Gifts Your Bridesmaids Will LOVE
Traditionally, the bride gives her bridesmaids a gift as a "thank you" for being in the wedding. It can be one small thing, like a piece of jewelry for them to wear on the day, or it can be one larger gift, like a gift certificate to a spa. It seems like the most popular trend lately is giving multiple, smaller gifts.
Not all bridesmaids gifts are created equal. Some things your girls will love for years to come, and some are great for the day of the wedding and then will be put away in a closet or on a shelf and rarely remembered. The ideal is to find something your girls can use on the day of the wedding but that they will also want to use into the future. As a bride, you may want to get them something to use just on the wedding day and you don't necessarily think about whether the girls will use them in the future. That's okay, but it's not ideal. Today we will look at some "good, better, and best" options for gifts. If you want to do a few gifts, it would be really great to select one gift from each category. That way you cover all your bases--you get them something to use just for the wedding, something that they will like and be able to use, and something they will love and use on multiple occasions.
GOOD
These are the kinds of gifts that are great to have for photos, for sentimental reasons, etc., but not necessarily something your girls will use on a daily basis.
These are a great gift for photos of all the dresses together. Nothing ruins a beautiful photo of all the dresses together like a plastic Walmart hanger! For mine, my sister bought me my hanger as a bridal shower gift and I DIYed theirs. I wrote their names on one side and their title ("Bridesmaid") on the other.
Robes or Shirts
Ideal for getting ready photos. This way all your bridesmaids match before they are even in their dresses, which makes for some adorable photos. And although robes that say "Bridesmaid" on them are super cute in photos, if you opt for plain robes, or just their initials on them or ones like I've shown below, they will get more use out of them and be able to wear them again.
Photo Credit: Asher Fisher Photography | To see more from this wedding click here.
Paying for Beauty
Paying for at least part of their wedding-day beauty (hair, makeup, gel manicure, pedicure, etc.) will really help your girls out budget-wise. Yes, it only lasts that day but honestly if any of your girls are tight on money this will mean more to them than a lot of the things you could physically give them. And your photos will look better if everyone has been done professionally.
BETTER
These gifts are something that might be useful to the girls on the day of the wedding, but they will also likely use at least a few more times besides.
Personalized Drink Ware
This one is especially great if you are getting married outdoors where your girls would be happy to have a water bottle on hand. Maybe steer clear of glassware in particular and opt for something like a tumbler or water bottle instead. They can use these for the day of the wedding, but they will likely use them again after.
Getting your girls jewelry to wear for wedding pictures is a step above things like hangers and robes because they CAN be worn again. However, this is not on the best list because unless the jewelry happens to fit all of their personal styles, some of them will never (or very rarely) use it again.
Same as with the jewelry. They can be worn again, but if the shoes aren't their personal style it isn't likely they will wear them. Wedding feet pictures are becoming more and more popular, and if having all your girls match is a big deal to you, this is something you should purchase for them to ensure they do match.
Photo Credit: Asher Fisher Photography | To see more from this wedding click here.
These can be useful the day of the wedding, but also serve a purpose after the wedding. Bonus points if they are personalized! Double bonus points if you put a few necessities in them beforehand! (This one you can customize the color of the bag, the font and the color of the font!)
BEST
These gifts are great because your girls will get a ton of use out of them. Even if they can't necessarily use them on the day of the wedding, they will use them later on.
Take Home Skincare/Beauty
Making your girls a little "pampering pack" is a really great idea. Throw in some sheet masks (super cheap for a 16-pack that you can split up between them), some body butter, these awesome foot peeling masks (they come in a pack of 3! And p.s. I've tried them and they WORK), and a body scrub and you're all set!
Whether they use it on a bridesmaid dress, shoes, something else for the wedding or just spend it on themselves, this would actually be a really great gift that your bridesmaids will appreciate. Yes, it's not as personal but I'd much rather get a gift card than a robe that says "bridesmaid" that I'll never wear again!
Something DIY From You
This is the best gift, no matter what it is. The personalization and the time you took out of your busy wedding planning to make them a gift is what really matters here. Need some ideas? How about a hand painted sign? (Okay, okay, so this one is from Etsy not exactly DIY but you could make it DIY or buy it off Etsy!)
or a framed collage all about the 2 of you?
What about a nice little drawstring bag? (This one is actually super simple to make, takes very little time and requires very little actual sewing! Check out the DIY tutorial here!)
What was the best gift you ever received as a bridesmaid?
Tell me in the comments!