PHOTO BY WEDDINGS BY ALISA

Westmoreland County bride Catherine Clements knew she wanted a spectacular Pittsburgh cookie table at her July 2023 wedding to Aaron Townley after her four older siblings got married and offered plenty of sweet treats at their celebrations.

“There was a lot of hype and excitement from our friends and family that helped contribute cookies,” she says.

PHOTO BY WEDDINGS BY ALISA

The mother-of-the-bride, Daryl Hlavsa, coordinated more than 70 dozen cookies curated by an assembly of loved ones for the newlywed’s reception at LeMont, ensuring each of the 16 contributors was recognized on a handmade sign. Knowing how preoccupied the couple would be, Hlavsa had two of each kind of cookie set aside for them before the treats were put out for guests.

Aaron is a Michigan native unaccustomed to the tradition and had a single request: cookie bridges. Through the power of Facebook bridal groups, the couple discovered Eisels Kustomz, a family-owned business that specializes in Pittsburgh cookie table props, and rented replicas of the Smithfield Bridge as well as one of the three sisters bridges — both of which lit up.

“The cookie bridges were definitely a fun element [that played] into the kind of Pittsburgh theme of the wedding,” Catherine says.