Cool couple Stew and Ruth wanted a fun, stress-free wedding, so gambled on a Sin City elopement at an iconic drive-thru chapel, followed by a Glasgow party a few weeks later
Ruth Finn Leiser and Stew Bryden
Las Vegas wedding | 4th June 2024 at A Little White Chapel
Glasgow party | 29th June 2024 at SWG3
USA photography | Stew Bryden
Glasgow photography | Carla Marcia Photography
“We didn’t walk down the aisle – we drove!” laughs Stew Bryden, who married his long-time love Ruth at one of the world’s most iconic wedding destinations: the Drive-Thru Tunnel of Vows at A Little White Chapel in Las Vegas. “The ceremony took, like, six minutes or something!”
The couple had considered an intimate family wedding in Sicily, but eventually decided against it. “The thought of planning a wedding from a thousand miles away in a language neither of us speaks ultimately didn’t fit with the fun and stress-free vibe we wanted,” admits Ruth.
After being smitten by Los Angeles on a trip there last year, Ruth suggested eloping – and Stew was all for it: “It would just be another of our adventures together, so we decided to fly back to LA in June 2024 and take a road-trip to marry in Vegas.”
In theory, couples can simply walk in and get married at A Little White Chapel (as celebs such a Britney and Joan Collins can attest), but with flights and a bigger trip to plan around it, Ruth and Stew didn’t want to take any chances; they booked their slot about five months ahead of time and applied for their marriage licence online straight away. (All weddings at A Little White Chapel require a valid licence purchased in advance from Nevada’s Clark County Marriage License Bureau. It currently costs $102.)
Despite grappling with a slow puncture in their Ford Mustang convertible on the journey from LA, the pair arrived in Sin City the day before they were due to get married and, armed with their passports and ID, went to collect their paperwork.
“The licence bureau is sort of like a post office,” explains Ruth. “We went up to the counter and had to swear an oath that we hadn’t lied on the application form! We were then handed all our paperwork in an envelope with a couple of little souvenirs (a Vegas luggage tag and a couple of ‘Married in Vegas 2024’ stickers), which was such a cute touch. The whole process was so easy and clear.”
Ceremonies in Las Vegas are legally binding in the UK.
“After the ceremony, the celebrant gives you a ‘keepsake’ version of your marriage licence (you can even have it printed on paper with cartoon Vegas showgirls, but we decided on the plain version!), and they have ten days to file the marriage certificate with the county clerk’s office.
“Once that has been done, you can apply for the ‘certified’ legal proof. It costs about £20 to get the official document shipped to the UK. We were advised a timescale of six to eight weeks, but ours actually arrived within a few days,” notes Ruth.
Find out what you need to do to get legally married in Scotland
The morning of the wedding didn’t go quite so smoothly, however, as Ruth reveals… “Stew and I got ready together and we were quite chilled – perhaps a bit too chilled! I had issues with the US voltage slowing down the steamer that I was using for my dress, so I had only just started to apply my eye makeup when Stew shouted through, ‘We need to leave now!’
“I had to go without finishing my eye makeup, so I just wore sunglasses for the ceremony and photos instead! My reputation for running behind is well established, so I think running late for my own wedding was just par for the course!”
And what about the outfits? “My whole outfit cost me around £300,” says Stew, who wore a vintage YSL tux and All Saints cowboy boots. Ruth shopped at Pretty Woman Edinburgh. “Stew even came to the second appointment and helped me pick the final dress,” says Ruth. “I appreciated the store’s chilled, low-key vibe.”
Even though it was just the lovebirds and the officiant the ceremony (plus a witness supplied by the chapel), Stew and Ruth’s parents phoned in over FaceTime. “We borrowed a GoPro to shoot parts of the trip, but the one occasion that it didn’t record properly was during the ceremony – you literally couldn’t make it up,” laughs the bride. “But even that felt like it somehow was meant to be; only us and our parents actually got to witness the ceremony, which somehow made it feel even more special.”
No such mishaps befell the wedding pictures, though, as Stew is a professional photographer. “I shot our Vegas photos myself on medium-format film,” he says. “I set up the shots on a tripod and, luckily, the chapel’s resident photographer noticed the vintage film camera and was curious, so he happily helped push the shutter.”
The temperature that day was 40°C, which the pair admit was a struggle.
“We both had sweat pouring down us during the ceremony, and didn’t feel very attractive at all,” laughs Stew. So the newlyweds nipped back to their hotel, the Vdara (a gift from Stew’s photography agent), to change into cooler, casual clothes before heading out for their first meal as a married couple – vegan burgers.
“After that, we stayed in Vegas for a day, chilled by the pool, had a few flutters in the casinos, then drove back to LA.”
Three weeks later, the couple threw a party for 100 people at SWG3 in Glasgow. “We booked our date about eight months in advance and sent out invites then too,” recalls Stew.
The space at SWG3 was a mix of industrial concrete, brutalist architecture, fabric drapes, delicate flowers and candlelight. “We wanted an after-party vibe,” say the couple.
Check out other Glasgow wedding venues here
The evening kicked off at 5pm with jazz and drinks outside and a short welcome speech, before the premiere of the wedding film, made and edited by the newlyweds.
After that, caterer Nosh laid on “excellent” high-end bowl-food, which allowed guests to sit anywhere, or to wander and mingle. “It was informal – exactly what we had envisioned,” says Stew. Then, it was onto a boisterous ceilidh courtesy of Coila Ceilidh Band.
"I had the absolute time of my life,” says Ruth. “It was so lovely to be able to celebrate and have fun with all our loved ones, after having done the ‘actual’ wedding on our own. You could feel the love in the room.”
Glasgow photographer Carla Marcia was on hand to capture it all. “We wanted the photography to be candid and fun, like club photography. We loved Carla Marcia’s polaroid work and knew that her professional and friendly approach would strike the right note with guests. She nailed it.”
Las Vegas suppliers
Venue A Little White Chapel, Las Vegas, officiated by Kalin Ivanov
Photography Stew Bryden
Filmmaker Stew Bryden and Ruth Leiser, edited by Stew
Bride’s dress Chosen by Kyha, from Pretty Woman Edinburgh
Bride’s jewellery Missoma and vintage necklace from mum
Groom’s outfit Vintage Yves Saint Laurent tuxedo and TM Lewin shirt from Vinted; bow tie from Ebay; cowboy boots from All Saints
Wedding rings Fraser Hart
Transport Ford Mustang Convertible hired via Turo car rental app Luggage FPM Milano
Las Vegas hotel Vdara Hotel & Spa
LA hotel The Line
Glasgow suppliers
Venue SWG3
Photography Carla Marcia Photography
Bride and groom’s outfits Same as Las Vegas
Bride’s nails Nailed it Alice
Catering Sara Sinclair, Nosh
Cake Rude Cookies and Wild Flours Bakery
Flowers James Taylor Flowers
Stationery Designed by the groom, with artwork by Jessica Rose Bird Table and bench hire Glasgow Gazebo Hire
Fabric decor Fabric Bazaar
Candle holders and candles Collected over months in the run-up to the party
Reception band Coila Ceilidh Band
