Same sex marriage has been legal now in Ireland for over two years (whoop!), since then we've been featuring lots of beautiful, cool, romantic and fun gay weddings here on One Fab Day (and we'd love to feature more, so photographers, send them our way!).

But today we're talking about the bit that comes before all the venue searching, the dress or suit shopping, and the table planning... the proposal.

We're bringing you same sex proposal ideas from real life couples; people who've been there, bought the ring, and popped the question (sometimes even scuppering their other half's proposal plans!). So whether you're considering a simple proposal at home or something that's months in the planning, maybe these real couples' stories will give you ideas, or help you pluck up the courage to take the plunge!

Photo by IG Studio via One Fab Day

Cathal & Dermot's proposal story is one of our all time faves. This pair were both planning a proposal at the same time - how meant-to-be are they! Needless to say, there was some confusion!

Dermot tells us how it unfolded, "We were out for a Christmas Eve lunch with a dear friend Jonathan O’Grady. We started reminiscing and out of nowhere, Cathal popped the question.

I think Cathal was a little worried by my initial reaction which was one of disappointment, but what he didn't know is that I had two Claddagh engagement rings under the bed at home, and that I was in fact going to ask him to marry me on Christmas morning. I suppose that’s always the risk with same-sex relationships.

Needless to say, I was delighted to say yes and we scampered home to get the rings. I suppose what all of that really says, is that both of us were ready."

OFD reader, Linda sent on her amazing (and unique!) birthday proposal to her now wife, Aoife.

"I proposed on her 29th birthday. I took her to stay in Belfast and said we would go have dinner and do some shopping, just a bit of us time. We headed down, checked in, headed up to the room and settled in, I told her we would have a few drinks and then head into town, as dinner was at 7pm.

I asked her did she want her present, gave her a card and her jigsaw...a picture of us that she had to put together. What she didn't know is I had taken a piece out on purpose and written on the back 'Will you marry me?'.

So anyways, she did the jigsaw and realised there was a piece missing. I played the 'Oh I'm so sorry, I feel like a dick I must have missed a piece when packing it'. She was all 'Don't worry', so I said, 'Look, I have another wee token gift.

I had written a note to her in a photo frame with the missing piece covered up at the bottom. At the end of the note I had said that she was my missing puzzle piece, and that because she was mine, I had hers. She opened it up and there was the puzzle piece (which she didn't read at first, lol!), I got her to read it and then gave her the ring...and that was that!

We planned our day for 2018, then scrapped that and got married with just ourselves and three witnesses on our 5th anniversary on the 10th Feb 2017! Wouldn't have it any other way!"

Whitney had asked Immy to marry him but the pair hadn't told anyone yet. For Christmas, Immy returned the gesture with one of the most thoughtful Christmas presents ever.

"Whitney had asked me for a coffee table book of the beautiful, and seemingly anachronistic, water towers in NYC. I couldn't find one so I asked my friends to take photos of water towers in their neighbourhood and I did some crazy research on them so that I could bind a book for his final present.

On the last page of the book, I took a picture of a very special water tower that is located at my office and underneath it said..."Will you marry me?". By the time he read that last line I got down on one knee and proposed. The best part is that his nephew wailed through the entire thing. We have a video and it is hilarious."

Photo by Victoria JK Lamburn  via One Fab Day

Mike propose to Ladi with a pretty special message in the sand while they were on holidays in the Caribbean.

"I knew for months before that I wanted to propose and bought a ring from The Lanes in Brighton and decided that a holiday we had planned to the Caribbean (Barbados and St Lucia) would be an opportune time.

I had spotted a quiet secluded stretch of beach just up from our hotel which I thought would be perfect as there would be nobody around but us. I made an excuse of needing to go back to the room and snuck off to write a message on the sand in coral rocks, "Will you marry me?".

We had a lovely day by the beach and later that day I suggested we go for a walk along the beach. Ladi spotted the message in the sand and pointed it out, not realising at first what it was, and as he started reading it aloud I dropped onto one knee and asked him to marry me.

Photo by Leanne Keaney via One Fab Day

Louise & Zena got engaged ahead of the marriage equality referendum, thankfully it passed in time for their wedding later that summer. Louise tells us how she popped the question with a short and sweet description...

"I proposed to Zena in July of last year when we went to a Lana Del Ray concert (we both love her music) and she said yes!!! Zena didn't have a ring for me at the time but she did write me a song."

Ray: “Not clueless! Totally baffled. And a little pissed, but I wasn't sure why. I don't know how but Brett managed to convince me that the hotel had medicine for him that they would give to him during breakfast because you need it with food. Thinking about it now, it sounds totally ridiculous.”

Brett: “Honestly, I was pretty proud of this on-the-spot lie. It set us up to go downstairs and it explained why I was just gone. It made sense.”

Ray (laughing): “If you say so.”

The following morning, the couple arrive down to breakfast and the concierge guided the couple up and down stairs and through corridors into a beautiful, charming old study. The staff arrived with a full Irish breakfast along with Champagne and strawberries.

Brett: "Ray was still a bit confused and I was just wondering when the rings were coming and how exactly to figure out the next step. The biggest step. That was when the concierge brought out a fancy breadbasket with a napkin over the top.”

Ray: "I instantly reached for it thinking, "Oh this must be the medicine." I don't know how I was still hooked on this ridiculous lie.”

Brett: “I quickly pulled it towards me, lifted off the napkin and sure enough, there was the ring box. I took it out of the basket, opened it up and got on my knee. I had been so worried about the logistics of proposing that I didn't actually plan what I was going to say…so I just spoke from the heart. I told Ray how much I loved him, how I was ready for us to close our 5,000-mile gap and finally be together. I think I did a half-decent job.”

Ray: "I knew the rings were made. Because of the nature of our relationship I knew we were going to get engaged eventually and yet I did not see this coming. I was both floored and over the moon. Once Brett had finished up, and I was a blubbering mess, I got down on one knee and also spoke from the heart. By the end of it both of our cheeks were red and our hearts were full.”

The couple say their proposal story sums up their relationship, “Complicated at first, but the payoff was completely worth it.”

Kathy & Michelle

Photo by Johnny Corcoran via One Fab Day

Kathy wanted to pop the question to Michelle while they were on holiday in the States, but she struggled to find the right moment.

She tells how she finally plucked up the courage, “It all came down to our last day in New York – I decided to just go for it and my plan very nearly fell apart... First, I booked a top-notch restaurant, until we realised nothing we had would quite meet their black-tie dress code and secondly, Michelle was tired and grumpy after a long day’s sightseeing.

Luckily, I had a back-up…with plenty of encouragement (the lure of cocktails!) and despite some iffy reviews from Michelle’s go-to tour guide TripAdvisor, I managed to persuade Michelle to go up to the Top of the Strand, a rooftop cocktail bar. We weren’t disappointed. It had amazing views of New York and the Empire State Building (which just so happened to be lit up red that night…) – and so once we were sipping our cocktails, it was the perfect moment to finally pop the question.

Tim & Mike

Photo by Give Us A Goo Photography via One Fab Day

Tim proposed to Mikey with something simple, and most definitely sweet...

"I surprised Mikey on a quiet night in with cupcakes spelling out “Be my Hubby?” and a ring on the side."

Niamh & Aisling

Photo by John Beasley via One Fab Day

Niamh treated Aisling to a birthday picnic before surprising her once again with something extra special.

She tells us about the big moment in Baltimore, Cork. “After much persuading, I managed to get Aisling to walk to the Beacon. (This is a long story involving the false need to change a gas barrel). We had the whole place to ourselves and Aisling even said, ‘Oh look someone has planned a picnic and they have the same blankets as us.’

I completely got Aisling by surprise. I got down on one knee in one of the most scenic places in West Cork and asked Aisling to be my wife.”

Martina & Bianca

Photo by Martina California via One Fab Day

Bianca proposed to her now wife (and super-talented photographer), Martina, after moving to Ireland so they could be together.

Martina tells us about the emotional moment, “She brought me for a walk to Montpelier Hill on a Friday. She was acting weird and that made me nervous! We were exploring and enjoying the beautiful scenery in Ireland. After the sunset (which she made us race up the hill to catch), she went down on one knee and read me a letter and proposed. I cried and cried.“

Lisa & Cathy

Photo by Campbell Photography via One Fab Day

Cathy planned to propose to Lisa while the couple were on holiday in Spain. Before they flew, Cathy asked Lisa's dad for her hand in marriage, and found the perfect restaurant for the big moment.

"I called the owner, explained the story, and the lovely owner obligingly reprinted one of the menus to include 'Will you marry me' as one of the dishes on offer. When the day arrived I suggested a day trip to Frigliana and we wandered around until they "happened" upon The Garden Restaurant.

I gave a nod to let the staff know who they were and once Lisa was given her menu she exclaimed, “Look Cats, this place is obviously renowned for proposals as they’ve named a dish ‘Will you marry me?’”. With that as the cue I got down on one knee, and needless to say a flabbergasted Lisa said yes!"

Ollie & James

Photo by Bronte Photography via One Fab Day

Ollie was expecting a proposal on holiday, James kept him hanging for a while, but it was all worth it in the end.

"I brought James to Las Vegas for his 40th and everybody thought we would get married there, but we didn’t and he didn’t even propose to me, much to my disgust! But when we came back I had a surprise 40th party for him and he got down on one knee in front of all our family and friends… there was not a dry eye in the house that night."

Nat & Nix

Photo by Lara Hotz via One Fab Day

Nat surprised her bride Nix with a super-thoughtful - and well-planned! - Sydney proposal.

"Nix had told me a story of growing up in Johannesburg. She had a talking doll called ‘Corky’ who took cassette tapes and read her books in English. He had denim overalls and ginger hair; a literary leprechaun of sorts. Corky was a kind of strange constant in Nix’s chaotic roving childhood.

I searched him down on eBay and finally found a rare working one in Ohio. I snuck out on a Sunday morning while my friend Gaby planted Corky at our front door. I had emulated in a Disney-type voice instructions to go to ‘Pickering Lane’.

At ‘Pickering Lane’, Gaby met Nix in a chauffeur’s outfit and drove her to the Opera House where she handed her a bag. In the bag was the Sydney Morning Herald in which I had altered the 9-letter word. Being the word genie she is, Nix nutted out the word ‘botanical’ and started to head towards the gardens.

At the gate, my brother Kris met her with her mode of transport – a uni(corn)cycle – a bike I had decorated to look like a unicorn (a reoccurring theme in Nix’s imagination). I had been in the gardens since the early hours setting up a picnic...

Of course nothing ever goes to plan and I had neglected to realize that riding bikes is prohibited in the Botanical Gardens so Nix was promptly stopped by a ranger and told to ‘dismount the unicorn’. She made it to her picnic under the tree by foot.

We had tea in China cups and her favourite food and sat under a canopy of lanterns and bunting. As is our ‘thing,’ I got her to start the crossword which I had also altered 23 down, reading ‘Nippy – Will you marry me?’. She said yes (phew) and I took us to Cockatoo Island on the ferry for a night in the heritage cottage.

I cooked her, her favourite meal and we ate it overlooking the harbour listening to a custom cut vinyl with all of ‘our songs’ on it. It really was an unforgettable day."

Nix confirms it was her perfect proposal, "It was like Nat crawled into my mind, found all the deliciously bizarre parts of my imagination, magic’ed a unicorn, channeled Frankie Magazine, called in some favours from a childhood memory, stuck a bird on it and asked me to marry her. It’s not just that she was the person I wanted to marry, she was the person I had to marry."

Photo by Lara Hotz via One Fab Day

Is anyone else feeling loved up and a bit emotional? Just me then? Hopefully these sweet stories have helped inspire a proposal of your own.

If so, here's some more handy reading...

More helpful reads and advice for proposing:

• How much you should spend on an engagement ring?
• Why you should consider a token engagement ring
• How to work out someone's ring size
• Where to buy an engagement ring in Ireland
• How to design your own engagement ring
• Why you should think twice about proposing with an inherited ring
• What to do if you don't love your engagement ring
• Engagement rings for men
• The ultimate guide to engagement ring styles