Ranchers, musicians, actors, and more came together in this year's spring fashion photoshoot at the TR9 Ranch.
For C&I’s spring fashion shoot, we wanted to highlight the classics of Western style: denim, lace, fringe, turquoise, and natural neutrals that reflect the beauty of the spring season. The influencers selected to showcase these classic looks also reflect the West.
The backdrop to our spring fashion shoot is the home of Teton Ridge Performance Horses, the TR9 Ranch. Outside Weatherford, Texas, the ranch sprawls across acres of picturesque landscapes, providing the perfect setting for a shoot focused on classic Western style.
The greater vision of TR9 is to create a center of excellence in horsemanship, breeding, and training. By carefully selecting the best crosses of stallions and broodmares, the TR9 Ranch is focused on creating a legacy of elite performance horses with the goal of competitive success through world-class breeding and a professional performance training program.
Meet some of the fascinating Westerners who brought our fashion spread to life on the pages of the April issue (on newsstands now and available here).
The Castellows
Neo-traditional country music trio The Castellows embodies the phrase “family tradition.” The band — comprised of sisters Ellie (lead guitar), Powell (banjo), and Lily (vocals) — hails from small rural Georgetown, Georgia, but now calls Nashville home. The Castellows’ sound is traditional and authentic, but with modern flair. The common thread among the trio, other than DNA, is an affinity for masterful three-part harmonies. They blend to create one singular, almost angelic, voice. The Castellows’ craft as songwriters is as robust as their voices, evident across the trio’s debut EP, A Little Goes A Long Way, released earlier this year. The band wrote or co-wrote six of the seven songs that make up the record.
The band began turning the heads of music industry insiders in January 2023. By spring of that year, The Castellows had signed a record deal. They tapped veteran producer Trina Shoemaker (Sheryl Crow, Nanci Griffith, Queens of the Stone Age) for A Little Goes A Long Way. One year later, the three sisters from a cattle farm in Georgia are still turning heads, landing on multiple 2024 ‘Watch Lists’ including CMT's ‘Listen Up,’ Pandora, Country Now, and Nashville Lifestyles’ ‘Five Groups You Need To Know." They've also announced a 21-city tour that to promote the new record.
Powell (left): Stellar felt hat in buckskin, baileyhats.com; Diamond horseshoe necklace, readjewelers.com; Rowdy top, doubledranch.com; Wedding leather cape, helgasdesigns.com; Idyllwind boot cut jeans, bootbarn.com; Vintage belt with Navajo sterling silver five turquoise stone buckle, lelarose.com; Turquoise feather cuff, abilenesky.com; Jacie transparent and leather boots, alcalasboots.com.
Ellie (middle): Pecan felt hat with multicolored band, resistol.com; Brim Biter, hallettpeakleather.com; Leather vest, schaefferoutfitter.com; Mable polka dot dress, tuckerbrown1986.com; Glow in the Dark floral embroidery boots, corralboots.com.
Lily (right): High Desert felt hat with concho band, charlie1horsehats.com; Flat Weave dress, stetson.com; High Horse caramel leather cape, shopwesternandco.com; Linda Yazzie (Navajo) turquoise ring, coloradojo.com; Victoria tan boots, blackstarboots.com.
HB Riordan
HB Riordan is a day-to-day manager for the Castellows and management coordinator for Luke Combs at Make Wake Artists. After graduating from the University of Georgia, HB packed her bags and headed to Nashville to pursue country music management. She started as an intern at Make Wake and officially joined the team in January of 2022, where she worked as a management coordinator for Niko Moon, Hailey Whitters, Brent Cobb, Drew Parker, Cooper Alan, and Luke Combs. In one short year, she was promoted to day-to-day manager to jumpstart the career of the breakout rising country band, The Castellows. HB has been spearheading projects with the Castellows and team, such as releasing their very first single "No. 7 Road" and subsequent EP.
Steller chocolate felt hat, baileyhats.com; Snake hat band, Brim biter, Turquoise ring, hallettpeakleather.com; Aviator jacket, lindseythornburg.com; Scarf on Dog: Pueblo in copper neckerchief, athomewithray.com.
Jeremy "JP" Gauna
Jeremy “JP” Gauna (Choctaw) stumbled on acting while walking to a job at The Dallas Morning News. He landed a background part on Queen of the South, and while on set, he met Zahn McClarnon, who suggested he take some acting classes if he was serious, because Indigenous actors were needed. So, he took that advice and hasn’t looked back. Since then, Gauna has been in multiple TV shows (Yellowstone’s 1883, Queen of the South, Washington’s Armor, Battle of Honey Springs) and movies (Terror on the Prairie, The Last Son, Fairhaven, Birthright, Buckskin, The Harbinger). He expanded his skills to set management and modeling. He will soon appear in TV’s American Primeval and the upcoming Cottonmouth movie.
Stellar felt hat in chocolate, baileyhats.com; Leather jacket, scullyleather.com; Turquoise snap denim shirt, stetson.com; Aztec bolo tie, hyosilver.com; ring (model’s own); Turquoise cuffs, hippiecowgirlcouture.com; Silver and turquoise oval cuff (model’s own); Belt and buckle (model’s own); Jeans, wrangler.com.
Finis Smith
Finis Smith II was raised and lives on the Bar Double Diamond Ranch between Breckenridge and Graham, Texas. His father raised longhorn cattle and trained trick horses. As a young boy, he would listen to the radio and sing along to old tunes on his many trips to Western festivals with his father and mother. He was introduced to and spent time on those trips around Lynn Anderson, Mentor Williams, Johnny Western, Red Steagall, Don Edwards, Rex Allen Jr, and many more.
At the age of 7, Finis was given his great-grandmother's fiddle.
His love of music blossomed while at college at Tarleton University, and he started taking fiddle and guitar lessons. Finis also raises Hereford-Angus cross cattle on his ranch in Ivan, Texas. He manages a small ranch at Possum Kingdom and models for Cavender's, C&I, and other clothing brands. He has played The Round Up for Autism Gala, the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame induction, Tuff Cooper's New Years Eve Roping, Pearl’s Dance Hall, West Texas Fair and Rodeo, and the Trio Club. He is releasing two new songs in 2024.
Forest straw hat in ivory, baileyhats.com; Cody James War Hunt snap Western shirt, bootbarn.com; Jeans, kimesranch.com; Belt and buckle (model’s own).
Hunter Paige
Hunter Paige is a social media content creator in the Western fashion, lifestyle, and country music spaces. She has always loved the lifestyle, Western style, and twangy tunes, so she loves sharing all with her followers on social media. Hunter grew up on her family cattle farm in Arkansas, the source of some of her best memories. She is currently attending college, pursuing a public relations and social media degree. She feels that social media has opened doors for her that she could have never imagined. She has worked with country music artists to promote their music, including Dolly Parton, Toby Keith, Parker McCollum, and Miranda Lambert, as well as Western brands and businesses such as Justin Boots, Wrangler, and Boot Barn. Other career highlights so far: participating in the Warner Music Creator Hub during CMA Fest, working with the PRCA during NFR to interview round winners and bring awareness to the sport of rodeo, and modeling in a campaign with Justin Boots.
Stellar felt hat in buckskin, baileyhats.com; Echo Canyon necklace, denisehagoodstudio.com; Embroidered pearl snap shirt, stetson.com; Vintage leather belt, lelarose.com; Turquoise buckle and cuffs, hippiecowgirlcouture.com; Shyanne high-rise flare jeans, bootbarn.com.
HEADER IMAGE: [Powell (left)]: American Hat Co. felt hat in Silver Sand, besthatstore.com; Ben Nighthorse (Navajo) Head of a Horse earrings, sorrelsky.com; Denim peasant blouse, stetson.com; Enamel horseshoe ring, readsjewelers.com; Vintage Navajo silver concho with turquoise belt hallmarked by Billy Slim, lelarose.com; Grey Lab leather shorts, tuckerbrown1986.com; Dani tan suede boots, stetson.com. [Lily (middle)]: Stellar felt hat in buckskin, baileyhats.com; Turquoise bar necklace, cowboyjewelers.com; Kristopher Brock x Tecovas Ava dress, tecovas.com; Fringe denim jacket, scullyleather.com; Emmer blue boot, oldgringoboots.com. [Ellie (right)]: Carlsbad straw hat, outbacktrading.com; Verde Valley turquoise earrings, lauraingallsdesigns.com; Ben Nighthorse (Navajo) Head of a Horse pendant, sorrelsky.com; South Rim cuff, vogtsilversmiths.com; Denim short-sleeved jacket, doubledranch.com; Idyllwind floral drive jeans, bootbarn.com; Victoria tan boots, blackstarboots.com.
PHOTOGRAPHY: Tim O’Keefe
