Newfoundland and Labrador┬аcouples looking to get married in a Vegas-style chapel won’t have to make the trip to Sin City┬аanymore. Soon, they can simply drive to the Southern Shore.
There, in Mobile, Brenda and Bob Lee have spent the past few months building Mom’s Little White Chapel тАФ their own version of the famous Little White Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas.
They believe it’s┬аthe first of its kind in the province.
“We don’t know of anymore. We hope we’re the first,” Brenda Lee said with a laugh.┬а“And I’m sure they’ll try to duplicate, but they won’t.”
The idea formed after the couple, who runs┬аMom’s Place bed and breakfast,┬аwas┬аapproached by one of┬аits┬аguests┬аwho wanted┬аto say her wedding vows while staying at the vacation spot.
The ceremony went by without a hitch, the bride was happy тАФ and Brenda Lee had a vision.
“That night, she woke me up at four┬аin the morning, ‘I got an idea. I got an idea,”┬аsaid husband Bob,┬аadding that this wasn’t the first time his wife woke him with “a crazy idea”.
For N.L. couples looking to tie the knot in a Vegas-style wedding chapel, the trip to Sin City itself isn’t needed anymore. Instead, they can just make the trip to the Southern Shore, where Bob and Brenda Lee have built their own Little White Wedding Chapel.
“I said, ‘Yeah, we got to build a chapel. We should have a little white wedding chapel like they got in Vegas and we should be open all hours,'”┬аBrenda┬аadded. “Why not see [people] when they’re happiest?”
Bob┬аwas on board right away, but is┬аstill surprised at how fast things have┬аtaken┬аshape. Two short┬аmonths after the ceremony on Feb. 9,┬аthe concrete floor for the chapel was poured.
“When [Brenda]┬аgets her mind set to something, it happens pretty quick,” said Bob.┬а“I thought it was an idea we’d work on first, but within three months we’ve a little white chapel.”
Mom’s Little White Chapel is not just a nod to the name┬аof the famous Las Vegas version. It incorporates many design elements referencing the U.S. elopement destination тАФ including a custom-made sign and a stained-glass window featuring Elvis Presley.
Their┬аlove for the King of Rock and Roll, said Brenda, comes from her late uncle Terry, who was born on the same day as Elvis.
When Dave Pye and┬аJillian Gardiner┬аof┬аSt. John’s-based company SGO Designer Glass heard the unique request, they knew┬аthey had to be a part of it.
“Every now and then, a project comes along that is just so much fun. And this was just beyond belief,” said Pye. “Jillian worked tirelessly on an Elvis design, not wanting to duplicate something that’s already been done. We wanted to come up with something truly original. And she knocked it out of the park.”
“I love a challenge, certainly,” Gardiner added.┬а“I also love using as much design and as much colour as possible. So, that really worked well for this panel.”
Gardiner’s creative freedom in designing the panel also had special┬аelements included in the design┬атАФ┬аsuch as the words ‘The King’ and ‘That’s alright, Mama’, in reference to┬аBrenda Lee’s┬аlate mother.
The┬аdesign process alone took about 20 hours, said Pye, and the fabrication process took┬аabout┬а100 hours from start to finish.
“Doing any iconic figure like this in stained glass, it does present a real challenge. We want people to know right away when they look at it who they’re looking at,” said Pye.
“I think this one is probably head and shoulders [above] in terms of the fun factor for us. It was great.”
The chapel is getting its finishing touches before its inaugural ceremony can take place on July 14. Then, later in the fall, the Lees hope to add a custom-made steeple.
“I’m looking forward to seeing all the brides. I cannot wait to see them all and all the smiles. I love anybody getting married,”┬аsaid Brenda, who has become a licensed marriage commissioner and will marry the couples herself.
Slots for the chapel are filling up quickly. Half a dozen brides┬аbooked their dates within the first 48 hours of the chapel being announced on social media and┬аthe total number of bookings has since risen to 32.
┬аThe Lees, who eloped themselves, have some marriage advice for the future spouses тАФ “Don’t go to bed angry.”
“Hopefully, they’ll be that happy by the time they’re rolling out of here, they won’t be thinking of anything else other than when they’re coming back to Mom’s Place,”┬аBob said.
“Just as long as they book for their anniversary,” Brenda agreed.
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