'Harry Potter' Proposal Features Quidditch Box, Hidden Ring (PHOTOS)

Rachel Allison knew her girlfriend, Jaquie Richards, had been a "Harry Potter" fan since 4th grade. So when Allison decided to pop the question, she turned to Hogwarts for some proposal inspiration.

Allison enlisted the help of artist Tony Albano to create a "Quidditch box," filled with the bat and four balls necessary to play the mythical game featured in the "Harry Potter" series. She hid an engagement ring inside one of the balls, the "Golden Snitch," then surprised Richards.

Allison told HuffPost Weddings that although she has never read the "Harry Potter" books, the movies have been a major source of entertainment for her and Richards since they first began dating in 2010. She was inspired to center her proposal around Quidditch because she wanted the phrase "I open at the close," which is inscribed on the Snitch and signifies endings and new beginnings, to factor into the proposal.

"We’ve watched all the movies together multiple times in our relationship...there is deeply felt imagery and meaning in the series," Allison said.

In November 2012, Allison posted her idea for a Quidditch box on online arts marketplace CustomMade.com. Though Albano admitted he had no idea what Quidditch was, he offered to make her vision come to life. After reading the books and watching the movies for inspiration, Albano crafted an old English-style box, a Quidditch bat and the four Quidditch balls: two Bludgers, a Quaffle and a Golden Snitch.

On March 21 (their third anniversary), Allison set up a "Quidditch pitch," complete with fake grass, hoops and banners for the four Hogwarts houses, in a room in her family's Minneapolis-area church.

Later that day, Allison's parents brought Richards to the church, where Allison showed her the Quidditch box and read her a love letter as the two stood in the middle of the "pitch." The letter included the line, “You sought me out, like a good seeker should," as a cue for Richards to open the Snitch and find the ring.

"Jaquie and I have been dating for three years, so I knew that this would be forever. I was excited because I knew she would love the set-up of the Quidditch pitch and the Golden Snitch holding her ring," Allison said. "I wasn’t nervous at all because I knew Jaquie would say 'yes.'"

Richards did say "yes," and told HuffPost they plan to keep the box and perhaps use it to play a game of Quidditch with their friends.

"Rachel recognized the joy the story brought to me and has creatively made that fictional world a little more tangible. That is the beautiful part," Richards said. "I think the warmth and magic to it and the whole proposal was really fun and that’s totally her style."

Click through the slideshow below to see photos of the Quidditch box and pitch.

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The Quidditch box

Tucked inside the Quidditch box are a Golden Snitch (top), a Quaffle (center) and two Bludgers.

The ring was hidden inside the Golden Snitch.

Rachel Allison framed two pages from "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone."

The Quidditch field

"Bleachers" surrounded the quidditch field

The ring, also designed by a Custom Made artist.

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On State Of The Union Voting Commission Proposal, State Lawmakers Divide Along Party Lines

State lawmakers' reactions to President Barack Obama's announcement Tuesday night of a new bipartisan voting commission split along party lines.

The announcement of the election commission during the State of the Union address was greeted positively by Democratic state lawmakers, who see the panel as a way to generate ideas to improve state and local election administration. However, Republicans said the panel violates the 10th Amendment, noting that elections are a function of state government and not a place for federal officials.

Obama announced that the commission, to be co-chaired by top attorneys from his and Mitt Romney's 2012 campaigns, would develop "common-sense, non-partisan solutions" to reduce wait times and improve voting experiences.

"I commend the president for convening a nonpartisan commission to review our election procedures," North Dakota Assistant House Minority Leader Corey Mock (D-Grand Forks) told The Huffington Post. "It is a fine use of time and resources. That is something that all Americans should be proud of."

But Wyoming state Rep. Dan Zwonitzer (R-Cheyenne) told HuffPost that there's no need for such a commission. Standing by the federalism argument, he said the federal government has "enough of their own problems to worry about" and that election policy is a state-level issue.

"Each state is responsible for their voting procedures, and I don't believe a national commission is needed to make recommendations to states," he said.

Zwonitzer noted that each state knows its history of election administration and what works in its environment. Elections in Wyoming have worked well and would not need recommendations from a federal commission, he said. At the same time, states that have had long lines and other problems could develop solutions, he said.

Kansas state Rep. J.R. Claeys (R-Salina) agrees with Zwonitzer on the need for solutions at the state level. Claeys, who unsuccessfully ran for Kansas secretary of state in 2010, noted that he would like to see states share best practices on election administration, but not through an Obama-appointed panel.

"There are a number of ways we can improve voting processes without a blanket solution around the country," Claeys told HuffPost. "There are some states that prefer voter ID and some don't see it as an issue. Personally, I think in Kansas we have a great voter ID law and voter ID did not impede the process. Voter ID makes the process more transparent and free of human error."

Mock and Montana state Rep. Bryce Bennett (D-Missoula) disagree, saying that there are too many stories of people standing in line for hours to vote. Bennett, who led his party's election policy efforts, stressed that there is a role for the federal government in election administration. Obama's commission could help gather ideas from state and county officials nationally in order to develop ideas and help end "voter suppression," he said.

"I would see this as an opportunity for folks at the federal level to work with state leaders and get information from the folks on the ground, including county clerks," Bennett told HuffPost. "We need to take input from everywhere. We need to do something. There are too many roadblocks for people to vote. This is a pressing issue. This is the core of everything we do as a democracy."

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