Ashley Jacobshas officially moved on following her split fromThomas Ravenel.
More than a year after theSouthern Charmcoupleparted ways, Jacobs has found love with boyfriend Mike Appel. On Monday, the Bravo personality introduced her new beau to her Instagram followers, making their relationship social media official.
“Found someone close to my own age!!?” wrote Jacobs, 34, jokingly referring to the multi-decades age difference between herself and Ravenel.
“And our birthday’s are just a day a part! Happy birthday to this cutie♥️,” Jacobs wrote alongside a smiling photo of herself and Appel. “Thanks for making me smile!!”
Jacobs also gave the birthday boy some love on her Instagram Stories, where she called Appel a “stud muffin.”
“You were born, and the world became a better place,” she wrote alongside a blue heart emoji. “Happy birthday you stud muffin!!!”
Appel is the co-founder and chief marketing officer of Related Garments, “a matching themed apparel company that focuses on creating designer undergarments that are coordinated,” according to his LinkedInaccount.
Mike Appel.Ashley Jacobs Instagram
Her new romance comes months after Jacobs opened up about her past relationship with Ravenel, whom she split from in August 2018 after more than a year together.
In aninterview withEntertainment Tonightpublished at the end of July,Jacobs opened up about meeting Ravenel— and what led to their split a year later.
When they met in spring 2017, Jacobs toldET, she was looking for a change.
Jacobs then joined the cast ofSouthern Charmas Ravenel’s girlfriend and stirred up some major drama,openly feudingwithKathryn Dennis, Ravenel’s ex and the mother of his two kids.
Paul Cheney/Bravo
“It was dark, and it was really lonely and, yeah, I was really lonely,” Jacobs shared. “I lost a lot of weight. I wasn’t taking care of myself mentally … I suffered from depression, situational depression.”
In September 2018, Ravenel was arrested andcharged with assault and batteryin the second degree after a former nanny accused him of rape. After the arrest, it was announced that Ravenel would not return toSouthern Charm.
In September, Ravenel pled guilty to third-degree assault and battery in the assault case. He received a 30-day sentence that was suspended to a $500 fine and probation in lieu of jail time.Ravenel also recently reached a custody agreement with Dennisover their two young children.
“I mean, if you’re dating someone and there’s allegations [against them], you can imagine just that in itself [takes a toll],” Jacobs toldET. “It concerned everyone that was close to me.”
“That was really difficult,” she added. “That’s not normal. Then you add custody, and then you’re adding children, you’re adding the show, and two people in a relationship just trying, you know? We were still trying to figure it out. It wasn’t meant to be.”
“It left such a bad taste in my mouth, really,” Jacobs said of living in Charleston. “There’s some trauma related to it. As much as I look back at pictures and I think, what a beautiful place, I still can’t help but feel [like] that really sad, lonely, depressed person.”
“I don’t ever wanna go back to that place,” she continued. “Like I said, it was the worst year of my life. I don’t think I could make it any better. I tried. It didn’t work.”
source: people.com
