Behind the Crown & Leathers – Where Design and Tradition Tell Stampede Royalty’s Story

Every fall, finalists stand together in anticipation at the Royalty Crowning events, waiting to hear if their name will be called as the next Calgary Stampede Princess, or Calgary Stampede First Nations Princess.  For the successful candidates, the moment marks the beginning of a year spent representing the Calgary Stampede, sharing Western hospitality, celebrating culture and building connections throughout the community.

As she represents the Calgary Stampede throughout her yearlong reign, Jan. 1 until Dec. 31, each Princess brings her own story, her own connection to the Stampede, and her own goals for her reign.

While Stampede Royalty serve as ambassadors for the Calgary Stampede, the crowns and custom leather outfits they wear become part of that storytelling. Each piece reflects the personality, experiences, culture and traditions of the Princess who wears it, helping her share her story at community events, celebrations and official appearances throughout the year.

The behind-the-scenes work of Stacey Running Rabbit and Janine Stabner helps support and showcase who each of the Royalty are. Running Rabbit has been designing and beading the First Nations Princess crown for the last 16 years, while Stabner has been designing and constructing the Royalty’s leather outfits since 2009. 

While the First Nations Princess crown is presented to the incoming First Nations Princess the moment she is crowned, the Royalty leathers are revealed to the Princesses during a special, private event every spring, where they will later wear their leathers proudly in the Stampede Parade presented by Suncor, and then at various events throughout the rest of the year. 

For Running Rabbit, patience is key as she waits for ideas to come to her. “As soon as the first thought hits me—this is what the color of the crown should be, this is how I’m going to cut it out—then I know I’m ready.”

Running Rabbit creates each crown by hand. Using stiff felt material, she cuts out the crown shape and then begins sewing the beads on. Sometimes she sews for a few hours and other times she works 12 to 14 hours straight, taking about 40 hours to complete each crown.  

And she says waiting for inspiration to come is worth it. After the 2026 First Nations Princess, Raegan First Rider, was crowned, she told Running Rabbit, “The color of the [black] crown represented her grandfather to her in a special way.” 

Even though she never knows ahead of time who will wear the crown she crafts, she knows it is meant for whoever wears it, as she blends tradition and culture into each one. “On some of the crowns, I put five jewels to represent each of the five Nations from Treaty 7. I make sure there is always something on each crown that represents each of the Nations.” 

Running Rabbit’s love of making the crowns is far from over. ‘I’ll keep going until I’m blind and I can’t lift the needle anymore.”

For Stabner, her design ideas are pulled together to create thoughtful, colourful, leathers that reflect each Princess's personality, interests and experiences. The result is a one-of-a-kind outfit that helps each Princess tell her story. She always adds surprise elements, just like she did for the 2026 Stampede Princess, Sarah O’Brien. 

“Sarah loves grizzly bears, so I snuck that into her leather design.” She also incorporates modern design with tradition. “On the leathers for Princess Raegan, there are First Nations butterflies, which have more graphic design to them.” These butterflies represent joy, transformation and rebirth. 

For Running Rabbit and Stabner, the crowns and leathers are more than symbols of the role. They are expressions of each Princess throughout her year of service. Long before a Princess steps onto a parade route, community stage or Stampede event, hundreds of hours of thoughtful craftsmanship have already gone into helping tell her story.

Inspiration hit Running Rabbit early for the 2027 First Nations Princess crown. “It came to me early and it lives in my mind. I haven’t drawn it out or anything. I’m too excited for it so I know I won’t forget what it looks like, and when I have all my beads prepared, I’ll get to work.”

As preparations continue for the 2027 Stampede Royalty program, the search is underway for the next Calgary Stampede Princess and First Nations Princess. The contests celebrate the skills, knowledge and experiences important to each role, from horsemanship and public speaking to cultural knowledge and traditional dance.

With the crownings taking place at private events in late October, follow us on Instagram to watch it all unfold and watch live as each Princess is crowned. Learn more about Stampede Royalty here.