The Harmac Wedding, Ellen & Andy
Ellen and Andy’s Harmac wedding in Cedar Rapids, Iowa was a stunningly elegant affair. With gorgeous tablescapes designed by the Wedding Trailers and a beautifully candlelit ceremony, this Harmac wedding day was breathtaking! Ellen and Andy had a simple color scheme of black and white, with an old money aesthetic in mind.
Photo By: Grace T. Photography
The Harmac located in downtown Cedar Rapids is a unique industrial building that brings a new take to weddings, which is exactly why we love it! Gone is your typical Iowan white barn wedding that is instead replaced with character from this 1922 Industrial warehouse. The Harmac wedding venue is easily one of my favorite venues in Eastern Iowa for many reasons, but my #1 is because of their staff. Every wedding I have at The Harmac, their staff knocks it out of the park! From their bar staff team, to their event manager, and their setup and tear down crew, they always rock it!
I also love the fact that The Harmac in Cedar Rapids, Iowa has getting ready spaces for both the bride and groom! While most venues only have a bridal suite for the girls, The Harmac offers two large rooms for everyone to get ready in. After the ceremony, either room can also be transformed into a kids area, quiet space for the grandparents, or even a place to keep your pets- because the Harmac lets your bring your fur babies!
The harmac wedding ceremony
The Harmac has two main ceremony spaces; one on the rooftop of the building, and one inside the space in a secluded room infront of a view of the city.
Ellen and Andy opted to get married inside, mostly because November weather can be unpredictable, but also because they wanted to give their guests a more intimate feel to the ceremony.
For decor, we placed a clear acrylic arch behind the couple and had their florist place floral arrangements along the top, while tall pillar candles lined the aisle.
the harmac wedding reception
After the ceremony guests headed into the main reception room for cocktail hour, while we moved the couples ceremony decor over to their head table.
During the cocktail hour, the bar was poppin’ (as per usual). But one of my favorite features the Harmac does for each of their couples, is that they make a custom ice stamp! The couple pics out a design they like which can be their initials, monogram, or wedding date, and each drink the bartenders make, they stamp the ice cubes right in front of guests! It’s such a cool feature, and guests love to see all the different stamps they get throughout the night!
After cocktail hour, the couple and their bridal party were officially introduced, and the couple cut their cake, and went into their speeches and toasts. After speeches, dinner was served by Peppercorn Food Co. and the desserts were brought out. The dinner for the evening was plated and consisted of either beef tenderloin or a grilled chicken breast, with grilled seasonal veggies and roasted potatoes. The cake was designed by Classic Cakes by Design, and was a circular two tiered coquette style, with white frosting layered beautifully. While we cut the bottom tier to serve to the head table and family tables, the top layer of the cake was kept for the couple to freeze, and eat on their one year anniversary.
Shortly after dinner, the couple shared their first dance, parent dances, and the dance floor offically opened.
The harmac wedding headtable decor
The photos can’t even do the real thing justice; this head table is what wedding dreams are made of! With the sun going down early and the lights turned down low, everything was candlelit and gave off a romantic and intimate feel.
We moved the ceremony arch behing the head table along with all the pillar candles, leaving some infront of the headtable. We then placed bud vases, taper candles, votives, and mini lamps along the length of the head table.
The harmac wedding table decor
There were three different table setups for the reception.
1.) Black Taper Candle Holders, White Taper Candles, a Mini Lamp, Bud Vase, Votive Candles, Granite Table Number, Black Rimmed Charger, White Napkin, Full Place Setting
2.) White Taper Candle Holders, Black Taper Candles, a Mini Lamp, Bud Vase, Votive Candles, Granite Table Number, Black Rimmed Charger, White Napkin, Full Place Setting
3.) Multi Heighted White Pillar Candles, Votive Candles, Granite Table Number, Black Rimmed Charger, White Napkin, Full Place Setting
The florals mixed in were kept simple: white roses. They were the only florals our bride wanted for her day, and they paired beautifully with all the decor for her old money aesthetic.
The Dress
Ellen’s dress is from Embody Bridal, a beautiful dress shop located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, not far from the venue itself. While the dress itself is stunning, Ellen opted to have a dress change after dinner! Before the dance hour offically kicked off, Ellen hopped into an adorable hot pink mini dress with some white bridal heels!
The Bridal Party
While the bridal party was small, they killed it on the wedding day! The bridesmaids wore beautiful velvet maroon dresses, each with a different style and design that paired beautifully with each other. The girls kept it fairly simple, with minimal jewelry and a small bouquet of white roses.
The groomsmen looked snazzy in their black suits with maroon ties to match the girls, and a single white rose for their boutionnieres.
Overall Ellen and Andy’s wedding at The Harmac was beyond stunning, huge thanks to all the amazing vendors who helped make the day run smooth!
Vendor Team
Venue: The Harmac
@theharmac hello@theharmac.com
Planner: Elizabeth Bliss Events
@elizabeth_bliss_events elizabethblissevents@gmail.com
Photographer: Grace T. Photography
@gracetphotography contact.gracetphoto@gmail.com
Videographer: Madison Timp
@madisentimp_weddings madisenlynnvideography@gmail.com
Caterer: Peppercorn Food Co.
@peppercornfoodco jude@peppercornfoodcompany.com
Bakery: Classic Cakes By Design
@classiccakesby classiccakesbydesign@gmail.com
DJ: DJ Commando
@djcommando1 darealdjcommando@gmail.com
Florist: Hyvee
@hyvee ProductInquiry@hy-vee.com
Makeup: Aurora Blush
@aurorablushbridal hello@aurorablush.com
Hair: Fix Salon
Decor Rentals: The Wedding Trailers
@monarchevents.co theweddingtrailers@gmail.com
Dress: Embody Bridal
@embodybridal hello@embodybridal.com
Jewelers: Siebke Hoyt
@siebkehoytjewelers joseph@siebkehoyt.com
The Harmac Wedding Venue
Address: 411 6th Ave SE, Cedar Rapids, IA 52401
Phone: (319) 895-2429
Email: HELLO@THEHARMAC.COM
Capacity of 40 to 400 guests
Square Footage: 9,500 sq ft
100 Parking Spots
Amenities included: Tables & chairs, table linens, bar glassware