Here's What the Proposal Looks Like in 2016
If you’re a person who has a Facebook account, chances are you’ve witnessed two friends (or distant acquaintances) get engaged, whether the bride-to-be posts a story of how it went down or her fiancé posts the meticulously staged pics for which he’d hired a secret photographer.
The way we propose – and say “I do” – has changed dramatically over the years, and new data from WeddingWire gives us a clearer picture of the biggest trends in proposing. That’s right – proposals are subject to trends, just like any other commodity.
According to the company’s 2016 Newlywed Report, which they sent PEOPLE in a release, engagements are becoming more and more collaborative, as opposed to questions popped to a partner out of the blue.
“Forty-seven percent of engagement ring selections are the partner’s decision, 46 percent are joint decisions, and seven percent are the recipient’s … meaning the proposed-to party generally knows the exciting question that is coming their way,” says WeddingWire spokesperson Anne Chertoff.
Here were some other interesting findings:
It’s not official until it’s social media official.
Two-thirds (66%) of couples announce their engagement on a social media platform, like Instagram or Facebook.
Pictures are a plus.
Twelve percent of proposers hire photographers to capture the moment.
Surprise shmurprise: Couples are buying their rings together.
Thirty-one percent of couples are shopping for rings together.
Asking for your partner’s parents’ permission? Still a thing.
“Millennials still value pre-engagement rituals, as such as asking parents for blessing or permission prior to a proposal. Seventy-one percent of people approach their partner’s parents to get their blessing,” says Chertoff.
We don’t need a study to tell us that romantic, over-the-top proposals are still very much in – here are some of our personal favorite celebrity proposals.
We can’t all be Ciara and Russell Wilson, but we can sure as hell swoon from afar.