Archive for the ‘Gifts’ Category

Add Some Flair With Wedding Favors

Tuesday, August 18th, 2009

Celebrating the unity of two people for eternity is the foremost purpose of a Wedding Ceremony. It has been this way and will continue to be this way for as long as the tradition lives. Wedding Guests are invited to share not only in the joyous occasion but also to bear witness to the union. There is something spiritual about standing before all those who are special to you and make a lifelong commitment to someone for others to hear, which is what really transforms two people into a married couple.

To show an appreciation for their guests, for the time they have taken out of their busy lives to be part of the Wedding, the bride and groom shower their guests with Wedding Favors. These Wedding Gifts or Wedding Favors have been the tradition to thank the wedding guests for their thoughtfulness, their gifts and help in any way given to the couple in making the wedding a special occasion.

Wedding favors traditionally are given to all of the guests that have been invited to the wedding reception, of course, more expensive wedding favors are available and there are many weddings for which these higher-priced wedding favors are appropriate. These are typically inexpensive gifts, averaging in the $1 – $2 price range. Numerous wedding favors are available in just about any category one could imagine, from sterling silver picture frames, to personalized edible chocolates, and even fragrant bath soaps.

Selecting wedding favors is not that difficult at all, nor is it necessary to purchase these well in advance of the wedding date. Most are readily available at online and retail outlets that specialize in these kind of wedding accessories. You don’t want to wait until the last minute however, as that is a particularly hectic time. You will need to allow ample time for personalization, or if you select an item that requires special ordering, for example, an unusually large quantity, or an exclusive item.

To be on the safe side, two to three months prior to the wedding date is a good time to make your wedding favor selections. Once you have them in your possession, the only other thing you need to worry about is getting them to the reception before the guests arrive and presenting them in a unique and beautiful manner appropriate for the occasion

Online shopping has made finding appropriate wedding favors very easy. Type ‘wedding favors’ into your search engine and you’ll get pages of web sites offering every type of wedding favor you could ever want. So where do you begin? It’s definitely a good idea to consult your budget worksheet first so you know the price range to focus on.

From there, think about what makes you and your partner unique. Do you both love golf? Are you wine connoisseurs? What about a theme? If your wedding has one, there’s sure to be a favor to complement that theme. Do you want the favor to be the place holder? If so, select one that allows you to write the person’s name and table number. Creating your own wedding favors is another option and can end up being the most unique wedding favor of all and one that your guests are sure to treasure!

Wedding Favors most suited to the occasion are the ones that reflect your personal style and personality. So select something that you personally enjoy and that your guests will appreciate and remember your wedding and you for a long time to come.

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Bachelorette Party at a Winery

Thursday, August 13th, 2009

If you want to throw a nontraditional bachelorette party, there are many good ideas floating around the internet to choose from. One great option is a bachelorette party wine weekend. In many areas of the country there are wineries that offer a wide variety of activities. From Virginia to California, nearly every state has some wine producing capabilities, and local wineries are a great spot for a different kind of bachelorette party fun. If the bride-to-be is looking to spend time with her girlfriends but isn’t interested in a night of wild drinking and strangers hooting and hollering about a tiara on her head, a wine weekend might be a great option for the bachelorette party.

Wineries often provide many benefits. They are usually away from the city, in areas with lots of land and beautiful scenery. This is a great place for women to unwind, talk with each other, and just spend time bonding as is intended at a bachelorette party before one of the group goes from single to married life.

Wineries also have great wines to taste. You can take a winery tour, do a wine tasting, and buy bottles of the ones that you like. You can give each girl a party favor of a spit of wine, often you even have options to personalize the labels to say something special about the winery bachelorette party event. You can also buy wine stoppers and other wine paraphernalia as a great set of favors for the girls. Wineries also often are connected to quaint, local restaurants. This gives you an option for dinner, a wine tasting, and then you can take back several bottles of wine to a hotel room or someone’s house to let the party continue!

In addition, if you do a daytime event for a bachelorette party, you can take a picnic of gourmet foods to the winery. Most wineries have outdoor areas to sit and enjoy the sunshine when the weather is nice. Pack a complete meal, do a wine tasting, buy the wines the girls all like best, and drink them together over your picnic. It will make you feel close to all the girls at the party as you sip wine, talk about the view, and bond.

Lots of wineries also have live entertainment on special days, so if you plan the party to coincide with another event, you can take in a local jazz band, for example. The bachelorette party at a winery also doesn’t have to be limited to only one winery. Most areas have a series of wineries clumped together, as the land attracts many wine makers. If that is the case, plan your trip with multiple stops, and taste wine at a lot of locations along the way. If you are opting for a “wine tour” bachelorette part, you should check ahead of time to map out where you are going. In addition, arrange for either a sober driver or a limo or van to drive you between wine tastings so that everyone can have a good time and still be safe.

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10 Ideas For Bridesmaid Gifts

Sunday, August 2nd, 2009

Your wedding day is approaching and you have picked out your wedding jewelry, written your vows, booked the caterer, and reserved the limo along with a million and a half other things on your to do list. But have you purchased the gifts for your bridesmaids yet?

If not, don’t panic, as there are many quick and simple things that can be purchased for the girls who will be standing by your side. Whether you are on a budget or the sky is the limit for you, there are many items that make wonderful bridesmaids gifts.

Take a look at the following ten bridesmaid gift ideas and you wil,l without a doubt, find something that jumps out at you. Just make sure that you always add a little personal touch to each gift to show how much you really appreciate each and every one of your bridesmaids.

•Spa Gift Card
This can be any dollar amount from twenty-five dollars and up for a local spa in your area. This will give them a way to relax after wearing those heels all night long.

•Bath and Body Oils and Soaps
Maybe your girls will not want to spend a day at a spa but they could always enjoy pampering themselves a little bit at home.

•Engraved Jewelry Box
This is a nice way for them to store the bridesmaid jewelry they wore. Engrave the box with their name or the date of the wedding.

•Jewelry
You can buy them jewelry for the wedding or could pick up a special bracelet or pair of earrings that could be worn at any time.

•Photo Album
Leave it empty or add in a few pictures of you and each bridesmaid at the shower. Just make sure to leave plenty of room for photos from the wedding.

•Photo Frames
These are always a popular choice. Silver frames are generally the best and engraving can be done to these as well.

•Goodie Bag Full of Goodies
This bag could be filled with perfumes, lotions, sprays, jewelry, gift cards, and anything else that you want. It is a great way to give your bridesmaids a little bit of everything.

•Group Trip For a Manicure and Pedicure
This is a fabulous way to get all of the girls together after the wedding. They can relax, get pampered, and share wedding day stories.

•Girls Night Out
Grab a bite to eat, watch a movie, or go dancing. Now that the wedding day is over you and your bridesmaids can kick back and have a little wild fun together. Or do it before, but it doesn’t count as your shower

•A Cute Handbag
If there is one thing a girl cannot get enough of, it’s handbags. Keep it empty or fill it with treats or special goodies. This is a gift that the bridesmaids will get a lot of use out of.

With so many options, it may seem at first glance to be difficult to make a decision. But you know your group of friends better than anyone else. Once you start putting a little thought into it, you will see how easy it is to find the perfect bridesmaids gifts for them.

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10 Must Have Gifts Ideas For The Wedding Party

Wednesday, August 20th, 2008

It is traditional for the bride to give the groom a gift on the wedding day. Although the wedding rings that the couple exchanges can be considered gifts, many brides choose to honor their groom with an additional gift that suits his personality.

One unique gift ideas for your bridesmaids is an evening bag to be used as an accessory on the wedding day. This gift can be a lovely gesture and will serve the purpose of keeping the accessories of the bridesmaids’ uniform and will free your bridesmaid from the burden of searching for an evening bag that matches the dress. In this case you may choose to give the bridesmaids their gifts early in the wedding planning so that they don’t purchase a bag specifically for the occasion of your wedding.

A photo album complete with a picture of you and the bridesmaid or the entire wedding party can be another unique gift idea for the bridesmaids. You could purchase photo albums with the date of your wedding engraved on the front cover and start the photo album with a picture of you and the bridesmaid. This is a wonderful gift idea because the bridesmaid can place her photos from the wedding day in the album and will always have a precious souvenir from your wedding day.

Gift certificates to a spa or a salon also make unique gift ideas for your bridesmaids. Your bridesmaids most likely spent a great deal of time and energy in helping you to plan your wedding. The week prior to your wedding was also probably especially hectic with a great deal of last minute details to attend to and errands to run. While you will have your honeymoon to relax and renew your energy your bridesmaids do not have this luxury so by honoring them by presenting them with a gift certificate to a spa or salon you are giving them the gift or being pampered and the gift of relaxation.

A few more unique gift ideas for your bridesmaids’ gifts include handcrafted or homemade gifts. For example you could put together a CD of some of your bridesmaids’ favorite songs. You could make the CDs different for each bridesmaid and include a photo of the two of you on the cover and include a heartfelt poem on the inside of the CD cover. You could also create a scrapbook for each of your bridesmaids. You could either make the scrapbook a memory of your entire friendship together and include photos and other items from your various adventures throughout the years or if you plan ahead and take many photos documenting your wedding preparations, you could create scrapbooks as a remembrance of the wedding planning that you shared.

Personalized cosmetics bags can also be used as unique bridesmaids gifts. You could purchase attractive cosmetic bags and have them embroidered with your bridesmaids’ initials and the date of your wedding. Another nice touch with this gift is to include a few items such as lipstick or nail polish that complement each of your bridesmaids’ style and complexion.

Another unique gift idea for a bride to give to her bridesmaids is a gift certificate to a local restaurant. Assisting in your wedding preparations was probably extremely stressful and time consuming for the bridesmaids and they certainly deserve a night on the town and the opportunity to not have to cook for a night. This simple gift lets your bridesmaids know that you appreciate their efforts and that you want to thank them for all that they have done to support you.

Unique gift ideas for the bridesmaids can also stem from the wedding theme. For example if you are having a beach themed wedding you might want to give your bridesmaids a gift of a tote bag, a beach towel and a novel to enjoy on the beach. This unique gift idea ensures that your bridesmaids will remember your wedding fondly the next time they are at the beach.

Although the tradition of the bride and groom exchanging gifts on their wedding day is beginning to fade, many couples still wish to honor this tradition. Many couples spend so much money on their wedding and reception that they feel as though they cannot afford the additional expense of buying gifts for each other. While it may be true that the couple cannot afford one more extravagant gift it is also true that a truly thoughtful gift for the groom does not have to be overly expensive. If the couple is partaking in this tradition it is advisable that they exchange gifts that truly reflect the personality of their spouse.

Posted in Bride, Gifts, Groom, bridesmaids, couples, getting married, gift ideas, wedding party | 1 Comment »

Selecting Wedding Favors

Thursday, February 21st, 2008

When selecting favors for your wedding there are a number of factors you should consider before making your final decision. Some couples do not give enough consideration to their wedding favors and this is quite unfortunate because the wedding favor is the one part of the wedding which your guests will take home as a reminder of your wedding.  A well chosen wedding favor can result in your friends and family members remembering your wedding day more fondly than they remember other weddings they have attended simply because they see or use your favor often and it automatically triggers memories of your wedding day. However, couples who do not put much thought or effort into the favors they distribute at the wedding may find their guests discarded their favors soon after the wedding.

This article will discuss some of the factors to be considered when selecting wedding favors. These factors should include price, usefulness of the favor and appropriateness of the favor. Considering each of these elements carefully will help the couple to make a wise choice when selecting wedding favors. Price is one of the most important factors a couple must consider when selecting wedding favors. This is so important because the price will often dictate the quality of the favors. While you can purchase some great favors at a very inexpensive price, there will likely be a great deal of comparison shopping involved to find the best deal on the favor. There will also likely be a great deal of research involved.  

For example you may find that items such as picture frames are out of your budget range but you may find other great items such as candles are well within your budget. You may also be pleasantly surprised to find out that although picture frames available from one distributor are too expensive, another distributor has enough picture frames in their closeout stock for you to purchase favors for your wedding. It is just important to remember to not be too disappointed about the items you cannot afford and to instead focus on finding the best favor you can afford.   Another factor to consider when selecting wedding favors is whether or not the favor will be useful to your guests. This is very important because favors which are useful are often much better received than favors which the guest cannot use. For example many guests will find items such as picture frames and candles to be useful but will be less impressed with favors such as figurines of a bride and groom. These may be very pretty but many of your friends and family member likely have a collection of similar items from other weddings they have been too and may simply not have room to display these favors. As a result the favor may wind up in a box in the attic or may be thrown out shortly after the wedding.  Finally, a couple should carefully consider the appropriateness of a wedding favor when making their final decision. This is very important because you do not want to give your guests a favor which they will think is inappropriate. Fortunately, when it comes to wedding favors just about anything is considered appropriate. From candy to office supplies and from statues to books just about anything is appropriate for the wedding as long as it reflects the theme of the wedding, reflects the underlying theme of love or is even just something which the guests can use and will appreciate. For example you can certainly give out dictionaries as wedding favors. Your guests will not likely be offended by this favor but some of them may think it is a little strange. However, if you give each of your guests a copy of a book filled with love poems no one will think it is a strange idea for a wedding favor at all. Perhaps the best way to determine whether or not a wedding favor is appropriate is to think about what you would feel if you were given that same item as a favor at another wedding. 

Posted in Bride, Bride and Groom, Gifts, Groom, The Wedding Day, wedding favors, wedding party, wedding photographers | 1 Comment »