Shaun White and Nina Dobrev are headed to the alter after announcing their engagement on Wednesday, October 30.
But not before the Olympic snowboarding champion had to pull off the surprise-of-a-lifetime proposal full of mystery, deception and plenty of creativity.
Knowing his lady is an ‘extremely organized person who is rarely surprised, but loves being surprised,’ White knew he had to keep his plan a secret, but that hadn’t been easy to do considering his previous plans didn’t pan out.
Reaching deep for a unique idea after sensing she might unknowingly thwart his planned proposal, the X Games champion had his publicist send Dobrev a fake invitation for an intimate CFDA/Vogue dinner with the publication’s editor-in-chief Anna Wintour, according to Vogue’s Elise Taylor.
He arranged the fake dinner to be at The Golden Swan in New York City so that he could pop the question under an arch of white roses that also covered much of the floor in that area of the restaurant.
Shaun White, 38, and Nine Dobrev, 35, got engaged after the three-time Olympic gold metal snowboarder pulled off a surprise proposal at The Golden Swan restaurant in New York City
Dobrev, 35, ended up accepting the fake invitation without questioning its validity whatsoever.
‘He made the invite look so legitimate,’ the actress said while recalling the graphics details of the invitation while laughing out loud.
Running late after a styling session arranged by White, the XXX: Return of Xander Cage actress was a bit nervous when she arrived considering Vogue events start on time.
It turned out the only people in the West Village restaurant’s private room were White and a photographer, all while there’s flowing perfectly placed on the floor and arch.
With the five carat diamond engagement ring that he had hidden in various spots at his home now in his pocket and dressed in Ralph Lauren, White got on to one knee under the arch and proposed with his lady decked out in an all-black Chanel ensemble.
‘I went into shock. I just froze and stared at him,’ the Sofia, Bulgaria native, who grew up in Toronto, Canada confessed. Then she went, ‘No.’ And then: ‘No, no, no!’ with excitement.
While admitting she didn’t remember exactly what happened next, after briefly blacking out, but she does remember that ‘he said all the right things.’
After she said yes, friends came and joined them for caviar and champagne, and they went on to celebrate until one in the morning.
It didn’t take long before the snowboarder and skateboarding champion announced her decision, when posting a few photos from the emotional evening.
Knowing his lady is an ‘extremely organized person who is rarely surprised, but loves being surprised,’ White had his publicist send Dobrev a fake invitation for an intimate CFDA/Vogue dinner with the publication’s editor-in-chief Anna Wintour
The Olympic champion arranged the fake dinner to be at The Golden Swan in New York City so that he could pop the question under an arch of white roses that also covered much of the floor in that area of the restaurant
‘She said YES,’ the San Diego, California native wrote, while his new fiancée shared. ‘RIP boyfriend, hello fiancé,’ in her post on her Instagram page.
Dobrev and White first met during a brief encounter at the 2012 Teen Choice Awards, but it wasn’t until 2019 that they were formally introduced.
They would start dating soon after and eventually go Instagram official with a set of photos that showed Dobrev giving White a quarantine haircut.
So far, there hasn’t been an official word on when and where they plan to share their nuptials.
