Portico Garden Wedding Philadelphia at Awbury Arboretum

weddings

Wedding Venue: Portico Garden at Awbury Arboretum

Wedding Vibe: relaxed spring party

Color Palette: green, pink, white and pops of yellow

Portico Garden Wedding Philadelphia

Spring is one of my favorite times of year for a wedding at the Portico garden at Awbury Arboretum in Philadelphia. The beautiful spring flowers and the nice mix of indoor and outdoor spaces make for a great location! Stephanie and Evan were able to visit Portico during the spring season so they were able to see exactly what their big day might look like in that space.

“We chose Portico – Awbury Arboretum because we wanted something that was ideal for a smaller wedding and that had a relaxed atmosphere. We first visited the venue in the spring and everything was either green or in bloom! We love being outdoors and wanted to be able to enjoy the beautiful spring weather on our wedding day!”

Portico at Awbury Arboretum in philadelphia and wedding dress and flowers by the windows inside Woman helping bride button wedding dress at portico awbury arboretum in philadelphia Woman helping bride with wedding dress train indoors at Portico Awbury Arboretum by Heidi Roland Photography Bride in her wedding dress holding flower bouquet inside of portico in Philly

First Look on the Portico Porch

One of the great areas at Awbury Arboretum is the porch at Portico. After taking some getting-ready photos of the bride, the couple went out to the porch for their first look. This is always such a sweet an emotional moment. After the first look, we stayed on the porch for some beautiful couple’s photos before the outdoor wedding ceremony.

Bride and Groom first look on the porch of Portico at Awbury Arboretum in Philadelphia Groom looking very excited after seeing bride for the first time on Portico Porch at Awbury Arboretum Bride and groom on the porch of Portico at Awbury Arboretum in Philadelphia Portrait of bride with her flowers during spring wedding at Awbury Arboretum by Heidi Roland Photography Bride and groom smiling at each other on the porch of Portico- Awbury Arboretum on wedding day Bride and groom indoors before wedding at Awbury Arboretum

Awbury Arboretum Wedding Ceremony

Not only is the Portico porch at Awbury Arboretum a perfect location for couple’s photos, it’s also a great space for a spring wedding ceremony. As Stephanie and Evan’s closest loved ones filed in, the couple was able to tuck away inside. Then once everyone was settled in, the intimate ceremony was able to begin. I loved that this couples really made it their own day by highlighting aspects that were important to them and not worrying the rest:

“The most important part of the process was focusing on what we wanted to do and not incorporating things because we felt they were a “wedding requirement” or something we “should” be doing.”

This is great advice!

Family walking onto the porch at Portico and a sign welcoming to the wedding

Father walking the bride down the aisle on the porch of portico at awbury arboretum by Heidi Roland Photography Wedding ceremony on the porch of Portico at Philadelphia's Awbury Arboretum Bride and groom exchanging rings and kissing on the porch at awbury arboretum in philadelphia

Portico Garden in the Spring

On the back side of Portico, is a beautiful garden space filled with vibrant spring blooms. The bits of colors add a lively feeling to the couple’s photos. Throughout the entire wedding day, everyone could feel the love and excitement between the wonderful couple. Check out their meeting and proposal story:

“We met at a friend’s apartment in Pittsburgh where a mutual friend who was at the same party introduced us. We spent time together with our friends that night, but Steph was traveling to Iceland for a week with friends so we had our first date when Steph came back. We had our first date at Phipps Conservatory and then went to Mad Mex for food and drinks after. We were having so much fun that we went to Hofbrahaus that night with our friends!

Evan proposed in October 2020 while we were in Cape May for a weekend. We were having a picnic at the lighthouse and Evan popped the question! The best part was he arranged for both of our families to be there to surprise us. It was so fun to have our families there for such a special moment.”

Bride and groom in the Portico garden at Awbury Arboretum in Philadelphia Couple on their wedding day in the Portico Garden at Awbury Arboretum Bride and groom walking on the driveway of Portico at Awbury Arboretum

Outdoor Cocktail Hour

For cocktail hour, the bride and groom joined their guests on the patio for some wonderful food from Peachtree Catering. Out on the patio, the couple and their guests were able to mingle and eat yummy food. The spring air provided the perfect atmosphere for this very special day.

“We wanted a relaxed vibe and wanted our guests to feel like they were at a big family party!”

This is exactly what they got! It was a laid-back wedding day and definitely had a lovely welcoming “you are loved” kind of feeling.

Cocktail hour on the porch at Portico Awbury Arboretum in philadelphia with catering by peachtree catering wedding reception table set up under the tent at Portico

Portico Wedding Venue Tented Reception

After the ceremony and cocktail hour on the porch of Portico, the couple and their guests moved to the back of the building for a tented wedding reception. The tent was decorated with a mix of pinks, whites, and greens – a perfect spring combination! The flowers for the wedding were provided by Belovely Floral which is a great florist local to the Philadelphia area. The decorations were beautifully simple, and instead of wedding favors for their guests, the couple did something more meaningful to them and their loved ones.

“Instead of wedding favors we’ve opted to make a donation to the American Association for Cancer Research to honor our friends and family that have been impacted by cancer.”

Sometimes the best “gifts” are not things but meaningful gestures.

floral accent decorations at the tented wedding reception of portico awbury arboretum Couple walking into their wedding reception as husband and wife at tented reception at Portico Bride and groom sharing first dance under Portico tent at Awbury Arboretum in Philadelphia

Dances and Speeches

Under the tent donned with string lights, the newly married bride and groom opened with their first dance in front of their sweetheart table. After their first dance, there were speeches and toast followed by the father/daughter and mother son dances. One of the nice parts of Portico is that it’s very easy to transition from eating dinner in the tent to dances on the side porch with the parents.

Once everyone filled up with delicious food from Peachtree Catering, it was time to open up the dance floor and get the party started!

Father of the bride giving speech at Portico wedding reception while guests looked on Bride and Groom sharing laugh during the speech at their Portico wedding Father daughter dance on the portico porch at Awbury Arboretum in philadelphia Mother and groom dancing on the porch of portico awbury arboretum

It’s time to open up the dance floor!

The indoor space at Portico – Awbury Arboretum makes the perfect dance floor. And Schaffer Sound Productions knows just how to get the party started! The bride and groom hit the dance floor and had a blast. There was singing, dancing and tons of fun to be had.

It was truly a night to remember!

Want to See more Weddings at Portico?

check out these links below for more inspiration:

Portico Wedding Philadelphia

Portico Awbury Arboretum Wedding Philadelphia Pa

Awbury Arboretum Summer Wedding Philadelphia

Couple’s Review

Here is what the couple said:

“Heidi was the photographer for our wedding at the Awbury Arboretum in May 2022. Working with Heidi was an amazing experience! She was with us every part of the planning process and was incredibly organized, responsive and easy to work with! She was patient and put us at ease on our big day. Throughout the night she was right there capturing so many special moments. We loved working with her and are grateful she was a part of our day!”