Seaside Cents | Trading vows on a sea island isn’t as simple (or inexpensive) as it once was, but take a cue from this couple who made it work in delightful DIY fashion for $10K
“While our exhausted classmates slowly trickled home every night, Joe and I were always the last on the dance floor,” says Déla Breyne of meeting Irishman Joe O’Callaghan during a college trip to Belgium. Three years later, Joe proposed on Garnish Island in Ireland, but with the rigmarole of visas, the groom made it stateside a mere two months before the Big Day. Flying solo for most of the planning (and wanting to stick strictly to their $10,000 budget), Déla struck gold when she found a private home on a local beach that could host their 20ish guests for the laid-back day on the coast she had dreamed of. “I knew I wanted something low-key and low-stress,” she says, “with a vibe that was romantic and ethereal but not over the top—like a really great dinner party at a friend’s house.” And she got it. “I loved having all our friends here for the weekend,” she says, “it was like a big sleepover.”
Sea What Works
Choose wisely. Isle of Palms, Sullivan’s Island, Folly Beach, Kiawah, and Seabrook have varying rules about hosting ceremonies (or receptions) on the beach and throwing parties in rental homes. Visit (and bookmark) CharlestonWeddingsMag.com/BeachRules for details.
Play it close. Sidestep many regulations—plus gusting wind, blowing sand, and onlookers—by holding the ceremony in your rental’s waterfront yard and the reception on its decks.
Aim for double duty. Besides having it host the Big Day, use your rental for accommodations.
Pick a pretty one. Opt for a property (Déla found this one on VBRO.com) with an aesthetic that requires minimal additional décor.
Get crafty. The bride (a graphic designer) made the invitations and heart garlands, while the same pals who bussed tables and kept drinks full folded napkins with a flourish.
Vendor List
Wedding design, planning: Dela O’Callaghan (the bride)
The stars may have aligned when Sarah and Colin met at a popcorn stand in a Charlotte, North Carolina, bar. But it was actually the sun, moon, and earth aligning that saw them to the next step....
“What is more Charleston than a spring wedding in a gorgeous historic church and a garden reception?” asks bride Ashley. Not much, we answer! And today’s post showcases all the charm you could...
A couple who adventures together, stays together. Grace (from Washington D.C.) and Nick (from Greenville) met while attending Clemson University. These East Coast lovebirds went through two rounds of...
Sometimes you look at a complete stranger’s wedding photos and feel sadness at the fact that you weren’t guests at their incredible event. Welcome to such a fête! Before we trigger FOMO …...
We love it when we find couples and weddings with particulars you just don’t see every day. Enter Natalie and Steven. Our precious couple met each other … wait for it … in jail … as Correctional...
If weddings not only celebrate love, but also heighten it with fairy tale-feeling outfits and flowers and food and dance, why wouldn’t they be the supreme spot to meet your forever love as well?...
Once upon a time a South Carolina boy introduced a Maryland girl to Charleston. Little did they know the Lowcountry would become the backdrop of their love story—romantic trips, a big popped question...
As a local wedding professional who travels and plans weddings all around the world with Tara Guérard Soirée, our bride Erica still feels there’s no better place to get married than right here in the...
