Wedding Invitations, Style, Planning & Inspiration

TGIF!  With each Friday comes a weekly roundup of our favorite engagement story contest entries of the week.  Check out the stories below for your fill of the most thoughtful, unique and romantic proposals we’ve heard yet.  Don’t forget to enter your own story for a chance to win a $500 Wedding Paper Divas gift certificate–the contest ends February 22nd!

Scavenger Hunt Surprises

My boyfriend, Brady, had arranged for my best friend to have a girls’ night with some of our closest friends. But late that night, one of my Brady’s friends showed up at my door with a letter, a box and an iPod. He said to read the letter and watch the first video on the iPod, but not to skip ahead. In the video, Brady instructed me to open the gift box and to wait for the next clue. Inside the box I found a beautiful black dress and a pair of shoes. I was completely confused!

We went to bed, but my friends came in my room and woke me up at 5:30 am the next morning. They said that they found the next clue and that we needed to go to Starbucks. They dragged me out of bed and we sipped on coffee until one of my friends got a text message. She said that she had another clue, and that we needed to leave. We ended up at the airport, and my friends handed me another letter from Brady. Inside the envelope I found cash, an address and a plane ticket to New York! The letter said was to watch the second video when I was on the airplane.

I said goodbye to all of my friends (who had also packed for me!), boarded the plane and watched the video. It said to take a cab to the address listed on the letter, and then to watch the third video when I arrived.

I landed in New York and took a cab to the mystery address, which turned out to be a hotel in Times Square! The third video told me to check in at the hotel, and that I should watch the last video when I got to the room. When I opened the door, he had a playlist of all of our favorite songs playing. The final video instructed me to put on the black dress he gave me the night before and take a cab to another mystery address that night.

The final address turned out to be Tavern on the Green in Central Park. I got out of the cab, entered the restaurant and found him waiting there for me. We had an amazing dinner, and then walked through Central Park to the ice skating rink. There, after my incredible whirlwind of a trip, he proposed.  ~Carly W.

A Sweet Salute

Matt and I were childhood sweethearts who eventually went separate directions. We ran into each other in December 2007, and rekindled our romance shortly thereafter. When Matt joined the Army, he had to leave for five long months of boot camp and training. I travelled to Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri to see him graduate.

The day before his graduation, the Army had a “family day” where everyone could spend the day with their soldiers. That morning all 500 soldiers lined up outside to listen to their drill sergeants’ briefs while their families looked on. But before Matt’s drill sergeant dismissed the troop, he yelled, “P.F.C. KEEN! Front and center!”

I was afraid that Matt was in some kind of trouble and wouldn’t be able to spend the day with me or his family. But instead of walking up to his sergeant, Matt walked over to me, kissed my forehead and said, “Mandi, I love you. There’s no one else out there for me—no one who will support me through the military and be there to wait for me to return. There’s no one who believes in me more than you, and I want you there with me for the rest of my life.”

With more than 1,000 people looking at us, he got down on one knee and asked, “So, will you join the army life, and marry me?” When I said yes, he stood up and hugged me, and all of the soldiers yelled out, “HOOAH!”
He is serving our country in Iraq now, but we can’t wait to get married when he returns!  ~Mandi M.

Paris, Je t’aime!

In July 2008, I surprised my girlfriend, Aviva, with a marriage proposal during a romantic trip to France. Here’s an excerpt from an email she sent to her friends and family after we returned:

One day we decided to spend a romantic evening at Montmartre to watch the street artists work. Jordan suggested that we get a caricature of the two of us as a souvenir. I thought it was a cheesy idea and said no at first, but he was so persistent that I eventually gave in. We chose our favorite artist—a man named Maxime—to do our drawing.

We sat down outside at a cafe and he began to sketch. Without me knowing it, Jordan had slipped Maxime a note in French that asked him to draw Jordan proposing in the picture, with a speech bubble that said “Epouce moi mon amour,” which translates to “Marry me my love.”

Maxime started sketching, and while we were sitting there a huge crowd began to form. Other artists even came over and to help with the painting. When they were finally done, Maxime asked me, “Are you ready to see this?”

He turned it around and I read it, but I didn’t know the word “epouce” so I asked him in French what it meant. He replied in English, “It means marry me!” I turned to see Jordan sitting there with the ring. When I said yes, everyone started clapping, women started crying and I was in a complete state of shock and happiness!  ~Jordan S.

Tears of Joy in Times Square

On my birthday, my boyfriend made reservations at a fantastic restaurant in New York City. After our incredible meal, he rented a limo to give us a tour around the city. We saw everything, including the beautiful tree in Rockefeller Square. Since we absolutely love Times Square, we ended our tour there. We usually just stop to take pictures in the middle of Times Square, but on this particular night my boyfriend points up to one of the big screens and tells me to look up.

There, in the middle of my favorite place in New York City, I saw a beautiful photo of us with the words “Will you marry me?” written on it. It was absolutely unforgettable! I had tears running down my cheeks when he got down on one knee. He asked me to be his wife, and I said yes while everyone around us in
Times Square cheered us on.  ~Maria C.

…With a Ribbon on Top

On the day I moved home for good, my boyfriend, Nick, and I were so happy that we didn’t have to be in a long distance relationship anymore! He helped me move my things from my car into the house, and then suggested we go someplace nice for dinner to celebrate my homecoming. Sweaty and tired, I looked at him like he was nuts!

He was so convincing that I finally relented, and we ended up having a wonderful time. We ordered a bottle of wine, laughed, ate and even had our waitress take a picture of us. Later, as we pulled into the driveway, Nick made me put on a sleeping mask. A little confused, but willing to play along, I put on the mask and Nick guided me through the house up to our bedroom. He told me to wait there for 10 minutes with the door closed.

When I opened the door there was a red ribbon strung up along the wall starting at the doorway and winding down hall and down the stairs. Every few inches there was a picture of Nick and I tied to the ribbon—roughly 170 photos total! Looking at all the pictures in the hallway alone was incredibly romantic, like reliving our entire history as a couple through photos.

I followed the ribbon all the way through the house and into the living room. There, next to the Christmas tree and among several bouquets of flowers and candles, Nick was waiting for me. He said, “Allison, I love you so much. I want to spend my life with you, have a family with you and love you forever.” Then, he pulled the ring out of his pocket, got down on one knee and popped the question. Of course, I said, “Yes!”
As if I wasn’t overcome with emotion already, both of our families showed up at the door with cake and champagne! We spend the rest of the night eating, drinking and watching the video that Nick had secretly recorded of the entire proposal.   ~Allison A.

Tags: contest, engagement stories, proposals