Written By Melissa Reardon
Photographs By Lucy Cuneo
A transplant from Virginia, Weston “Wes” McAfee vividly remembers the first time he saw his future bride-to-be. Charleston native Dana Elaine...
When mutual friends brought Jordan McLean to Taylor Adkins’s birthday, the move turned out to be the gift of a lifetime. After hitting it off, the Atlanta natives met for an unofficial first-date cocktail—a rendezvous that tumbled into a four-hour conversation and concluded only when the bar closed. Following a two-year courtship, Jordan proposed during a Thanksgiving trip to New York City. With the Macy’s Day Parade underway, he found a quiet corner of Central Park and asked for her hand.
Taylor and Jordan initially considered his ancestral home of Scotland for their big day but decided it was too far for guests to travel. So the couple found a compromise: they would sneak away to the United Kingdom on a pre-wedding visit to Duart Castle (the seat of Clan Maclean) and exchange private vows on the beach of St. Andrews Links. They would then return stateside to host an intimate ceremony followed by a large reception in Charleston, where the groom’s parents reside. Upon learning that New Year’s Eve was one of just two dates available at their desired venue, Hotel Bennett, the thoughtful pair took it as a sign to ring in their romance on December 31, 2024.
From there, a vision unfurled of a gilded soirée with Gatsby undertones and a touch of Scottish flair. Planner and florist Justin Wham and event designer Ty Leslie turned up the wow factor with sparkling tablescapes bedecked in candles, dramatic arrangements of soft white blooms, and a floral peacock perched atop a baby grand piano. Meanwhile, the groom’s Maclean tartan vestments, a kilt-clad officiant, and a custom wedding crest paid homage to his Highland roots. The entire affair felt like a stunning fairy tale, from the exchange of I dos inside the rooftop observatory to an elegant cocktail hour in the hotel rotunda to the black-tie reception-turned-midnight masquerade ball.
