Surprise Proposals
A Surprise Proposal in Breckenridge, Colorado
After purchasing Emily’s dream engagement ring, John had no clue how he wanted to propose, but he knew he wanted to do something big that would catch her by surprise. He enlisted the help of wedding planner Christin from Pretty and Planned Events to help sort through his ideas and bring his vision to life.
John’s first surprise for Emily would be to catch her off guard by proposing before the holidays, especially when they’d talked of waiting until spring time to get engaged. They had a ski trip planned with some of their best friends, including Emily’s sisters, so what better opportunity than that to come up with plan that would include the people they love. John’s idea was to get Emily to his proposal location by sharing a fake flyer advertising a special outdoor whiskey tasting event at the Breckenridge Distillery. She was under the impression that they would be going to the distillery and then heading out to take photos together around Breck. This was key so that Emily would show up to the proposal camera ready, and that she wouldn’t suspect why the photographer was meeting them there and taking pictures of this “cute whiskey event.”
When they showed up to the distillery with their whole group for the tasting event, the hostess at the front greeted them and led them to the outdoor patio, where there was a special outdoor bar set up and styled just for them. The bar included whiskey barrels from the distillery styled with fresh winter greens from Jae Le Mae, an organic Denver-based florist, mini bundt cakes, and of course a full sampling of the distillery’s best whiskeys.
Christin, the planner, was stationed behind the custom outdoor bar as the “bartender” and played the part well by sharing a little with the group about the whiskey they were trying. Once the group enjoyed their tasting flight, Christin said, “I’ve actually got one more special blend I want you to try!” This was the cue for the rest of the group to back away, while Christin reached behind the bar to pull out John and Emily’s personal tasting board. It held engraved leather flasks that John had made, one with his name and one labeled “Future Mrs. Molle,” along with their personal whiskey blend, with a custom bottle label “I was just wanting to say high…” and a photo of John and Emily on the night they met for the very first time. The significance behind the quote comes from that very night they met when that photo was taken! John sent a message to Emily on Facebook when the night was over, and it simply said, “I was just wanting to say high…” He was so nervous to message her that he misspelled “hi.” He has yet to live that down! As Christin set their board up on the bar, she stepped away, and Emily quickly realized what was happening. John dropped to a knee, there were tears and laughter, and she said YES!
After soaking up a group hug and lots of love and congrats from their friends, the evening continued with a few photos at Lake Dillon with the most beautiful scenery. Emily said that she was completely taken by surprise. She couldn’t believe that all of that was set up just for them, and that ALL of her friends knew and no one had given anything away. It was without a doubt a night to remember!
THE PLANNING TEAM
Photographer: Melissa & Beth | Event Planner: Pretty and Planned | Floral Designer: Jae Le Mae | Venue: Breckenridge Distillery | Bakery: Nothing Bundt Cakes | Paper Props: Little Yellow Leaf | Rentals: Plank and Pearl
View more surprise proposals | Engagements | Colorado weddings
A Sea to Sky Engagement Proposal in Squamish, BC
From the photographer: Karizma Photography:
When Andrew emailed us explaining that he wanted us to be a part of a surprise proposal, we said “Yes, of course!” We love to be a part of these surprises! There is something so unbelievably special about surprise proposals and especially those that are captured with a camera. Andrew was also super easy to work with, so future gentlemen take notes. He was really clear about what he wanted, what he had planned to do, and how we were going to help him capture this memory. Not only was his planning perfect, but so was the spot! He chose such a gorgeous place and we were all in agreement when he told us he wanted to do it at the Sea to Sky Gondola. There is no need to say how much we love Sea to Sky Gondola engagements and how many of them we photographed there. Stunning views, gorgeous weather, and a super adorable moment all wrapped in one is a photographer’s dream! Catching that “wow” moment is always tough but when you do, it’s breathtaking. His fiancé, Mikaila, made everything better because she had no idea it was happening. While Mikaila stood along the railing taking in the view, we were standing behind them both with a view of our own. Andrew approached her from behind and slid down onto one knee just in time for her to turn around as he popped the question. Her expression was priceless and the look on her face was the genuine and raw emotion that we love. It was perfect and such a heartwarming day. After the question, which she obviously said yes to, we took a few more pictures of them together as we all soaked in the moment.
Ski Resort Snowboarding Proposal
From the photographer, Meredith Jane Photography: It was your typical day at Whiteface Mountain Ski Resort. Freezing cold temperatures, skiers and snowboarders bustling about and the fireplace roaring for those that are trying to gain a second of warmth. We headed up the mountain, cozy in the gondola, and friends laughed and cracked a few beers to get the day going. Even those in the group that weren’t skiing decided to hop on the gondola for a “group photo” at the top. I claimed you only get views like this once in a lifetime and it was necessary to bring my camera along for the ride. We all knew Joelle’s life was about to change, but we all acted as normal as humanly possible. We started with that group photo and then quickly peeled away to those that, Joelle didn’t realize yet, were going to be part of her new family. As they pulled away Alex dropped to one knee and Joelle tried to pull him up. Apparently he’d “tied his shoes” in front of her a few too many times! But when she realized what was in his hand, her face was priceless…The first thing Joelle did after saying “yes” and giving Alex a huge kiss was ask, “Do my parents know?” We all pretended to play dumb as we quickly made our way down the mountain for a champagne toast.. where her parents were waiting. Alex made a toast and we all shared our videos and pictures of the excitement that that just unfolded (millennial generation style). After everything winded down we went on one last run to cap off the day.
A Surprise Proposal in the Park
From the photographer, Amy Caroline: When Sean contacted me and let me know that he wanted to propose to Stephanie here in Denver, and that he wanted me to photograph it, I was over the moon. The two of them are from Texas, but have family they were visiting in Denver. We landed on Cheesman Park in downtown Denver as the backdrop for this big event. With its big columns, rose gardens and rolling green hills, it’s the perfect Denver park to pop the question.
Sean was taking Steph out on a fancy dinner date, and just told her he was taking her on a walk through one of Denver’s city landmark parks beforehand. They strolled through the park; Steph oblivious to what was coming next.
Sean had them sit down on a park bench, and read through posts from his journal. In it, he had written so many special moments that he and Steph had shared, the laughs, the tears, and mostly the joys they had had in their dating years. Lastly leading her to the page where he talked about how he knew he had wanted to marry her from the very beginning of their dating lives. He took her hand and led her to the next spot where he dropped down on one knee, officially asking her to be his forever. Steph was still so surprised, overjoyed, and shocked. With absolute joy and tears she said yes!
We strolled around the park, capturing the newly engaged couple. Stephanie couldn’t stop looking at her new bling, and smiling up at her darling fiance.
A Secret New Year’s Eve Proposal
We LOVE it when the guys think ahead and have a photographer standing by to capture the moment they propose. Hint, hint!
From the photographer, Sean Lara Photography:
A young gentleman by the name of Chris called me at around 4pm on New Years Eve asking me if I could help him with a very important moment in his life. He sounded nervous on the phone and was stumbling his words – I knew it was something big. He was planning on proposing to his girlfriend, Amanda, in Old Town, Fort Collins. He was originally planning on waiting a few more weeks, but his excitement prevented him from holding off any longer, hence the last-minute phone call. He asked if I could discreetly capture him proposing to his girlfriend in Old Town Square. I agreed, and we came up with a plan. The idea was for him to take her around town before dinner, and I would come up to them, pretending to be a reporter doing a photo-story on couples. Around 8pm, I patiently waited downtown to find the couple and execute the plan. Twenty minutes passed after we agreed on meeting, and I was getting nervous that something wasn’t going to plan, but sure enough Chris and Amanda came out from an alleyway, and I approached them with our scheme in tact. I asked Amanda if I could take a couple photos of the two of them, as “the newspaper” was doing a story on couples integrating in the newly re-designed Square. I positioned Chris slightly behind her, as he pulled out the ring from his coat pocket. I then asked if I could grab a more “candid” shot, and told Chris to do something romantic. I took a step back, and let Chris take control. With my fingers half-frozen from the cold Colorado weather, I waited for the big moment and sure enough, he got down on one knee and popped the question. I’m happy to say of course, she said yes, and I’m also happy to say that she had absolutely no idea he was planning to propose, so the genuine reaction made it all the better!
A Mountaintop Proposal
Standing on top of the world surrounded by nature, proposing on a mountaintop is so romantic! We especially love it when the proposal is captured by a photographer.
From the photographer, Byron Roe: Thomas & Margaret were visiting Bend, Oregon from Chicago and trying their hand at downhill skiing. Little did Margaret know that she was moments away from having an amazing ring on her finger! The weather cleared and they decided to take a leap of faith and go to the summit for the first time (over 9,000 feet) of Mt. Bachelor where Thomas got down on his knee! She said ‘Oh My God’ about fifty times in about 5 minutes and kept her glove off freezing her fingers just so she could see the ring…too cute!
