June 30, 2010

Wedding Wednesdays: Part II - Wedding Wednesday Giveaway

It's hard to believe that two months has passed and we've posted 17 Wedding Wednesdays posts here on ClemsonGirl.com. We have had so much fun reading about how our readers fell in love at Clemson or how they made Clemson a very special part of their wedding day.

And of course...the photos! The amazing engagement sessions on Clemson's campus...and the gorgeous wedding photos, wedding dresses, etc., etc. etc.,...again a big thanks to all of the couples and photographers who shared their stories and photos.

So we're sad to say that with the end of June brings the end of Wedding Wednesdays...for now. But now that it's July..which I'm still wondering how this year has flown by so quickly...we will be gearing up for football season (our fave time of year) with lots of fun new things planned for the blog.

But in honor of Wedding Wednesdays, we wanted to do one last giveaway. One of our fave posts from a past Wedding Wednesday was Maggie and Jonathon's Clemson wedding. We really loved the fact that they used the book "There's Something in These Hills" as their guestbook at their reception.

We liked the idea so much that we decided to give the book away to a lucky Clemson Girl reader!

To enter, comment on this post and tell us what you loved most about Wedding Wednesdays on ClemsonGirl.com. Also include your first name and last initial and where you're from. Mention you are an official blog follower (see blog followers list in right column below our tweets) and get an extra entry!

Deadline to enter is noon on Friday, July 2nd. We'll randomly draw and announce the winner Friday afternoon on the blog.

Good Luck!

Share

Wedding Wednesdays: Part I - Emily & Eric's Clemson Love Story

Happy Wedding Wednesday! I'd like you to meet Emily and Eric. Emily is a 2007 Clemson grad with a degree in finance. Eric graduated from Clemson in 2007 with a degree in Computer Science and he's also obtained his Masters from UNC Chapel Hill in 2009.


In true Clemson love story fashion, Emily and Eric met one night the summer before their senior year while playing Capture the Flag with FCA on Clemson's campus. After the game finished, Emily found a hat by the Carillon Garden bell. So the next day Emily sent out an email to the FCA group to see if someone would claim the hat. Eric replied that it was his hat and came over to Emily's apartment to pick it up. They started talking and realized they had a lot in common. Soon after they began regularly hanging out and eventually started dating.

What a sweet story! I think they need to hold on to that hat... it brought them together.

The Proposal
Eric spent many long nights trying to think of the perfect way to surprise Emily with a Clemson proposal. He knew that a Clemson proposal would mean so much to Emily. The last weekend in March of 2008, Emily and Eric were on their way to Clemson so Emily could attend a friend's bridal shower. That night the couple went to dinner with some friends at Chili's Too on campus. After dinner, Eric's twin brother Keith suggested they all go play frisbee golf (one of Eric's fave hobbies). Emily was hesitant, but was convinced to play by all of their friends (who were in on the surprise).

The game was underway with the first throw being from Tillman Hall to the Carillon bell (where the hat was!). Eric's brother Keith threw first and purposely launched his frisbee in the wrong direction. Keith's wife then said, "We better split up!" So Eric and Emily walked over to the bell...once there, Eric proposed and Emily of course said, "YES!".

The Wedding
The couple decided to get married in Charlotte, NC since that was where they had started their post-college careers and where they would be starting their lives together. They were married on June 20th, 2009 at Providence United Methodist and had their reception at Providence County Country Club.

Emily told us, "I can remember feeling anxious and nervous right before the church doors opened... but as soon as they did and I saw Eric waiting for me, all I could feel was so incredibly happy and blessed!"


The reception was held in a large ballroom overlooking the golf course. It had a large dance floor which Emily said was perfect because they danced all night. Some of their friends had to remind the couple to eat because they kept dancing.




Emily included many DIY projects to cut down on costs. Her mom made the flower buckets that lined the aisle at the ceremony. And Emily along with her mother and godmother made all of the bridesmaids' and attendants' gifts. Emily's earrings were designed and made by Emily and her mom. And the programs were also a DIY project, made by Eric and Emily themselves.

Of course the couple included many Clemson traditions and special touches throughout their wedding. Eric played frisbee golf at Clemson (and UNC), so the groom's cake was a frisbee golf cake with the Clemson (and UNC) frisbee. Emily, of course, had a Clemson garter. And while Tiger Rag played at the reception, the couple and all of the Clemson alum guests took a traditional Clemson flag photo. Clemson will always hold a special place in this couple's hearts since that is where they met and fell in love.




Advice from the bride on planning a wedding:
"If you are on a budget, see what you can do yourself for less or get friends and family to help out - maybe someone has a great talent they can provide. Then you can spend money on the most important aspects to you. Make sure to enjoy the day to the fullest - it goes by so fast! Dance a lot, eat your reception food, and do whatever you want to do. Of course it is good to mingle around the room but don't worry about having to try to go talk to every single guest because I found that they would come to us as we were enjoying our food, the dance floor, or whatever event was going on. Finally, don't try to build a new house and plan a wedding at the same time if you can help it, it can make life very very busy!

I am so glad Emily contacted us and shared her beautiful engagement photos, wedding photos and amazing Clemson love story. I love how the couple incorporated Clemson into their wedding and made sure it was a part of their big day.

Thanks Emily & Eric! Here's to a long and happy marriage!

Share

June 25, 2010

24 Hour Giveaway - Clemson earrings giveaway winner!

Yesterday we posted a fun giveaway sponsored by Chloe Marie Designs - readers submitted creative (and Clemson inspired) names for this very spirited pair of earrings.

You ladies did not disappoint! We had over 40 comments with almost 100 Clemson-themed names...it was so fun to read all of your creative entries.

A little after the noon deadline, I emailed Chloe (owner of Chloe Marie Designs) all of the entries.

And after what she described as a very hard decision, she chose her two favorite names and hence winners of a pair of these earrings. And the winners are....

"CU in Omaha" submitted by Cammy L. from Bessemer City, NC

and...

"Clemson Orange Crush" submitted by Stacie Scott from Powdersville, SC

Congratulations ladies!! Email us to claim your prize!

Chloe Marie Designs has also decided that if the Clemson Tigers go all the way and win the College World Series, they will give a special surprise prize to...

Brenda Clark from Central, SC for her name entry "UndeBEADed Tigers".

Brenda, if the Clemson baseball team wins the CWS, make sure you email us to claim your prize!

Finally, Chloe wanted to leave a message for everyone for being so creative and for entering the giveaway:

Thank you fans of Clemson Girl!!! Ya’ll all have great names, which makes this a very hard decision. Please check back to Chloe Marie Designs.com to see if any of your names make the cut for future Clemson designs.
-Chloe Marie


And we want to thank Chloe Marie Designs for sponsoring such a fun giveaway with such a cute prize! Don't forget you can follow Chloe Marie Designs on Facebook as well.

So now that we're in the spirit, let's get ready to cheer on our Tigers tonight as they play in-state rivals USC to determine who moves on in the College World Series. Game starts at 9pm EST on ESPN2. CU in Omaha! :)

Share

June 24, 2010

24 Hour Giveaway - Name these Clemson earrings!

Good morning ladies and happy Thursday! It's almost the weekend, it's officially summer, and the Clemson Tigers are kicking you know what and taking names in the College World Series! Whoo hoo! So exciting...one more win and we're in the finals!

In honor of Clemson's big baseball win yesterday (nail biter as usual), Chloe Marie Designs would like to give away two pairs of these adorable Clemson earrings - made of purple jasper and orange shell. A Clemson alum herself, owner and jewelry designer extraordinaire Chloe creates perfect gameday jewelry to compliment your gameday outfits - you can find her on Facebook too.



Would you like to win a pair of these spirited Clemson earrings? All you have to do is comment on this blog and tell us what you would name these earrings. Try to make the name Clemson inspired. Make sure you also include your name (first and last initial) and your location.

You can enter up to three names in your entry.

Chloe will pick the best two names out of all of the entries and we'll announce the winners and the winning names tomorrow afternoon on the blog!

Deadline to enter is Noon tomorrow, Friday, June 25th.

So what are you waiting for? Let's see those names!


Share

June 23, 2010

Wedding Wednesdays: Part II - Jennifer & Chad's Clemson Wedding

You are going to love this Clemson wedding and all of the photos! There were so many photos I wanted to share, so I couldn't cut any out - hence the long post. But the scrolling is worth it, I promise! :)

Meet Jennifer and Chad - Clemson alums and lovers of all things Clemson. Jennifer, originally from Vidalia, GA, graduated from Clemson in 2007 with a degree in Graphic Communications. While at Clemson, she was an active member of the Gamma Phi Beta sorority. Even though she grew up a Georgia Bulldog fan, she is now a Clemson Tiger for life (which she says is due mainly in part to Chad).

Chad, originally from Westminster, SC, graduated from Clemson in 2006 with a degree in Environmental Geology. He loves going to Clemson football games.

Jennifer and Chad met in late April of 2004 at Los Bravos through a mutual friend. They started out as friends, but three weeks later they couldn't deny their feelings and Chad asked Jennifer to be his girlfriend. Jennifer says, "We have been best friends on a roller-coaster ride ever since."

The Proposal
Chad was determined to surprise Jennifer with the ring of her dreams, but first...like the perfect southern gentleman he is...he got the blessing of Jennifer's parents. After buying the ring, Chad could not wait to pop the question. He jumped in his car and drove 8 hours to Greenville to surprise Jennifer.

It was 10:40pm when Jennifer got a knock on the door - she looked through the peep hole but didn't see anyone so she didn't answer. Another knock soon followed. She slowly opened the door....and to her surprise, Chad was on one knee in front of her. Jennifer told us that he said, "Jennifer Lynn Cherry, I love you so much. Will you spend the rest of your life with me?" She of course said YES!

The Wedding
Jennifer and Chad decided to get married at The Madren Center's Owen Pavilion in Clemson. I asked Jennifer why they chose Clemson for their wedding. She said, "Because that is where our story began and where we fell in love with one another."


In true Clemson spirit, the couple chose purple and orange for their wedding colors. Jennifer admits that purple has always been her favorite color and Chad always says, "A true Clemson fan wears orange."

Jennifer's dress was from David's Bridal and it was an Oleg Classani in ivory. Her bridesmaids also wore dresses from David's Bridal in a deep purple and carried orange roses. The groomsmen wore black tuxes with orange ties and vests.




"For good luck, I made sure I had something on me that reminded me of three important women in my life," Jennifer told us. "I had my great-grandmother's handkerchief embroidered with my new monogram and wrapped it around my bouquet. I wore a diamond and sapphire ring on my right hand that was given to me as a graduation present from my grandmother. The diamonds were originally hers. I put my mother's six pence in my right shoe. I had them with me every step of the way. As my touch of Clemson, I wore a Clemson garter."

The couple choose to have their ceremony outdoors with the archway facing the signature hole (#17) at Walker Golf Course. "The weather was perfect on our day," Jennifer said. And it's very apparent in the amazing photos with Lake Hartwell and the gorgeous sunset in the background.



"The Madren Center was awesome!" according to Jennifer. They made sure everything was setup the way she wanted it and of course had the orange napkins and purple table cloths there at no extra charge. Jennifer also wanted to give a special shout out to her event planner from the Madren Center, Dory Kidd, who made sure all of the details were taken care of so the couple could enjoy their big day.

The flowers and decorations were from Tiger Lily. "Ms. Margaret knows what Clemson purple and Clemson orange means as far as the color scheme you are looking for and she has decorated probably about every venue in the Clemson area," Jennifer said.

Other Clemson touches...The cake was from Cakes by Shirley in Seneca, SC. It was a beautiful 4 tiered cake with purple ribbon wrapping each tier with a white swirl pattern and topped off with fresh flowers. The parents and bridal party were announced at the reception as Eye of the Tiger played in the background. And of course, the couple was announced while Tiger Rag was playing.





Some of Jennifer's favorite memories from her big day included the fact that her brother was her 'Man of Honor'. "He made me laugh through all of our pictures," says Jennifer. She'll also never forget "holding Chad's hands at the alter and our eyes locked on each other. It was like no one else was there. Just the two of us."

She also fondly remembers taking pictures in the stadium. The Orange and White game was the same weekend, so anything to do with Clemson football was off limits. "I bugged the Asst. Athletic Director, so much that he finally caved and let us in the stadium while they were cleaning it. I will always cherish those pictures. We are football season ticket holders, so it was so incredible."



Advice from the Bride
And finally, while not Clemson related, Jennifer has some great advice for those of you planning your own special day....especially if you're venue is miles and miles away (Jennifer and Chad planned their wedding from Orlando, FL).
1). Pick your venue and a season or month you would like to get married. Call your venue ASAP to set your date. Places book up at least a year or two in advance.
2). Ask your venue if they have a preferred vendor list then start calling the vendors you picked to ask about their availability. Setup appointments to meet with them and put down deposits to save your date. I met with all five of my vendors in one weekend. Preferred vendors are key because they know the venue.
3). Do your research!! Look online and in wedding books to get ideas. Develop a color scheme and theme to your wedding. It makes it so much easier to make decisions. There are too many choices out there to be indecisive. Your venue and what time of day you're get married will help to determine whether your wedding is formal or casual.
4). Make a budget and always keep it in mind.
5). Get your groom involved. He might have some opinions of his own. I know mine did.
6). WARNING!! Do not make this wedding your whole life, because your groom will get tired of hearing about it, and it could cause a few arguments...which is not what you want.
7). Last but not least: DO NOT TRY TO GET MARRIED DURING FOOTBALL SEASON!

Thank you Jennifer and Chad for sharing your special day with us! I love that Clemson and Clemson colors were an important theme throughout the wedding. And how amazing are the Lake Hartwell shots? Gorgeous venue. Which photo is your favorite?

And again...a very, very big thanks to Kismet Photography for sharing their photos with us today. Please take time to visit their Web site and their blog - while you're browsing the lovely blog posts on their blog (you know you are going to), comment and say a quick thanks for sharing with all of us today!

Do you have a Clemson wedding or Clemson wedding touches/ideas/etc. you would like to share with the readers of our blog on an upcoming Wedding Wednesday? Please email us!!

Share

Wedding Wednesdays: Part I - Sharon & Govie's Clemson Love Story

For today's Wedding Wednesday we are ever so lucky to be sharing a VERY CLEMSON engagement shoot from an incredible photographer, Kismet Photography.

Meet Sharon and Govie - the lovely couple featured in today's post. Both Clemson alums - Sharon graduated in 2000 with a degree in Early Childhood Education and Govie graduated in 2001 with a degree in Marketing. They met while at Clemson through mutual friends - but were at the time dating other people. However, after staying friends after a few years, the two were hanging out in one of the coves on Lake Keowee and decided that maybe they should give dating each other a try - and so the love story begins. :)


The Proposal
Govie actually took Sharon back to the very same cove where they originally decided to begin their love story - Sharon had no idea what Govie had up his sleeve. Govie had convinced Sharon that they would be renting a house on Lake Keowee with friends for the weekend.

They decided to take a ride around the lake on Govie's boat while waiting for the "arrival of their friends" who of course, were never showing up. Govie drove to the cove and according to Sharon, "gave me the most beautifully written letter you have ever read", and then he got down on one knee and proposed!




Later on that weekend, all part of Govie's plan, Sharon and Govie's families joined them at the lake house to celebrate the engagement with a cookout. And to top off the exciting weekend - it was a Clemson football season opener game weekend, so they continued the celebration at the football game.




The couple chose Clemson as the setting for their engagement photos because Clemson has a special place in both of their hearts. "We are both extremely proud to be Clemson grads," Sharon says, "and it's special because that's where we first met."


Sharon and Govie were recently married, May 15th, at The Acanthus on Lake Lyman.



A very warm thank you to Sharon and Govie for sharing their gorgeous (and so very Clemson) engagement photos with us. I love the photos in Death Valley and I LOVE the fact that they wore purple and orange! Love that!! Best wishes to the couple for a long and love-filled marriage!


And a very big thanks to Kismet Photography for kindly sharing these photos with all of our readers today.

Kismet Photography features the wedding and portrait imagery of Curtis and Emily Snyder, a husband and wife team, with a passion for photographing life and love. With 7 years of experience they have photographed more than 100 weddings and over 250 portrait sessions. Getting to know each couple on a personal level is an important part of that experience. For the photographers, it's not just about the wedding day or the engagement session. It's about who you are, how you met and what got you here.

Kismet Photography's studio and gallery is based in Greenville, SC - However, they serve all of Upstate South Carolina and Western North Carolina and are available for travel worldwide.

Stay tuned to the blog today for Part II of Wedding Wednesday -- We'll be sharing a beautiful Clemson wedding from Kismet Photography.

Do you have a Clemson wedding or engagement session you would like to share? Do you have a Clemson wedding idea? Please email us so we can share with our readers in an upcoming Wedding Wednesday post!

Share

Related Posts with Thumbnails