The Story So Far
We first met via Hinge a few months after the end of lockdown, when dating in real life was finally back on the cards. We both had gone through a series of bad dates, and vowed this would be our final one before taking a break from the apps— little did we know it would be our last, and would lead to a cruise proposal and engagement at sea!
Our first date was at Mercato Metropolitano in Elephant and Castle, where after a few beers and a couple of bottles of wine, we parted ways and each respectively messaged our best friends to say we’d found the one we wanted to marry.
Fast forward to a year later, we moved in together and things have progressed quickly ever since. We’ve now been together for two and a half years.
Dropping Hints
We were both clear from the start that getting married and having kids were really important for us, and neither of us wanted to be older dads. So it was always on the cards for us to get engaged sooner rather than later.
I started the suspicion of an imminent proposal by leaving a ring sizer on the side drawer in our bedroom, which Matt took as a sign and bought a ring almost immediately— even measuring my finger while I slept! There were several hints dropped that our upcoming holiday might be a special one, but nothing was fully decided until the day of the cruise proposal. We both knew the main focus was to just do something special, and with only the two of us present.
The Proposal
We were doing a Virgin Voyages cruise around the Caribbean, and the final stop (The Bahamas) was on my birthday, which Matt saw as a fantastic opportunity to pop the question.
The night before, Matt messaged my parents telling them his plan and got the thumbs up, so the following day he got up early, decorated the balcony with balloons, banners and a card and then ordered room service breakfast to be delivered… things went a little sideways when breakfast arrived in Tupperware boxes (not the fine dining experience he had anticipated), however he’d also ordered a bottle of champagne, and as he walked back with the ice bucket, placed the ring and card inside and handed it to me.
I opened up the card and started to cry, while Matt got on one knee and asked the big question, presenting me the ring. I then surprised Matt by telling him to wait where he was and asking him to marry me too, with a ring as well. It was a very unexpected, but lovely surprise, and we both of course said yes!
We celebrated our cruise proposal and engagement by taking a boat out to an island in the middle of the crystal blue sea, and swimming with stingrays and reef sharks.
The Rings
The rings were a bit of a non starter for us — while we’d spoken about the concept of getting engaged multiple times, we’d never discussed rings or anything symbolic leading up to the event.
I’d bought mine, a simple, gold band from Monica Vinader; while Charlie had bought a solid silver band from a jeweller near his work. However, it became quickly apparent neither of us wanted one, so we went watch shopping together instead and bought a classic brown leather strapped Longines, which we wear almost every day, as a symbol of our love and commitment.
The Celebrations
Our engagement party was held at a friend’s gastro pub in Kennington— The Duchy Arms— where our nearest and dearest joined us for copious glasses of champagne and canapes to celebrate. We also announced the date and location of the wedding to everyone there, and got the excitement building.
Wedding Plans So Far…
Going against the societal grain by virtue of being a same sex-couple, we wanted to throw the rule book out for our wedding and just have a weekend of absolute fun with the people we love.
All of our wedding stationary is being designed exclusively for us using LKN Designs Ltd, a new company started by Charlie’s friend who is incredibly creative and professional.
We’ve also secured an amazing location in Ireland called Ballintubbert Garden & House, which is set amongst beautiful gardens, with a long lake in front of the house and a deep-set fountain garden and maze— both of which are in the running for our ceremony (weather permitting).
We want to make the most of the beautiful surroundings, so one day one we will be hiring a 10-foot inflatable obstacle course to put our two parties head-to-head and kick off the fun in style, followed by a big barbecue and a traditional Irish band to get the party started.
On day two, our onsite guests, who will be staying in luxury yurts set around a campfire, will start their day with yoga and qi gong (tai chi) classes lead by Matt’s mum before the fun begins. Then it’s on to reception drinks in the apple orchard before the ceremony, and finally a huge boho-style marquee for the wedding breakfast and part
It’s going to be a very fun weekend, and we’ve called it MA-CH-ELLA— a play on our names and Coachella’s iconic music festival.
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