Long Distance No More



WRITER CREDIT: 
PHOTOGRAPHER CREDIT: 
Long Distance No More | Green, gold, and a whole lot of pink set the tone for a lively celebration of love shared across the pond
Kathleen Reilly & Harry Booth
October 22, 2022 • Lowndes Grove
 
Katie Reilly met Harry Booth in 2017 at a Christmas party hosted by Katie’s parents in their DC-area home. He was in the US from England for his brother’s wedding to a grade school friend of Katie’s. They hit it off so well that Katie quickly made plans to visit Harry, who was working as a ski instructor in Switzerland.
 
The two started a romance highlighted by trips across the pond to see each other. Their distance was exacerbated by the pandemic—Harry was unable to travel to the US two out of four years of the courtship. But the couple made the most of it, meeting up in Switzerland, Croatia, and Spain. On flights, they started a tradition of watching the musical film, The Greatest Showman. In honor of that, Katie walked down the aisle to “Rewrite the Stars,” from the movie’s soundtrack.
 
In September 2021, after five long months of separation, Katie went to England, where Harry proposed on a rooftop overlooking the Ipswich waterfront, 
accompanied by music and candlelight.
 
As to where to celebrate their big day, Katie was drawn to the Lowcountry. After all, she graduated from the College of Charleston in 2014, and her parents were married and began their life together in the Holy City. She had long had her eye on Lowndes Grove as a wedding goal. “We visited after our engagement, and Harry fell in love with the city and Lowndes Grove just as I had,” she says.
 
The couple welcomed family and friends to Charleston with a groom’s cake, featuring Saas Fee, Harry’s favorite mountain in Switzerland, and topped with an exact replica of his skis and a Liverpool FC flag. Irish singer Aaron Rowe, who Katie watched perform during a bachelorette trip to Ireland, flew in from Dublin to sing at the party.
 
Planner Lauren Fox incorporated bursts of pink, Katie’s favorite color, into the setting, along with gold and emerald green, honoring her Irish roots. After a dinner of shrimp and grits, chicken and filet, guests were treated to music by Steel Toe Stilettos. Massive gold balls hung over the dance floor, and green velvet couches with pink pillows invited weary dancers to rest. Says the bride, “The dance floor was nonstop from the first song, til the very end.”
 
Vendors
Planning & Design: Fox Events
Photography: Perry Vaile
Venue: Lowndes Grove
Florals: On A Limb
Bar: Bubbles and Brews
Custom Bar: Fox Builds
Cake: Wedding Cakes by Jim Smeal
Beauty: Ash and Co
Entertainment: Steel Toe Stilettos
Stationery: Rachael Blessinger
Calligraphy: J.Lily Designs

The Wedding Row

November 14 2018
Just as you fall for your spouse-to-be, you can fall for the place where you’ll say “I do.” Need a little empirical evidence? Ask Kate Perry and Sabine Beaurain of Fabulous Fête about walking Chelsea...

November 13 2018
Getting a ring wasn’t top of mind for Lauren when she was trying to come up with New Year’s Eve 2017 plans with her boyfriend, Rick, but he sure had his own plan in the works. For the holiday, they...

November 12 2018
The Wedding Row: How did you and Ben meet? Jamie: Ben and I met when I was about to graduate law school from the University of Alabama and he was working in Birmingham. I was about to move back to...

November 9 2018
We admit we have a soft spot for Hannah Alyssa Photography (back when she was just out of school Hannah worked with us at Charleston Weddings), but it’s totally guilt-free because she’s just so darn...

November 8 2018
Everyone wants their Big Day to be memorable and Emily, a Seattle gal, and Robby, a machinist in the Navy, surely won’t forget theirs. It started off with the first look in Hampton Park, which was...

November 7 2018
What do you get when you combine an Emily Kotarski wedding gown with a gorgeous crown from Emma Katzka and a bouquet of eucalyptus, roses, and pink queen protea? The ultimate Boho look. For this...

November 6 2018
After a couple of rescheduled blind dates, Torrey and Ryan met for drinks; drinks turned to dinner, dinner turned into after-dinner drinks, and … well, let’s just say two years later they had moved...

November 5 2018
Ahhh, Boone Hall Plantation. While this spectacular venue is widely known for its infamous scenes in Nicholas Sparks’ film “The Notebook,” and as the setting of Hollywood hotshots Blake Lively and...