This wedding at The Pennsylvanian is the very definition of refinement. A delicate palette of baby blue mixed with soft lavender gave Jillian and Joseph the subtle color they were after for their timeless affair. The combination played well with the ornate but neutral architecture of their chosen venue. The Pennsylvanian just calls for a sophisticated fete and this one was the perfect match. Expert styling by Soiree by Souleret included luxurious florals from The Farmer’s Daughter and sheer brocade overlays from Lendable Linens. Vintage gold mirrors serving as signs, photo booth fun from Lux Photobooth, and a packed dance floor courtesy of Andy Booth Productions rounded out the reception details. Meanwhile, Jillian fit right along with the day’s vibe in a flowy Sottero & Midgley ballgown from Bridal Beginning that is the epitome of a princess bride. From the classic details to the dream-like portraits from Lauren Renee Photography, this wedding is bound to get you excited!
About the Couple
We met in college at Butler University in Indianapolis. Joseph was a sophomore and I was an incoming freshman. Joseph was one of my initiation leaders and claims he fell in love at first sight! After a strong pursuit, we starting dating in January of my freshmen year.
We got engaged on our five year anniversary. I thought we were simply headed out to dinner for the occasion. Joseph led me through downtown Indianapolis, stopping at the gorgeous and romantic center of downtown. He got down on one knee and it was the absolute best moment. After the big yes, he led me to a surprise party filled with all of our family members. My parents, sister, grandma, and cousin all secretly come to town, driving six hours from Pittsburgh to see us! After about a half hour with family, there was a knock on the door. I answered and in came our 20 closest friends. It was such a wonderful and special night to say yes to the love of my life and to then be surrounded by those who love us most.
About the Wedding
We wanted our wedding to be classic, romantic and timeless. We liked the idea of color, but not too much. That’s how we ended up playing with the soft blue palette and just a touch of lavender in the florals. The champagne/gold tones came naturally, especially after deciding to have our reception at The Pennsylvanian. The space speaks for itself and we really wanted to compliment the architecture and color schemes already going on. I loved the idea of mix and match bridesmaid dresses but BOY, was that an undertaking! I think I accumulated over 50 blue color swatches before we found what was right. It was a lot of work, and a little crazy to know that I’d never see all seven dresses in the same room until the day of the wedding! But, I love how it looked.
We also wanted the day to be really fun and memorable. Over 80% of our guest list was coming from outside of Pittsburgh and we ended up having 18 states represented! So with that, we wanted everyone to walk away and forever remember the weekend.
There were a lot of other small details that we loved. Of course, the traditional cookie table was a must, but we gave a little shout-out to where we met with the Butler University Bulldog cookies mixed in and the stone bulldog at the escort card cart. We replaced menus at each place setting with beautiful stationery for anniversary notes. Each guest wrote us a note for our anniversary year of their table number (ex: Guests at Table 12 wrote us notes to open on our 12th anniversary).
Photo booths are just plain fun and we’ve always loved them as wedding guests. We tacked on the scrapbook option from Lux Photobooth and now have everyone’s photo strips from the night saved. We also worked very closely with our DJ. Music is a huge part of both of our lives and we had a lot of genres and songs we wanted to hear. Andy was amazing and fed right into what we were hoping for. I also asked him to keep a list, in order, of everything he played. Now, we have an awesome playlist of exactly what was played at the reception. Pretty cool, we think!
Lastly, we had Chick-Fil-A delivered for late night snacks. Who doesn’t love Chick-Fil-A?
Favorite Moment
Standing at the back of the altar, hearing the music, watching the bridal party slowly disappear, and knowing it was time to walk was pretty overwhelming in the most exciting way.
Getting onto our party bus with our 14-person bridal party, knowing that the big ceremony was done, we were official, and now it was time to CELEBRATE was beyond fun.
Our first dance in the gorgeous Rotunda at The Pennsylvanian was so beautiful.
At the end of the night, per Joseph’s fraternity tradition, the two of us took the floor to Billy Joel’s “Piano Man” with every guest making a huge circle around us. There was singing and swaying and it was so amazing to take in those last moments of our reception.
