Gillian Reinhardt of Carolina Studios has a way with the camera. She always does an amazing job of capturing the emotions that come with a wedding. I'm not sure if it's luck or what, but she tends to work with the most adorable couples...and Diana + Stephen are no different! This fun loving couple let their personalities shine through in their vibrant summer wedding. With a lively red and blue color palette, they said 'I do' this past July at the fabulous Grande Dunes Member Club in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
Bride Diana was kind enough to give us a little more detail on her perfect wedding day...
Tell us a little bit about how you met your husband. How long have you known each other? Where did you meet?
Stephen and I met in back in 2008 when I moved here and started singing in the worship band at Carolina Forest Community Church. Stephen has an amazing talent on the drums, and we grew to be really close as we grew in our faith and friendship over the next 2 years or so leading up to the beginning of our relationship.
Why did you choose to have A Lowcountry Wedding?
I love it here, and all my friends and my church family are here. Stephen is one of the few proud natives of Myrtle Beach, with much of his family living nearby, so it seemed like a no-brainer for us!
How did he propose? How long were you engaged for?
Poor Stephen’s plans to propose were foiled several times! He was supposed to come up to visit me on my Christmas visit to my parents’ house in New York. Of course, the day he was supposed to fly up, a huge snow storm hit, and he got stuck in Myrtle Beach. After a couple of days in airports and frantically looking for alternate flights, he finally made it – but only for a 24 hour visit! A whirlwind of meeting family members and a long night of waiting for his lost baggage later, we were on our way back to Myrtle Beach – the ring still in his pocket! He decided to propose at the start of the New Year, but he did not want to do it in a way that I would expect. So, after the New Year’s Eve party, when we had arrived back at home all spiffed up, he caught me off guard putting things away in my room. He put his arms around me, told me how much he treasured me, and got down on one knee and asked me to marry him! We were engaged for 7 months.
Out of the entire day, what was the most memorable moment?
There are so many! But I’d have to say the highlight was when I turned down the aisle to the lyrics, “You make beautiful things out of the dust, you make beautiful things out of us,” by Michael Gungor Band. Stephen’s eyes immediately started welling up with tears, and I just savored every step down that aisle. Our whole ceremony was really personal. We didn’t share it with anyone but our pastor until the day of.
What’s your favorite picture from your wedding? (Please attach to this email.)
We have so many favorites, thanks to our amazing photographer and DJ who made the night incredible! But one of our favorites is of us holding a picture frame around our cake with the picture perfect cake topper. Our baker made a delicious and beautiful cake worthy of framing, and our photographer put a beautiful color effect on the picture that actually makes it look like we’re holding a piece of art! Another favorite was a picture of us kissing with our entire bridal party sprinting past us toward the camera. It came out amazing, and captures the hilarious nature of our wedding party!
How did you choose your venue? What elements drew you to venue?
We were drawn to The Members Club at the Grande Dunes for so many reasons! Stephen loves the ornate chandeliers and formal feel, and I adored the covered veranda, the rich golden colors, and the natural light provided by so many windows. We also love all patterns and things Italian, so the fact that it’s in a neighborhood called Tuscany was a huge plus!
Your wedding was filled with gorgeous details. Did any have special meaning? What was your favorite?
Red and blue are both of our favorite colors, and we both like to be a little unconventional, so the bold color combo suited us well. It also lent to the beautiful crystal ladybug I had on the stem of my bouquet, which was a little touch my mom added. She always called me ladybug growing up. Our theme of “picture perfect” was fitting, because I am always taking too many pictures for his liking. Two of our favorite details were the funny snapshots of us holding the table numbers, and the large picture frame that mirrored our cake topper. The cake topper was the whole inspiration for the theme. It was all very traditional with a little quirky edge!
Tell us a little bit about your menu. Did you add any Lowcountry elements?
We loved our menu! We had lots of different elements, including prime rib, broccoli alfredo, and chicken marsala. It was all delicious, and since we served our meal family style, everyone got to try a bit of everything!
Favorite # 2...
Looking back on your engagement and wedding, is there any advice you would give to brides in the planning process?
Be organized from the beginning so you don’t get stressed out! There are so many beautiful choices for venues, fashion, and vendors here. Just be true to your and your husband’s heart of hearts, and remember to be excited for not just the wedding but the rest of the life that comes afterward!
Myrtle Beach Wedding Vendors
photographer: carolina studios by gillian reinhardt / floral designer: flowers in the forest / reception venue: grande dunes members club / dress store: david's bridal / cake designer: cake my day / dj: myrtle beach djs / transportation: carolina limos