Today I get to share with you Jenny and Al’s engagement shoot from Wisconsin photographer Megan Yanz. The shoot took place at Jenny’s cabin which is where their wedding will be next year.
Al was friends with my older brother in high school, but he and I didn’t become friends until after high school. We stayed friends for a couple of years and then decided to live together as roommates in our early twenties. After six months of living together, we “fell in love.” But, as all beautiful romances go, life kept getting in the way of our relationship. We dated on-and-off all through our twenties, until three years ago we decided that we couldn’t live without each other anymore. It’s been great ever since. Now we have a dog, a condo and a wedding to plan!
Al proposed while we were making lunch together at home on a Sunday. He got down on one knee and pulled my ring out of his pocket. He held my hand and said, “Will you continue to be my best friend, always laugh with me, and love me for the rest of my life?” I said yes, of course, and then he sat me down and said he had another surprise planned for me that day. He had asked our tattoo artist to come in (on her day off, just for us) and give us our couples tattoo that we had talked about months prior. So, we finished eating lunch and spent the next 6 hours at the tattoo shop. I said, “Wow! Way to spring two life-long commitments on me in one day!” My adrenaline had never been so high for so long. Once our awesome tattoos were finished, we got carry-out from our favourite restaurant in town, went home and bounced wedding ideas off each other over a bottle of wine.
Only three of my tattoos will show in any wedding dress, and only one tattoo on my back was an issue for me. I didn’t like the way the tattoo artist did it to begin with. But rather than trying to pick a dress to cover it, I am going to our very talented tattoo artist to redo/add-on to it. It will definitely show in my wedding dress, but hopefully I will love it after it’s retouched.
Last winter, when I was looking at a Stray Cats album cover, I saw a drawing on the back side and immediately got the idea for our couples tattoo. The drawing was a boy cat and a girl cat dancing together. I got the boy cat (for him) and he got the girl cat (for me) on the backside of our upper arms. So when we stand next to each other, with our arms touching, the cats dance together again. This was our engagement tattoo that he had planned.
He also plans on having me write my name, and tattooing that across his wedding ring finger. I am thinking of having my married last name tattooed under my wedding ring.
How beautiful is the setting for their wedding next year? I can’t wait to see it! Thank you to them both and to Megan Yanz Photography for sharing their engagement with Marry Me Ink today. Be sure to leave them some love.
