Heather Bingham and Chris Koepenick could have married in her home state of Florida, but when you live in a place like Charleston, South Carolina, one of the most charming and idyllic cities in America, why leave town? With ancient oaks and horse-drawn carriages lining historic Charleston’s cobblestone streets, it seemed a perfect romantic backdrop for the couple’s late October nuptials, which we were honored to photograph.

The bride wanted an elegant, vintage feel, so she opted for a color scheme of frothy creams and rich golds to complement the beautiful murals in St. Mary’s church, and the antique harp chandeliers in the Hibernian Hall, where the reception was held.  Heather also incorporated a gold harp icon on her invitations and programs to showcase the history of the wedding venues, as well as the groom’s Irish heritage.  Cream bouquets popped against the bridesmaids’ black Jenny Yoo dresses. Each side of the wedding party was transported to the church - and taken on a trip back through time - on old Charleston trolley cars.

To create a romantic, simple scene that wouldn’t compete with the architecture of the reception hall, mismatched black lanterns in varying sizes were placed on the steps of the Hibernian, and flickered in the calm, night air as guests began to enter the gold gates featuring the same iconic harp. Inside the candlelit hall tables were dressed in ivory table cloths and gold runners topped with simple bouquets of ivory garden rose, ivory lisianthus, anenomies, white ranunculas, white tulips, touches of freesia and snow on the mountain. Glowing antique silver candelabras lined the head table.

To keep with the vintage theme of the evening, Heather hired a great band fluent in Rat Pack tunes, (The Joe Clarke Quartet) who sang Frank Sinatra’s “Ain’t That a Kick in the Head” for the bride and groom’s first dance. It was two members of Heather’s family who stole the show at the reception; After an endearingly hilarious speech, the bride’s sister and Maid of Honor, Somer Bingham, played her guitar and sang a song entitled ‘Real Estate Love’ (the groom is a real estate agent; the bride, an accountant), which she had written for the couple on the plane ride from New York to Charleston, and which had the entire room roaring with laughter.  A tough act to follow, the only encore that would do was the bride’s 89-year old grandfather, better known as “Pop,” taking the stage to sing ‘I Left My Heart in San Francisco,’ just as he had 37 years prior at the bride’s parents’ wedding.

The party culminated with the colorful wedding party, including the bride in an exquisite Monique Lhuillier gown, double-dutch dancing on the dance floor. To send her guests off in style, Heather baked homemade toffee favors that she wrapped in clear cellophane with a gold embossed “K” (the bride embossed each one individually).  A final treat, was the bride’s arranging for a hot dog vendor to set up just outside the Hibernian Hall doors to serve guests late night chili dogs as they departed. To say that everyone loved it would be a gross understatement! Congrats to Mr. and Mrs. Koepenick and thank you bridesmaid Stephanie Ballard for doing most of the research and writing for this entry!

Click here to watch our slide show of the day.

Vendors:
Catering: Hamby Catering
Ceremony Invitations: Out of Hand
Coordinator: Melissa Murray/Viola Events
Floral Design & Decor: Out of Hand
Groomsmen’s Barber Shop: Old South Barber Spa
Hair and Make Up: Tasha Mattox
Reception Music: The Joe Clarke Quartet
Table Numbers: Etsy- ilLUMIEnate
Trolley service: Absolutely Charleston
Wedding Cake: The Cake Stand

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