New Yorker Mary McCarthy takes the perfect engagement ring selfie: Her hand posture is on-point, her nails are trimmed, her photo backdrops are almost always interesting. The only catch? She’s not engaged.
On her aptly named Instagram page, @notengaged, McCarthy parodies the engagement ring photos that flood the social media feeds of anyone in their mid-20s and 30s. The actor-writer shares the adventures of her “unwed hand” while traveling to places like Santorini or having a chill night at home.
McCarthy created the account after coming home from a friend’s engagement party. (She jokes she’s been a bridesmaid about “seven million times,” so she has attended a lot of those.)
“I picked up tacos on the way home and texted a picture to my friends ‘when you’re not engaged, but at least you have tacos!’ and the rest is history,” she told HuffPost. “The Instagram essentially started as an inside joke with a handful of friends and now it’s grown into a much larger inside joke.”
The account, which currently has over 106,000 followers, is like catnip for single people: “Us, consistently, for the forseeable future lol,” one person commented, tagging two friends.
“I live in constant fear that one day you will indeed get engaged and it’ll all be over,” one fan of the account joked.
It’s McCarthy’s captions ― sometimes snarky, sometimes sweet ― that really drive home the account’s “single, OK with it” message.
“When ur #notengaged having a cute lil romantic date with ur five year plan,” the writer jokes in one post. “ilu financial freedom im so glad u weren’t compromised by josh’s ‘i have a great idea babe’ #blessed”
Some of the funnier photos are staged at friends’ weddings, which McCarthy actually loves to attend.
“It might be surprising to hear, but I love when my friends get engaged and celebrating them,” she said. “I just noticed a lack of content that uplifts and celebrates single women and the account was a silly way to remind everyone to celebrate your life, despite your relationship status.”
The very relatable travels of McCarthy’s ringless finger are a funny way to remind yourself to not fall into the comparison trap, she said.
“The account has basically become a character of sorts,” she said. “It’s supposed to be your silly and fun break from the life milestones you’re scrolling through in the rest of your feed.”
As for what happens if McCarthy ever gets engaged?
“Right now, I’m single and traveling a ton, but don’t worry, I’ll pull a 180 and only post pictures of my ring every day,” she joked.
Scroll down for more from the account.