Though an unexpected April shower delayed the outdoor ceremony, which was scheduled to begin at 6 p.m., the clouds quickly cleared and gave way to a beautiful evening. Escorted by her father, Hillary, in a dress by Carolina Herrera, walked down the green lawn to the tune of Handel’s “Arrival of the Queen of Sheba” and joined her groom under a lilac arch amid a cluster of large oak trees at the front of the estate. Chandeliers in the trees glowed in the post-rain fog, while a priest from Will’s hometown officiated the service and a friend of the couple read a meaningful passage from The Velveteen Rabbit, Hillary’s favorite childhood book.
Hillary and Will in Charleston, SC
College sweethearts tie the knot under oak trees at a historic plantation
Hillary Rich and Will Herring first met at the College of Charleston in South Carolina when mutual friends introduced them during their respective freshman and sophomore years. The pair attended a fraternity semiformal together, and, as Hillary says, “We’ve been together ever since.” When it came time to plan their April 2008 wedding, the couple wanted to impart the beauty of springtime in Charleston to their 320 guests. “We knew we wanted to be married outdoors,” remarked Hillary, which prompted them to choose the lawn of historic plantation house Drayton Hall as the site for their nuptials. Docents were on hand to provide tours of the home. “We thought it was a great piece of Charleston to share with people,” the bride says.
When it was time for dinner, guests moved into an all-white tent, accented with light blue. JBC Catering, of Mount Pleasant, SC, tantalized wedding-goers’ taste buds with a salad of local greens and duck confit, followed by an entrée of lamb and asparagus. After the meal, some guests retired to the cocktail lounge–turned–cigar bar, while others kept the night going in the dancing tent, where a chandelier ensconced in a silver shade cast a glow on the dance floor. Hillary changed into a short Oscar de la Renta dress so she could kick up her heels to the sounds of ten-piece band Right On, who played hits from the 80s, Motown and disco eras. At the end of the night, this fun-loving couple left the party in a send-off shower of blue and white Silly String, while friends also took a little piece of the South home with them: silver mint-julep cups monogrammed with H+W and filled with lilac, sending the sweet smell of spring into the night air.
