Lush Blue & Burgundy Wedding at the Heinz History Center

Rich seasonal colors and dramatically lush florals play center stage at this Heinz History Center wedding. Since Cara worked in the events industry, she got to see A LOT of weddings. She and Justin wanted something different, so they opted for a dusty blue, burgundy, blush and gold color palette perfect for their November day. Cara wore an Eddy K dress in the the palest shade of pink, while carrying a gorgeously contrasting bouquet of blue thistle, cranberry hydrangeas, and fresh greenery from The Blue Daisy Floral Designs. The laid-back celebration featured a cocktail-style reception, live event painter, and all-night entertainment from Move Makers Band. Of course, there were plenty of nods to Pittsburgh with a stationery suite from Fresh Cut Prints showcasing our infamous skyline and custom sugar cookies in the shape of Heinz ketchup bottles. In advance of the wedding, guests were even given a pass to check out the History Center before or after the party. Both classic and unique, Cara and Justin’s wedding was beautifully captured by Christina Montemurro Photography & Video.

About the Couple

Justin and I met in March of 2014 at a casual outing with our friends, Scott and Caitlin. Scott and Justin attended a hockey game that day and Caitlin asked if I wanted to meet her for dinner after they got out of the game. Of course, I was up for getting together, but little did Justin and I know, they were trying to set us up.

Then in June of that year, Scott and Caitlin were getting married. I was attending the celebration and was expecting to see Justin there as well. However, I was never informed that he was in the bridal party or that he was an identical twin. At the reception, the person I thought was Justin was seated at my table. I was wondering why he was acting like he didn’t know me. I tried to talk to him several times and each attempt failed. Later that night I went outside, and I saw who I thought was Justin standing in a group. As I turned, I saw the real Justin walking towards me and that’s when I put it all together. Justin and I talked the rest of the night and had a wonderful time! Shortly after the wedding, Justin found me on Facebook and asked if I would like to go to dinner with him.We have been together ever since.

About the Wedding

We envisioned a laid-back and fun wedding ceremony and reception – truly just a big celebration of love with our family and friends.

Instead of the traditional sit-down dinner, we elected to have a cocktail-style reception with a variety of high and low tables with no assigned seating. This was to encourage mingling with other friends and family. We had passed hors d’oeurves for the first hour and food stations for the main course.

The colors reflected more of a fall/winter feel with a variety of linens in burgundy and champagne tones. For the flowers, we were looking for a romantic and lush feeling that reflected the fall and winter season. Stephanie used deep burgundy, pales pinks to pull in the color of my wedding dress, a blue thistle (a traditional Scottish wedding flower) to coordinate with the bridesmaids dresses, and a variety of different gold vessels and votives to pull everything together and warm the space. Stephanie also personalized my bouquet with special items from my grandparents on both sides of my family.

To top off our dream wedding reception, we wanted a band that would not only entertain our guests with great music, but also keep the dance floor packed! The Move Makers Band did exactly that. They kept the flow of the celebration just as we envisioned with fun upbeat music, amazing vocals, and non-stop dancing.

While we were dating, everything we did seemed to be centered around Pittsburgh – from sporting events, the Pittsburgh Marathon, and living downtown. It was important to also show our love for our city. To bring our love for Pittsburgh to our wedding, we started with picking the Heinz History Center as our venue. Then came our wedding invitations from Fresh Cut Prints. Erin created a custom invite with the city skyline, city map on the details card, and museum pass to tour the Heinz History Center the day of our wedding. Bella Christies created custom cookies shaped liked Heinz Ketchup bottles. To surprise Justin, I also had Bella Christies create a custom groomsman cake of a 3D Yuengling bottle to be the centerpiece of our cookie table.

I am personally a big fan of artwork and seeing artists in action. Kimberly Harvey, our event painter, snapped a photo of our wedding ceremony and created a custom painting of us taking our vows. She not only created a custom painting but did it at the reception, so all our guests could see her in action. Truly AMAZING work.

Favorite Moment

Truly, the whole day was my favorite; I was on cloud nine. The ceremony was a very exciting time for me. Not only did I get to marry by best friend, but I was able to do it in front of so many loved ones. When I reached the altar, I remember holding Justin’s hands and looking out to all our family and friends and my heart was so full of love at that moment. We decided to write our own vows, which was extremely meaningful.