Quirky vintage food truck wedding filled with personal details

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Now here’s a wedding story I can relate to: bride & groom rent a beach house for all their friends to stay & party in for a weekend wedding bash. Not to mention, this eclectic DIY wedding is in one of my favorite places: in the coastal lowcountry of South Carolina.

Diana & Jake rented their wedding weekend villa on Hilton Head Island, a dreamy South Carolina getaway that Bride Diana spent much of her childhood visiting. Inviting a small group of close family and friends, the couple were able to throw the entire party – ceremony and reception – at their vacation rental, creating a truly personal backyard bash.

And the intimate time spent with family & friends wasn’t the only personal detail, the couple inserted so many DIY details that border total professional craft. For instance, the macrame ceremony backdrop (and matching table runners) have us begging Diana to open an Etsy store.

Our Love Story

I (Diana) happened to sit next to a young woman my age on a flight. We started chatting and ended up swapping numbers because we both were new to Nashville and who doesn’t want new friends?! My new friend, Alex, met up with me at a bar and brought some friends with her; one of them being Jake! Jake and I ended up being fast friends. After a year and a half of close friendship, we both realized we were in love and lived happily ever after!

We knew we wanted to get married so for my birthday in January, we both went looking for rings and after not finding what I was looking for, we ended up designing it together through a local jeweler. The ring took a few months to complete and I was anxiously awaiting the day I could see it in person. One day, Jake came home from work a little late. I was in our bed just scrolling through social media when I noticed he had laid a card down next to me. It was the first card I had given to him for his birthday when we were just friends. He kept the card all this time and wrote a little note in it saying something along the lines of “after you gave me this card, I knew there was something special between us. Will you marry me?” Then when I put down the card, he was there with the ring box open. It was so sweet, intimate and special.

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The Venue & Style

Jake and I knew we didn’t want a huge wedding. My parents had invited us and Jake’s parents to Hilton Head Island in South Carolina for a weeks vacation. I practically grew up in Hilton Head, going there one to two, sometimes three times a year with my family. It is a place that is very near and dear to me. Jake and I decided we wanted to just rent a huge house on the beach and invite our friends to stay with us at the house where we would hold the small ceremony and reception in the backyard. Best. Decision. Ever.

My minimalistic bohemian vision for our wedding came from my love of macrame. I had recently taught myself and was obsessed. I made all of the table runners and my ceremony backdrop myself. Add a touch of green with the eucalyptus and my vision was complete!

The Dress & Attire

I love telling the story about how I found my dress! I had a picture of this gorgeous a-line gown with an embroidered bodice and flowy bell sleeves. I just kept it in my phone for inspiration, not thinking I would get that exact one. When the day came that I needed to start looking for a dress, I remembered THE dress in my phone. I knew the designer, Rebecca Schoneveld, was out of Brooklyn, so I emailed and asked if they could just take my measurements and ship it to me. (Risky, I know!) But then I got an email from Heather at The Bridal Parlour, which is only forty minutes from my house, saying she had that exact dress in her shop and would be having a Rebecca Schoneveld trunk show that weekend! I quickly made an appointment, went by myself and tried on my wedding gown and zero others. I KNEW it was the one. Oh! And because of the trunk show, it was fifteen percent off!

As for Jake, he wanted a blue suit and floral tie. We knew of this local men’s tie designer, Lonesome Traveler, from a Missouri festival we had attended. Jake already had one of her handmade tie clips. I reached out to Jenny and she has this awesome package where you can meet her at a fabric shop and you can design your wedding look with her. We knew we needed a pattern that would go nicely with Jakes blue suit and our Dad’s grey suits. We also knew we wanted some green in there to go with the Mom outfits. Jake actually picked out the perfect fabric and they were a hit!

The Flowers

My flowers were very simple with all greenery. I told Tracy from Flowers by Freshcuts that I wanted eucalyptus to be the main with an accent of Spanish moss, and she killed it! I don’t know anything about flowers or plants so I couldn’t tell you what all was in my bouquet or on my altar but I know it looked light, airy, bohemian and whimsical.

The Photography

My new sister in law, Kara of Kara Quinn Photography, was our photographer and it was SO much fun and special getting to shoot with her and her second photographer, Erin of Erinrenphoto. Jake even said that was his favorite part of the day!

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DIY Details

I made all of the macrame table runners and the backdrop for the altar. All of the runners were different patterns and I currently use two of them in my home.

I also made a wreath for the front door of the rented home that has the first letters of our first names on it, along with eucalyptus and a string of lights. That also now hangs on the front door of our new home.

I knew I wanted a rug in front of the altar to add to the bohemian look and I found this outdoor area rug that has the most gorgeous coral, blues and greens in it. That is also now in the living room of our hone.

Wedding pictures are wonderful to have around the home, but it is very special to see some of the memorabilia be used again.

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Favorite Moments

Just minutes before starting the ceremony thunder was rumbling in the distance and the clouds were getting darker and darker. I really wanted the ceremony to be outside, so bless my planner Aimee for getting my guests in their seats as quickly as possible. During the whole ceremony, there were strong thunder rumbles and it was SO cool! It just added intensity and drama to the whole experience.

I am originally from West Virginia, as are some of my family and friends and the last song of the night to be Country Roads by John Denver. Once that song came on, everyone came to the front grand staircase and started singing Country Roads. It was so special, I teared up just looking at everyone there that traveled to celebrate Jake and I.

Jake’s favorite moment was when we decided to take a group photo with all of our friends and spray champagne all over the place. It made for my favorite photo ever, which is still the background of my phone. So much happiness! After most of our family returned to their hotel, our friends (who stayed in the house with us), jumped in the pool and we just drank champagne and had SO much fun for the rest of the night.

Family Heirlooms

Jake’s wedding ring was his grandfather’s, which is very special to him. He also wore his grandfather’s watch.

I am named after my Grandma Dorothy (my middle name), and my family will say I take after her a lot. I remembered I had this small, dainty necklace that said Dorothy on it and just knew I had to wear that on my wedding day. We had it cleaned up and put on a new chain and I still wear it every day.

The bus we used to transport our guests to and from the hotel was from Low Country Valet and the bus was named Dorothy! We just had to have it and that coincidence just solidified that my Grandma was with us.

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The Favors

I knew we would be having an indoor and outdoor wedding in the middle of August in SC, so I ordered some really pretty hand-carved balsam wood fans for people to use. I stuck them in the gift bags for guests at the hotel and for our friends staying in the house; along with some other HHI goodies such as magnets, postcards, a map of the area and things to do and see.

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Advice to Other Couples

Don’t be afraid to be you and make YOUR wedding the way YOU want it. You don’t have to follow any “norms”. Have the party you’ve always wanted! Also, hiring a planner is so totally worth it, especially for a destination wedding. Aimee was amazing all the days leading up to the wedding and ran things so smoothly the entire night.