Click here to see entire image gallery!

Mallory’s Side of the Story: William warned me that he was going to have a busy weekend full of work so I was not expecting to see a lot of him. We did our normal Saturday morning cycling class at the YMCA. We got our normal Brugger’s coffee and went to my place to relax for an hour before William went to the office. After finishing our coffee, I asked William if he was ready for me to take him back to his condo. William said he would not be going into the office that day and instead we would be going to Charleston for the remainder of the weekend. He told me to pack my suitcase and be ready in an hour. I looked at him in total disbelief. After a few minutes of shock, William finally convinced me that we were actually going out of town. I packed, got ready as quickly as possible and we excitedly got on the road. William kept everything a surprise and would not tell me where we were staying or what we were doing. I sat the whole three hours in suspense. We finally got to Charleston and arrived at the Planters Inn. It is the most adorable and charming hotel in the middle of historic Charleston. I walked around marveling at the art and architecture. I stopped in front of a lit fireplace, candles and roses. When I turned around, William was down on one knee with my ring in hand. He muttered a speech, but all I heard him say was, “I love you. Will you marry me?” Of course, I said yes (I knew I wanted to marry William after our first date). We spent the next hour calling our family and friends. William then took me to Blossom Restaurant. We sat at the same table where he told me he loved me for the first time. A gentleman even sent us a bottle of champagne from across the room to congratulate us. He said he got engaged in Charleston several years ago and was now expecting his first child. What an amazing night!

William’s Side of the Story: I first told Mallory I loved her on the first of our many trips to Charleston, South Carolina, so I had no doubt that Charleston was the perfect place to propose to her one day. During the first few weeks of January 2010, I was very busy at work and not able to spend much time with Mallory. But I was also secretly arranging the purchase of a ring and a trip to Charleston. Once the ring finally arrived, I wanted to give it Mallory as quickly as possible. I told her that I was going to have to spend another weekend in the office, but on Saturday morning (January 16th), I surprised her and told her to pack her bags for Charleston. Initially, she reacted with total disbelief. But news quickly sank in and she was ecstatic.On the drive to Charleston, I never told her about my plans for the trip. Though she obviously knew what was ultimately going to happen, she let the plans unfold and everything went off without a hitch. As soon as we got to town, I took her straight to the fireplace at the Planters Inn, got on one knee and proposed to her on the spot. I had gone over my words to her in my head dozens of times, but I have no idea what I ended up saying. Fortunately, she said yes. We then enjoyed a bottle of champagne, called our families and had dinner at the same table at Blossom restaurant where I first told her I loved her almost two years earlier. It was the perfect day.

From the moment Will and I walked into the Duke Mansion, we knew it was perfect venue for our wedding. Tucked quietly within the gorgeous Dilworth neighborhood of Charlotte, it is less than five miles from where I lived.  I had never heard of it. With the surrounding neighbors’ blessing, the Duke Mansion had just started holding weddings. Lucky us! Besides the elegant wedding ballroom, our guests were able to roam throughout the estate with its black and white floors, beautiful courtyard, porches, glass walled solarium and lush gardens.  We reserved the Duke Mansion’s twenty elegant guest rooms for family members and the bridal party. Many of the rooms have walkout screened porches which were a huge hit especially with the dry warm spring weather.  My mom specially ordered pizzelles, a delicious Italian cookie my grandfather and I baked together over the years, and we placed a box of them wrapped in tulle in each room as welcome gifts. The Duke Mansion was my wedding venue dream come true. Words I used to describe the vision I had for William and my wedding included classic, couture, fun and most of all “intimate.” We wanted a small wedding of 100 guests so we would be able to converse with everyone and make them feel special.  Décor was also extremely important to me. After looking at numerous wedding magazines and blogs, I learned: I love glamour and glitz, I love draping, I love the colors of black, blush and ivory, I love big tree-like flower arrangements and I love ribbons and bows! We decided to drape the dining room at the Duke Mansion with ivory taffeta drapes and tie back the entrances with big black bows.  We lined the dance floor with eight foot banquet tables covered with custom ribbon taffeta linens.  The Bloom Room created huge arrangements of blush and pink flowers and positioned them along the tables.  We placed large crystal candelabras in the middle of the arrangements.  The room was up-lit with amber lighting to give a candle glow.  The stunning laced edged cake with silver brooches and bows was placed in the middle of the white dance floor. The end result was more than I could have ever dreamed of. It literally took my breath away.With all said above, the best moment of the whole wedding day was William and my first look.  The expression on his face the first time he set his eyes on me in my wedding dress will forever be etched in my mind.  I have never felt so beautiful or loved.  The day was more than perfect. Later, William and I danced our first dance in the grand foyer under a massive crystal chandelier with family and friends closely surrounding us. What made this wedding so unique can be decided in the comments our guests made.  They had never being to a wedding where they were constantly entertained with every tiny detail being important. Waiters holding glasses of champagne welcomed guests.  Crystal hung tiered escort cards complemented the rhinestone embellished name cards and menus. The band even surprised our guests wearing decorative costumes at the end of the night. We hired an artist who uniquely cut everyone’s silhouette out of black paper.  One silhouette was secured in a book where guests signed their names and another was given as a memento of the special occasion.  A late evening chef’s finale dessert which consisted of Southern Comfort Peach Foster and ice cream was served. The night ended with guests holding sparklers gracing the elegant steps of the mansion as William and I rode off to the Ritz in a Bentley. Our wedding was the result of months of creative thought and careful planning.  All the details blended together to create an unforgettable wedding celebration.

Ceremony location:  Covenant Presbyterian Church / Reception: Duke Mansion / Cake: Cake Lady Jill / Flowers:  The Bloom Room /  Gown: Vera Wang / Shoes: Jimmy Choo / Bridesmaids’ dresses: Jim Hjelm / Tuxedo: Trussini / Engagement ring: Mavilo / Hairstylist: Kymm Mclean, Who’s the Fairest / Make-up: Kymm Mclean, Who’s the Fairest / Invitations and Stationery: Smock / Music: Hot Sauce / Photography: Kristin ViningPhotography / Videography: Richard Israel, Timm Young / Clergy: Robert W. Henderson / Caterers: Duke Mansion / Rehearsal dinner: Bentley’s on 27 / Lighting: Eye Dialogue / Linens: Custom / Candelabras: Regal Candelabra / Rentals: Party Reflections / Drapes: Party Tables / Wedding night hotel: Ritz Carlton / Bridesmaid luncheon location: Duke Mansion / Bachelor Party: Las Vegas / Bachelorette Party: Napa Valley / Specialty gifts and favors: Silhouette Portraits by Edward / Transportation provider: Trolley’s Inc., / Wedding consultant: Tiffany Ratliff, Weddings and the City / Earrings: Dannijo / Broach: Enchanted Atelier

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Post tags: Bentley's on 27, Cake Lady Jill, Charlotte Wedding, Dannijo, Duke Mansion, Duke University, Enchanted Atelier, Eye Dialogue, Hot Sauce, Jim Hjelm, Jimmy Choo, Kristin Vining Photography, Las Vegas, Mavilo, Napa Valley, Party Reflections, Party Tables, Regal Candelabra, Silhouette Portraits by Edward, Smock, The Bloom Room, The Ritz Carlton, Traditional Elegance, Trolley's Inc, Trussini, Vera Wang, Weddings And The City, Who's The Fairest
Post categories: Traditional Elegance

But for today, we want to wish all of you a blessed and delightful Easter Weekend! And a super-congrats to Wendy and Brad who, along with Kristin Vining, created THE cutest Easter-Inspired Engagement Shoot ever …

You can see Wendy and Brad’s full E*Shoot over on Kristin’s blog!

This e*shoot was styled (wardrobe, makeup & hair) by the always-fabulous Lindsey Regan Thorne!

Ever wonder where the oh-so-talented-Kristin hangs out in her spare time? (Ha! As if she had any!)

Kristin and the amazing ladies at Weddings And The City have been hard at work designing their new office space. Can you imagine working in surroundings like this??

It’s really NO wonder that all of their weddings are over-the-top amazing! If you haven’t already read about their custom design book ~ it’s high time you did: Custom Wedding Design Books from Weddings And The City.

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Post tags: Charlotte, Easter, Engagement Shoot, Kristin Vining, North Carolina, Weddings And The City
Post categories: engagement session, Little Black Book Blog

More from Grace … We met when Sean was in his 3rd year with the Charlotte Bobcats and I was working at a local hole in the wall bar about 2 blocks from the arena where he played. It was the “place to be” for meeting up and having some drinks before a night on the town, so he and his friends walked in one day in November after one of his games. I was behind the bar and he sent over one of my co-workers to ask if I would be his girlfriend! Of course he was being silly and I laughed it off and said “yeah right!” I eventually gave him a chance and we became great friends and quickly escalated to having the beautiful relationship we have today.

On our second year anniversary, that also happens to be Valentines Day, we went to Miami for the weekend. Thinking that we were just celebrating our anniversary and the holiday, I was totally caught off-guard when he surprised me … 13 minutes after midnight on – officially – February 14th I walked into a rose petal and candlelit covered room with 11 beautiful flower arrangements with red roses and white lilies. On each arrangement was a card with a picture of us on the outside and on the inside a different reason why he loved me. He walked me to each arrangement and had me read each card. At the 10th vase I thought it was over but there was one more left. At the 11th arrangement, of all white roses and lilies, the card read “for all these reasons I want to know…will you marry me?” I turned around and behind me was Sean on his knee holding my ring!

When it came to planning the wedding, I must say that Tiffany at Weddings and the City made the planning process effortless! She totally rocked! I would have to say the most unique part of our wedding was where we had our ceremony. We were privileged enough to be the very first couple to get married at The Urban Garden at the Ritz Carlton. The Urban Garden was the perfect setting for a very sticky August day allowing for the natural light of the sunset yet still providing comfort and air conditioning for our guests. It is located between the Ritz and the Bank of America building and is basically an indoor garden area with windows surrounding about 75% of the room. From there we moved our party to the grand ballroom where the mood transformed from a natural outdoor type setting to a classy-chic formal setting. I decided I wanted lots of red and at our reception that’s what I got! We covered the entire ballroom with red draping and it truly made an impact and set the perfect mood for our reception.

For more of this smokin’ hot couple, take a look at their Engagement Shoot, Kristin’s blog of their Wedding, and their feature on Weddings And The City!

Photography: Kristin Vining / Wedding Planning & Design: Weddings And The City / Ceremony: The Urban Garden at The Ritz Carlton / Reception: Grand Ballroom at The Ritz Carlton / Cake: The Ritz Carlton / Flowers: A Place For Flowers / Gown: Lazaro from  J Majors / Shoes: Christian Louboutin from– Saks 5th Ave / Bridesmaid’s dresses: Alvina Valenta from J Majors / Tuxedos: Elevee / Rings designed by Sean May and Mike Ealy from Skatell’s / Hair & Make-up: tylist for portrait: Who’s the Fairest, Kymm McLean / Invitations: Three Little Birds / Music: Split Second Sound / Rentals: Classic Party Rentals, Cloth Connection and Extravaganza / Favors: Chocolate Menus by Totally Chocolate  Wedding / Photobooth by Carolina Photo Booths

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Post tags: A Place For Flowers, Alvina Valenta, Carolina Photo Booths, Charlotte, Chocolate Menu, Christian Louboutin, Classic Party Rentals, Cloth Connections, Extravaganza, J. Majors, Lazaro, North Carolina, Red Roses, Sean May, Skatell's, Split Second Sound, The Ritz Carlton, The Urban Garden, Three Little Birds, Totally Chocolate Wedding, Weddings And The City, Who's The Fairest
Post categories: Little Black Book Blog, Wedding Photography

click here to see the full wedding gallery!

Planning my wedding was a little hard for me. I had an idea of what I wanted, but I felt like no one else could get the same visual picture I was going for. So I hooked up with Tiffany Ratliff from Weddings and the City. I told her I wanted a sleek, modern, contemporary wedding and I gave her a million pictures of different styles that represented me and my dream wedding! When I walked in the room the day of my wedding I was speechless and would only stand there in AWE as she gave me what I wanted and so much more!

Ceremony + Reception Location: The Ballantyne Charlotte, NC / Cake: Cake Lady Jill / Flowers: The Place for Flowers / Gown: Angoliques / Shoes: Designer – Michael Shannon from Off Broadway Shoes / Bridesmaids’ dresses: Designer: Enzoani / Hairstylist & Make-Up for wedding: Kymm Mclean, Who’s the Fairest / Music, Entertainment: Method Productions { DJ} , Hot Sauce { Band} / Photography: Kristin Vining Photography / Caterers: The Ballantyne / Rental providers (tents, linens, tables, chairs, etc.): Classic Party Rentals { Dance Floor, linens}, Extravaganza {pipe and drape and lighting} , Starlight Design Group {lighting, chiavari chairs}, Ice Sensations {Ice bar} / Specialty gifts + favors: All you can Treat / Wedding Planner: Tiffany Ratliff, Weddings and the City

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2010. | Permalink | 22 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: All You Can Treat, Angoliques, Cake Lady Jill, Classic Party Rentals, Enzoani, Extravaganza, Ice Sensations, Kristin Vining, Pink, Starlight Design Group, The Ballantyne, The Place For Flowers, Weddings And The City, Who's The Fairest
Post categories: Color Palettes, Contemporary, The Blog

Click here if you can’t wait for Part II!

I think the true testament of an incredible wedding is the feeling you get when you look back on the little moments throughout the day – the smiles that greeted you, the shared wishes, the joy of taking that first step down the aisle and that last second at the end of the night when you say goodbye to those you love and you realize that you wouldn’t change a thing. I still get butterflies remembering those moments and every time I think about it, I want to jump back in each memory. To me, it will always be perfect because it was truly a reflection of who we are.

Our first and easiest decision was our location — it is impossible not to fall head over heels in love with the gardens of the One & Only Ocean Club. Layer after layer, it feels like escaping into a whole new world. And once you reach the top of the gardens, the beautiful ruins of the Cloisters literally take your breath away. I had a chance to visit this enchanting place several times over the years and always tucked it away as my dream destination for a wedding. I shared this dream with my husband, Justin, and even though my parents weren’t thrilled about the idea of a destination wedding, my entire family fell for the charms of this incredible resort.

My dress was by Monique Lhuillier and I still get giddy thinking about it. Regardless of what kind of dress you wear, you want to feel incredible on your special day and I will never forget the moment of slipping on that dress, it felt timeless and classic. It is a moment I wish I could bottle. I wore Christian Louboutin shoes in midnight as my “something blue.” My something borrowed was a Judith Leiber clutch that belongs to my good friend Emmy Rossum and my something new was a pair of beautiful earrings from my new husband. I also carried my great grandmother’s handkerchief to represent something old. There were a few teary moments in the wedding and every time I looked down, I felt her there.

Our colors were midnight blue and fuchsia and we used gold as an accent color. Tied together it was the romance and whimsy that we aimed to capture. The bridesmaids wore midnight blue Lela Rose dresses in various styles and the groomsmen wore navy suits and ties by Brooks Brothers. I gave the bridesmaids their shoes as a gift (irresistible!) and the beautiful gold ball bracelets by J Crew. Henri Bendel is also one of my favorite retail escapes (second to Target!) and we had beach bags, luggage tags and travel accessories in HB.

SOOOO much more to come!

Wedding Coordinator:  Weddings in the Bahamas / Photographer: Kristin Vining / Wedding Design Team: Weddings and the City / Florist: Wildflowers / Location: One & Only Ocean Club in Paradise Island, Bahamas / Invitations and Programs: Alyssa Reeves, Paradise Design Company / Wedding Dress: Monique Lhuillier /  Clutch: Judith Leiber / Bridesmaids Dresses: Lela Rose / Groomsmen Suits: Brooks Brothers

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Post tags: Bahamas, Bahamian, Brooks Brothers, Judith Leiber, Kristin Vining, Lela Rose, Masks, Masquarade, Monique Lhuillier, Navy, Navy and Pink, One & Only Blub, Paradise Design Company, Pink, Weddings And The City, Weddings in the Bahamas
Post categories: Destination, Destination Weddings, The Blog

You can see even more eye candy right here!

From the bride…

The most unique aspect of our wedding was the casual, yet classy, attire, the little DIY projects, and the minor, yet oh-so-important, details. Working with Kristin Vining Photography and Weddings and the City has been an experience beyond my wildest imagination. I consider myself lucky to have been able to work with such a fabulous, fun – yet professional, group of ladies!! In my opinion, when a special event such as a wedding is involved, it is important that the bride and groom feel comfortable with whoever they are working with. Joe and I are so incredibly blessed to have had the opportunity to work with KVP and WATC, and to be able to have formed good friendships along the way!

Vendor Credits: Photography: Kristin Vining Photography / Event Planning: Weddings and the City (Tiffany Ratliff, Lindsey Wallace Van Wingerden and Brittany Tollison) / Music: Split Second Sound / Bride’s Gown: Vineyard Collection, Hayden Olivia Bridal / Bridesmaid Dresses: David’s Bridal / Groom & Groomsmen: Old Navy / Venue: Van Landingham Estate / Makeup & Hair: Lindsey Regan Thorne / Cake: Cake Lady Jill / Flowers: The Place for Flowers / Clergy:  Dr. Patrick Maloy / Shoes: Ceremony, Grace, Reception, Nine West / Engagement Ring: Kay Jewelers / Invitations & Stationery: Three Little Birds Stationery / Party Rentals: Party Reflections / Gifts & Favors: Candy Bar / Transportation: CLT Express

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2010. | Permalink | 19 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Cake Lady Jill, Candy, Charlotte, David's Bridal, Hayden Olivia Bridal, Kristin Vining Photography, Lindsey Regan Thorne, Old navy, The Place For Flowers, Three Little Birds Stationery, Van Landingham Estate, Weddings And The City
Post categories: All Real Weddings, Real Weddings, The Blog, Whimsical

Remember Lindsey’s drop-dead gorgeous vintagy engagement shoot, bridal shoot, and wedding from SMP’s super-talented Kristin Vining (and Weddings & The City)? The wedding was just a dream-come-true from an amazing couple and an even more amazing group of vendors.

Here’s what Richard had to say on his blog post about Lindsey & John’s film …

For those who are unfamiliar with the concept of Super 8 movies, think about the old home movies that your grandparents had stashed away in the attic. Full of scratches and dust, grit and grain. The complete antithesis to the modern-day special effect HD videos. Lindsey and John’s retro-chic Super 8 movie appears as if it was filmed in Paris circa 1936 …

And so, it is with great pleasure that we bring to you … Lindsey & John’s wedding film ala the genius of Richard Israel!

from Richard … “Many, many thanks to my buddy Matt Francis of Dreamlight Films for the amazing editing.”

Richard’s team is going to be offering wedding films as part of their wedding coverage beginning in 2010, so be on the lookout on his website and blog for the announcements!

Thank you SO much, Richard, for sharing!!

* * *

(p.s. … and it’s SO fun to see that Lindsey, the dazzling bride whom SMP readers swore had to be a model … has now gone on to join the WATC team! You can follow her Design Ideas over on the new Wedding And The City blog. A huge congrats to Lindsey from all of us here at SMP !!)

* * *

Oh! and one more quick note. We are featuring “The Year In Review” in wedding cinematography over on our Little Black Book Blog. An entire week highlighting weddings from across the country in a wide variety of film styles. We REALLY hope you’ll join us!

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Post tags: Charlotte, Dreamlight Films, Kristin Vining, North Carolina, Retro Chic, Richard Israel, Super 8 Film, Vintage, Weddings And The City
Post categories: The Blog, Vintage Chic, Wedding Cinematography, Whimsical

Lindsey made the aisle decor (and bridesmaids ‘puffs’)!  Their fantastic stationery and paper pieces are from Three Little Birds.

Stunning Carnation Centerpieces from The Place For Flowers!

I’ll have all the credits and vendors posted on this feature in just a bit! And I know Lindsey is answering questions as we speak … so fire away!

One more hurray for Kristin Vining and Weddings and the City for bringing us this spectacular wedding! Remember, they’ll have more images and details, with more of Lindsey’s thoughts over on their blogs!

* * *

Vendor Credits and other details (in no particular order!) ~

Cake Lady Jill, The Place For Flowers, Romona Keveza from J. Majors, Shoes by Mary Norton (Charlotte), Bridesmaids dresses BCBG, Tuxedo from Penguins, Headpiece from Castle Bride Couture, Bridal Hair & Makeup by Elizabeth Tollye, Bridal Portrait makeup (Miami) by Mara Fernandez, Invitations/Stationery ~ Three Little Birds, Videography by Richard Israel, Ceremony location: Mint Museum of Craft + Design, Catering by Best Impressions, Rental Providers~ Classic Party Rental and Connie Duglin, Lindsey’s Necklace from BCBG, Flower Girl Dress from Sweet Plume on etsy, Baby’s tutu from Hannah’s Tutus on etsy, 36″ balloons from 2 The Limit Events.

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Post tags: BCBG, Cake Lady Jill, Castle Brid Couture, Charlotte, Do-It-Yourself Inspired, Elizabeth Tolly, J. Majors, Kristin Vining Photography, Mary Norton, Mint Museum of Craft & Design, North Carolina, Penguins, Romona Keveza, The Place For Flowers, Three Little Birds, Weddings And The City
Post categories: Accessories, Bouquets, Centerpieces, Do-It-Yourself Inspired, Jewelry, Shoes, Vintage Chic, Wedding Details, Wedding Photography, Wedding Planners & Designers, Whimsical