Destination weddings are SO much fun, but they can also be a lot of work and stress. Planning far away from the location you will tie the knot is a little extra work, but I have some tips below that will make life easier and the end result so worth it!

1. Hire a planner: A planner will save you in so many ways. Stress, time, money, number of trips to your venue, and more. The value of a planner is a post for another day, but in regards to your destination wedding, a planner will be able to plan your entire wedding with ease allowing you to only deal with the fun decisions (like tasting cake!).

2. Plan ahead: Popular locations like Charleston are in high demand. Even if you aren’t ready to make the detail decisions (what your centerpieces will look like, what to serve for supper, etc.), go ahead and book your venue and vendors. This will get you on everyone’s calendars in advance and you can figure out the nitty gritty later.

3. Plan a trip: This isn’t always feasible especially if you are going to an international destination, but if you are able, planning a trip to your venue before the big day is a must. You can talk to the locals, host all of your appointments in a few days (think cake tasting, menu tasting, floral mock ups, planning meetings), and begin to picture how it will all come together. If you aren’t able to go in person, this is where a planner can also come in handy. For our destination brides, we have video calls, send pictures and videos of anything and everything, and fill you in on the details.

4. Create a wedding website: Every wedding can benefit from a wedding website, but with destination weddings, it is key to a great guest experience. Your guests need detailed information on hotels, transportation, flights, the weekend schedule, places to visit and more. Here at LPE, we find that our out of state or international guests will often not only visit for the wedding weekend, but also stay for an extended period of time. With the mountains and beach a short drive away, it is the perfect excuse to see all that North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and beyond has to offer!

5. Host multiple events: I know what you are thinking. But hear me out. There is so much stress, high expectations, and overwhelm surrounding the wedding day. It’s your one shot to get it right and have all of your family and friends in the same place. But if you host multiple events (think casual brunch, fun welcome party, etc.) you will have time to actually relax and enjoy your family and friends. Hosting all of these events at the same resort or in the same close vicinity to your wedding will make things easier when it comes to planning. And, of course, your planner will make all of this a breeze!

Do you have any great destination wedding tips? I would love to hear them! Share in the comments below and happy planning!

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Leigh Pearce is the owner and creative director of Leigh Pearce Events, a boutique wedding planning and design company specializing in luxury weddings and highly personalized events. LPE is based in Greensboro, NC, and serves Greensboro, Winston-Salem, High Point, Raleigh, Chapel Hill, Durham, Asheville, Wilmington, and the rest of North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and destinations beyond with impeccable and exclusive wedding experiences. Connect with Leigh today at 336-552-5645 or [email protected] about your special event.

What a fun treat to see Olivia and Scott’s lovely Summerfield Farms wedding on Carats and Cake today. Hop over to see the feature here!

Photo: Anna Paschal Photography

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Leigh Pearce is the owner and creative director of Leigh Pearce Events, a boutique wedding planning and design company specializing in luxury weddings and highly personalized events. LPE is based in Greensboro, NC, and serves Greensboro, Winston-Salem, High Point, Raleigh, Chapel Hill, Durham, Asheville, Wilmington, and the rest of North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and destinations beyond with impeccable and exclusive wedding experiences. Connect with Leigh today at 336-552-5645 or [email protected] about your special event.

Couples like Brooke and Jordan are why we do what we do. These two are the kindest and most genuine people you could ever meet and I’m so grateful to now call them friends! I simply can’t say enough great things about our planning experience and their amazing wedding day. February weddings in North Carolina can be a little nerve wracking – hello ice storms – and we were blessed with the most beautiful, sunny day in Winston-Salem at Tanglewood and Winmock at Kinderton!  I’ve shared some of my favorite details from their wedding day .. you’re going to LOVE our floral (or should I say greenery?) design from Green Bee Floral Designs. And of course, I’ve shared some of my favorite portraits from sweet Megan Travis!

Brooke and I chatted a lot about her color palette to find the perfect balance to compliment our relaxed yet elegant design. We settled on the most lovely combination of creamy white, wood touches, ample amounts of greenery, and tiny pops of burgundy, wine, and deep red.

Brooke and I worked with Marianne at Chic Paper Chick to create this stunner of an invitation. The touches of greenery and pops of red tied in beautiful with our floral designs and the kraft paper envelopes nodded to the abundance of wood in our design and venues.  One thing you may notice.. this invitation is actually for the reception! Brooke and Jordan opted for a small ceremony with only close family and friends. I loved how relaxed and easy this made the earlier part of the day for them. It was truly stress free! If you are interested in doing this for your own wedding: on the invitation side of things, I simply added an enclosure card for the ceremony guests. Easy peasy!

Brooke, Jordan and their families started the day at Winmock for some relation and primping. I love the sweet details captured by Megan Travis. Jordan’s boutonniere by my dear friend, Jen with Green Bee, is one of my all time favorites!

Brooke’s bouquet is the only place we utilized flowers. Yup, you read that right. No flowers! Brooke loves greenery and a natural look when it comes to floral design. We decided that adding a few pops of blooms to her bouquet would make it extra special.. and the result was stunning! Brooke and Jordan opted not to have an official wedding party with bridesmaid and groomsmen. Instead, Brooke asked her closest girlfriends to wear the black dress of their choice and we had nosegays of greenery made for them to include in portraits.

Mount Pleasant Church at Tanglewood Park in Winston-Salem is one of my all time favorite ceremony spots. It is quaint, full of natural light, and the perfect blank slate for design. Green Bee Designs took my vision and design and created the most beautiful ceremony space full of mixed greenery, pops of cotton (a nod to Jordan’s family farm), and twinkling candlelight. It was like a dream! I love flowers more than anyone but this design was SO refreshing and still had the abundance and depth that flowers give. Green Bee knocked it out of the park per usual.

Hands down, my favorite photo from the entire day. I just love these two.

Want in on the hottest wedding trend of 2017? Puppies. All the puppies. One of Brooke’s friends brought the best surprises of the day.. Brooke and Jordan’s sweet pup, Oakley!

Winmock at Kinderton provided the perfect blank slate for the reception. We created the perfect party atmosphere with a comfortable, elegant design, killer tunes, and delicious food stations. My favorite elements were the cozy lounge from Old South Vintage Rentals, the stately wooden bar from Winmock, and the dripping greenery on the chandeliers.

Holly Tate created the most fun menu! It was important to Brooke and Jordan that their stations were tasty and laid back and Holly delivered per usual! At cocktail hour, we tray passed grilled bruschetta, spicy nacho bites, and spice rubbed shrimp cocktail skewers. Guests also warmed up with hot cinnamon spiced apple cider! Once dinner kicked off guests had their pick of a Mexican station (complete with make your own tacos, Southwestern Caeser salad, and grilled Mexican corn), a mac and cheese bar, and a slider station with a choice of beef, chicken, or crab cake sliders. Oh, and don’t forget the french fries! Lastly, because no wedding is complete without something to satisfy your sweet tooth, we offered guests a variety of doughnuts from Krispy Kreme! Maxie B’s created the sweetest *almost* naked cake that was just as delicious as it was beautiful.

A week or so before the wedding, Brooke texted me and said “I have no idea why I haven’t told you this yet.” I held my breath for a minute because who knows what was coming my way. But Brooke laid the best surprise on me! She had purchased a second dress to change into and it was the most beautiful BLACK floral dress. It was SO Brooke and the perfect dress for dancing and heading downtown post-wedding! I absolutely loved it!

Brooke and Jordan, thank you again for allowing my team and I to guide you through your wedding experience. We love you!!

Planning + Design: Leigh Pearce Events | Photography: Megan Travis Photography | Floral Design: Green Bee Floral Design | Ceremony Venue: Mount Pleasant Church at Tanglewood | Reception Venue: Winmock at Kinderton | Catering: Holly Tate Fine Catering | Cake: Maxie B’s | Rentals: Southern Event Rental | Lounge: Old South Vintage Rentals | Invitations + Day of Paper: Chic Paper Chick | Videography: One Love Productions | Hair + Makeup: Boha Salon | Ceremony Music + DJ: Kenneth Eller

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Leigh Pearce is the owner and creative director of Leigh Pearce Events, a boutique wedding planning and design company specializing in luxury weddings and highly personalized events. LPE is based in Greensboro, NC, and serves Greensboro, Winston-Salem, High Point, Raleigh, Chapel Hill, Durham, Asheville, Wilmington, and the rest of North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and destinations beyond with impeccable and exclusive wedding experiences. Connect with Leigh today at 336-552-5645 or [email protected] about your special event. 

Personalizing your wedding can be a daunting task. There are SO many options out there (I’m looking at you, Pinterest). I’ve shared some of my top tips below to jazz up your wedding from basic to oh-so-you. You’ll see that the overarching theme in all of my tips focus on one major thing: your relationship. Showing your personality translates best when it’s done in an authentic way.

Family Traditions:  This is a GREAT place to start when it comes to personalizing your big day. Chat with your parents and close family members about your family traditions. Perhaps all the women in your family have worn a certain piece of jewelry. Maybe you can share your favorite recipe with the caterer to incorporate into cocktail hour. The options are endless!

Don’t Be Trendy (Unless It Makes Sense): If you have never touched a mason jar in your life, you probably shouldn’t incorporate them into your place settings. Now, if you grew up canning veggies with your grandmother, then mason jars have a special place in your heart and make total sense for your design. Think through WHY you like what you like and translate it into something that fits with your personality.

Food + Beverage:  Sit down with your betrothed and make a list of all the significant meals you have had together. Think first date, engagement, your favorite Friday night spot, etc.  For example, if you eat burgers and fries every Friday night, then you should deffffnitley have sliders and pomme frites as your late night snack.  If you toasted your engagement with a bottle of your favorite prosecco, then incorporate some bubbles into your bar menu. This list will start to guide you in the right direction and showcase your personality and relationship.

Splurge a Little: I know it is tempting but you don’t HAVE to use all of the items your venue or caterer provides just because they are complimentary. Consider investing in vintage glassware, a textured linen, an upgraded chair.. anything to make your wedding look different than the other 50+ weddings taking place at your venue on any given year.  These small touches will make a world of difference and trust me, your guests will notice.

Music: Quite possibly the easiest way to give your wedding a bit of personality! If you aren’t restricted by your venue (sorry, church ladies), you can have SO much fun with your ceremony music. Youtube is a great research tool. You can typically find instrumental versions of your favorite tunes if you do a little digging.  I also highly recommend checking out artists like Vitamin String Quartet. They cover everything from George Strait to Guns ‘N Roses and everything in between.

Any other tips you can add? How did you incorporate YOUR personality into your own wedding? Share in the comments below!

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Leigh Pearce is the owner and creative director of Leigh Pearce Events, a boutique wedding planning and design company specializing in luxury weddings and highly personalized events. LPE is based in Greensboro, NC, and serves all of North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and destinations beyond with impeccable and exclusive wedding experiences. Connect with Leigh today at 336-552-5645 or leigh@leighpearceevents about your special event. 

First, let me preface this post by saying…..

If you are attending a wedding as a guest, please please please get the couple something off of their registry or send them a monetary gift. You think a handmade scrapbook sounds like a great idea, but trust me. The couple would much rather have the china they registered for or some extra cash to spend on the house they just bought.

One of the most popular questions that clients or parents asks me is this:

“What should I get my significant other/parent/daughter/son as a wedding present?
I want it to be unique and special.”

Seems like a tall order but I have the *perfect* solution to this quandary.

The perfect wedding gift is … drum roll please … artwork!

A commissioned piece of art is truly something special and unique. It becomes an instant heirloom and holds a great deal of sentimental value. All great things when it comes to wedding presents. I’ve rounded up some of my favorite wedding artists and ideas so you can gift the special person in your life with the *perfect* wedding gift!

1. Bouquet:  Lauren Skunta is my wedding design crush. She creates the most amazing custom installations for weddings across the nation and recently has added bouquet artwork to her repertoire. She offers custom sketches and paintings of wedding bouquets that are to die for. You could gift the bride-to-be with a beautiful card to let her know that post-wedding, a commissioned painting of her blooms will be headed her way.

Check out Lauren’s work here.

2. Venue: I took my own advice on this one! For my own wedding, I commissioned a watercolor of our venue from sweet Laurie Duncan of Carolina Delight. I had two high quality prints made for my mom and Bryan’s parents and have the original on display in our home. I was so pleased with the result!

Check out Laurie’s work here.

3. The Couple: An art piece doesn’t have to be what is traditionally done – painting, sketch, etc. Depending on your style, a cool custom graphic design may be just what you are looking for. I love Miss Design Berry for this. They create the most amazing custom prints, guest books, you name it. I have even commissioned a custom snap chat filter from them!

Check out Miss Design Berry’s work here.

4. Vows: This one is on my wish list. Jessica Peddicord is the most amazing watercolor artist and can seriously do an.yyy.thinggg. In addition to offering custom invitations and work, she creates the beautiful watercolor vows you see here. These would also make the *perfect* first anniversary gift (hint, hint husband of mine: year one is paper!).

Check out Jessica’s work here.

(Photo by Callie of Nancy Ray Photography)

5. Live Artist: Hiring a live artist to paint a scene from your wedding, on site, would be SO fun. Not only do you reap the benefits of receiving a beautiful piece of art to place in your home, but you also offer something interesting and different for your guests to observe during the ceremony or reception. Southern couples, one of my favorite artists for hire is Ben with Wed On Canvas. I love his style and, bonus, he can also make your painting into beautiful note cards and prints if you want to share the love!

Check out Ben’s work here.

So, what do you think? Do you agree that artwork is the *perfect* wedding gift? I would love to hear some of your favorite ideas too. Share in the comments below!

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Leigh Pearce is the owner and creative director of Leigh Pearce Events, a boutique planning and design company specializing in luxury weddings and highly personalized events. LPE is based in Greensboro, NC, and serves all of North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and destinations beyond with impeccable and exclusive wedding experiences. Connect with Leigh today at 336-552-5645 or leigh@leighpearceevents about your special event. 

I absolutely adore this sweet family! Brooke’s parents, Jenny and Doug, were so sweet to share some kind words with me after the wedding day:

Special Day. We just wanted to thank Leigh for making it just that – a very special day for our daughter and her new husband. We know Leigh is in high demand and does weddings almost every week, but last weekend was the only one Brooke & Jordan, and all of our family, will ever experience. And we appreciate everything Leigh and her group did to make it both unique and exclusive – as if it was a once in a lifetime event for her as well! Could not have been more perfect.

Brooke + Jordan with Brooke’s parents on wedding day!

Megan Travis Photography

When I made the brand shift from Leigh Pearce Weddings to Leigh Pearce Events, it was because of my heart for events like Friendsgiving. Weddings are our soul at LPE, but corporate, social, and non-profit events are our heart.

Last fall, I worked with The Friends of Greensboro Downtown Parks to plan a Friendsgiving Feast in Center City Park and LeBauer Park. The committee and I worked together to create a festive evening with a progressive dinner, fabulous per usual thanks to 1618 On Location, celebrating the 10th anniversary of Center City and the launch of the much awaited, LeBauer Park. The proceeds raised from this event benefited free community programming in these two parks.

If you are interested in partnering with Leigh Pearce Events on your Greensboro, Winston-Salem, or High Point event, please contact us at 336-552-5645 or [email protected].

Production: Leigh Pearce Events | Photography: Lynn Donovan | Location: Center City Park + Lebauer Park | Rentals: The Prettiest Pieces + Southern Event Rental | Catering: 1618 On Location