With a quality vendor lineup including Bethel Bakery, Bistro To Go, Mosaic, Jeremy Scott Films, and Written by Nikki Calligraphy, we knew Taylor and Curt’s wedding at Twelve Oaks Mansion would be good. But these amazing images by Kathryn Hyslop Photography proved it was even BETTER than we could’ve imagined. Best described as a classic celebration with Pittsburgh flair, their day included so many cool aspects. While the celebration’s color palette was kept neutral with white and hints of sage green, bold tributes to the black and gold spiced up the aesthetic. As if the Terrible Towel wedding favors, table numbers named after famous Pittsburgh athletes, and an audio guest book weren’t enough to make us fall in love, their ‘Burgh inspired late night snacks of kielbasa, pierogies, and Primanti sandwiches really won us over. The enthusiasm is contagious in this one and to be honest, we’re living for it! Yinz are in for a treat with this feature!
About the Couple
We have quite the Pittsburgh love story. I was born and raised in Pittsburgh and attended Duquesne University. Curt was born in a small town and attended Slippery Rock University. Not too much in common so far, until Pitt football came into the mix. The Pittsburgh Panthers made the 2018 ACC Championship, which was held in Charlotte. We both randomly bought last minute tickets and decided to make the drive down to see our favorite team. After a tough loss, we both decided to head out to enjoy the town for the rest of the night. At a bar called Whiskey River, we met and the rest is history. That night, we spent the entire time talking and laughing. We eventually exchanged numbers and went on our first date. Since that very night in Charlotte, we both knew we were meant to be.
We were together almost two years when Curt decided to ask me to marry him. I was completely surprised! To my knowledge, we were heading to Ohioplye for his mom’s birthday to hang out and have lunch. We went over to one of the overlooks to get a picture and when I was walking away, Curt grabbed me and got down on one knee. It was the most magical day.
About the Wedding
The most important thing to me when I was planning the wedding was to let Curt’s and my personality shine through in the details. I think weddings are supposed to encompass who we are and why we are together. I knew I wanted to put some Pittsburgh twists on it, but I wanted the overall aesthetic to be neutral. I love color coordination so I wanted everything to look like it was tied together. We did a lot of greenery with white roses, white linens, white acrylic signage, and a neutral pattern decor.
There are a couple parts of our wedding that I think make it pretty unique. One was our favors – we handed out Terrible Towels “wedding towels” with our names and wedding date on them. As the wedding party was entering the reception, everyone was waving them and it just made for a really fun, energetic vibe. Another unique aspect was our table numbers. Each table number represented a Pittsburgh athlete that Curt and I loved. Another aspect of our Pittsburgh tribute was our late night snack bar. We had three Pittsburgh favorites: kielbasa bites, pierogies with a topping bar, and, of course, mini Primanti-style sandwiches. It’s safe to say our late night snacks did not last very long.
Another aspect we wanted to make unique was our guest book. FeteFone was such a fun way for our guests to “sign in” at our wedding. They got to leave us a voicemail and then we got to listen to all of them a few weeks after the wedding. This is such a cherished memory because our grandparents and parents were able to leave us messages that we now can listen to forever.
Favorite Moment
I know a lot of people say, “Make sure you have a moment for you two”, whether that be an alone dance or just stepping away, but that really was my favorite moment. One of our slow songs came on and halfway through our dance we both looked at each other and without saying a word, we knew it was the time to step aside. We stepped off of the dance floor and just looked at everyone else – those dancing, those talking, those sitting down. We just took in the moment for what it was – all of the people we love in one place celebrating us. We knew we would never get a moment like this back and we took in every second we could.
