“I got down on one knee and that was history right there”

How did you and Shannon meet?

I met Shannon at Syracuse University in New York during our first year at law school. During our second year, it was the right moment it appears, as we learned more about each other and it developed into a romantic interest thereafter.

What was the moment you knew she was the one?

When we started dating, within the first three of four months, I started to get this feeling, like I was dating ‘the one’.

We were spending more and more time together and we were learning more about each other. We have a lot of differences, but we also have a lot of similarities and just the right balance.

What is it about Shannon that makes you smile?

Well, we both work in the same field and we both have the same sense of humour and interests. We have the same taste in how we envision our future home, we have the same fondness for animals. So the spark is always present because we find a lot of things in life that we enjoy doing together.

And that spark is what keeps it going. It’s always been there.

What was most important to you when designing your engagement ring?

It was my mom who actually told me about Taylor & Hart and I looked at some of the work you guys did through Instagram and Youtube videos and I was learning about other experiences that I’d read from your previous customers.

I decided to go down that road so I could tailor a ring to fit my exact preferences. My consultant was understanding of what kind of design and diamond I had in mind. I rely on my mom’s judgement for like 99% of things I do, so she took me down the right path there.

What inspired your design?

My fiance has a ring design Pinterest board, so I snooped on her Pinterest to see what kind of designs she liked.

Based on what she was looking at, she wanted an Art Deco style, but I decided to deviate from the original cut, to put my own personal twist on the design. I chose an Asscher cut diamond instead of an emerald cut just to make it something unique, something that I’d had an input on.

She loved the ring – I’m so happy I went in the right direction.

How did you propose?

It was early morning in Paris, at around 8am during a major trip around Europe. We were heading out for coffee, so I ordered a cab that had instructions to take us to the Pont Alexandre bridge.

I wanted something scenic for her, something she could look back on and remember.

Originally, I wanted to do it at sunset but it was forecast to rain so I decided to push it a little earlier to the morning with the sun rising.

What are the dreams you share together for the future?

Looking forward, we want to live a humble life on the beach right out here in Southern California – that’s the main thing on our ‘to-do’ list.

A house on the beach together where we can enjoy sunsets and just live happily together.

Doing the simple things like making dinner together every night, as lame as that sounds, that’s pretty much our goal.