Elizabeth West and Rob Duffey’s October 2008 wedding on Edisto Island centered on relaxation. “We wanted it to feel like a weekend beach getaway,” she says. “So we kept everything simple so that our guests would be comfortable.” That meant a rented beach cottage location, a pre-ceremony cocktail party, waterfront vows, and a collection of informal cakes, among other things. As for the beach, Georgia native Elizabeth had spent childhood summers vacationing on Edisto Island, and although she met Rob in New York, where they both live, they agreed that the rural Lowcountry island was the perfect spot for their three-day celebration. An event planner with Manhattan’s Cap and Gown Weddings, Elizabeth knows the key to creating a spectacular outdoor event is not competing with nature’s beauty. Thus she dressed the tables in subtle, autumnal chocolate brown linens and chose purple orchids (with a hint of orange in the petals) for her flower arrangements. She set the ceremony time so the sunset would serve as a stunning backdrop and hired a gospel choir to enhance the Southern ambiance. In the end, it was just right. “I wanted everyone to be relaxed and to just have fun,” says Elizabeth. “And they did.”
