Bridesmaids gifts??

all+that+sparkles

What did/will you give your bridesmaids for bridesmaids gifts? I'm not sure how much to spend...how much is too much??..lol.
so far I have :
Small evening purse
Personalized hanger for dress
Handmade necklace and earrings
I plan to purchase the nail polish I want them to wear

I got great prices on everything and made the jewelry myself so all together I've spent maybe $30 each. I feel like I need to do more for them. Of the 6 girls, 5 are traveling from out of state or country. $30 just doesn't seem like much of a thank you to me for traveling far and missing work or family time. Thoughts????

misshart00

I would not plan to give them any of that one time use stuff. Instead, shop for them like it's their birthday. Get each girl something she would really enjoy.

ShesSoCold

Agree with miss hart. This may sound harsh, but your gifts aren't gifts. They're for you. You're giving them hangers so you can have a cute picture. You're giving them jewelry, purses and nail polish so they match for your wedding pictures. You need to shop for them like you would on their birthdays. Individual gifts are 1000x nicer than matchy one-time-use stuff.

levioosa

Shop for your girls like it is their birthday.  It is much more thoughtful.  Plus buying them gifts meant specifically for the wedding turn the gifts into props for you.  

novella1186

ShesSoCold said:

Agree with miss hart. This may sound harsh, but your gifts aren't gifts. They're for you. You're giving them hangers so you can have a cute picture. You're giving them jewelry, purses and nail polish so they match for your wedding pictures. You need to shop for them like you would on their birthdays. Individual gifts are 1000x nicer than matchy one-time-use stuff.

This. Stuff that's meant to be worn/used for your wedding is not really a gift. 

mikenberger

novella1186 said:

ShesSoCold said:

Agree with miss hart. This may sound harsh, but your gifts aren't gifts. They're for you. You're giving them hangers so you can have a cute picture. You're giving them jewelry, purses and nail polish so they match for your wedding pictures. You need to shop for them like you would on their birthdays. Individual gifts are 1000x nicer than matchy one-time-use stuff.

This. Stuff that's meant to be worn/used for your wedding is not really a gift. 

Ditto. They're never using that hanger again and unless they get their nails done regularly and get super attached to the nail polish, they're never going to wear it again. And I have so many sets of necklaces and earrings from weddings I will never wear again, I could scream. Almost worst than the dresses themselves.

redoryx

all+that+sparkles said:

What did/will you give your bridesmaids for bridesmaids gifts? I'm not sure how much to spend...how much is too much??..lol. so far I have : Small evening purse Personalized hanger for dress Handmade necklace and earrings I plan to purchase the nail polish I want them to wear I got great prices on everything and made the jewelry myself so all together I've spent maybe $30 each. I feel like I need to do more for them. Of the 6 girls, 5 are traveling from out of state or country. $30 just doesn't seem like much of a thank you to me for traveling far and missing work or family time. Thoughts????

If you're going to make them wear a certain color of nail polish, spring for professional manicures. Handing me a a bottle of polish and telling me to do my nails myself would make me super annoyed. Also, gifts are usually given at the rehearsal dinner the night before. What if I already had my nails done? You going to make a BM take the polish off just to redo it in your color?

And while the personalized hanger is super cute for your pictures and everything, after that it's just going to end up in the closet with my super cheap plastic hangers so please don't bother with that. 

[Deleted User]

all+that+sparkles said:

What did/will you give your bridesmaids for bridesmaids gifts? I'm not sure how much to spend...how much is too much??..lol. so far I have : Small evening purse Personalized hanger for dress Handmade necklace and earrings I plan to purchase the nail polish I want them to wear I got great prices on everything and made the jewelry myself so all together I've spent maybe $30 each. I feel like I need to do more for them. Of the 6 girls, 5 are traveling from out of state or country. $30 just doesn't seem like much of a thank you to me for traveling far and missing work or family time. Thoughts????

I hope you know that all these things will be appreciated by your bridesmaids.  Because I will never use a small evening purse, I use a big bag all the time.  The personalized hanger would hold the bridesmaid dress I wore to your wedding, and would probably go with the dress when I donated it to my favorite Drag Queen.  I don't wear necklaces.  The earrings would be cool if they were nice and long and dangly but not heavy and of good enough quality not to hurt my ears.  And I'm not painting my own nails or paying to get them done, so unless you bring the nail polish to the manicure place you're taking me to, that would be a waste as well.

What I'd like is a scarf, or some delicious craft beer, or self-watering flower pot and herb seeds, or giant movie-star sunglasses, or a pile of classic hard-cover books from a thrift store.  Think of each of your friends individually and what they'd each like.  Those are your best gifts, regardless of how much you spend.

fwtx5815

Echoing what PPs said - what you've listed are all really for you, not your BMs.

I have 3 BMs and this is what I think I may do for their gifts

- A bottle of their favorite alcohol

- Voluspa candles in different scents 

- These super fancy chocolates 

- A gift card to their favorite restaurants

- One of them is graduating with her Bachelors the month of my wedding and moving away to start her job, so I'm getting her a personalized business card holder.

- These fun slippers for one of the BMs

And the other one, I'm still trying to decide on something that is specific to her tastes. And of course, hand written thank yous to all of them.

Knottie77026879

I guess I would have to agree with the others.  I don't know how this will go over, but I am giving my girls monogrammed robes, slippers and cosmetic bags.  I figure they can use them over and over again and they are very cute.  They were also pretty reasonable.  You can just do the robes or whatever your budget will allow.  Let me know if you want the website.

artbyallie

Knottie77026879 said:

I guess I would have to agree with the others.  I don't know how this will go over, but I am giving my girls monogrammed robes, slippers and cosmetic bags.  I figure they can use them over and over again and they are very cute.  They were also pretty reasonable.  You can just do the robes or whatever your budget will allow.  Let me know if you want the website.

Why would you buy these things if you don't know for sure they will like them? I would most likely not use any of those things even once, much less over and over.

kat1114

Knottie77026879 said:

I guess I would have to agree with the others.  I don't know how this will go over, but I am giving my girls monogrammed robes, slippers and cosmetic bags.  I figure they can use them over and over again and they are very cute.  They were also pretty reasonable.  You can just do the robes or whatever your budget will allow.  Let me know if you want the website.

Wait...you agree with PPs that you should shop for your bridesmaids like it's their birthday, but you are still going to get them matchy-matchy generic gifts?

You don't have to break the bank to get thoughtful bridesmaids gifts, if that's your concern. I spent about $30 on each of my bridesmaids and managed to get them thoughtful, individualized gifts.

Maggie0829

all+that+sparkles said:

What did/will you give your bridesmaids for bridesmaids gifts? I'm not sure how much to spend...how much is too much??..lol. so far I have : Small evening purse Personalized hanger for dress Handmade necklace and earrings I plan to purchase the nail polish I want them to wear I got great prices on everything and made the jewelry myself so all together I've spent maybe $30 each. I feel like I need to do more for them. Of the 6 girls, 5 are traveling from out of state or country. $30 just doesn't seem like much of a thank you to me for traveling far and missing work or family time. Thoughts????

I'm sorry, but you are dictating what nail polish color they can wear?!  Seriously?

fwtx5815

You really shouldn't worry about their nail color. I'm sort of obsessed with nail polish and even I wouldn't try to force them to wear a certain color. I gave them all some bottles of OPI a few months back (along with champagne when I asked them to be bridesmaids) but I am 100% not even going to bring it up to them when the day gets closer. If they ask (doubt it) I'll tell them to wear whatever color they want. Nobody is going to look at their nails.

Knottie93051413

I'm glad I looked at this post. I thought about getting them necklaces, but I see everyone's point. I'm not into making them look uniform. They're bridesmaids, not soldiers. I told them they could wear any kind of shoes (except gym shoes or flip flops). I would like the color to be the same just because I don't want any far-fetched colors that might distract. I hate when brides make their attendants wear identical everything, so why I was buying them the jewelry is beyond me. We ask them to put a lot of money out to get what they need in the first place, so we shouldn't do anything more even in the guise of a gift.

JoanE2012

Knottie93051413 said:

I'm glad I looked at this post. I thought about getting them necklaces, but I see everyone's point. I'm not into making them look uniform. They're bridesmaids, not soldiers. I told them they could wear any kind of shoes (except gym shoes or flip flops). I would like the color to be the same just because I don't want any far-fetched colors that might distract. I hate when brides make their attendants wear identical everything, so why I was buying them the jewelry is beyond me. We ask them to put a lot of money out to get what they need in the first place, so we shouldn't do anything more even in the guise of a gift.

Yay!  You sound like an awesome bride!

wiebe006

I've been going over this same question myself! I've been browsing etsy. I've found a great necklace my sister will love (not for wedding day) and cute workout tanks for my fitness friend. I've also been thinking perfume (if you know their scent), everyday wristlets, gift card for a date night, or simply just paying for their manis and pedis. Every girl will get something different. Most advice I've heard say they appreciate help paying for wedding expenses... like offering to help with their shoes, hair or nails. Even though it's for your day, it's not a knick knack that they won't really use again. Good luck!

AddieCake

Yeah, micromanaging their nail polish is absurd.

redoryx

wiebe006 said:

I've been going over this same question myself! I've been browsing etsy. I've found a great necklace my sister will love (not for wedding day) and cute workout tanks for my fitness friend. I've also been thinking perfume (if you know their scent), everyday wristlets, gift card for a date night, or simply just paying for their manis and pedis. Every girl will get something different. Most advice I've heard say they appreciate help paying for wedding expenses... like offering to help with their shoes, hair or nails. Even though it's for your day, it's not a knick knack that they won't really use again. Good luck!

Are your requiring specific shoes or for them to have their hair and/or make-up professionally done? If so, you should already be paying for that yourself.

poodledoodleooo

I struggled with the "shop like it's their birthday" advice. I mean, it's great advice, but the things I would typically buy my bridesmaids for their birthday didn't seem ~fancy~ enough for a wedding gift. This is just me though. I am not typically a fancy gift-giver.

I ended up spending about $110 on each of my bridesmaids and about $30 on my three "personal attendants" (before I get attacked on this - they were not really "personal attendants" - this is what they called themselves. They had no attire requirements or "duties" of any sort except being asked - def not required - to show up earlier than the ceremony for a few formal pictures. They are close friends who offered to co-host pre-wedding parties and are generally super supportive of my husband and I, but I just didn't want a large bridal party - still wanted to thank them when it was time. Anyway...)

This is what I purchased:
Tote bag to hold everything $5
Gift card to the salon where we were all getting our hair done (not "required", but they all wanted to get their hair done with me so, I knew a gift card there would be used) $40
Lotions, bath gel and hand cream in a scent I thought they'd love from L'Occitaine ~$60
Pashmina in a color I thought they'd like ~ $5

"Personal Attendants"
Wine I thought they'd love ~$15
Products from L'Occitaine that I thought they'd love ~ $15

Flower girls (ages 4 and 6)
Frozen Lip Gloss and Nail Polish
Fake Pearl Bracelet and Necklace
Tote bag with their names on it (they love personalized stuff)

I think my gifts were kind of generic, but they were also well recieved and I knew my girls would like them. Maybe my girls are just more similar than other groups! I think if you're going to go more generic (like lotions, candles, wine etc), it's best to go for higher end stuff they wouldn't normally buy themselves. The worst gift I received was when the bride gave us a matching hair clip for the day. Seriously. That was it a $5 matching hair clip.