MELISSA BLANCO & JASON FITZSIMMONS
January 27, 2018 Quebec City, Canada
Planning for a destination wedding, particularly one in the dead of winter, was challenging, admits Melissa Blanco and Jason Fitzsimmons, but the vision of a dreamy escape along with 40 of their closest friends and family was well worth the effort. “Jason and I have always wanted to have an intimate destination wedding, and we have always found winter weddings to be some of the most enchanting,” confides the bride. “Destination weddings offer a unique adventure and provide some of the most stunning locations.”
The New Jersey couple’s magical ceremony took place in a gorgeously crafted chapel made entirely from carved ice and snow in Quebec City – a majestic town filled with Old World, European charm. The theme of the celebration, “Song of Ice and Fire,” was greatly inspired by Baz Luhrmann’s film Romeo + Juliet, though there were also touches from Game of Thrones and Disney movies incorporated into the décor scheme. The altar and the lectern of the sanctuary were formed from ice, while the aisle was covered in snow, and the pews – made from blocks of ice – were cloaked in plush faux fur for guests to sit. Lilac lighting blended beautifully with the glow of hundreds of candles along the altar, and candelabras and tea lights bedecked unoccupied pews.
The wedding party lined up outside the fur-wrapped wooden doors, awaiting their entrance. As the doors began to slowly open for Jason, snow began to fall. “It was perfect, like we were in a snow globe,” remembers Melissa. Madonna’s “Like a Prayer” played as they processed. The best man carried an icy blue book down the aisle titled “The Snow Queen,” which contained a heart-shaped hollow inside, where the rings were kept. The sole bridesmaid, Melissa’s younger sister, carried a small bouquet of cream roses and dusty miller; attached was a silver charm with a photo of their late mother and grandmother.
“It was perfect, like we were in a snow globe.”
Melissa looked like royalty as she walked down the aisle with her father to the powerful song “Everybody’s Free” by Quindon Tarver. In lieu of a wedding bouquet, she carried a faux fur ivory hand muff – custom-made to match her long sheer cape – to protect her hands from the cold, as it was 23-degrees Fahrenheit inside of the ice chapel. The service was sentimental with both Jason and Melissa reading aloud their personally written vows. Upon their exit, every guest was given a small lantern to hold up in the darkness as they lined up on each side of the red carpet laid outside of the igloo.
A former Catholic chapel from the 1900s – deconsecrated in 1992 – served as the venue for the reception. “I was raised Roman Catholic,” explains the bride. “Although my current relationship with Catholicism has changed, it cast an enduring influence on my thoughts on love, beauty, and romanticism.” The vibrantly colored stained-glass windows and other celestial imagery provided the ideal setting for the evening festivities.