FOREVER AFTER ALL

THEIR STORY

Greg and Kelli-Ann met in 2018, online. Kelli-Anne had been born and raised with horses, growing up in British Columbia, however Greg was late to the party. As their relationship blossomed, the couple ended up buying two horses in their first year together and then decided they wanted the horses to be at home. They moved out of Calgary, to an acreage east of Airdrie, AB.

“Rodeo has always been a big part of our lives (especially mine) and Greg was planning on proposing to me at the Canadian Finals Rodeo (CFR) in Red Deer, AB, but due to COVID there was no CFR in 2020,” tells Kelli-Anne.

“So, he had wanted to drive up to Red Deer and propose at the gates to Westerner Park, but that day was a total snow storm – so he ended up doing it right in our kitchen and well, the rest is history!”

Kelli-Anne is the Chief Operating Officer for Equi-Boost Oil and Greg is an electrician. They are both very active in a local, historical western reenactment group called Guns of the Golden West. And they recently found out, they are expecting in 2022.

VENUE The wedding ceremony and reception were held at a private acreage, although the couple travelled to the Airdrie Rodeo Grounds for photos.

SOMETHING DIFFERENT

The couple chose silicon bands from Cabela’s, which proved to be a fortunate decision as a few weeks following the wedding, Kelli-Anne lost hers while field dressing a deer.

All of the flowers came from Brilliant Blooms in Cochrane, AB. BRIDESMAIDS

Each bridesmaid wore a turquoise dress purchased online.

BRIDE’S DRESS

The bridal dress came from David’s Bridal in Calgary, AB. It was a Melissa Sweet brand, featuring an A-line with empire waist, a floor-length lace appliqué and a slit up to the mid thigh. The dress was altered by Rebecca Swan-Heslop – best friend of the bride. Swan-Heslop added turquoise and chocolate ribbon on both Kelli-Anne’s dress and veil to compliment the colours of the day.

Kelli-Anne wore a turquoise necklace and earrings purchased from Frontier Western Store in Claresholm, AB, and finished off her look with cowboy boots purchased from Irvine’s Western Wear, Crossfield, AB.

The bride’s make-up was done herself and her hair was done by Taryn Thiessen of Rural Roots Salon in Carstairs, AB.

DECOR CAKE

All the decor, signs, garters and sundry were made by the bride and family.

GROOM’S & GROOMSMEN ATTIRE

The groom wore a gray, western tweed vest with a soft chocolatecolored button-up shirt, jeans, and a black felt hat. Greg was gifted a pair of custom-made boots from the father of the bride – made for Kelli-Anne’s father years ago, which he wore when he married her mother, 29 years ago. Greg wore these special boots on his wedding day.

The groomsmen each wore turquoise button-up shirts by Cinch, jeans, boots and straw hats.

FLOWERS

Kelli-Anne is one of those handy brides. Using sunflowers from her garden and baby’s-breath, she fashioned her own bouquet and those of her bridesmaids. Each was finished with a cowhide and leather lacing holder that she also made.

Centre-pieces were crafted from artificial sunflowers purchased from various retail outlets and placed in whole oats from the Hurl’s own feed room.

BROOKLYN & COLTON WONG date:

JULY 10, 2021

photographer: HANNAH RUTH PHOTOGRAPHY

THEIR STORY

As avid reiners, Colton Wong and Brooklyn Braun met in 2012 at the Wild Rose Reining Classic in Claresholm, AB. Both were competing and became friends while bathing their horses one evening. Over the course of the next few years, they grew fond of each other but as Brooklyn lived in Beechy, SK and Wong was from Cochrane, AB, they could only maintain a friendship.

“Living six hours apart, we just stayed friends,” tells Brooklyn. Still, they received endless “encouragement” from fellow reiners and finally in her grade 12 year, Brooklyn asked Colton to make the long drive to Saskatchewan to be her grad escort. They have been a dynamic duo ever since.

Ironically enough, Brooklyn’s mother Vicki, and father Brian, also met showing all-around horses at Quarterama (when it still existed), in Toronto, ON. Brian was riding for the Saskatchewan team, while Vicki was on the Alberta team at the time.

“I thought it was kind of funny and sweet that I met my husband the same way,” says Brooklyn.

Brooklyn and Colton were married in a beautiful outdoor ceremony that combined their love of the western lifestyle with a modern twist. Held at The Heritage Centre in Cremona, AB, Brooklyn reveals that she fell in love with the venue after discovering its history, ambience and ice cream shop located in the bottom of the barn. SOMETHING All of the flowers came from Brilliant Blooms in Cochrane, AB. DIFFERENT The Wong guest book was a Longhorn skull that visitors signed with a Sharpie.

BRIDE’S DRESS

Brooklyn purchased her dress from Blush and Raven Bridal Boutique in Calgary, AB. The dress featured a scoop neck and illusion side panels. Her flowing skirt blended an effortlessly romantic look with chic, bridal details.

Brooklyn’s hair was pulled into a low bun with wispy locks left in front, and tucked into a cathedrallength veil at the back. The hairstyle perfectly complimented large, pearl hoop earrings the bride purchased from Anthropologie, which also coordinated with a pearl bracelet that originally belonged to her Grandma Braun. Make-up was done by Sorella Beauty Studio, out of Sundre, AB.

FLOWERS

All of the flowers came from Brilliant Blooms in Cochrane, AB.

CAKE

The cake was made by the Maid of Honour herself – a rhubarb cheesecake.

Both the ceremony and the reception were held at The Heritage Centre, by Mountain View Events in Cremona, AB. The ceremony arch and reception decorations all came from Events & Co. Weddings YYC, in Calgary, AB,

All signs were made by the Maid of Honour’s mother. These included barn wood designs with inspirational love quotes placed daintily around the wedding reception. Plexi-glass signs splashed with cinnamon-colored paint and Calligraphy gave guests the seating arrangements, order of events and a list of food items.

The table centrepieces were crafted with log slabs and brown jars containing flowers that matched those carried by the wedding party.

VENUE

All of the Bridesmaid dresses came from David’s Bridal. Each bridesmaid opted for a different style of dress, however they were all a cinnamon colour and floor length.

The girls also color-coordinated their pre-wedding pyjamas to their dresses. Satin, cinnamon-colored pocket PJ sets (a button-up, short sleeved shirt with elasticated shorts), were worn by the Maid of Honour and bridesmaids. A white set was worn by the bride.

The menswear came from Moore’s Clothing and E W Menswear in Calgary, AB. The groom himself wore a light gray jacket, with a black tie, western button-up shirt, blue jeans, cowboy boots and one of his signature belt buckles. The groomsmen were dressed similarly, the only difference being their slightly, lighter gray tweed jackets. Cowboy hats were not worn during the ceremony, except by the fathers of the bride and groom. Colton did, however, pull out a handsome gray felt for the portrait sessions of the wedding photography.

DECOR BRIDESMAIDS

GROOM’S & GROOMSMEN ATTIRE