5 out of 5 stars and 37 reviews
5
(37)Charleston & Surrounding Area, Myrtle Beach
About this vendor
Whatley Wedding Design is a wedding planning firm based in North Charleston, SC, serving the surrounding areas. Owner Charlotte Whatley is an experienced event coordinator who specializes in designing sustainable and eco-friendly celebrations. She and her team provide comprehensive services for a seamless planning process and to eliminate any stress associated with your once-in-a-lifetime event.
Hailing from Connecticut, Charlotte made Charleston her home over a decade ago. She fell in love with event planning and after several years of planning corporate gatherings, graduated to wedding coordination. She is passionate about designing beautiful celebrations that have a low impact on the environment.
The team at Whatley Wedding Design adopts a personalized approach to event planning. They incorporate their creative skills and attention to detail to ensure everything is executed seamlessly. Whether you are looking for full-service design and coordination or rehearsal dinner planning, this team has got you covered. They make it their goal to ensure you can relax and focus on making memories throughout your wedding day.
Details
Business Attributes
- Woman-owned Business
Destination Weddings
- Destination Wedding Planning
Planning
- Budgeting
- Destination Wedding Planning
- Full Service Wedding Planning
- Wedding Design
- Wedding Website
Wedding Activities
- Getting Engaged
- Engagement Party
- Rehearsals & Parties
- After Party
- Bachelorette Party
- Bridal Luncheon
Awards and Affiliations
3-Time 'Best of Weddings'
2024.2023.2022.
Best of Weddings
The Knot independently assesses vendors for this award—it’s never self-reported. We base it on firsthand experiences from real couples and guests, and they must have a 4.5-star average across 7+ reviews in the qualifying year.
Reviews
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5
out of 5.037 reviews
Review photos
Showing slide number 1 out of 9
Just like my thank you notes, I am admittedly a bit behind on my reviews—but Char is someone who deserves to be celebrated! When I first started the daunting process of looking for...
a wedding planner, a friend highly recommended Char. From our very first meeting, my instincts told me she was the one. She is the perfect blend of professional, extremely organized, and incredibly kind.
We hosted a reasonably large wedding with 230 invited and about 185 guests in attendance. To be honest, I was completely overwhelmed by the logistics of a celebration that size. While I was very excited about certain design elements, I found myself avoiding the more tedious parts of the process. Char stepped in and ensured that absolutely no detail was overlooked and nothing fell through the cracks. She is so meticulous that it immediately lifted the heavy burden of perfection I had been carrying around.
One of the biggest lifesavers was how she managed the distance. I live in DC, and having Char as my 'boots on the ground' in Charleston was invaluable. She went above and beyond to handle local tasks for me, saving me from constantly traveling back and forth. Her deep knowledge of the Charleston market and her close-knit relationships with local vendors made her an incredible resource; she knew exactly who to call to get things done right.
In the final weeks leading up to the big day, I was completely checked out due to a demanding work schedule and general wedding fatigue. Char didn't let a single ball drop. She stayed on top of me regarding payment dates, helped me finalize difficult decisions, and crafted a flawless timeline that kept us all sane. She even extended her expertise to my mother-in-law to help plan the rehearsal dinner and welcome party, both of which turned out absolutely fabulous.
On the wedding day itself, Char was nothing short of a hero. I was feeling the typical wedding-day nerves, but she stepped in with such a calm, capable presence that I was able to actually enjoy myself. The reception was breathtaking. I was so impressed to see Char and her team getting their hands dirty from assembling centerpieces, folding napkins, and perfectly setting tables to ensure the vision was executed to a T.
The wedding was everything I could have dreamed of and more. Char is not just a master of her craft; she is a joy to be around. If you want a planner who will protect your peace and deliver a stunning event, Char is the only choice!
My husband and I worked with Char for our wedding at the William Aiken House back in August and I cannot recommend her enough!!! From the beginning, Char was probably one of the fe...
w planners who told us that she would be able to work within our budget with our small guest count and she did not disappoint!!! She brought our vision to life and MORE - everything was so gorgeous day of, every vendor she helped coordinate was professional and amazing, and I actually cannot rave enough about how amazing it was to work with her! Char was so kind, flexible, patient and organized - she made wedding planning FUN and the least stressful it could have been! We had a hurricane off the coast of Charleston prior to our wedding day and she was so amazing about keeping us updated on the weather, figuring out a rain plan, and ensuring that our day went the way we hoped it would!!
For our guest book, our Polaroid camera we had provided ended up not working and we found out later on how Char and her team had gone out and bought a new camera just to ensure that went smoothly!! It really goes to show how much she and her team care and how much effort is put in to making your big day perfect!!
If you are looking to get married in the Charleston area I highly highly recommend Char!! She is so amazing <3
I cannot recommend Char and Whatley Wedding Design enough! From the early stages of planning to our perfect wedding day, Char's attentiveness, organization, kindness, and hard work...
made the entire process so seamless and enjoyable. Char's guidance, knowledge, and experience curated and executed the most perfect wedding day.
I could write a book about Char and her amazing team! Char's calming and positive demeanor, organization and openess was amazing during our wedding planning. I didn't have a single...
worry really a month out from our wedding day much in thanks to Char, she was a joy to work with and I kind of miss our planning meetings to be honest. She was so supportive of our vision and always made sure to make us aware of blind spots or things we should consider while still supporting what we wanted for our celebration. Even when we were speaking with other vendors about who our wedding planner was everyone would instantly light up when we mentioned Whatley Wedding. We had an AWESOME experience with Char and highly recommend her!
Hiring Char was the best decision I made!
She was the first vendor I booked and I had the pleasure of working with her for 19 months from venue selection through our send off. As ...
my parents’ first child to get married, and planning a wedding in a city only the groom had lived in, we had no idea what to expect. Char helped us navigate the Charleston wedding process. She has a very positive and calm demeanor and worked hard to make sure I had the wedding of my dreams. She executed our wedding perfectly and I was blown away at how amazing everything was. She helped us with vendor recommendations and booking which was invaluable as an out of town bride. She is very detail-oriented and a great problem solver. I was never stressed because I knew Char would handle it. She was readily available to meet both virtually and in-person and always had an agenda to make sure we stayed on track. During our wedding weekend, Char and her team were incredible at both our rehearsal and wedding. We had multiple locations and they covered every event space. She brought us food and drinks at our reception, helped bustle my dress, designed a beautiful rehearsal and reception, coordinated an extensive vendor list all with a smile on her face. No request from myself or mother was too much. Obviously I’m biased, but we had multiple guests tell our parents how it was one of the best weddings they’ve ever attended, and I know that is in large part to all of the hard work Char put into planning and executing. Book Char and her team - it’s the best money you’ll spend on your special day! It’s only been a few weeks, and I already miss working with her.
WOW!! There are not enough words to describe how thankful we are for Char and Whatley Wedding Design for planning our perfect Valentine's Day wedding!! She was so graceful, knowled...
gable, and always had a smile on her face, bringing so much joy to every part of the wedding process. She patiently answered all of our MANY questions and addressed any concerns we had quickly, professionally, and with enthusiasm. She had the most amazing vendor recommendations and expertly navigated every facet of our wedding (communication, coordination, design, etc.), giving us such needed confidence with my husband and I living out of state. We are just so incredibly thankful for Char, and we highly, HIGHLY recommend her to any engaged couple. She truly is the most spectacular!
If I were to dream of my perfect coordinator, the result would be Char! She and her team were so fantastic the day of, but also the year leading up to the wedding. It was a breeze ...
with her! Cannot speak highly enough of this wonderful woman, and thank her for making our day so special.
Char and her team are BEYOND AMAZING! She is so incredibly patient, organized, and will listen to every single one of your needs! My husband and I had to deal with rain on our wedd...
ing day, and I can’t even begin to describe how effortless and stress free it was! Char listened to our rain plan requests and was so incredibly supportive and calm. The rain stopped for the ceremony and we were able to have it in our originally planned outdoor location. My point being, none of this would have been possible without Char!!! I could go on and on but I HIGHLY recommend Char for your wedding needs!!!
Highly recommend working with Char for wedding planning! She has fair package pricing, especially for the Charleston area. She was available for monthly meetings and for as needed ...
help via email. We chose the partial planning package and worked with Char for vendor recommendations, which was a great fit for us.
CHAR AND THE WWD TEAM ARE EXCEPTIONAL. Over our 18 month planning process, Char was with us every step of the way from planning the most minute details to flawless day of executio...
n. Char helped us realize our dream wedding by taking the time to listen and understand what our vision was and provide extremely helpful advice in order to make our day more special than we could ever imagine possible. Char is full of knowledge, recommendations, and advice for the wedding day and Charleston vendors. Char listened to us, eased any concerns, and thoughtfully crafted solutions and ideas. Her understanding of what we wanted allowed her to proactively provide solutions to problems we were not even aware of. The day of the wedding, Char seamlessly executed all tasks and saved the day numerous times with her quick wit and resourcefulness. She handled bumps along the road so our journey was as smooth as possible. Char is incredibly organized, pays close to attention to detail, and transparent. We had a fantastic relationship with Char and wholeheartedly recommend her services to anyone and everyone in the Charleston area.
It’s truly hard to find the words to express how grateful I am to Char for helping to make our wedding day so much more perfect than I could have ever imagined! We picked the parti...
al planning package and I was pleasantly surprised by how communicative, helpful, and on top of everything she was even though she wasn’t fully planning our wedding. As a destination bride, I really appreciated her recommendations for vendors and every single one of them was reasonably priced, so kind, and all of them went so above and beyond. I leaned heavily on Char in the weeks leading up to the wedding and she was constantly asking what more she could do to help. My husband and I didn’t have a care in the world on our wedding weekend and were able to take it all in and really enjoy our wedding day thanks to Char and her team. From start to finish, the whole day went incredibly smoothly. Char was always available when I needed her and personally checked in with us multiple times to make sure we were having fun and had everything we needed. Through it all, Char felt like a friend I was planning my wedding with, but one I knew would stop at nothing to make our day perfect. She delivered and I can’t recommend her enough!
Char was absolutely amazing! She made planning the wedding so perfectly! I loved that I could focus on the important parts of the day and leave the details to her! She was so helpf...
ul and wonderful that everything just seamlessly flowed together! Everyone knew where they were supposed to be and was coordinated perfectly!
Working with Char was the best decision we made when planning our wedding reception. I truly don't know how we would've pulled off such an event without her! She was easy to commun...
icate with and had a lot of great input. I would highly recommend her to anyone hoping to have an amazing wedding experience!
Char and her team were absolutely amazing. Not a single thing went wrong on our wedding day all thanks to them! She thought of everything that we forgot. I wish we could have anoth...
er wedding just to work with her again ❤️
Char is fantastic! She truly made the last few months before our wedding stress-free! She's amazing at what she does and asked all of the questions I didn't think about throughout ...
the planning process. She's so sweet and was always quick to respond!
Ally was my day of coordinator and did an amazing job setting up and making sure everything was perfectly in place for our day! Char and her team are incredible and I cannot recommend them enough for all future wedding planning!!
If you're getting married in Charleston, SC - Char is your girl, you need her on your team!!! We had her "bliss" package and couldn't have been more pleased. She over communicated,...
took things off our plate, gave thoughtful recommendations, and executed at the highest level. When I say my husband and I did absolutely nothing on our wedding day except show up where & when Char told us to - I'm not kidding! She & her team handled everything like true professionals! If that wasn't enough, she was also a very sweet and calming presence - something that is underrated but so necessary on your wedding day! We loved working with Char and would recommend her to anyone and everyone!!!
There is no better choice than Char Whatley of Whatley Wedding Designs ! There are not enough stars to award Char for being the amazing planner that she is. We were two husbands to...
be, and Char was everything that we were hoping to find in a wedding planner. Aside from being thoughtful , caring, and creativity; Char has the professionalism and organizational skills to take care of every single detail of your wedding. Char's connections with other vendors of the same stature as her, really made our wedding day a perfection. Char can handle any type of planning needs you might have, big or small. And if your looking for help with a same sex wedding she is the one to go too. There is no way we could ever thank Char enough for being so fantastic at what she does and well as being a friend while doing it. Hats off to this young woman and her business savvy- Char is the best !! Book her NOW !
I wish I could give Char 500 stars. She was incredible to work with and made my wedding day so seamless and stress free. She even made my family feel more comfortable and confident...
throughout the entire wedding weekend by bringing positive, encouraging energy to every event. She is a sweet soul but also extremely professional and organized. Love her so much!!! If you're looking for a planner or a day of coordinator, look no further!
Char is seriously one of the kindest, sweetest people I have ever met! I am so grateful to have found her and had her as my wedding planner! Throughout the whole planning process, ...
she was always so organized, patient, amd creative with solutions. For example, I struggled with finding appropriate rentals, but she helped and completed it for me with no problem. As another example, it rained on my wedding day, which I honestly did not plan for, but her and her team made the transitions and schedule so smooth and flawless. I was shocked by how quickly she was able to make my vision come to life! Her positivity and smile are contagious for sure. I couldn't have asked for a better team to help me!
Honestly the sweetest human! If you’re on the fence about hiring anyone hire Char! She truly is just like having your friend there but one that actually helps!
Char and her team was the most amazing vendor to work with. She was professional, timely, accommodating, and not to mention incredibly kind. She helped to make my dream wedding com...
e true and my husband and I cannot thank her enough! We are so glad we trusted her with this big day :)
Char was great to work with! She was our day of coordinator for our reception - great communication throughout the entire process, always so positive and did an awesome job with th...
e setup and take down of the reception.
The planning for my daughters October 2022 wedding started in July 2021 when we initial met with Char in Charleston. She is so gracious and professional and put us at ease immediat...
ely. We are from out of state so this was a destination wedding. My daughter chose the partial planner services thinking she could coordinate many things herself but Char went way above and beyond to make sure nothing was missed. She worked via telephone calls and emails, met with the folks at the wedding venue, local suppliers, and coordinated with all the vendors. She made the process seamless and her delivery was flawless. She was the first person on site the day of the wedding and the last to leave. To her credit the wedding was superbly coordinated and beautifully choreographed. She made my daughters wedding a dream come true!
Char is the best ever! I booked her for her month-of services and could not be happier I did! She contacted all of my vendors before the day of and made sure that everyone knew exa...
ctly when/where to be! On the day of, everything went so smoothly, and if it didn’t, I didn’t know about it because she took care of everything!
Char was absolutely a dream to work with! She made everything a thousand times easier and helped every step of the way. She is worth every penny plus some! Highly recommend her ful...
l planning package because from start to finish, she was a rockstar and it wouldn't have been as easy. The day of was so much fun and exciting because she took care of literally everything.
Char and her team are amazing, and every time I get to work with her and them, the weddings are so beautiful, meticulously well thought out, and cared for! Couldn't recommend Char ...
higher to anyone planning a wedding or event! A+++++
My husband is a wedding photographer and not only did he insist on needing a month-of coordinator, but he also said Char was the person for the job (having worked with her at past ...
weddings).
I could not agree more! Her and her team are calm, comforting, kind, and literally think of everything! Char met us for our final venue walk-through, so fun and helpful at the same time! She also helped with recommending vendors and letting us know when certain vendors were offering deals. The month of our wedding was a BREEZE! I don't think I talked to any vendors (except for fine-tuning with the DJ). When we arrived at our ceremony site everything was perfect! After our vows, they even had our beverage of choice ready for us. My bustle ripped during the reception (not a problem, fixed immediately!) My favorite part is they gathered florals in a Tupperware in wet paper towels for us to cherish forever! Whatley Wedding Design was the vendor that made ALL the difference! I cannot recommend her enough. I am a high-stress person but I was entirely calm the entire month of our wedding because I knew Char and her team had everything under control. THANK YOU!
As a mother of the bride, a bride who loved being her own wedding planning, a wonderful coordinator to handle the day’s events was perfection. Char had met with bride kept updated ...
discussing details and tasks.
Char is not only attentive to details, but she is emotionally attentive remaining calm, focused, kind, prepared, and proactive throughout a long day. She arrives early and is last to leave omitting no task.
As parents of the bride, we could not be more grateful. Char allowed our bride to just be, just enjoy every second, and she was able to so because Char executed all her best wishes.
Could imagine no one else for this task. Amazing!
Char was our wedding coordinator for the day of and she was fabulous! From the initial point of contact as I "shopped around" for the best fit in a coordinator, she spent time talk...
ing with me and answering questions before we even officially agreed to work together. We had our first meeting three months out where she listened to our vision and took copious notes. We met again about a month out from the wedding where we did a site visit together to ensure we were on the same page for setup, decor and timeline flow. At the month out point, she took over communication with vendors. We did a final check-in days before the wedding to ensure I felt comfortable with any outstanding details. She was present at our rehearsal to guide us in the procession/recession. If there were ANY issues on our actual wedding day, we did not know about them as she protected us from them and ensured we only saw absolute perfection on our special day. I don't know how individuals execute wedding day without someone like Char. She was a perfect co-pilot on our journey and took over as lead pilot on wedding day. You will not regret partnering with Char!
I think our favorite thing about Char is that she always seemed to just *know* already what we needed to be done or the next step to take. She was absolutely essential for having o...
ur wedding day run as smoothly as it did. She already has good relationships with a lot of Charleston vendors which helps her do a great job communicating with whoever you choose to cater dinner/set up/make the wedding cake.
We absolutely recommend her to anyone looking for either a wedding planner or day-of-coordination! She went above and beyond our expectations and was by far our most important member of the team in planning and executing the wedding! She 100% understood the vision we had for our big day and excelled in the delivery.
10/10
Char was a necessity for the completion of my wedding planning! I thought that I had everything figured out until it came down to the wire. She helped me gather information and res...
ources. When it came down to the day of coordinating, she was a rockstar. The wedding went by with no hiccups! I didn't even have to think about what to do. I just enjoyed myself. I would definitely recommend her to a bride who felt lost like me!
Charlotte fell nothing short of truly fantastic as our wedding coordinator. She made it her mission to provide us with the upmost professional and supportive planning experience bo...
th with the planning and the wedding day itself. Thanks to her assistance the event coordination felt almost effortless, enabling my wife and I to enjoy every minute of our wedding day to the fullest. She was extremely humble and approachable making it easy to work with her and map out every detail we had envisioned. The day of the wedding she gracefully streamlined everything to the last detail, keeping everyone on track and ensuring everything was presented and set up accordingly. We could not have had a more stress free experience and felt surprisingly comfortable entrusting her to accommodate all of our needs and remove any roadblocks that arose. We strongly urge anyone looking for a similar, stress free, enjoyable, and welcoming experience to reach out and recruit her for your event!
Char was wonderful to work with. I had messaged her through the knot and was very quick to respond. We met with me on one of my trips to Charleston. We met at the venue- discussed ...
my ideas. We kept an open communication for the next couple of months. The day of the wedding, my hair and make up ran late, I did not get to really view what everything looked like- but Char and her assistant came through everything was perfect and looked amazing and she only went off of photos I had sent her. We had left 2 decorations at the venue and Char was able to meet us the next day to give them to us. I would highly recommend. She is awesome and her price is even more awesome!
Charlotte was amazing! I was so stressed out about how everything was going to come together on the day of the wedding, and she handled everything perfectly! She kept up with my hu...
sband and I and our needs throughout the day, and kept everyone on time with transitions throughout the ceremony and reception. I couldn’t have asked for a better wedding planner!
Hiring Charlotte for our wedding was the easiest and best decision. She was incredible from start to finish, helping me stay organized, on top of things, and most of all EXCITED fo...
r the wedding day! She helped the planning process be stress-free and smooth and I'm so so thankful! She helped execute my ideas so well. She is professional, kind, and creative, and communicative. She helped me brainstorm ways to keep the wedding as COVID safe as possible and helped me reach my goal of making our wedding as eco-friendly and sustainable as we could! We visited our wedding venue (a coffee shop in Georgia) the day after our wedding to say "thank you" to the owners and workers, and they could not stop talking about how helpful, professional, and "on top of the game" Charlotte was the entire night. I would recommend hiring her again and again!
Charlotte was an absolute joy to have help with our wedding! She was extremely helpful and always so kind. She is a calming presence, especially on the big day. I was able to enjoy...
the wedding with the full confidence the Charlotte would be able to handle anything that came up. We were even able to sort out a couple issues with rentals and vendors the-day-of without the bride knowing about them happening in the first place! Thank you so much for making our wedding day go so smoothly!
My husband and I were very much on the fence about getting a wedding planner because we believed with the amount of time we had we would be able to easily handle planning a wedding...
. Things started getting a little overwhelming (I’m not the best at staying on top of what needs to be done) and Charlotte reached out offering her services. It was easily the best decision I made the entire wedding planning process. She is there when you need her but will let you take care of how ever much you want to handle by yourself. The day of, she is the nicest person but knows how to get people where they need to be when they need to be. We had a sudden cold front come in the weekend of our wedding and she made the panic of sorting out how to keep our guests warm an absolute breeze. I remember walking out and seeing everything set up perfectly because she had done it all. She works tirelessly to make sure your day is perfect and we got so many wonderful comments about her from not just our guest but other vendors. I highly recommend her any wedding!
Contact
Charleston & Surrounding Area, Myrtle Beach
Wedding vendors in North Charleston
Whatley Wedding Design