Romantic South Carolina Wedding by Open Light Studio
There is something about a fluffy, ruffled, layer-infused dress that speaks to my heart and this dress is indeed speaking to it, maybe even singing to it. Now add to that a pitch-perfect South Carolina wedding, complete with uber romantic flowers and a lovely fabric draped tent and well…this is what they call seventh heaven. Nate Henderson of Open Light Studio completed this pretty equation with his AH-MAZ-ING photography skills and lucky us, there’s even more to pore through in the gallery.
see more of this Southern soiree here!
Sam and I had only been dating for a few months when he took me to Spring Island to meet his Dad and Step-mom for the first time. It was on a bike ride across the island that we came upon a wedding event being set up and Sam said, “Wow, wouldn’t this be the perfect place to get married.” Thinking back it was that weekend that I started to fall in love with my husband and knew that if we were ever going to be married Spring Island would be an amazing location for the event. After the engagement it took some time to convince my parents that sweet home Chicago is great, but that our hearts were set on a May wedding on Spring Island.
Spring Island, South Carolina, with its beautiful outdoor chapel shaded by stately live oaks was a perfect spot for the ceremony and the tabby ruins of the former plantation was an elegant backdrop for the cocktail hour. We wanted our wedding to feel effortless yet elegant and romantic. I spent an unmentionable number of hours reading blogs, magazines and books searching for the perfect details to incorporate into our wedding weekend. One very special wedding detail came from Sam’s sister Jennifer Judd McGee, who designed all of the artwork for our save-the-dates and wedding invitations. Jen’s artwork was then transformed by Sarah Parrot of Parrot Design Studio into the most beautiful printed, and letter pressed invitations. I know when a bride looks at her budget, personalized letterpress invitations aren’t at the top of the list, but for me this was the first impression our guests got of Spring Island and our wedding. They are something I will cherish forever. Other important details included the dress, food and photography. My dress was designed by Justin Alexander and I just fell in love with the elegance of the fitted bodice and flowing silk organza of the skirt. My mother and sister will tell you that after traveling with the dress from Boston, it was a labor of love getting it ironed to wedding perfection. I kept my jewelry simple, a sapphire and diamond necklace which once belonged to Sam’s grandmother (also my something blue), plus a pearl and rhinestone bracelet and hairpins both of which I found on Etsy (which is such a great site for one of a kind wedding accessories). My bridesmaids and I fell in love with the dresses and necklaces from J.Crew; the light blue/grey was the perfect neutral palette for the soft colors of the floral bouquets. Sam and the groomsmen wore custom grey suits by Peter Millar with peach ties from Brooks Brothers.
I cannot say enough about the club on Spring Island, Sean Dempsey the club manager kept wedding planning fun and light hearted, I don’t think the words ‘we can’t do that’ are in his vocabulary. Every detail from the moment our guests arrived was perfectly executed. And lastly photography, Nate Henderson of Open Light Studio was one of my favorite wedding guests. He kept the day fun and relaxing, and the result was just breathtaking. Sam and I were very fortunate to have lots of help from our wonderful families and friends in planning this long distance wedding, especially Lee and Annie Judd, who were indispensable for all things Spring Island.
Photography: Nate Henderson of Open Light Studio / Venue: Spring Island Club, Sean Dempsey – Club Manager & Tony Gates, Executive Chef / Invitation Artwork: Jennifer Judd McGee / Invitation Printing and Paper Design: Sarah Parrot from Parrot Design Studio / Florals: Branches / Wedding Cake: Signe’s Heaven Bound Bakery / Vendor & Day-of Coordination: Amanda Rose Weddings / Band: Heart Beat of Soul / Hair & Make up: David & Kathy Watson of Lime Lite Salon / Tent and Rentals: Classic Party Rentals / Wedding Dress: Justin Alexander / Bridesmaids: J.Crew
26 Comments about “Romantic South Carolina Wedding by Open Light Studio”
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WOW what a gorgeous wedding, the dress, flowers, cake, decor ....everything is WOW
That was such a beautiful wedding! Congratulations to the two of you!
What designer are the invitations?? Looove them!
Hi! So excited to see this dress...it's the same one I'm wearing for my wedding and funny enough, I'm also traveling with it from Boston...any tips on how to avoid the wrinkling you mentioned? I know that sounds like such a small thing but I imagine since you mentioned it, it may have been a little stressful the day of your wedding. :)
Loving the shoes!!!!
Beautiful! But Erin, there is nary a weeping willow in these photos. I think you mean "the live oaks dripping with Spanish moss." :)
The image of them walking away/her looking back is gorgeous!!
Love the shoes and the bride's bracelet! Where are they from?!?
In love with that ruffled dress!! So cute and girly!
Where are those shoes from? I am getting married in the fall and have been searching for a pair like those! Beautiful!
i love barn weddings. They are always so unique. Thanks for sharing the photos. Ruffled dress is so cute.
Shut the front door! Amazingly gorgeous! It's like a fairy tale. Unbelievable.
Jaw-droppingly gorgeous!! and such a wonderful couple!
Thank you so much for the honor Abby. Great to see one of my favorite weddings I've shot up here! Love love love Laura and Sam!
as with everyone.. WHERE ARE THESE SHOES FROM????? !!!! WE ALL WANT THEM!!!!
Sam and Laura's wedding is absolutely gorgeous! Her dress and the flowers are stunning.
I found the shoes on zappos - designer A Marinelli, I also fell in loved with them and they were comfortable funny thing is I actually walked down the aisle in flip flops! Since we got married outside the heels weren't the easiest to walk in.
The bracelet I found on etsy (again, an awesome site to find anything wedding related) - BGBJewelry.
The dress - Katy, good luck! I carried my dress on the plane and everyone was extremely nice, ask the flight attendants if they can hang it up in the closet in the front. I wouldn't spend money on getting it steamed or ironed before you get on the plane, it will get wrinkled. I thought it would be easy to just steam when I got to SC but each ruffle really needed to be ironed individually. If you have time and its in the budget I would take it to get ironed, it was really time consuming. I was so lucky that my sister and mom were willing to take on the task!
Let me know if you guys have any other questions! I love being on the other side and sharing all the details!
Where are the bridesmaid's necklaces from?
The bridesmaids necklaces were from JCrew.
The aura in these pics is awesome! The location, bridal party, and decorations seem to fuse together in the beautiful light!
Beautiful wedding! Would you please share where you got your invitations? Thank you!
The invitation art work was done by Jennifer Judd-McGee & the design and printing was done by Sarah Parrot of Parrot Design Studio. Both links are provided in the post.
The Bridesmaids dresses are beautiful. When were they purchased from J Crew? I don't see them on their website.
The bridesmaids dresses were purchased last spring, so they may have something similar coming out soon. JCrew is great, you can call and they'll even send you swatches of the new colors in their collections. Very helpful when you're looking for something specific!
Wow- those shoes are PERFECT for my Justin Alexander gown- 8461! I just ordered them on shoes.com! I am SO pleased to have found this gallery. What a beautiful setting you chose. Wonderful story- thank you for sharing and congratulations on your happiness!