When you hear couples talking about their swoon-worthy love stories, two landslide events always stand out – the meeting and the proposal. While you don’t have much control over how you meet the love of your life (we like to believe that it is a part of the cosmic design), you certainly have a lot of control over how you propose to them.
Whether archival stories from the world wars or classical cinema, proposals planning and preparation are made of love, conviction, and magic! Your partner will remember how you proposed for the rest of your life. So might as well make it one for the books, yeah?
This article will tell you the little tips and tricks to the perfect, fool-proof marriage proposal!
Yes! I’ve wanted to say that to you for so long.
Preparing for the Moment of Truth
Honestly, for the person proposing, this is a daunting moment. Your hands are clammy, your heart is racing a mile a minute, you cannot keep thinking about the tiny details, and your mind is spinning. But before jumping the gun, let’s consider some of the necessary prep leading to the big moment:
1. Reevaluate if you’re on the same page
The first step to spending both of your lives together is to see if you are on the same page. While love may be a defining force, it can be a huge issue if two people have different end goals and expectations from their relationship.
How does your partner talk about the future? Does he/she include you in the plans? Does he/she talk about marriage?
These are the questions that you need to answer before proposing.
2. Select a venue and a meaningful date
It always makes a proposal all the sweeter if the venue and date also hold important meanings in your relationship. For instance, the place of your first date or your first meeting. As for the date, it could be the day you both moved in together, Valentine’s day, or even when you exchanged your first “I love you.”
3. Ask the parents and the guests
It makes the proposal much more special when you include the bride-to-be and the groom-to-be’s family and friends in the planning.
Give them the proposal details and have them surprise the bride/groom at the venue.
4. Start setting up the surprise
If you plan a surprise, the best idea is to get an early head start and develop a clever cover story. Are you proposing in an intimate restaurant? Please do talk to the chef and the management, give them all the details so your moment isn’t interrupted and make sure they have a bottle of champagne!
5. Hire a photographer
Discreetly get in touch with a photographer and give them the details of your proposal. If you are planning a surprise proposal, get the photographer to be discreet and ask them for candid pictures.
6. Start writing your speech
Is a proposal ever complete without a tear-inducing, wildly romantic speech? Start writing yours ASAP! Look at romantic literature and classical love letters for some inspiration. You can always get one of your friends to help you with it.
Proposing to Your Significant Other
What makes a wedding proposal memorable are the people present there…or not. While some people love an intimate proposal with no added flares and extravagance, others prefer a dreamland proposal fit for royalty. This is where your intuition and your understanding of your partner come in. What kind of proposal do you think your significant other would like to have?
1. Private proposal with just the two of you
Proposing at an intimate beach picnic, in a botanical garden during sunset, or on a romantic boat ride are all perfect ideas if you plan on keeping the proposal an intimate affair, away from prying eyes.
2. A family proposal
If you don’t want to invite many people to the venue but still want to make it special, an intimate proposal with just the family present will make for an incredibly intimate event while including all of your loved ones.
3. A grand event proposal
You can take the normal proposal up a notch by doing something incredibly extravagant. For instance, hiring a flash mob, skywriting your proposal, and asking a local radio station to announce the question are incredibly bold ways to pop the question and keep it fun!
4. A public, non-event proposal
This is a tried and tested method – a public proposal. Pose for the perfect picture in front of a national monument, or make a lifetime memory at your favorite lakeside at sunset!
If you are in LA, check out these unique marriage proposal ideas in Los Angeles.
Choosing An Engagement Ring
Now that you’re all set with the nitty-gritty details, it’s time to find the perfect ring.
1. Decide on a budget
Diamond engagement rings can range anywhere from $2,000 to thousands of dollars, depending on the design, size, certification, and quality.
Do some research on the engagement rings and diamond qualities. It will help you to decide on your budget and make the shopping experience easier.
2. Custom-made or store-bought
While store-bought rings save you time, they lack that special intent. Sunny Eden™ offers custom lab-grown diamonds with a unique twist. They turn human hair into diamonds. Indeed, it doesn’t get any more unique and personal than this?
A custom engagement ring consisting of the bride and groom’s hair strands will surely make for an interesting story!
3. Look at the “4Cs“
Experts use these four characteristics to evaluate the market value of a diamond- the cut, color, clarity, and carat.
The finer the cut, the greater the reflective index. Diamonds get their color when the carbon molecules have impurities in them. Typical diamond colors include red, orange, yellow, green, blue, pink, purple, and more. The clearer (or, as experts say, clarity) a diamond is, the purer the composition and, therefore, the higher the price. Finally, the weight of the diamonds is measured by carats. The greater the carat, the more expensive it is.
4. Get the right size
A special engagement ring should fit your fiancé/ fiancée like a glove. The best way to measure the size is through a ring sizer, which can be bought online, or by visiting your local jeweler.
5. Make it special
Be it lab-created diamonds or man-made diamonds, it all comes down to making it special. Think about what your future fiancé would like- customized engraving of their name on the band, their favorite gemstone at the center, stacked rings, or one-of-a-kind designs? These may seem inconsequential details, but to the bride/groom, they will mean the world!
Final thoughts
The journey from an engagement ring to a wedding ring is long but filled with adventures and fun. A marriage is more than a ring, but it certainly helps if the love of your life falls in love with the first initiator of your new life together! Armed with this information, we hope your hunt for the perfect engagement ring is a less daunting task.
