The Pioneer on 8th Calgary Wedding.

Calgary Brunch Wedding with a Neon After party at The Pioneer on 8th.

To say Alexis and Conrad have impeccable taste and a love that anyone would swoon over is to sum it up shortly. These two from the moment we met I knew would be an absolute gem of a couple to work with!

If you haven’t seen their Engagement session at Orchard Restaurant I blogged the other day you must simply go view it after checking out their Wedding at The Pioneer on 8th.

So let me paint a picture of this magical day-o-love.

The prep

Arriving at Le Germain Hotel in the morning to find Alexis getting her hair done by amazing hair stylist. I snagged her away to give me all her details. As I captured the details of her morning (Bella Belle Shoes and beautiful dress by Anna Kara from The Bridal Boutique here in Calgary) and a few candids before she stepped into her dress and adorned herself with the most stunning jewelry!

I got to say for Alexis to have scrapped her arm up pretty badly the week prior to the day in a freak bike accident I thought she was the most chill Bride and definitely a go with the flow human.

After obviously gushing over everything I headed over to meet the guys and Conrad at Etch Hair Design. Conrads salon let them get ready there after getting fresh cuts!

Guys don’t know how to tie ties. I swear. There was several very hilarious attempts at getting the correct height for Conrads tie before we needed to head to door games back at Le Germain Hotel in downtown Calgary.

In the end he nailed it! It looked amazing and his purple suit was spectacular!

Door Games

Alexis was patiently waiting for Conrads arrival – but for him to be able to see his stunning Bride he had to do a few challenges (a must see).

First challenge he had to get his legs waxed by his groomsmen. Not one leg but two!

He took it in stride – I personally could never do a soft wax on my legs without crying. He’s just made different I think!

Secondly after his groomsmen cleaned him up and he put his pants back on he headed to the next room and had to make Alexis a drink she would like – each attempt his Sister would test it out and if it wasn’t just right he would have to start from the beginning.

Finally Conrad made the perfect drink ratio and could head down to the lobby.

The last game he had to do was serenade his Bride who was patiently waiting on the second floor – up a winding staircase.

Finally he got to see his Bride and their first look was, well: Absolutely amazing!

She jumped into his arms and well you will see – it was beyond cute.

Ceremony Time!

It was time for the Ceremony – I popped around the corner to The Pioneer on 8th Wedding Venue to grab some moments and their details. Their planner Evelyn Clark was just finishing set up when I arrived. Her execution of their day was on point! I highly recommend if you have a lot of room flips you hire Evelyn – she creates magic!

Their Ceremony had cultural aspects and heartwarming vows.

Their friends and family teared up and laughed with them when they spoke about personal quirks.

HITCHED by Dustin their officiant knocked it out the park as always! 

Following the ceremony Evelyn flipped the room to a beautiful brunch reception (reception one of two). Everyone enjoyed cocktails awaiting the couples grand entrance and first dance!

Following a perfect choreographed first dance everyone enjoyed brunch followed by speeches and mingling before the first reception concluded.

Off for formals around Downtown Calgary

While Evelyn flipped their room again to an afterparty with neon vibes we headed around downtown on foot with their Wedding Party for some of my favourite moments!

Alexis and Conrad headed back to their hotel room to relax for a little while I grabbed shots of the afterparty – the night concluded with dumplings and stir fry! The perfect end to a wonderful day!

Words from the couple

Kind words:

As previously mentioned, we love your journalistic approach to photography and how you are able to capture amazing candid moments! We are also impressed with how far you are willing to go to get the shot (remember you climbing on a dumpster in an alley to get the right angle). You were definitely able to capture the day to the fullest and we thank you for being part of it! We got so many compliments on the photos, from the posed group shots to the little moments throughout the day, it is amazing to go back and remember it all through the photos.

Wedding theme and colours:

Our overall theme was complementary opposites. Alexis’ favourite colour is green and Conrad’s is purple, opposite on the colour wheel but they compliment and bring out the best in each other. That is why we chose them as our wedding colours. This theme is in other elements of the wedding – east meets west (pulling from both of our backgrounds and cultures) as well as nature vs. modern with the plants and industrial/urban venue. The florals in bamboo steamers or concrete vases to combine the natural and the more urban elements.

Approximate number of guests:

80

What theme or feel were you going for:

Violet and sage cool tones, Urban influence with Eclectic details.

Your top 3 best moments:

The vows were a highlight and we are pleased our guests seem to enjoy them as well. We wrote them for each other and you really captured each of the vows impact.

The food and desserts were to die for! We were so nervous during the day that it was also our only regret that we couldn’t eat as much as we wanted to.

Finally our dance was special to the both of us, we practiced the routine for two years and are glad it paid off! We had never performed in front of that many people and only had one take to do it. It was nerve wracking but deeply fulfilling at the same time.

Wedding song:

Oh My Love by Layla – she is the female singer in one of our favourite bands (Oh Wonder) and we wanted a romantic song to waltz to (bringing Alexis’ heritage into the ceremony)

If you could own any animal as a pet what would it be and why?

We love our current pet Hamster who has brought so much joy to our apartment (sweetly referred to as the Rat, or Ham-tartar). We are both allergic to fur animals, which makes a dog a tricker choice.

Now for the fun part! Alexis and Conrads day-o-love at The Pioneer on 8th Calgary!

If you’re getting married soon make sure to reach out here to check if I still am open for your date!