Mickey proposed to me on our 11-year-anniversary. We had planned to go up to Mt. Bonnell in Austin, TX where there's a great view of the city skyline just because we'd never been, but it was pouring rain. We ended up going straight home, waiting the rain out and going to Mt. Bonnell when it was pitch black. He had friends, Tyler and Thao, photographing the proposal, which wouldn't be possible in the darkness so Micks had to come up with a Plan B. Tyler went to scope out another location.
After Mt. Bonnell, we went to a delicious dinner at Salty Sow. At dinner, he told me he bought me an anniversary present, which was unexpected because we don't usually exchange gifts for our anniversary, but sometimes we surprise each other with gifts so I didn't think much of it. He told me he couldn't give me the present then because his co-worker had helped him pick out the present and she wanted to be around when I opened it. We were to go downtown to meet her in a the lobby of The historical Driskill, Austin's oldest operating hotel, which is located near some bars that we could move to after I opened the gift. I'm thinking, "SEEMS LEGIT. NOTHING SUSPICIOUS HERE." No, seriously, at this point I really had no idea.
When we get to the hotel, he mentions that we need to meet her upstairs where it's quieter and less crowded. This is pretty much where I figured it out because the upstairs area was roped off and it seemed nobody was allowed up there... except for us. Apparently, Tyler had shown up earlier and explained the situation to the people at the front desk who were happy to let us use the upstairs area for a bit.
Micks and I arrived, went upstairs, and out to the balcony where there was no one in sight. Tyler and Thao were hiding behind tables. We waited a few minutes for Mickey's co-worker who was never supposed to show up anyway. At some point, he told me to go ahead and open the gift because he didn't want to wait for her anymore. He sat me down and knelt in front of me to "watch me open the gift" as he slyly slipped the ring out of his pocket.
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| Watching me open the present. Don't you guys love these behind the tablecloth creeper skills by Tyler and Thao? :) |
I opened the gift upside down, but when I flipped it over, it was this gorgeous painting that Micks had commissioned from Dustin Nguyen. It features Mickey proposing to me with the Gotham backdrop. He asked me to marry him after I saw the painting and, other than "of course," my reaction was "THIS IS SO COOL!" I couldn't get over how cool the painting was. Sorry for the dark photos of the actual painting. Lighting in the house isn't the best.
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The painting hanging on our wall. Our initials together sound like "empty." =X
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Back story, Dustin Nguyen is an artist who has done a lot of work for DC Comics. Micks and I met him back in 2010-2011 at San Diego Comic Con. I approached him in 2010, my first SDCC, because I really liked this Batman piece he painted, pictured below. It was just floating around the Internet and I stumbled upon it. He was super friendly and, ever since that first time, he's been one of our favorite artists and we make it a habit of visiting his booth every year at SDCC. He always remembers us and is always fun to talk to.
Micks reached out to Dustin via the commissions contact link on Dustin's website. This was almost a year before the proposal in November 2013. He knew Dustin was busy with his actual job/work, but explained his request and Dustin was kind enough to help! He sent Mickey the painting a week before the proposal happened.
Moral of the back story, Dustin Nguyen is a very talented artist and super cool person! We love the painting. The distinct style of his watercolors is so beautiful and I'm so proud to have it hanging on our wall. We actually ended up using the painting for our save the dates, too.
Fun fact, Mickey was wearing diamond pattern dress socks on the day of the proposal, which I noticed at the house before we went to Mt. Bonnell. Subtle hints. He wore the same socks for the wedding.
Here's sort of close-up of the engagement ring in case you're interested in seeing that. The following photos are from our actual engagement photoshoot. For the sake of properly archiving my collection, the featured Funko Pop is the unmasked Batman that was created for a Target-exclusive release. Apparently, you can find it elsewhere online now in case you're looking to add this Funko Pop to your collection (link at the bottom of this post).
Bonus geekiness from our engagement photoshoot below. I had to make a gif of these 3 photos. I'm just cracking up in the first photo, but it kind of looks like I'm powering up. We know it's been done, but it's still a good one. Pretty impressive jumping IMO! I can't photoshop, but if I could, you know I'd photoshop that Super Saiyin glow and the actual Kamehameha beam into this gif. What y'all know about Dragon Ball? :)
TL;DR: Mickey commissioned a painting by a DC Comics artist to propose to me.
Artwork/custom painting: Dustin Nguyen
Day-of photography: Tyler Lai, Thao My Photography. They both specialize in model photography, but were both sweet enough to help Mickey out with paparazzi-worthy creeper pictures to capture the proposal.
Proposal location: The Driskill Hotel, Austin, TX
Engagement photos: Eric Le Photography
Engagement photoshoot location: Austin, TX
Engagement ring: Diamonds Direct
Funko Pop: Funko Pop! DC Comics Batman Unmasked #51 Vinyl Figure (Amazon)
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