You are madly in love, and you want to spend your entire life with that special person. Well, that is great. But before you spend life together, you have to pop the question and get a “Yes” answer. Proposals are hard, and they can be challenging. We all want that special way for how to propose.
If proposals weren’t hard, we would have another term for that. But the Big Question is something men fear of. The once in a lifetime moment can be stressful. Some men crack under the pressure.
And to make matters worse, pretty much every girl dreams of getting proposed so perfectly. Talk about pressure as a man. That can stress out even the guys who know the answer is going to be yes, and even those who are amazing in the creativity department. With that in mind, we want to give you a couple of ideas that can make the proposal perfect, depending on the person you are with. Remember, some women love the intimacy of a proposal, while others want a grand gesture.
The most important steps before proposing
Before we get to how to propose ideas, let’s talk about the important steps you have to take before.
- Buy a ring, do it yourself, or ask for help. If you do not know what she likes, you can try to discover using some subtle questions. Or you can ask her straightforward. But if you want it to be a surprise, buy the ring yourself. Besides, the employees at a ring shop can help you for sure. Or ask a friend of your fiancé to help you
- While it has become less of an obligation in recent times, it might be a good idea to ask for parents’ permission. Some families still value this tradition and culture. And besides, you want to get on the right foot with her parents. They will certainly appreciate your consideration and gesture
- Decide a location for the proposal. We will get to this later on. The most common options include some place that has personal meaning for the two of you, or something that is just amazing for your gesture
- Prepare a speech for the proposal. Don’t just go “Will you marry me”. You can practice the speech and how to propose to your girlfriend in front of a mirror
- The tricky part is getting your girlfriend to the location. If it is somewhere you have planned a grand gesture, it can be challenging to get her there without her suspecting something will happen
- And now, all that is left is to kneel down and propose. Wait for the answer, and stay kneeling down for a while, it is a romantic gesture
Best ideas for the proposal
Be yourself
This is an obvious and rather simple way for how to propose. One of the best things you can do is be yourself. Keep it simple and you will be fine. In some cases, girls want you to simply say something from the heart. There is no reason for grand gestures and so on. Be you, and the girl will love you for that.
Public marriage proposal
If you want to make the proposal at a public place, think of some place that is special for the two of you. It might be a monument, or the park where you meet, or a fountain. Some people even go for a rooftop idea. Take your girl there, and while walking down the park, ask a passer-by to take a picture of you two. At this point, go down on your knee and propose, and the moment will be captured by a stranger.
Grand gesture public proposal
If you want to make your public proposal big, go with a brass band or a choir. Ask them to show up at your favorite place and play a love song that has special meaning for the two of you. If you like, you can even incorporate her name in the lyrics.
Simple homemade marriage proposal
If you want to be creative, and do the proposal at home, there are a couple of simple, yet effective ideas. The first one is to make letters for “Will you marry me”. You can use duct tape, flower petals, colored paper, and any other material you come up with. Present your partner with the proposal once she comes home.
Alternatively, you can write the proposal in chalk on your driveway.
Romantic proposal
Candles and romance go hand in hand, and you can easily rev up the romance with your proposal. Candles are a popular choice for proposals, and we have a couple of ideas you can use them. Dim the lights and then light up the candles to set up the stage for something special.
You can prepare a special dinner for the two of you, play some soft romantic music in the background, and then kneel down.
If you want to go over the top, you can spell marry me with candles on the floor. Just be careful, you have to know exactly what time she comes home so that you light up the candles a moment before that.
Rigged movie break proposal
A very clever, and at the same time romantic proposal. The trick here is to edit a short movie flick that asks your girlfriend the big question during the break. If you are not that into technology, this can be challenging. But if you can do it, you can watch you girl anticipating what happens in the movie, and then watch her read those magic words.
At home simple proposal
Another easy, simple, and unique proposal at home is with a velvet ribbon. Tie the velvet ribbon between two places in your house. Along the length of the ribbon, fasten photographs, notes, and everything else you want, detailing your relationship. Wait at the end with a ring for your partner.
Gift basket
You can prepare a gift basket with yummy treats, including fruits, chocolate, and everything else your girlfriend likes. Hide the ring among the presents. Just make sure it is in its own box, so the ring doesn’t get lost in the treats.
Ask for a little help
You can ask for help from experts for your proposal. For example, ask the pastry chef to write “will you marry me” in a chocolate sauce around the rim of a dessert plate in your favorite restaurant. Or you can ask a baker to make a custom cake with the proposal written in frosting.
Internet proposal
If you are a techie guy, you can easily set up an internet website. Set up a page that states your love and the proposal message. Send a message to your girlfriend with the web address in it.
Pictures proposal
Call up a friend, and tell him/her to take photos of you with each of the four words “will you marry me”. Arrange to meet your girlfriend, and before she arrives, text her the pictures. When she is close, kneel down and propose.
T-Shirt proposal
Oldie but goldie as they say it. It is one of the oldest tricks for proposing, but it is still effective. Use an old T-shirt or buy a new one, and have the words “Will you marry me” printed on it. Put a jacket over the shirt. While in the park or somewhere else, just strip down, so your girl can see the shirt.
Try this ring
This funny proposal is golden. Ask for your partner’s ring size in an obvious way. You can bring home a ring chart. She might go nuts, and accuse you of ruining the surprise. And then, pull off the right ring, and say “Try this one instead”.
Gift in a box
You will have to execute this properly, as it requires a lot of planning and some help. Hide in a box that is wrapped. You will need someone to help you bring the box inside the house. Someone has to bring her home then. Write “open me please” on the box. Some girls are hesitant to open mystery boxes at home.
Trail of candles
We said candles are romantic. For our last idea for how to propose, we suggest turning off the lights in your apartment and then setting a trail of candles leading to a circle positioned around the ring.