Longer engagements are having a moment. 

As soon as the diamond is on their finger, many brides want to fast forward to that walk down the aisle - but the tide is turning.

More and more couples are choosing to take their time and enjoy this stage of celebrations before they have their big day and there's definitely a bonus to taking time out, relishing milestones and not racing towards the big day.

There's always an impulse to rush towards that 'happily ever after' but it can take time to choose a ring and get the proposal just right and the benefits of a long engagement are now being realised by many a savvy bride and groom.

"Marry in haste, repent at leisure" is an old phrase and like many of these old sayings there can be truth to it. Enjoying your engagement season rather than rushing to compile a 'big day' gives plenty of time to enjoy this special period of life and getting to calling your partner fiancé or fiancée is a really special stage. Yes, the wedding is the main event but being a fiancé can be fun too!

Enjoying an engagement party, celebrating with friends and family and then relaxing at friends weddings and experiencing many venues and ideas and choices - and maybe even stealing some of their ideas! - means that wedding planning won't take over your life 'bridezilla' style.

Booking venues will be easier, choosing a dress, photographer and flowers can be more chilled out and there's time for financial planning with no expensive potential pitfalls. 

A long engagement is seen as an opportunity to really create the wedding of your dreams. Want your choice of venue? Wait. Want to design some of the wedding elements yourself DIY style? Enjoy it with friends. Do you want the perfect dress? That can be fun rather than a frenzy. It's time to breathe with 
basically all the inspiration rather than the impulse.

Many couples now find that if they're booking into the future, venues and vendors are more likely to offer a discount when they pay their deposit and this can make a marked difference to the planning. If couples want to have a larger guest list (and who doesn't?) then again taking the extra months makes this easier.

The average wedding now takes between 13 and 18 months to plan and a long engagement is considered anything over 18 months. The length of your engagement should reflect on what's best for you as a couple. Some people cannot wait to get up that aisle, but more and more couples are seeing certain benefits to a long-term engagement. With a long engagement, you'll generally get the guarantee that anything you want to book will be available. 

There are a lot of moving parts to a wedding and the less stressed you are, the more likely you are to enjoy the wedding planning. 

Waiting a while for that walk down the aisle? Embracing a long engagement gives you the ultimate luxury - time!