PHOTOS BY WILD NATIVE PHOTOGRAPHY, DAWN DERBYSHIRE PHOTOGRAPHY AND LEEANN MARIE PHOTOGRAPHY

Many Pittsburgh residents fall in love with all elements of their street and neighborhood. The plethora of quiet yet bustling boroughs in our region provide both exciting activities and sanctuary.

For one couple, the North Side became home.

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Casey Farbacher was living on Foreland Street and Will Bunk was living on Arch Street, home to Randyland, when they met in 2016. When they married on May 6, 2023, they deemed the vibrant outdoor art museum founded by local artist Randy Gilson the perfect location for their wedding photoshoot.

“We wanted the colorful elements of Randyland and that unique personality that Arch Street has,” Casey says.

PHOTO BY WILD NATIVE PHOTOGRAPHY

For their ceremony, the couple chose Saint Peter Church, also located on Arch Street, and held an intimate reception at Fig & Ash on East Ohio Street. The couple now lives in Warren, Warren County, so walking down the streets they once called home created a sense of nostalgia on their special day.

“It was really nice to be able to go back there,” Casey says. “That’s where we had our first dates and really just got to know each other and where our relationship started.”

Their photo shoot carried over into the Mexican War Streets.

“We love it [the North Side] — the park, everything about it, it’s so close to everything,” Casey says. “So we wanted to make sure our wedding was our favorite part of Pittsburgh, which really is the North Side.”

Event planner Tori Rippole, owner of La EVENTOR based in the North Side, supports any way to pay homage to Pittsburgh in her clients’ weddings. Just recently, Rippole had clients choose the Heinz History Center for their reception, which she says “is the perfect location” for couples who really want to show off their city.

PHOTO BY DAWN DERBYSHIRE PHOTOGRAPHY

For Megan McBrearty and Lorenzo Selvaggi’s celebration on July 6, 2024, Rippole created a Heinz ketchup-themed escort display with 3-foot-tall ketchup bottles for decoration and mini Heinz ketchup bottles with guests’ names and table number, which doubled as wedding favors. A sign read: “Let’s ketchup,” a tomatoey spin on “Let’s catch up.”

“Guests really loved this,” Rippole says.

PHOTO BY DAWN DERBYSHIRE PHOTOGRAPHY

Related: This Groom Wore a Jacket Made of Heinz Ketchup Packets to His Wedding

The famous Pittsburgh cookie table is one of the most common ways for couples to show their city some love and share a local tradition with their guests. Many of Rippole’s clients have used Pittsburgh bridge displays to hold their cookies; others asked stationery artists to create a sign giving the history of the tradition.

PHOTO BY LEEANN MARIE PHOTOGRAPHY

“Guests are really going to remember those little hints … and that’s what sets the weddings and events apart,” says Rippole.

Pittsburgh and the city’s culture has become a large part of Taylor Wellman and Alex Clementoni’s relationship. The pair met at the University of Pittsburgh during their undergraduate studies; Taylor had grown up in the Pittsburgh area, while Alex was raised in Williamsport in Central Pennsylvania.

“He came to Pittsburgh for school,” Taylor says. “But even before that, growing up, Alex was a Steelers fan. So he and his family would come to Pittsburgh pretty frequently for Steelers games … He grew up being immersed in Pittsburgh culture.”

After earning their undergraduate degrees, Taylor and Alex went back to Pitt for grad school. When they got engaged, they decided to marry in a location special to their Panther background: Heinz Memorial Chapel. Their wedding was held at the Oakland landmark on June 24, 2023.

The reception, also at Pitt, was at the University Club, where Taylor and Alex entered waving custom Terrible Towels to the song “Renegade,” by Styx, which is played at every Steelers home game.

The Terrible Towels also served as the couples’ favors, and Taylor recalls the excitement that filled the room when they entered and guests waved their towels.

PHOTO BY LEEANN MARIE PHOTOGRAPHY

“People knew what to do whenever you hear ‘Renegade’ and you have a Terrible Towel,” Taylor says. “It was really loud. I thought it was a really cool way to kind of tie everything together.

“It made that Pittsburgh experience for all of our guests who maybe weren’t from Pittsburgh, too.”

Rippole says the most special weddings are those in which the couple stays true to what they believe in, she says.

“If your heart is telling you to put a bridge on the cookie table or take photos on one of the iconic bridges here in Pittsburgh, do it and do what makes you happy,” Rippole says.

Her advice for couples looking to add Pittsburgh themes into their wedding comes down to one thing: Hire a wedding planner and designer.

“There are so many great planners here in our city, and we really do our best to give our clients what they want and elevate their visions. There are so many creative ways that we can tie in Pittsburgh. The limit truly doesn’t exist.”