Quirky, fun vegan elopement in Las Vegas, Nevada

Jasmin, the author of Always Too Much and Never Enough: A Memoir, and Moore had a quirky, romantic elopement in Las Vegas, Nevada, where they celebrated with vegan food and an Elvis impersonator. They traveled from their home in Los Angeles for a February elopement.

Who proposed or did you both?

It was a mutual conversation over vegan Chinese food (dumplings, to be precise).

What advice would you give to engaged LGBTQ+ couples?

We’ve paved our own way for a long time; why stop now? Make sure your wedding represents all the things you really want—not the things the wedding industrial complex expects you to embrace. You don’t need to go broke to get married, you don’t need to invite people you don’t want there and you don’t need to create undue stress for a day that is supposed to represent love and union. Be bold, be creative and have a sense of humor about the whole thing. Our final advice: Elope. It’s the best thing we could have possibly done.

What challenges did you face as an LGBTQ+ couple planning your wedding?

Literally nothing. Vegas is super queer-friendly, and so is Elvis.

Did you encounter any pleasant surprises as an LGBTQ+ couple planning your wedding?

Getting married in Vegas means getting used to endless hoots and hollers from passersby, and we’re pretty sure that the over-the-top exuberance coming our way that magical night was because we were a cute queer couple holding a ridiculously adorable (albeit perplexed) little dog.

“Our overnight gallivant to Vegas for our romantic and quirky elopement was a whirlwind, complete with a pink Cadillac taking us down the aisle, a fog machine for dramatic effect and a bouquet made of organic veggies (it doubled as a totally delicious stir-fry the next day).

We had our rescued chihuahua Lucy with us (she wore her Hanukah bow tie), and managed to snag the kindest Elvis on the strip (since we’re both vegan, he gave us some advice on where to eat after the ceremony—turns out, the King knows his way around plant-based food!). We had a live stream so that our friends from all over the world could tune in, and our Facebook event page became a hangout where our queer buddies all posted videos of themselves slow dancing alongside us.

Following the ceremony, a stretch limo picked us up and took us around to the best vegan spots in Vegas—from Modern Vegan for ‘chicken’ and waffles, to Evel Pie where we fed each other garlic knots. We even stopped by the iconic Welcome to Vegas! sign for a mock proposal, using a vegan doughnut as a stand-in ring. At the end of the evening, we briefly hit the casino where we won $70, called it a night and headed to our room.

The next morning we headed back to our home in Los Angeles, but only after stopping by the Goodwill to donate Jasmin’s wedding dress, followed by a stop at the all-vegan fast-food drive-thru, Vegeway. The weekend was romantic, but in an offbeat way, representing our values (veganism), our skills (Moore hand-sewed Jasmin her stunning coat for the occasion, which she wore all night) and our whimsy (Jasmin wore saddle shoes from Goodwill instead of heels).” —from Jasmin, one half of the couple