Written By Melissa Reardon
Photographs By Lucy Cuneo
A transplant from Virginia, Weston “Wes” McAfee vividly remembers the first time he saw his future bride-to-be. Charleston native Dana Elaine...
For the love of a topknot, people! University of Pennsylvania freshman Praachi and Shiv met one night when each were out with their friends and topknot caught his eye. “I remember thinking how adorable and carefree she looked,” says Shiv. Three years after the Boston residents had become an item, they were visiting Charleston for a reunion trip with some of their college friends. Praachi and Shiv broke off to explore Magnolia Plantation & Gardens, when suddenly he was on one knee proposing. Almost before she could answer, their friends sprang out of hiding to celebrate. And when they FaceTimed her parents, who live in California, moments later? They, too, came out of hiding to cheer on the couple. Clever Shiv not only coordinated all that, and hired photographer Alex Thorton to capture every bit, but the proposal morphed into a surprise engagement session, too. (Kudos to Praachi’s matron of honor, who lent the bride-to-be her own heels to wear for the portraits.) “Looking back at these photos,” says Praachi, “it looks like I must have known what was going to happen, but I really didn’t! He engineered the whole thing—he picked out what outfit he wanted to wear and had my roommate make sure I packed pastel-colored clothes. I actually was planning to wear this pair of black and white pants, but that didn’t match him at all, so he lied and told me he hated them.” Love a man who knows how to take charge! Congrats you two. Scroll on to see all of the sweet, sweet imagery.
Images by Alex Thornton
