Our Charleston Fall Weekend Getaway

Hi there friends! What a DAY! I just arrived home from a super fun 24 hours in Birmingham, AL. If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook, then you know I was invited to join Southern Living for a tour of their SL Idea House as well as the test kitchen at their headquarters. I am still digesting all of the goodness.

I will definitely be recapping every last detail soon to share here but today I want to rewind a few weeks and take you back to our recent trip in Charleston, SC. The Big Sweet and I were there earlier this year and the second we left, I knew immediately that I wanted to go back as soon as possible.

But let me rewind a bit on how this trip came to be.  Over the past 10 years,  a group of three couples have really become not only great friends but great travel companions. Well, apparently half the crew was born in 1976 so if you do the math, that means we had some big birthdays to celebrate this year.

So, when it came time to plan our fall trip, we said let’s go BIG! Italy wine country!!  Cheers to that! But, everyone is busy and collectively we have 6 kids so that idea pretty much fizzled.

Then, we said- OK- let’s do wine country in California! YESSSSS! But again, it just fizzled and before we knew it, it was August and nothing was planned. Whomp, whomp, whomp. 

Enter Charleston. The most perfect getaway for 3 couples living in Atlanta and Charlotte to meet. We had a great time, and just like Charleston in early summer, fall in Charleston is pretty fantastic.

WHAT WE DID:

After our flight landed, we promptly went to lunch at a new restaurant called Butcher & Bee. This is in a newly developed part of town called NoMO- short for North Morrison Drive and a little off the beaten path. Food was great! One theme throughout the weekend was that many restaurants were out of ingredients…but we later realized that it was because Hurricane Matthew passed through around 7 days before our trip and many delivery schedules were off. (Thankfully that was pretty much the worst of the impact that we experienced from the recent storm. We did see some large piles of palm fronds and debris down in The Battery but the city had done a great job of minimizing it.)

Before we left for the trip, I warned the Big Sweet that there was a home decor store THAT I JUST HAD TO CHECK OUT. He was warned, ha. I couldn’t believe my eyes when we arrived at the lunch spot and there it was, across the street. The store is called Indigo Market, and I randomly found it on Instagram a few months ago. It’s not that big, but it packs a big punch! If you are in the area, it is definitely worth checking out. I was not only trying to figure out how to bring this dresser home with me on our flight home, but also how to open a similar store in Atlanta!

From there, we checked into our rooms (more on where we stayed below) and got ready for a sunset cruise in the harbor. This was such a fun idea by one of our friends and he worked with the hotel to plan it all. They arranged transportation and even had catered apps for us when we arrived on the boat.

Since most of us had spent time previously in Charleston, this was a really fun and unique new way to see the city. Here I am playing “Julie the Cruise Director” pointing out The Battery.

The cruise lasted for 2-3 hours while the sun was setting.

When it’s your birthday, you can pretend you are The King of the World. It’s all good.

It was a perfect way to kick off the weekend!

From there, we grabbed dinner at Husk.  Here we are sitting on the Joggling Board Bench on the porch. Fun fact: These benches are iconic to Charleston and are also called a courting bench.

Saturday morning, we found ourselves directly across from a Farmer’s Market in Marion Square for coffee. This was by far the most beautiful caffeine I have ever ordered!

Breakfast was at The Rarebit and from there, we walked. We sat on rooftop decks. We walked. We shopped. More rooftop decks. We ate. We shopped. More rooftop decks. More walking. You get the gist.

It was a kid-free-agenda-free wander. The perfect way to spend a day in Charleston!

We found lots of pretty inspiration, particularly with this pumpkin window box.

That night we had dinner reservations at Indaco- very good Italian.  Clearly we are no longer spring chickens because from there we pretty much crashed back at the hotel. Speaking of…

WHERE WE STAYED

I can’t even express how much I loved the hotel we stayed at- The Dewberry. This hotel has only been opened 3-4 months and from the moment you walk in, it is love at first sight. This is an old historic Federal Building that was restored to what they call “Southern Re-imagined”.

It is decorated mid-century modern and very understated. Some of the highlights in the hotel were the brass bar, a fun brass map of Charleston, and the decor in the lobby. The bartender was a true mixologist and really added to the whole “Mad Men” vibe.

Charleston, you never disappoint! Until next time…

xoxo-

Heather

We are working our way through 31 Days of Fall in the South. Missed something? Catch up below!

Day 1: {Style Inspiration} Casual Fall Weekend
Day 2: A Touch of Home Fall Tour
Day 3: DIY Welcome Mat Tutorial- Come In + Cozy Up
Day 4: DIY Pheasant Feather Art Tutorial
Day 5: {Tailgate Bites} 3- Ingredient Crescent Sausage Squares
Day 6: Fall Capsule Wardrobe
Day 7: How to Make a Simple Cheese Platter
Day 8: Five Fall Goodies
Day 9: {Five Minute Friday} Clear Jug + Tall Stem
Day 10: {Style Inspiration} Casual Fall Weekend Style
Day 11: Easy & Tasty Crock Pot Chili
Day 12: How to Make Your House Smell Like Fall
Day 13: {Dinner is Done} Southwest Sweet Potatoes
Day 14: Charleston Fall Getaway