News

If your boyfriend seems to be spelling something out with Christmas lights on the roof of your house, chances are you may be getting married.

The festive season is the busiest time of year for engagements, with almost 20 per cent of bended-knee proposals occurring in December, twice as many as any other month according to the Fairchild Bridal Infobank.

But experts say it is not simply because most men have no idea what to buy the woman in their life. The holidays provide an opportunity to sneak an engagement ring into a pile of presents, and to make a big announcement in the presence of assembled family members.

"I think it's the best Christmas present you can give your partner," said Catherine Lash, founder of bridal show firm The Wedding Co., who was engaged on Christmas Eve.

Even high-profile couples have embraced the holiday engagement tradition. On Christmas morning, 2004, Canadian figure skater David Pelletier proposed to his partner, Jamie Salé, after leading her on a treasure hunt through their Edmonton home.

And on Christmas Eve, 2005, actor Dean McDermott proposed to former Beverly Hills 90210 star Tori Spelling at a Christmas tree farm outside Toronto. His sister had placed a half-mile of lights along a path leading to a table where the couple dined, surrounded by decorated trees, after stylishly arriving in a horse-drawn carriage.

Countless websites instruct men and women on how to make a holiday proposal, suggesting winter excursions such as ice skating or sleigh rides, or popping the question on Santa's knee at the mall.

On YouTube, videos of Christmas proposals illustrate the spectacle and special pitfalls of holiday betrothals.

In one, neighbours applaud as a man flicks on his Christmas lights, the words "marry me" spelled out in giant red letters across the house's facade.

In another, an engagement is almost ruined by a bossy family member. The groom-to-be had planned to present his girlfriend with a ring on Christmas Eve, when each of his family members traditionally opens one gift. But his mother insisted that the young woman open her present instead.

"The present, you wonder?" he wrote online. "Christmas table cloths Thanks Mom"

Toronto wedding planner Cynthia Martyn said she is inundated with phone calls at this time of year from recently engaged couples or men who need help to plan their proposal.

"I get four or five inquiries every day, whereas I usually get that number in a week," she said.

"You definitely see a spike."

She worked with one groom who tied a diamond ring to the Christmas tree, letting his girlfriend discover it as she hung decorations.

But the most popular technique is simply to wrap the ring box and leave it under the tree, she said, so it can be unwrapped on Christmas morning along with other gifts.

"I think they think it's the perfect time to surprise someone because they're getting numerous gifts and don't know what's coming," said Ms. Martyn.

And it is no accident that Tiffany & Co.'s signature blue colours are omnipresent at this time of year.

"The holiday season is absolutely a time of year during which we see a dramatic increase in the number of engagement ring purchases," said Andrea Hopson, vice-president of Tiffany & Co., Canada.

Alison McGill, editor-in-chief of Weddingbells magazine, said the volume of Christmas proposals has led wedding vendors to hold their bridal shows in January.

"I don't think they push the agenda, but they're definitely savvy to the fact that it's happening," she said. "January has become the kickoff for wedding planning."

Ms. McGill said it's natural to think about the future during the holiday season, and to make a grand gesture during a traditional time of giving.

And it doesn't hurt that many men are forced into malls every Christmas.

"It's the one time of year that they like to shop," she said. "Well, I don't know if they like to shop, but they are shopping."