Weddings

Their Proposal Featured a U-Haul and an 8-Foot Raccoon Mural. Their Rustic Fall Wedding: Gorgeous Greenery, a Winery Setting, and More Raccoons.

Yeah, we're kind of obsessed with the way this proposal went down.

Photography by Amy Smith

Megan and Jackie met on Tinder, fell in love long-distance, got engaged in front of an eight-foot-raccoon mural, and married at a wedding in Charlottesville that included a warm, rustic theme, lots of beautiful greenery, and one giant cat head. See the details of their story below.

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Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married

Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married

The Meeting

Megan and Jackie met on Tinder, but the initial conversation was … unexpected.

Jackie messaged first with a murder-mystery question and a follow-up confession that she once made a jean jacket for her cat. Those two openers, they say, swept Megan, a “true crime addict,” off her feet.

Making plans, though, was “a little dicey.” Megan was living in Philadelphia at the time, and Jackie in DC. “Who starts a long-distance relationship on Tinder anyways?” Fortunately for the pair, they say, they were both willing to drive 90 minutes to find out.

To split the drive and meet in the middle, the pair wound up at a Green Turtle in a strip mall in Aberdeen—on a Raven’s football game day, no less. Neither at all interested in football, they say, they had to keep pausing the conversation as the bar broke out into cheers. Still, they talked for hours, “had a very awkward goodbye,” and while neither can recall what they talked about, they both definitely wanted to see one another again.

Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married

Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married

 

 

Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married

The Proposal

Jackie’s proposal 14 months later included the rental of a U-haul and the commissioning of an eight-foot-by-eight-foot painting of a raccoon proposing to another raccoon—“we had matching raccoon onesies so this made sense,” Jackie says. To set it up, Jackie and a friend positioned the U-haul—essentially a giant easel for the raccoon painting that hung from the side—along Jackie and Megan’s walking route to dinner. As they passed by the painting-clad-U-Haul, Megan actually spotted the painting and said, “We should steal that.” With that, Jackie got down on one knee. The next day, Jackie surprised Megan with a party and a visit from her sister. Megan says she is still amazed Jackie could pull it all off. (With her penchant for mystery solving, “I’m a little disappointed in myself,” she says.)

 

Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married

 

Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married

Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married

Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married

The Rustic Fall Wedding Day

A little over a year later, in June 2019, the Arlington couple married in front of 150 guests at Mount Ida Lodge in Charlottesville.

Their rustic fall wedding day big day was full of charm and gorgeous greenery. Megan’s side wore mauve and Jackie’s dressed in navy, and at the ceremony, guests, who were positioned toward the sun, were given custom sunglasses with a sign that said “Don’t get blinded by our love.” The couple got a larger-than-life cardboard cutout of their cat’s head “so she could take part,” and after dinner, guests were treated to a donut cake and donut holes from the Carpe Donut donut truck to take home.

Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married

Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married

Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married

Jackie & Megan | Married
Jackie & Megan | Married

One Last Thing

The raccoon-proposal mural, by Rodrigo Pradel.

The Details

Photographer:  Amy Smith Photography | Venue: Mount Ida Lodge | Event Coordinator: Kristelle Koerper (C&O Restaurant) | Florist: Gregory Britt Design | Invitations: Minted | Catering: C&O Restaurant | Cake: Carpe Donut | Hair & Makeup: FBJ Weddings (Megan and her side) | Megan’s Attire: Made with Love from Lovely Bride | Jackie’s Attire: Custom made by Green and Blue Studio in DC | Wedding Party Attire: Rush After Six, Dessy (Megan’s side); Jos. A. Banks (suits) and Eliza J Jumpsuits, Nordstrom (Jackie’s side) | Music: Bachelor Boys Band | Transportation: Blue Ridge Tours and A&A Limousine | Videographer: Amanda Monroe Finn | Raccoon Painting: Rodrigo Pradel

Amy Moeller
Fashion & Weddings Editor

Amy leads Washingtonian Weddings and writes Style Setters for Washingtonian. Prior to joining Washingtonian in March 2016, she was the editor of Capitol File magazine in DC and before that, editor of What’s Up? Weddings in Annapolis.