A Gorgeous Backyard Wedding in State College, PA (Heather and Christian)
We are so excited to share this gorgeous Palm Springs-inspired backyard wedding featuring Heather and Christian!
Heather and Christian’s story:
Heather grew up in State College and grew up with a love of The Nittany Lions.
Christian grew up about an hour and a half away in Camp Hill with a passion for athletics (he played football for Penn State).
After high school, both chose to attend Penn State University. While in school, Heather and Christian circulated among the same group of friends, went to the same parties and bars and lived on the same street (Christian even had a crush on Heather’s roommate), but they never really knew one another. It wasn’t until a chance encounter a decade later while both were visiting home after moving to new cities that they connected.
Christian won Heather over with an official first date to a true PA staple, Hoss’s (It is hospitality) after Heather had mentioned missing it while living in the south.
And the rest is history.
Check out these gorgeous wedding photos from Garnet Dalia Photography:
A Few More Wedding Day Details
DIY by the bride
Heather designed these amazing details at her wedding:
- Champagne bottle wall seating chart
- Arch backdrop
- Adult Capri Suns
- Cake
- All signage
- Menu cards
- Table numbers
- Head table name plates
- Ring bearer pillow
- Beer pong stands
Follow Heather on Instagram to see some of the behind-the-scenes of her wedding and preparations (there is a tab called “wedding” in her story highlights section).
A last-minute location change
Heather and Christian were supposed to get married on the Penn State campus at Eisenhower Chapel, but when they arrived, they were surprised to find that the entire place was under construction and inaccessible for anyone with a handicap. Heather’s sister had broken her ankle a month before the wedding, was wheelchair-bound (along with her grandma), and would be physically unable to enter. At the last minute, they scrambled and moved the ceremony to Heather’s parents’ house (the reception venue).
Figuring out a new ceremony location in less than 24 hours is not an ideal situation to deal with, but Heather and Christian were not going to let anything stand in their way of getting married.
A few of the bride’s favorite details
My favorite little additions were a champagne bottle wall seating chart and an acrylic/ghost beer pong table for guests to play during the party.
We also had lots of signage + bar napkin inspo from Drake (Christian’s fave). We tried to keep the branding extremely consistent and cohesive.
Let’s talk about the food
For food, the couple went for a RICH cocktail hour with a slew of hor D’oeuvres
Cocktail hour food included:
- Bruschetta
- Spinach and feta roll
- Bacon wrapped asparagus
- Blackened Grouper soft tacos
- Fried lobster tails
- Jumbo lump crab cocktail
- Grilled New Zealand lamb chops
- Prime beef french dip
- Beef Teriyaki
- Buffalo shrimp
- Coconut Chicken
- Chicken marsala w/puff pastry
- Salmon w/puff pastry
Dinner menu:
- Crab cake
- Filet
- Asparagus
- Wild mushroom risotto
Heather and Christian’s specialty cocktail was a prickly pear margarita, again as a nod to Texas
Dessert:
- Grilled Stickies and ice cream (a locally FAMOUS specialty of their caterer)
After dinner, Heather and Christian treated their wedding guests to a late-night snack, including a Philly-style cheesesteak cart and a Pittsburgh cookie table.
Here are the amazing wedding professionals who helped make the day so perfect:
- Wedding Photography: Garnet Dahlia
- Video: Visual Rose Productions
- Florist: Pocketful of Posies
- Wedding Planner: Madeline Kelly Events
- DJ: Mint DJ Events
- Makeup: Misty Rockwell Artistry
- Hair: Sunkissed and Made Up (Jenna Deao)
- Catering: Catering with Style by Dan Rallis
- Programs: Plume & Paper
- Invitations: Heather Kirk
- Transportation: Fullington TrailwaysÂ
- Rentals: Best Event Rental & All OccasionsÂ
- Linens: Mosaic
- Hotel for guests: Graduate State College
- Suiting: The Black Tux
- Ceremony Dress: David’s Bridal
- Reception Dress: Retrofête
If you are looking to plan your own backyard wedding, we put together a great article for you.
Here is the link to the article: Best Backyard Wedding Planning Guide
Plus, you can see more real PA weddings here.
