“She was unlike anyone I had met before in that she had all the things I was looking for,” remembers Jordan Stern of his first date with Brittany Kraff. “Family is the most important thing in my life, and I saw immediately how she felt the exact same… I remember thinking that I could really see this girl being my wife someday.” Before long, Jordan asked Brittany’s father for his blessing and planned a romantic proposal followed by a celebration with their families. 

The betrothed knew they wanted to have a destination wedding. “We loved the idea of having a whole weekend of celebrations with all our loved ones gathered in one place,” smiles Brittany. “Palmetto Bluff was the first and only location we visited, and we immediately fell in love. It was the most magical place we had ever been. We loved the idea of creating a new place for the two of us where we would create memories and have it be our special place moving forward.” 

Though the groom was involved in the overall experience of the wedding weekend, he left the design elements entirely up to his bride. “He actually did not see one thing in terms of décor… He wanted it to be a complete surprise, and thankfully it blew away all of his expectations,” confirms Brittany, who worked with famed event planner Mindy Weiss to create her dream wedding. “I am the most grateful to my planner Mindy and her incredible team who kept everything organized and in check along the way. They truly made magic happen,” she shares. 

To complement the stunning Lowcountry setting, a luxurious “secret garden” design scheme showcasing colorful wildflowers and textural foliage in shades of pink, orange, blue, yellow, and green were beautifully brought to fruition. Friends and family were seated atop oval cane-back chairs beneath the property’s magnificent oak trees, which were decorated with multicolored florals cascading down amongst the Spanish moss. A unique, curved aisle wrapped around the audience so everyone had a view of the large processional up to the exquisite chuppah. 

“Feeling the immense amount of warmth, love, and support as I approached the chuppah was really special,” remembers the groom of his walk down the long, winding aisle with his parents. The bride agrees: “The immense emotion I felt was indescribable… I was overwhelmed with joy.” Before the Jewish ceremony began, they added a personal twist. “Jordan knows that I love a group-selfie moment, and he had the idea only a few days before to surprise and delight everyone by taking a massive group selfie… Seeing the elated faces of all our family and friends is a memory I will never forget, and now we have the photo to solidify that memory,” she says. 

“I am the most grateful to my planner Mindy [Weiss] and her incredible team who kept everything organized and in check along the way. They truly made magic happen.”

Following the emotional handwritten vow exchange, guests enjoyed an outdoor cocktail hour before making their way into the reception space, which had been transformed to honor the bride’s vision. “I wanted to feel like I was outside in a tent, rather than a ballroom,” explains Brittany. 

To make that happen, the walls and ceiling were covered with elegant drapery, lush florals and verdure appeared to grow out of banquette-style seating and up the walls along the perimeter, and an installation of Spanish moss and bountiful blooms was suspended above the dance floor. Centerpieces varied between grand rounded flower arrangements and low varieties to make guests feel as though they were sitting amongst the wildflowers. Dragonflies – which symbolize happiness and new beginnings – were also subtly brought into the décor. 

Since the vibe of the night was one of the most important elements to Jordan, he took the lead on selecting the band and planning the set list. “Having attended 15+ weddings together over the previous two years, my wife and I had a very clear idea of how we wanted our party to feel – and specifically which songs we knew kept people on the dance floor all night long,” he shares, adding that tunes from different eras were mixed to appeal to the entire crowd. “We wanted our parents’ friends on the dance floor just as much as our friends, and the mashups did exactly that.” 

Once the couple’s first dance to Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance with Somebody” transitioned from romantic to lively, everyone rushed to the dance floor. “It was the most electric energy I had ever felt, and it set the tone for the rest of the party,” affirms Brittany. As dancing continued the entire night, the bride’s specialty chocolate-chip cookies were passed out on the dance floor to keep guests’ palates satiated and their energy high. “I love to bake and shared my signature recipe with the culinary team to recreate, which was a really great personal touch as everyone who knows and loves me has tasted my cookies in the past!” she adds. 

The newlyweds confirm the entire wedding weekend was more than they could have ever imagined, and their favorite part was the people. “From the welcome party on Thursday all the way through to the after-party on Saturday, the love, attentiveness, and energy that was contributed was unmatched,” muses the groom. “The way all our guests even interacted with each other was so special… many new friendships were formed that weekend, and we loved hearing that as we take a lot of pride in bringing together all the people we love.”

This real wedding was originally published in the Spring 2024 issue of Inside Weddings magazine. 

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