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Gifts for Your Bridal Party

This is a guest blog post from one of our regular readers. Hope you love the post!

bridal party

Even though you probably feel like you’ve already spent an arm and a leg on your wedding, you need to spend a little bit more on some classy gifts for your bridesmaids or groomsmen. These people have put a lot of energy into helping you plan for the wedding and host parties leading up to your big day, not to mention setting aside their time to participate in your wedding weekend. Giving a gift is a tangible way for you to express your thankfulness for their friendship and commitment to you.

Bridesmaids

One fun gift idea is to put together survival bags for your favorite girls and give them all the little things they’ll need during your big day. Start by monogramming a fun canvas bag or pretty little clutch, then gather fun items to put in the bags. They’ll need some high-energy snack foods, a pack of gum, one of their favorite fragrances or lotions, and a pair of flip flops so they won’t have to wear dress shoes all day.

Another idea for bridesmaids is to purchase jewelry they can wear during the wedding and keep as a gift. They’ll look great wearing matching earrings and necklaces. Plus, what girl doesn’t love to have a little bit more jewelry to add to her collection? Choose pieces that fit in your budget but are still memorable and worth keeping. Or you can just take all the girls out to get your nails done and have a nice lunch together in lieu of getting traditional gifts.

Groomsmen

Gifts for groomsmen typically fall into the category of “nice things engraved with each groomsman’s name or initials.” Consider getting each of the guys an awesome beer stein or pilsner glass engraved with his initials or a funny joke from your years of friendship. Other gift ideas include engraved flasks, pocket knives, money clips or watches. Choose a simple, classy design and get the engraving done well in advance to make sure everything comes out correctly and is ready to give before your wedding.

Just like a bride can get her bridesmaids jewelry to wear on the big day, the groom can get his groomsmen things to wear. Choose a classy pair of cuff links for each guy to wear during the wedding so they all match. Another idea is to get each guy a brightly colored tie and matching pair of socks, of course, with the bride’s approval. If you do this, take the obligatory jumping photo so you can capture the socks and ties in motion.

Additional Gifts

If you have money to spare, consider adding other things that spice up the gifts and make more of a personal touch. For example, you could get each of your bridesmaids or groomsmen a book you think they would enjoy, or tickets to one of their favorite concerts or sporting events. A nice bottle of wine is another great gift that your bridesmaid or groomsman will be able to enjoy later for a special occasion.

The most important thing to remember when selecting gifts is that you want to show your bridesmaids or groomsmen how much you appreciate them. Think back on all of your years of friendship and all the things they have done for you. The least you can do for them is give them something special to say thanks as you head off to get married. Your friendship will likely change now that you’re tying the knot, but you still want your best friends to have a tangible reminder of how much you care about them.

About the Author: Holly is an Indianapolis native who loves to bake, regularly tackles DIY projects and blogs for Sears in her free time.

Image courtesy of: Erica Davis Salon

Filed Under: Bridal Party Tagged With: , ,

The Ultimate Engagement Checklist

engagement checklistThere are a lot of things to do when you are planning to get married. It can be a very time consuming process and can be very stressful. In fact, it can be so stressful that there are some things you can easily forget to do when planning your wedding. I know from first hand experience, I forgot to order centerpieces for the wedding reception. Oops!?!?!

My hopes are that this list is pretty intense and one that you can rely on when planning your wedding. So enough with the small talk, let’s get this started.

Four Months In Advance

  • Arrange for your parents to meet if you haven’t done so already.
  • Reach out to your friends and family to let them know you are getting married and ask for their addresses so you can send invitations out.
  • Pick and finalize a date to tie the knot.
  • Purchase you wedding dress.
  • Compile your complete guest list.
  • Reach out to anyone else on the guest list you haven’t notified and get their addresses.
  • Determine your budget.
  • Find a wedding reception venue.
  • Look into a good wedding photographer.
  • Research different catering options.

Three Months In Advance

Two Months In Advance

  • Send out wedding invitations.
  • Try on your wedding dress again. The stress from planning a wedding can either make you gain some weight, or lose some.
  • Go with your bridesmaids to get their dresses.
  • Order your wedding cake.

One Month In Advance

  • Party hard at your bachelorette party.
  • Follow up with guests on your guest list.
  • Prepare your vows.
  • Prepare a toast to your new spouse.

I hope that this has been a pretty inclusive engagement checklist to help you plan your wedding. If you have any other suggestions that I might have overlooked, please feel free to leave them in the comments below and I will add them to this post.

Filed Under: Wedding Planning Tagged With: , , , ,

Matching Glitter Toes For Your Bridesmaids

One of the latest trends I have seen when it comes to weddings and wedding receptions is where the bride and each bridesmaid has matching toe nails. As we approach summer time, it isn’t going to be uncommon to see glitter toes rather than traditional painted nails.

One thing about glitter toes is that they can be incredibly expensive, especially if you have multiple bridesmaids. I was at a wedding a few weeks ago and the bride (my best friend) had twelve bridesmaids… twelve!

If you are trying to do your wedding on a budget, and most people I know are, then you will probably want to do your own glitter toes for you and your bridesmaids. This may sound scary, but it is actually very easy to do, all you need are the supplies.

Here is a fun little “how to” graphic that we put together this afternoon walking you through he simple, four step process.

Enjoy!

do it yourself glitter toes

Filed Under: Weddings Tagged With: , ,

Bridesmaids By The Numbers (Infographic)

I found this really cool infographic this week over at LookLoveSend.com and thought i would share it with our readers. Hope you enjoy it!

bridesmaids by the numbers infographic

Bridesmaids are an interesting thing. They can either be a huge help or a huge pain in the @$$! Fortunately for my wedding, they were the biggest help a girl could wish for. So here’s the data on bridesmaids…

Most brides have an average of five brides maids. I only had three, booyeah!

Each year there are about eleven million bridesmaids. That’s a lot of rented or purchased dresses. No wonder the wedding industry is booming.

64% of brides have their bridesmaids wear their exact same dress. I can’t imagine how expensive that would be since my dress was upwards of $3,000.

The average age of a junior bridesmaid is 9-14. Yes, its true, brides typically have at least one little sister.

It costs about $1,700 to be a bridesmaid. Think about it, you have to travel to the showers and wedding, you have to purchase a gift for the bride, you have to contribute to the bachelorrette party costs, you have to often times buy your dress and other clothing, you have to pay for your hair and makeup, and you have to buy a wedding gift and show gift.

91% of all weddings have a maid of honor and the maid of honor’s responsibilities typically consist of the following:

  • Plan the shower
  • Let guests know where the couple is registered
  • Keep a record of all gifts
  • Go dress shopping
  • Coordinate the bridesmaids during the wedding
  • Be the brides right hand woman
  • Keep track of the grooms wedding ring
  • Give a toast during the after party or reception

And that pretty much wraps up the data behind the infographic. I hope you enjoyed it as much as we did.

Image source: http://www.looklovesend.com/blog/index.php/bridesmaids-by-the-numbers/

Filed Under: Infographics Tagged With: ,