Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom’s Relationship Timeline Leading to Valentine’s Day Engagement

It’s been a long road for Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom, who made their relationship official by getting engaged on Thursday. After dating off and on for three years, the two are finally taking the next step.

“A shallow person will have only shallow relationships,” Bloom wrote on Instagram the day of their engagement. “Real love is not one person clinging to another, it can only be fostered between two strong people secure in their individuality. Antoine de Saint- Exupery, author of The Little Prince wrote in a work called Wind, Sand and Stars, ‘Love is not two people gazing at each other, but two people looking ahead together in the same direction.’”

From a silly flirtation at a Golden Globes party to a Valentine’s Day-themed proposal (complete with a one-of-a-kind engagement ring), check out all the peaks and valleys of Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom’s relationship.

JANUARY 2016

Whispers of a romance first started in January 2016 when the two were seen canoodling and flirting at a Golden Globes after party.

“Katy and Orlando had a total dance-off — it was the best part of the party,” a source told Us Weekly at the time. “Katy literally dropped to the floor and was waving her booty around, beckoning Orlando.”

Later that month, the two were photographed at a production of The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey in Culver City, California.

MAY 2016

For the next few months, Bloom and Perry enjoyed each other’s company without going totally media-frenzy official; the two reportedly avoided being photographed together, despite being an item. At the amfAR Gala during the 2016 Cannes Film Festival, they sat at separate tables — yet still close enough to interact.

Later on in Cannes, Perry took things full-on Instagram official when she shared a photo of herself and Bloom stretched out on cement steps.

“we cannes’t,” she captioned the photo simply.

AUGUST 2016

August 2016 gave fans the infamous paddle boarding incident, where a bare-naked Bloom was photographed by paparazzi paddling along the coast of Sardinia — with Perry, by the way. The images went viral, with the hysteria surrounding them surprising Bloom, he said.

“Yes, it was extremely surprising. I wouldn’t have put myself in that position if I’d thought it would happen,” he told ELLE UK. “I’ve been photographed a million times in a million ways. I have a good radar.”

“We’d been completely alone for five days. Nothing around us. There was no way anyone could get anything. So I had a moment of feeling free,” he said.

OCTOBER 2016

A few months later, Bloom and Perry show up to Kate Hudson’s annual Halloween party dressed as Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, respectively. See photos of the night here. The party took place just days before the 2016 presidential election, when most polls were predicting that Clinton would win.

Perry shared a photo of herself wearing a blonde wig, convincing facial prosthetic and a classic red pantsuit, holding a martini in her hand. 

Meanwhile, Bloom donned a Troll-like, orange-haired Trump costume.

 

MARCH 2017

Fast forward five months and Bloom and Perry officially split up. “Orlando and Katy are taking respectful, loving space at this time,” their representatives told Us Weekly.

Perry addressed the breakup on social media, tweeting, “HOW BOUT A NEW WAY OF THINKING FOR 2017!? U can still b friends & love ur former partners! No one’s a victim or a villain, get a life y’all!”

AUGUST 2017

A few months after Perry made waves by ranking her exes in bed (John Mayer first, Bloom second and Diplo third, for those wondering), fans clinging to hope that the couple might reunite were delighted to catch wind of a date the two went on to an Ed Sheeran concert in Los Angeles.

“I think people are in and out of your life. It’s nice to keep people you love around you,” Perry told SiriusXM’s The Morning Mashup about the hangout.

FEBRUARY 2018

About two years after their initial flirtation at the Golden Globes, Perry and Bloom officially got back together.

“I have been spoken or and speak for myself,” Perry told Entertainment Tonight.

The two spent the next few months going on trips together while Perry finished up her Witness World Tour — they even met Pope Francis together.

 

SEPTEMBER 2018

September 2018 saw Perry and Bloom, who were dressed to the nines, make their red-carpet debut at the Gala for the Global Ocean in Monaco, which was hosted by Prince Albert II. Bloom was a chair for the event along with Madonna, Goldie Hawn and Eva Longoria.

Over the next few months, Perry and Bloom shared more social media posts together than ever, with a source telling PEOPLE that 2018 was “a very special year” for the two of them and that “they are doing incredibly well. They seem very happy and serious.”

FEBRUARY 2019

In the small hours of the day after Valentine’s Day, Perry and Bloom both shared the same selfie of Perry with a gorgeous, giant ring on her finger. Perry’s mom even confirmed the engagement on her own Facebook.

“full bloom,” Perry captioned her post, while Bloom wrote, “Lifetimes.”

The ring, which is said to be valued at $5 million, features a 4-carat vivd pink opal shaped diamond surrounded by eight white diamonds, assembling into the shape of a flower in bloom, a diamond expert told E! News.