A Modern Vintage Wedding in Grafton, Ontario

About the couple

Bride: Stephanie Knutson

Groom: Shane Jensen

How they met: “In 2002, while I was in the second year of my undergrad at the University of Ottawa, I got bored one night and ventured online into an Ottawa chat room. It was there I found a guy who shared my love of music, politics, religion and all those other topics most people steer clear of,” says Stephanie. “It wasn’t until we had been chatting for well over a year that, after a night of drinks and dancing, I accidentally ventured into the coffee shop Shane was working at. Only after I ordered my coffee did I realize who I was talking to! That night we made plans to meet for a proper “meeting” the next day. After the official meeting, we became the best of friends. It wasn’t until New Year’s Eve of 2004/5 that we finally had that moment where the stars aligned. In July of 2006, I moved to Seoul, Korea to pursue a teaching career, and when Shane hopped on a plane and followed me, I knew it was love.”

Engagement story: “Christmas is one of my favourite holidays, and my family has always trimmed the tree together. In 2008 Shane and I had our own home in Canada, so we made a whole evening of it — Shane cooked a delicious meal, we listened to music, dimmed the lights and had fun decorating our very “Charlie Brown” tree. I was handing Shane ornaments to put on the tree and he bent down to put some on the bottom branches. He slipped the ring over the top of the ornaments and handed it back to me to hang. It took me a moment to realize he was on his knee, and when he asked me to marry him, all I could do was cry tears of joy — I had waited so long for him to ask me that I forgot to answer! When I finally did, we both laughed for a long time before calling everyone we knew to tell them. I got to show off my ring the very next night at our town’s Santa Claus Parade.”