Here’s a thought: Why not host a bridal luncheon for your inner circle after the Big Day? That was the thinking behind this shoot put together by the two girl-bosses of The Curated Weekend, a social media managing outfit and content creation group run by Andrea Serrano and Liz Martin. (The two recently embarked on their partnership; Andrea’s known for her Charleston Shop Curator blog and Liz for both her Charleston Weekender blog and Cannonborough Collective boutique, where everything from gifts to seriously ’gram-worthy balloons are sold.)
“The wedding weekend becomes so much about the bride,” says Liz, “that scheduling time with your besties gets squeezed in as time allows.” When you all gather post-“I do’s” you can break down the best of the wedding weekend, fill each other in on what was missed, and reconnect for the newest chapters in each other’s lives. And because every get-together goes better with a theme, Andrea and Liz came up with a “The Golden Girls” styled brunch to say “Thank you for being a friend” (for the uninitiated, that’s the theme song from the 1980s show about four golden-years women living together in a tropical retirement community). Take a look at what they put together in the gallery and tune into their takeaways.
TRY THESE TAKEAWAYS
Hand-address invites.
No matter the scale of the gathering, Andrea and Liz say hand-addressing sets a more intimate tone.
Say “Yes” to a staycation.
Make your gathering a getaway and book one of the myriad rentals around town just for the day.
Pick a theme and coordinating palette.
The wedding festivities may have passed, but you can still pamper yourselves with a posh party. Edit your decorations, florals, and palette. Here, they filled the house with tropical plants, rattan elements, and pastels—all apropos for “The Golden Girls” theme.
Gift some goodies.
Assemble themed swag for your honorees. The pineapple earrings they picked impart a tropical “welcome.”
Slip into something comfortable.
Greet guests with a pair of slippers (like these Birdies from The Skinny Dip Charleston) upon arrival.
Outsource.
Consider putting aside a small portion of your wedding budget for your after-the-fact bridal luncheon to allow for hiring a caterer and florist (like Hamby's Catering and Events and Petaloso here).
Kyleigh met Nick when she was in Cardiff, Wales, getting her master’s degree. (Her friend had convinced her to give Tinder a shot, and her “first, last, and only Tinder date,” she says, was the born-...
We don’t know about you, but these past few days of shorts weather have had us daydreaming about summer. Brandy McGhie, owner of local luxury event planning company Classic Planning & Design Co...
Tricia and Brandon were in the same fourth grade class at Springfield Elementary here in Charleston, but their love story didn’t begin until a college football game 14 years later. The South Carolina...
Designer Lela Rose has a saying we can all toast to: “Nothing says chic like matching your drink to your dress.” Fashion stylist Lindsey Nowak took that as a challenge, linked arms with Reagan Barnes...
Taylor and Sam may be from Virginia and live in Waco, Texas, but the Palmetto State holds a special place in their hearts. They met at the University of South Carolina when Sam, a freshman fraternity...
Thank goodness for Joe Quick—the mutual friend who lived up to his name and set up Avery and Henry when all three were in high school in Atlanta. After his pleas for them to meet went unheeded, he...
Gillian and Phil met while studying abroad in Ireland. But because they attended different schools stateside (he was at the University of South Carolina, she was at The State University of New York...
Here’s how Emmy and Josh explain how they became an item: “Josh had been courting Emmy for quite some, and on one evening in June at Dillon’s pub in downtown Boston, Massachusetts, he decided...
Feast your eyes on this treasure chest of jewels ranging from ultra-fine to utterly fashionable. Whether you’re dressing for your wedding or any of the myriad events leading up to it, these pieces add polish—and panache
