On Tuesday, December 6, hundreds of southern tastemakers and top event professionals made their way to Charleston for PartySlate’s “Fêter En Blanc Seaside” at the historic Festival Hall. Event planner for the affair, Tori Perano of Passera Events, shares, “The theme means ‘celebrate in white seaside.’ We incorporated French garden vibes with the coastal elegance of Charleston for a unique celebration.”
Festival Hall provided the perfect setting for the gathering, with its garden courtyard and sprawling main hall which is large and versatile enough to accommodate any theme, like this single-hued celebration. Perano notes that even guests were encouraged to don white for the party for a more immersive monochromatic experience — and also to “create that winter wonderland feel.”
A Glimpse of the Evening to Come
Guests were invited to PartySlate’s Charleston celebration via a luxe digital invitation, custom-designed for the gathering by The Luxe & Co.. The rental company offered a nod to the gathering’s theme with a beautifully understated, yet chic, composition that included the pale blue accent hue as well as botanical line prints that hinted at the garden inspiration.
The team also designed the party’s printed materials which directed guests and honored event partners.
Design: Southern Charm Mixed With European Style
Guests entered the soirée through Festival Hall’s dreamy Outdoor Courtyard which was outfitted with string lights hung amid the palms and other vegetation. The venue’s greenery wall offered the perfect backdrop for a PartySlate branding moment with gold letters framed by lush florals.
Jessie Johnson of Willow Event Designs, the talented décor team behind the event’s vision, says, “When we were finalizing the design for this party, our big focus was that it was going to be a winter-white party, at the seaside. Charleston has pretty mild weather, so we wanted to do a touch of ice blue to bring that winter feel. Since most white-hued parties are in the summer with people outside wearing white, we just decided to mix in this icy blue.”
She adds of the inspired floral selection, “One of my favorite parts of my job is ordering flowers. I just recently started ordering from a company from Holland, and I found these tulips called “frosted blue.” They were absolutely perfect for this event; they look like they are frosted just at the tips, which literally makes them look like they are covered with snow.
“The other flowers I’m excited about are paperwhites. I just love how dainty they are. I’m just obsessed with any kind of soft-stemmed flower that has a lot of character. Our floral designs are very whimsical and organic, and we like to do every event a little differently, so I think that is what is challenging and fun — that I get to always look for something that I don’t see every day.”
Once in the Main Hall, partygoers were greeted by a unique Champagne wall from the creatives at The Luxe & Co: a lion’s head fountain surrounded by a lattice of vines, French-style light blue and white tiles, and tulips and paperwhites. Guests only needed to ring one of the chic white bells for a hand to emerge between a circle of sheer curtains with a glass of bubbly from Squeeze Cocktails & Beverage Catering.
Upon entry, guests were wowed by the pale blue and white draping from LIT Charleston that extended from the 28-foot ceilings to fully enclose the space, creating an immersive environment and all-encompassing color story. The team also devised a lighting scheme that included icicle-like strands of string lights, specially curated gold drum pendants, pastel-hued uplights, and a roaming spotlight.
The design team used the inspired florals throughout the space. A trio of floating rings of greenery and upended floral chandeliers drew eyes upward where, from the towering ceilings, hung more than 600 white paper cranes.
Stacked marquee letters from Alpha Lit Charleston spelled out PartySlate in a spot perfect for snapping pics. Curated Events Charleston filled out the space with high-tops outfitted with luxe linen from Stradley Davidson, gorgeous light wood-framed lounge furniture with fluffy white cushions, and brass touches galore — from unique circular shelving to glass-topped cocktail tables. They ensured that guests had lots of places to relax and reconnect.
Johnson shares of her experience curating the special soirée: “Working with Tori is just amazing. When we put our heads together, we are just a force to be reckoned with. It makes such a difference when your team is all on the same page.”
Entertainment: A Mix of Musical Styles & a Snow Globe Surprise
Guests were entertained upon entry by the musical talents of a duo from EastCoast Entertainment, called The Rising Tide, playing guitar and keyboard. They set a festive atmosphere from the very beginning for partygoers reveling in the mild outdoor setting.
Once inside the glamorous gathering, guests flocked to the light-wood herringbone dance floor from Curated Events Charleston, who did the swanky staging as well. EastCoast Entertainment band, Tru Sol, played an epic selection of musical styles, imbuing each one with an energy and passion — from country and classic R&B to pop — that had guests clamoring for more.
And in a bit of interactive entertainment that appeared all over Instagram that night, Elevate provided a ballerina clad in white and silver who pirouetted in a bubble. Paper snow blew around the graceful dancer in the orb — a winter snow globe beautifully brought to life.
A screen to the side of the stage provided by Production Design Associates showcased PartySlate’s sleek event professional and venue profiles that are optimized to guide consumers through choosing their vendor team.
Fresh Fare: French-Inspired Lowcountry Cuisine
PartySlate’s catering partner for our Fêter En Blanc was none other than Rosemary & Rye Catering. The team cooked up a variety of tray-passed hors d’oeuvres and speciality stations that paid homage to the theme.
Passed bites included Lowcountry croquettes with smoked sausage, shrimp, red potatoes, and corn, gratinéed French onion soup served in demitasse cups, and endive stuffed with beets, gorgonzola, and hazelnuts. The soup was especially perfect for marrying the winter theme and French inspiration.
Of the composed stations, Rosemary & Rye’s Laurel Samuelson says, “We showcased braised short ribs with a traditional raclette.” The live raclette station featured a half wheel of cheese that was heated then scraped onto crispy French (of course) bread. Samuelson adds, “This was heavily influenced by our trip to Paris and their Christmas markets. The dish was inspired by being out in the cold and having mulled wine and visiting different shops — then the short rib adds Lowcountry flair and southern charm to the dish.”
In fact, the menu included several Lowcountry cuisine moments. Samuelson says, “Our shrimp and grits station offered two of our classic gravies — tomato gravy and tasso ham cream gravy with our Edisto Island grits, a local favorite. We added a crepe station in a nod to French cuisine, but infused southern flair with a pecan pie filling.” To add a savory option, guests could also get a crepe featuring the southern classic, pimento cheese.
Partygoers enjoyed the picturesque cuisine served on equally-beautiful delicate china that featured a pale blue botanical print on an alabaster background from Curated Events Charleston. The serve-ware was another design moment that tied back to the elegant French theme.
Alongside the delectable fare, attendees enjoyed curated cocktails by Squeeze Cocktails & Beverage Catering. A signature bar featured a sip called the “Smoke Show” with tequila, chartreuse, cynar, lemon juice, and sugar that was topped by a dramatic (and aromatic) smoke bubble. Another bar, a vision in white wood and brass from Curated Events (who provided both beautiful bars), offered Prosecco with pomegranate arils and rosemary sprigs and warm spiced apple cider, in addition to custom orders. Once again, MY DRAP offered tailor-made cotton PartySlate napkins to elevate the aesthetic.
All of the Memories Made (& Captured)
It was an evening worth remembering. We were lucky enough to have a duel-photography/videography team to beautifully capture the soirée, Katherine and Tyler Wedding Imagery + Films. They shot gorgeous candid pictures of guests interacting and having fun — as well as moving images that told the story of the celebration with a video that will remind the hundreds of guests of their good time (and will make those who weren’t there, wish they were).
Another memory-maker, Lowcountry Photo Booth, allowed partygoers the opportunity to select the type of memory they wanted to capture: still image, .gif, or short video. Plus, guests could utilize the white backdrop and add digital snowfall for a more seasonal mood.
And More Thanks
Producing a beautiful celebration — like PartySlate’s French seaside winter-inspired Charleston gathering — requires a talented team of partners. In addition to the vendors listed above, we also want to thank Silhouette On Site for our party-ready hair and for makeup that was picture-perfect. They made sure that our PartySlate team looked (and felt) our absolute best.
We also want to express our gratitude to Hotel Bennett. The luxury hotel provided the PartySlate team with elegant surroundings (not to mention the magical holiday décor!) for our Charleston stay.
The talented vendors who made this event happen:
photographer & videographer: Katherine and Tyler Wedding Imagery + Films
venue: Festival Hall
planner & design: Passera Events
design & floral: Willow Event Designs
caterer: Rosemary & Rye Catering
bar & cocktails: Squeeze Cocktails & Beverage Catering
entertainment: EastCoast Entertainment
rentals, staging & dance floor: Curated Events Charleston
draping & lighting: LIT Charleston
Champagne wall & invitations: The Luxe & Co
linen: STRADLEY DAVIDSON
interactive entertainment: Elevate
marquee letters: Alpha-lit Charleston
photobooth: Lowcountry Photo Booth
hair & makeup: Silhouette On Site
screen: Production Design Associates
custom napkins: MY DRAP
hotel partner: Hotel Bennett