Image courtesy of Minto.
Buying your first home is undoubtedly one of life’s most exciting experiences — and one Toronto-based couple recently was able to celebrate not one but two momentous life moments at once.
Interior decorator and fashion blogger Christina Cravero, 32, had the surprise of her life on Valentine’s Day, when her partner of nine years, Tiago Roque, 27, got down on one knee to pop the question at their brand new townhouse at Minto Longbranch.
Roque, a sales representative at Cintas, had been planning the engagement for some time and even got the marketing team at Minto involved to plan a fake “meet the neighbours” interview to get Cravero to their new home ahead of their move-in date.
“Over a month ago, the Minto team contacted us about doing the interview and mentioned we would be allowed to view our unit before the inspection date,” Cravero said. “At first, I was so excited as it was something we had been waiting for, for such a long time.
“A week later however, I started to question why they were only asking us as so many other people are moving to the site too. I even wrote to them, to see if they could prep us on the questions they were going to ask.
“The marketing team was amazing, as they went along with it. Of course the entire time, Tiago was trying to convince me they chose us because of my blog and design background, to derail me from thinking any other way,” said Cravero, who is also a guest expert on Cityline and Breakfast Television.
Minto Longbranch, located in Toronto’s trendy Lake Shore neighbourhood, comprises a range of stacked energy-efficient townhomes featuring urban, modern architecture, rooftop terraces and garden patios. Cravero and Roque are set to move into a 1,300-square-foot, 2-bedroom, 2.5-bathroom townhome in the coming weeks, a significant upgrade from their current 500-square-foot rental condo in Oakville.
“This is our first home and it’s been great to be able to somewhat customize it in terms of picking all the finishes. That’s the best thing about new-builds,” says Cravero. “The most unique feature about our unit is the rooftop terrace, which we cannot wait to use to entertain our friends and family.”
The romantic engagement came as a surprise to Cravero, although she had started to pick up on some slightly uncharacteristic behaviour from Roque recently.
“Tiago doesn’t always like my nail designs but last time I had a marble effect, with a bit of gold veining, he kept telling me how much he liked it. Also, as I was driving to the ‘interview’, he kept saying he was sweating and was nervous — I didn’t understand why he was so stressed,” says Cravero.
Inside the unit, Roque had already laid out candles in a heart shape, scattered rose petals on the floor and poured the champagne to ensure the mood was perfect and the happy couple could toast to their news.
While the couple has yet to settle on a wedding date, there are a few details of which they are sure.
Aside from plans for an intimate affair in Portugal, close to Tiago’s family, Cravero has already decided to dedicate a big part of their wedding budget towards some supremely stylish shoes.
