I am itching to share so much more from this remarkably stunning and utterly magical wedding day for Caroline & John this past summer at the gorgeous Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina. For now, I’m excited to share some beautiful film images, design details, inspiration, and the “why” behind their seating chart and much of their day-of signage and stationery details, as it’s incredibly memorable and personalized to them and their love story.

One of my very favorite details from Carolina and John‘s wedding was incorporating their love of travel into so many details of their wedding day and the overall wedding design. They have both lived in and traveled to dozens of countries over the last few years, and travel is a huge part of who they are. More than having beautiful details for the sake of just beauty, I always strive to incorporate meaningful, unique, personalized details that showcase each couple, their love story, and what’s most important to them. These little details make such a lasting impression and give their guests an even deeper peek into who they are, both individually and as a couple. I couldn’t have loved these specific details more!

John’s mom, of Cheryl Healy Fine Art, is an incredibly talented artist, and she lovingly painted and watercolored twenty locations that are a significant part of Caroline and John’s love story and are meaningful to them. In addition to the travel locations, she also painted magnolia leaves that graced their ceremony programs and their welcome box gift tags. The paintings are all breathtaking and deeply special, and I can only imagine the amount of love that went into each and every detailed painting. From Chapel Hill to Oxford to Prague to Malaysia – and everywhere in between – John’s mom Cheryl (whom I have known and loved for two decades!) watercolored such stunning, bespoke paintings for them. 

Then we had Ivy & Linen Design put together and design bespoke table numbers, details cards, and their seating chart display cards so that every guest table was a different location. On each table number, Caroline and John included a paragraph on the back of why and how that location was important to them, which allowed their guests to get to know them even better and share a deeper peek into who these two are. Pairing all of these gorgeous watercolors and fun, insightful descriptions of twenty meaningful locations played a huge role in Caroline and John’s wedding design, and it was marvelous seeing it all come together so beautifully and so intentionally! Later in the evening, we even repurposed the seating chart backdrop to include all of the back sides of the table numbers with the location descriptions in one central place so that all of their guests could easily view and read through the twenty locations and its significance. 

Dreaming up this seating chart display was so fun and layered, and seeing it come to life was even better – even if it does take a lot of precise measuring to make it perfectly aligned and symmetrical on the wedding day! We incorporated the lyrics from “Sweet Caroline” in calligraphy on fabric at the very top of the seating chart as a cheeky nod to the bride, Caroline. This song, which begins “where it began, I can’t begin to knowing…” was the perfect way to tie in the love of travel that’s played a huge role in their relationship and was also the song of the night and the last song at their reception! We even had a “Sweet Caroline” signature cocktail to keep everything cohesive and personalized. These little details really can come together harmoniously to make such a memorable and meaningful statement!

Photography: Olivia Suriano

Planning, design, & styling: Stephanie Shaul Events

Florals & backdrop: New Creations Flowers

Venue: Quail Hollow Club

Paintings: Cheryl Healy Fine Art

Stationery & signage: Ivy & Linen Design

A huge thank you to each of these wonderful talents who came together to make these gorgeous, meaningful details happen. It’s such a collaborative effort to bring countless little details together both seamlessly and exquisitely, and I am always in such awe to see it come to life so perfectly for the sweetest couple around!