Bridesmaid Gift Ideas

Hello Brides and Grooms!

At the ninth month of our one year engagement, I spent a lot of time focusing on my matron of honor, maid of honor and bridesmaids.  Along the course of my engagement, I wanted my bridesmaids to feel special and truly bring them into the whole wedding planning experience.

When I asked my very special ladies to be a part of our wedding, I went out to Target, bought black short-sleeve shirts in each gal’s respective size, and bought Swarovski crystal iron-ons signifying “maid of honor” or “bridesmaid.”  This DIY (Do It Yourself) project was fun and creative for me, and I enjoyed watching each girl as they received their shirt and card asking them to be a part of our wedding.

After about four months of the engagement, I decided on Alfred Angelo as the designer brand for the bridesmaid dresses. My goal was to have each gal choose what they would be wearing on wedding day.  Inclusion was very important to me.   Therefore, I chose an Alfred Angelo “harvest gold” long-length skirt with a train for each bridesmaid to wear, and they each chose a different Alfred Angelo top (also in “harvest  gold”) that they felt would best complement their body shape.  The bridesmaids were also able to choose between two sets of sparkling gold shoes that I felt looked classy and elegant with their dresses.  I didn’t want them to all have the same type of shoe because each girl has a different shape of foot and comfort-level when it comes to dress shoes.  Half the girls chose one style to wear, and the other half chose another style.  It ended up a “win-win” situation because not only were the shoes all in the same color and beautiful, but we all had a part in deciding on the shoes.

In addition, I started sending out emails titled “My Beautiful Bridesmaids” every 2-3 months during that one year span of time.

The purpose of the emails was to keep my bridesmaids informed of where I was at in the wedding planning process, reminder dates of events that were approaching (like the engagement parties, bridesmaid shower, and bachelorette party), if money was due, or if hotel rooms needed to be booked.  Most of all, my intent was to include them in this very special time in my life.

By the ninth month of the engagement, I started picking out gifts for the girls that I wanted to give to them on Rehearsal Dinner night as a way for me to say “thank you” for being such an instrumental part of my life.  One of the gifts that I bought was individual, monogrammed bags in their favorite color.  I bought small bags so they could set items like wedding jewelry in, and then larger bags so that they had something to place all the wedding- oriented items (shoes, make-up, curling irons, etc) in. Some comparable items to what I bought were the Black Monogram Polka Dot Jewelry Cases and the Carry All Tote Bags.

Within their bags, I included items like cute wedding candles, DIY (Do It Yourself) necklaces that me and a fellow bridesmaid created at a jewelry/bead store, as well as a little surprises for wedding day that included: Tylenol, Chewing Gum, Crown Royal bottles, Sky Vodka bottles, Coca-cola bottles,  etc. Some comparable items to what I bought are the “Damask Traditions” Frosted Glass Tea Light Holder and the Monogrammed Polka Dot Koozies.

My point of this post is to just spark imagination and provide readers an opportunity to start thinking on ideas for bridesmaids.  These ladies are very important people that a bride chooses to be a part of her and her husband’s wedding day, so these ladies should be honored in a way that makes them feel special…and included.

Best Wishes and Happy Planning!