A Pineapple Post by
Penni the Pineapple from the Peninsula of Charleston
Pineapple Greetings! I am Penni the Pineapple from the Peninsula….
The peninsula of Charleston that is! Welcome to our new website and our new blog. This is where I carry on about behind the scene snippets, the exciting excursions of Charleston Carry and a little about the two sisters that started this little side hustle.
It seems fitting to kick things off by sharing their story in a bit more detail of how Charleston Carry came to be and why they chose to name the blog Gracious Goodness. With this blog, I not only look forward to sharing with you what Kathie and Karen, (otherwise known as the CC sisters) are up to, but also sharing exciting news about their collaborations with some of their favorite makers and mentors. I will also share special stories that cross their path and specifically speak to the Charleston Carry mantra – so lets carry on!
be gracious, be graceful, be grateful.
As the story goes - Charleston Carry™ started as pure and unexpected as a simple sketch of a wedding purse design for a “Sweetgrass & Seersucker Wedding” in the Lowcountry.
The first sister unfortunately never found the perfect wedding purse to reflect her Island wedding. She was married on a barrier island at the foot of the oldest light house in North Carolina at Bald Head Island, which ultimately inspired the "Aisle to Isle" Wedding Purse "Island I Do”
By the time a date was set for the second sister’s wedding they were both knee deep in sketches of wedding purse designs. This Bride wanted to capture the beauty and heritage of the Lowcountry and Charleston proper (her fiancé’s birthplace), while also including her love of all things Southern. She chose sweetgrass to represent the heritage of Charleston and her groom and married this sweet detail to her love of seersucker, linen and pearls. The petite Southern purses were also hand stitched for the bride’s flower girls that she affectionately referred to as her Wedding Belles. This design ultimately inspired “The Elsa Belle” after their 11 year old niece, Elsa. Yes! Really! Her name is Elsa, as in BF! Before Frozen…. But that is a story this pineapple will share with you on another day. (I’m actually a bit partial to the sidekick snowman)
The next quest for the designing duo - finding authentic sweetgrass artisans at the famous “Charleston City Market” and along the “Sweetgrass Corridor” of Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina to sew with sweetgrass their sketched bangle design. (Penni post fact - did you know that sweetgrass baskets are often referred to as woven, but are actually sewn because they involve grass stitches)
The design collaboration ultimately developed into an heirloom quality reversible wedding purse that would gracefully accompany a Southern bride from the Wedding Aisle to the Honeymoon Isle of her dreams. The perfect name for this purse? The Aisle to Isle™ Heirloom Wedding Purse.
The design process quickly evolved, gathering local favor as The Original Southern Social Purse™ and officially launched on National Seersucker Day as Charleston Carry™.
The wedding that inspired the introduction of Charleston Carry was beautifully documented by Charleston Magazine’s The Wedding Row. You can imagine how exciting it was for them to see the wedding featured. You can take a peek here - http://theweddingrow.com/kathie-adam-palmetto-bluff/ The beautiful wedding photography is by Ashley Seawell. She is as sweet as she is talented and you can find out more about Ashley here-https://ashleyseawellphotography.com/#/
When Kathie recalls her wedding day, she remembers vividly the beauty of the bright white chapel against the lush green marsh, the special time shared with her Belles getting ready in the waterfront cottage, and watching them play on the lawn during the pre-wedding photography session. She especially recalls the sweet intimate moments shared with her groom right before the ceremony overlooking the May River.
Kathie and her groom wanted a small intimate waterfront chapel as the setting for their wedding. The chapel at Palmetto Bluff was perfect for the couple since its design was actually inspired by a historic church on Edisto Island that has a personal connection to the groom’s family.
Following are a few candids that their families snapped throughout the day.
Karen started this sweet shoe wishes tradition with her island wedding and the wedding belles were excited to continue the sister tradition of writing sweet shoe wishes on Kathie’s wedding shoes.
The Wedding Belles especially favored their hand made seersucker sashes embroidered with each Belle’s monogram.
It seemed every detail worked out effortlessly. Even the hot & humid August day was no match for her wedding planners, Sage and Ashley, as they cleverly provided a refreshing lemonade bar for guests on the lawn of the chapel during photographs following the ceremony.
The Bride & Groom's families were able to gather for the weekend in many of the quaint cottages in walking distance to the chapel. They made wedding pennants that said “Let's Eat Cake” for each of the Wedding Belles to carry. A violinist from Palmetto Strings lead the wedding party and guests on a stroll from the chapel through the neighborhood to the cottage where the reception was held.
The CC sisters version of a Lowcountry Gift Table was a festooned bicycle ( a recent birthday gift from the groom) parked on the porch at the entrance of the reception as if the gifts had just been delivered. The bike offered a whimsical gathering spot for wedding gifts flowing out of the bike’s saddle bag satchels.
On to the reception! To be continued ….
We hope you enjoyed our first “Pineapple Post" and this behind the scenes glimpse on how a simple wedding started Charleston Carry.
Hurry back next time when I carry on about the reception…. I can’t believe they actually served Pineapple!
Carry Kindly & Pineapple Love,
Penni
