Your Wedding is Your Oyster

In Charleston it’s almost unheard of to not like oysters, well…I’m here to say I am one of those rare people who is not a fan of the way they taste, BUT I am a huge fan of the way they look! The crafting/decorating possibilities are endless and beautiful!

Since oysters are such a hot commodity in Charleston, incorporating them into your wedding is the perfect way to pay homage to the Lowcountry.

Gifts
There are several, chic oyster jewelry options on the market. One of my favorite places to shop for oyster accessories is White Cotton Crafts. Their necklaces and earrings are beautifully crafted and would make the perfect addition to any bridesmaid gift. They also just added oyster ring dishes to their line. Either one of those options would be perfect to give as a bridesmaid gift or as a way to ask your favorite ladies to stand by your side.

oyster necklace
Necklace from White Cotton Crafts. Can we say obsessed?

For the groomsmen, you could do custom oyster knives engraved with their names, funny saying, favorite sports team or initials.

Charleston-Shucker-Knife2
Photo Cred and Shopping Link: Charleston Shucker Co. 

Decor
One of my favorite ideas is to use the oyster shells as place card settings with the names written in gold calligraphy.

placecards
Photo Cred and Etsy Listing: RachelCarl

You could also make oyster shell wreaths to hang on the church doors.

Oyster wreath
Photo Cred and Etsy Listing: White Cotton Crafts

A simple, economical option is to put them in cylinder vases with flowers or greenery.

oyster centerpiece
Photo Cred and Etsy Listing: Spartinaliving

Or create a runner with them down the center of long tables or around pillar candles. As an added bonus, you could also incorporate some driftwood from your favorite Charleston beach for the centerpieces. Does it get much better than that?!

Oyster runner
Photo Cred: Diane Dodd Photography Featured on Southern Living

Eating:
As far as serving them at your wedding…you can have an oyster roast rehearsal dinner, pass Oyster Rockefellers, or have a seafood tower to meet all of your guests’ needs.

oyster rockefeller
Photo Cred: Lori Lange of Recipe Girl

So that’s my love/hate relationship of oysters in a nutshell. This blog was inspired by my dentist who thought I was crazy when I told him I love oysters as crafts and decorations. Can’t wait to send him the link to this post!

{Please note: I have no affiliation with any of the links, just love their stuff!}

The First Look

I’ve been struggling to figure out the perfect first post to kick it off with. Then, as I was sitting reminiscing about my own wedding, I was thinking about some of my favorite moments…One that tops the charts, was the private time my husband-to-be and I had prior to the ceremony and picture frenzy, our first look moment.

We decided to have a “first look” before we walked down the aisle. This totally breaks tradition of not seeing the bride until she walks down the aisle. Have you ever wondered where the tradition stems from? Well, in arranged marriage times (not quite sure when exactly, but a long time ago!), the father of the bride feared if the groom saw the bride beforehand and didn’t find the bride attractive, he would change his mind and not marry her! WHAT?! So this was a tradition I was willing to break!

I did want to have some element of surprise, so I had one of the photographers give him a blindfold and make him wait in the front yard of the house for me to arrive. Then I came up behind him to untie it and the photographer so perfectly captured his smile and love! 0330

It also greatly helped calm my nerves (and hopefully his too!) and allowed us to take the majority of our photos before the ceremony.

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We did our formal couple shots, each family’s shots, and bridesmaids and groomsmens group photos. Of course, we still had a few minutes of pictures afterwards, but the majority of them were done. Another added bonus of doing this in the south is…you’re less likely to be glistening and your makeup and hair are still absolutely perfect! And, in case, you’re not convinced yet about doing a first look, knocking out more pictures beforehand also means getting to your party faster! The day truly flies by, so it’s great to be able to savor and enjoy every minute of it!

xo, Abby

Photo Credit: Melissa Pepin Photography
Venue: The Hill, Athens, Georgia