Over The Moon’s Tani Greenspan and Jack Koch’s relationship was a slow burn. While undergraduates at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia, they became good friends for many years before falling in love. Several semesters went by before they had their first date. On a cold night in February 2016 they went out for drinks at an upscale local pub famous for pineapple tequila cocktails. “We’re both tequila enthusiasts!” Tani says. And sparks flew from there.
Fast forward to six years later—after dating and also living together, first in Washington, DC and later in New Orleans—Jack popped the question during a romantic stroll to the restaurant where they planned to celebrate their six-year anniversary over brunch. “It was the perfect day,” Tani recalls. “70-degrees, live music was playing while meandering through the park hand-in-hand toward Langles Bridge,” Tani says. Fun fact: It’s one of the city’s oldest and most photographed subjects, and the stones in the footbridge were chosen for their romantic effect.
“The next thing I knew, Jack was down on one knee!” Surrounded by oak trees draped in Spanish moss, the proposal was picturesque yet private–save for two of the couple’s pals, who quite literally hid underneath the bridge to take a few photos to capture the special moment. “It couldn’t have been more magical,” Tani gushes, “or more New Orleans.” “At one point, I blacked out!”
So magical, in fact, Tani was caught entirely off guard. “As someone who loves to plan and host parties, I consider myself relatively hard to surprise, but somehow Jack pulled it off Adding: “He even managed to fly down to Florida, where my parents recently retired and live, and back in less than 24-hours, to get their blessing without me ever knowing.”
Jack had more than a few surprises up his sleeve that day, unbeknownst to Tani. “He proposed with a beautiful vintage ring,” she says. “Everyone knows that I love all things antiquarian—from Edwardian fashion to mid-century interior design and anything with an objet d’art effect—so this ring was absolutely perfect.”
Spoiler alert: It turned out to be just a “prop ring.” Later that day, after their celebratory brunch, the couple visited Jack’s parents’ New Orleans home to tell them the good news–Tani discovered there were beautiful rings that belonged to Jack’s mother’s family dating back to the early 1900s. There, Jack and her future mother-in-law lovingly let her select and design her engagement ring. “The sentimental aspect of having a piece that belonged to Jack’s family, while being able to create a ring that’s one-of-a-kind made it that much more unforgettable,” she says.
Tani spent the evening looking through the family heirlooms, from a sparkling solitaire diamond to an exquisite twin setting, giving her plenty of inspiration to create the engagement ring of her dreams. “There was so much to take in, and all were so unique to a different era.”
Cut to Monday morning, at Over The Moon’s weekly team meeting, everyone was eager to hear Tani’s proposal story. Describing the part with the ring, many colleagues were quick to recall a scene in The Crown when a young Lady Diana Spencer selects her engagement ring in a similar fashion. In case you missed it, Prince Charles has just proposed, and Queen Elizabeth is showing Diana a “box of chocolates,” or rather, a large wooden box of rings from the royal jewelry archive. Diana swiftly selects a 12-carat oval sapphire as it “matches her eyes.” For her part, Tani is giving the all-important decision more careful consideration.
“I haven’t made my choice yet, but there is something exciting about creating an engagement ring that’s not only a symbol of your relationship but is also a special piece of history that represents everlasting love throughout several generations.” A proposal story for the ages, indeed.
