A Modern-Industrial Wedding at Ace Hotel Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania

Maxine Markfield and Ben Mysliwiec took a blank canvas—a restored YMCA turned into the Ace Hotel Pittsburgh—and transformed it into a memorable wedding venue. The ceremony took place in an old ballroom with lots of natural light, original architectural details and white walls. The couple’s florist constructed a grand flower display, complete with peonies, hydrangeas and roses in shades of pink and white, to stand behind the ceremony site. “Because the majority of the décor was classic and simplistic, the natural beauty of the flower wall became a total statement in the ceremony space,” Maxine says. The reception was held in the old YMCA gymnasium—the room included the original hardwood basketball court and two levels of track space. We kept the décor more industrial with denim-like tablecloths, steel chairs and vintage-lined plates. We mixed this with classic white overlays and beautiful candlelight,” Maxine says. The first and second floors had greenery hanging from the railings, while overhead string lights emulated an outdoor courtyard. Maxine and Ben’s modern wedding also featured a personalized chalkboard seating chart, a simple cake with leaf details and romantic centerpieces with pops of pink.
Our favorite #MakeTradition “The one part of the day that truly sticks out to me is when my husband and I exchanged notes before the wedding, and then had an opportunity to do a first look,” Maxine says. “Seeing those moments in photos brings me back to all the happiness of that day, and I am so glad we chose to have those quiet moments.”