset charter on the Fate around Charleston Harbor. We sailed around a bit and headed towards the bridge. As we approached the bridge Cory got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. The boat’s captain, Dustin, is also a professional photographer, so we have pictures of the whole thing! They popped a bottle of Champagne for us and we sailed back to the dock. After that, we headed to Hall’s Chophouse. We were greeted with champagne there, and led to a table where both his parents (who came in from Indiana) and my parents (who came in from Atlanta) where waiting for us. I had no idea any of this was going to happen and then burst into happy tears. We were engaged a little over a year before we got married.

What made you choose your venue? What elements drew you to it?

As almost all of guests where traveling in (many from up north!) we really wanted to have a true Charleston atmosphere. The Legare Waring house has a great combination of indoor/outdoor venues with avenue of oaks and the historic home. It really felt classically southern. I also wanted to have the ceremony and the reception at the same venue.

Tell us all about the details! Did any have special meaning? What was your favorite?

The details were the most fun part! The wedding was a black and white theme, with pops of red, for my love of UGA! I wanted the feel of the wedding to be joyous and fun, and southern. We had mason jars everywhere and the mason jar lanterns were made by myself and some of the bridesmaids. The pillows that we used to make the park benches inviting were all sewn by a friend of my Mother, as well as the black and white table runners. I think my favorite details would be the photos that we brought in to the house. We had a few engagement photos, but we also had photos of me and Cory when we were kids, wedding photos of our parents and grandparents and memorial photos of our grandparents that have passed away. It was important to me that the details be about both me and Cory, and the people that are important to us. I also loved the chandelier in the oak trees and the custom bulldog cake toppers (and a mini black lab to represent our dog, Gracie)

What’s your favorite picture from your wedding and why?

I think my favorite pictures were taken just after the ceremony. Everything happened so fast! Nathan scooped us up in the golf cart and we were whisked off to this secret little beach area with this lovely tree as the sun was going down. It was a moment to just breathe and take it all in. The setting was so serene, I think that’s where it really hit us that we were married. I also love the photo of the two of us under a shower of petals.

Tell us a little bit about your menu…

We had passed hors d’oeuvres of fried green tomatoes with pimento cheese, sliders and bacon wrapped scallops and a signature cocktail of firefly and lemonade. ( I missed all of this, but I heard it was tasty! Lol) As for the dinner, we had stations. The most popular being the 2 kinds of mac and cheese station with toppings, we also had a shrimp and grits/crabcakes to order station (with killer sweet potato biscuits), a flank steak station, and a stuffed chicken station. My cake was a chocolate and vanilla marble cake with a buttercream and raspberry jam filling, and the groom’s cake was chocolate with a peanut butter filling.

Out of the entire day, what was the most memorable moment?

It all went by so fast! I think the most memorable moment for me was when we were introduced and started our first dance (to first dance by Corey Smith). At that moment, I knew that Cory would always make me laugh (as he propositioned dancing like middle schoolers) and that our life together had just started and that we were going to celebrate it in a beautiful setting with our dearest friends and family. And that in the middle of all the celebrations and chaos, it would always be the two of us together.

Specialty Drinks: We offered a specialty southern beverage of firefly and lemonade

How many guests attended: Roughly 125

Color Palette: Black and white with splashes of red

Most valuable piece of advice you’d give to a newly engaged bride:

The ceremony and the reception go by incredibly fast. Make sure to take a moment where you and the groom are alone together and just breathe. Then go have fun!