Liberty Pearl’s surprise proposal Gidleigh Park Devon

I am a wedding photographer who recently became engaged when my savvy other half Jesse not only created the most perfect surprise proposal and celebration, but also had a photographer capture the whole thing. He’s a definitely a keeper!

I wanted to tell you a little bit more about my romantic surprise proposal, sharing the gorgeous images and a film of the whole thing as it unveiled.

A little bit about us…
We met on a dating website in January 2015, met in person in February 2015, and starting dating in march 2015, and we have very happily been dating ever since! We just have so much in common and get on so well, we knew early on that we wanted to get married and share our lives together. We talked about getting engaged and looked at different engagement rings a couple of times, but I am very impatient so at every special occasion including birthdays, Christmas, Valentines day, our holiday in New York, I was expecting a proposal!!! And of course I was disappointed when this didn’t happen the way I expected it to.

Surprise engagement
I am so busy with wedding bookings and engagement shoots on weekends we hadn’t been spending a lot of time together so Jesse asked me to book out a Saturday free from meetings and photo shoots so we could go for lunch together. I just thought we were going for lunch and I was quite excited about having a nice relaxing afternoon together, just the two of us. But little did I know that he had planned a surprise proposal at the beautiful Gidleigh Park on the edge of Dartmoor.

I said yes!
It was the most amazing moment of my life, we walked through a stunning woodland to a bridge at the entrance of the hotel and the sun was shining through the trees. It was so romantic, and yes he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. I burst into tears, I couldn’t believe it was actually happening!!!! Of course I said YES through my tears of joy.

But not only did he propose to me, he also invited my daughter Liberty and my closest friends and family to the venue to share this special moment and celebrate with. It wouldn’t have been the same without Liberty.

Celebrations with family and friends
Jesse had organised a champagne reception on the lawn and an amazing 6 course lunch in a private dining room which was out of this world. The food was sooo delicious and the champagne was flowing. It was so lovely having my friends and family there with us. It was a mini engagement party
This alone made me so happy I was going to marry Jesse! He is just thoughtful in every way and always remembers the tiny little things I say.

The ring
I am very fussy and I don’t like wearing too much jewellery, so looking for engagement rings was very difficult. I am not the traditional type of girl, I don’t wear jewellery, follow fashion trends, my style is very simple and classic and I don’t own a ring so didn’t really know where to start. I knew I just didn’t want an ‘off the shelf’ diamond ring. When visiting some friends in Bristol back in October we popped into a couple of antique shops in Clifton village, I tried on a stunning 1930’s art deco sapphire and diamond engagement ring and I fell in love with it, until I saw the price tag. It was a whopping £7000!! So I thought that was the end of that! But Jesse remembered the style of ring and when we went to New York this Christmas he secretly went shopping one day and searched high and low and found an even more beautiful sapphire and diamond ring and I LOVE it!!!! and he assured me it wasn’t anywhere near £7000! It is simple and unique, and it is from New York which is really special because that was our first holiday together.

The photography
I am a wedding photographer and I photographed my first proposal in New York this winter – the proposal was a complete surprise to me included, it was so special, so I hinted to Jesse that I wanted my proposal photographed. Jesse had arranged for amazing photographer Grace Elizabeth Photography to come and capture our proposal and document the day, Grace also carried out a pre wedding shoot for us after our lunch which was sooo special! She also arranged for the proposal to be filmed as well, so that was an wonderful surprise for both Jesse and I.

No messing around…
We have booked our wedding for the 21st May this year and we have booked Grace as our wedding photographer, because her style is so beautiful, natural and relaxed and she is so lovely, we can’t imagine anyone else photographing our day for us.

Words from our amazing photographer Grace Elizabeth
Marriage is an incredible, precious thing. At Grace Elizabeth Photography I value the opportunity to document weddings, creating natural, authentic photographs that capture the emotion, joy and character of the day. I am unobtrusive and tell stories beautifully and artistically, as they unfold, encompassing the quiet, candid and informal, as well as the significant, big moments of the day. I am based in the East Midlands, UK but I am rarely happier than when exploring new places, so I am more than glad to take my camera wherever, no matter how far or wide.

It was such a privilege to document Jesse and Ambers surprise proposal, to capture such an intimate and personal moment which marks such an exciting new chapter in their life together.