Man’s elaborate six-month proposal preparation is the epitome of ‘he wanted to, so he did'

We often come across elaborate proposal stories on social media. Onlookers often remark that a man will put sincere effort into creating the perfect proposal for his partner if he truly wants to. That sentiment became a reality for a lucky bride-to-be named Joelle (@joelleolol on Instagram), a content creator and actor based in Los Angeles, who has been in an eight-year relationship with her fiancé, Sean. A video of the couple captured the attention of over three million people on Instagram when Joelle shared moments from the day she was proposed to.

However, Sean’s proposal was far from basic. It wasn’t just about getting down on one knee with a ring to ask the big question. Instead, he spent six months meticulously planning and preparing with the help of family and friends to organize the perfect proposal. "Someone told me @seanoh95's proposal was the definition of 'he wanted to, so he did,' and I couldn't agree more," Joelle wrote in the caption of her viral video. She shared how Sean set up an entire gallery with their letters, meaningful decorations and photos documenting the best moments of their relationship. To make the surprise even more special, he enlisted the help of Joelle's talent manager and sent her an invitation to a "fashion event" months in advance.

Joelle arrived at the location, expecting it to be a typical creator event, but instead walked into a suspiciously empty gallery. There, she noticed her videographer and friend, Josh Jang, filming her. "Thanks to all the friends who contributed art, did photos and videos, and celebrated with us after! This video doesn't show the 60 people who were waiting in the back to come surprise me. Anyway, this is just the beginning of wedding videos, so prepare to be sick of me, I guess," she concluded in her Instagram post.

Joelle was seen looking around in awe as she finally realized that the framed pictures and letters on the gallery’s walls were from people close to her. The gallery displayed collages of her photos with Sean, starting from 2016 when they first began dating. Sean had enlisted the help of Joelle’s friends, who cleverly stole the cards and gifts he had given her over the years and decorated the gallery space with them. He also made a video compilation of the quality time they had spent together and projected it on a screen. As Joelle was engrossed in observing the items, Sean quietly sneaked in from behind, got down on one knee and proposed.

The happily engaged couple took more pictures and videos to capture the special moment. Joelle also uploaded a detailed 26-minute version of the Instagram footage on her YouTube channel, where Sean recorded himself planning the proposal in advance. "Truly, we are growing up together and life stages change and evolve. Sean and I have been together for eight years now, six of which were long-distance, and it's been truly one of the greatest pleasures in life to get to grow alongside someone I love and respect and admire so much," Joelle mentioned in the YouTube video's caption.

Meanwhile, the Instagram community was gushing over how romantic the proposal was and pointed out that Sean is a total "green flag." @rachel_loaf commented, "So cute. I can't imagine the amount of work that went into this." @ictoriaamodeoo, "The absolute epitome of a man. Congratulations, you two! I'm so happy for you and I don't even know you!" @asatoyoda cheered, "Wait, actually screaming, crying, throwing up, also laughing at him stealing stuff from your room." @charitycorrin added, "Just another day of crying with strangers on the internet. Congratulations!!! This was so intentional and beautiful."

You can follow Joelle on Instagram and YouTube for more lifestyle content.