What gifts did you get your bridesmaids?

Knottie1444189200

I'd love to hear what you bought your bridesmaids as gifts!

I have purchased so far for each of them a soft cashmere scarf with their initials on it. They won't be expected to wear the scarves at the wedding. I also will of course give them a card with a personalized note thanking them for being a part of my day.  

I still need ideas. I know generally to purchase a gift for them as if it was their b-day/Christmas/etc. I think hearing what others have bought for their girls will help jump-start ideas! I would like to spend around $30-$40 per girl - normally I would spend more for them for their b-day, but I have 8 girls and my budget is at its limit now. 

As a whole, they are more artistic/creative than average, are outdoorsy, into animals/nature, like to read, are into health/exercise, some are into luxury/designer things (but aren't pretentious about it).  

I think some good ideas are: adult/funny coloring book, subscription (to a magazine or monthly service like Birchbox or Graze), home decor from Etsy for things they're interested in, nice accessory like leather wallet/wristlet, etc. I'm also thinking gift cards - would they be seen as too impersonal? I personally LOVE gift cards- I can buy what I'd like! But maybe they're bad etiquette? I'd love to hear what you bought for your bridesmaids! 

glasgowtolondon

I did kind of different bits and pieces for each of my friends, but the one thing I gave them both was a really nice photoframe. I spent a lot of time before the wedding picking out photos from throughout out friendship that I really treasured and had them printed through a website called squaresnaps (they make them look like polaroids) and put a few in each frame. Both of my friends loved them.

SP29

Book, wine, jewelry (that I thought they'd like- not worn for the wedding).

missfrodo

Gift cards are a great idea, and I think along with a personal card/note are an excellent gift; with 8 girls, you could get each a $25 gift card to a favorite restaurant/movie theater/spa/local shop.  Subscription boxes are great, too, but with your $30-40 budget you wouldn't be getting them very many months (depending on the service you get each girl).  I only had a MOH and I got her a prop replica from one of her favorite movies.

randomslove

I'm getting my best friend a Pisces ring (we are both Pisces and she loves rings); my pretty-much-older-sister is getting a gorgeous enameled frog bracelet (frogs are her favorite animals, and though she doesn't wear jewelry often, she likes colorful stuff when she does); and I'm getting a very small matching tattoo with my little sister for hers. I'm very excited for them to get their gifts. I think they'll love them-- none of the jewelry is for the wedding, just something I think they'll be happy to have.

Knottie6ce6f87cca4bfccc

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flantastic

Knottie6ce6f87cca4bfccc said:

I know this thread is a bit old but I wanted to share what I did for future lurkers as I'm pretty proud of how they turned out.   As corny as it may be, I think it's cute to "propose" to your bridesmaids with gifts in order to ask them to be a part of your day. My fiancé's last name is Silvers, so I decided to make my entire gift related to the color silver. I found these adorable glittery, silver boxes to put everything in at a local paper store. I ended up giving each bridesmaid a silver "knot" bracelet/bangle ($6 on Etsy and so cute), a silver tin of Godiva white chocolate "Pearls" ($6 on Amazon), a shiny silver leather Coach wristlet that I found for a steal on Black Friday at the Coach outlet (originally $75 each, $19.95 on Black Friday), and a Charming Charlie's gift card (a popular, fun jewelry store where I'm from) that I put in a gift card holder that looked like a silver engagement ring. I also put in a homemade card that I made on Microsoft Word that said "Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue, found my #SomethingSilvers, now all I need is you. Will you be my bridesmaid/MOH?" and an old picture of each bridesmaid and I in each of their boxes (printed in black and white to flow with the rest of the box). #SomethingSilvers ended up being our wedding hashtag. The girls loved the boxes. They've all been very close friends of mine for a long time and it felt really good to be able to put together something they could get really excited about and be able to use even after the wedding and still think of me and my big day, as opposed to giving them something typical like a shirt that says "bridesmaid" that I know they'd never wear again.

Sounds like you got really caught up in the cute idea of the pun and forgot whether your bridesmaids wear jewelry and accessories like that normally and might have preferred something less silver and more to their taste, or whether the elaborate gift for "proposal" would make them feel more pressured to say yes even if they couldn't really afford to be in your wedding.

Since this is supposedly for lurkers - Lurkers, I promise you that just because you've been close for a really long time doesn't mean that a) you all have the exact same style, b) they would tell you if they were having money issues or c) they would tell you if they hated your gift.

MobKaz

flantastic said:

Knottie6ce6f87cca4bfccc said:

I know this thread is a bit old but I wanted to share what I did for future lurkers as I'm pretty proud of how they turned out.   As corny as it may be, I think it's cute to "propose" to your bridesmaids with gifts in order to ask them to be a part of your day. My fiancé's last name is Silvers, so I decided to make my entire gift related to the color silver. I found these adorable glittery, silver boxes to put everything in at a local paper store. I ended up giving each bridesmaid a silver "knot" bracelet/bangle ($6 on Etsy and so cute), a silver tin of Godiva white chocolate "Pearls" ($6 on Amazon), a shiny silver leather Coach wristlet that I found for a steal on Black Friday at the Coach outlet (originally $75 each, $19.95 on Black Friday), and a Charming Charlie's gift card (a popular, fun jewelry store where I'm from) that I put in a gift card holder that looked like a silver engagement ring. I also put in a homemade card that I made on Microsoft Word that said "Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue, found my #SomethingSilvers, now all I need is you. Will you be my bridesmaid/MOH?" and an old picture of each bridesmaid and I in each of their boxes (printed in black and white to flow with the rest of the box). #SomethingSilvers ended up being our wedding hashtag. The girls loved the boxes. They've all been very close friends of mine for a long time and it felt really good to be able to put together something they could get really excited about and be able to use even after the wedding and still think of me and my big day, as opposed to giving them something typical like a shirt that says "bridesmaid" that I know they'd never wear again.

Sounds like you got really caught up in the cute idea of the pun and forgot whether your bridesmaids wear jewelry and accessories like that normally and might have preferred something less silver and more to their taste, or whether the elaborate gift for "proposal" would make them feel more pressured to say yes even if they couldn't really afford to be in your wedding.

Since this is supposedly for lurkers - Lurkers, I promise you that just because you've been close for a really long time doesn't mean that a) you all have the exact same style, b) they would tell you if they were having money issues or c) they would tell you if they hated your gift.

Spending @$42 just to ask someone to be a BM seems like a foolish waste of money.  I agree that if one of these girls was reluctant, such an elaborate, and unnecessary set up would certainly make them feel awkward, to say the least.

Knottie6ce6f87cca4bfccc

Well to each their own.. this thread was simply for asking what you bought your bridesmaids, not if random strangers agree with how you did so? If you don't want to/don't have the money to spend on gifts like this, then don't. Mine worked out perfectly and I know my best friends better than your condescending responses would suggest. Also.. the OP stated she was looking for a gift in the $30-40 range, which is exactly what mine was. Nowhere in my post did I say this was the only right way to do the bridesmaid gift and for me personally, if I was the one lurking, I would've appreciated a post like this because it is MY style. For God's sake, we're talking about a change purse, a bracelet, candy and a gift card in a box? That's "too elaborate?" If anything, someone could simply pull ideas or find inspiration based on what someone else did, which is exactly what I thought these forums were for? Not for the wedding police to barrel through the threads with closed-minded and condescending commentary.. Thanks though.

P.S. If this is how you people react to things like this, you fun-suckers would lose your minds and burn me at the stake over the gifts our flower girls and ring bearer got Should I have been more mindful of what the 4 and 5 year old's personal style was or given them a cheaper teddy bear so it would be easier for them to say no? Lighten up, folks.

MobKaz

Knottie6ce6f87cca4bfccc said:

Well to each their own.. this thread was simply for asking what you bought your bridesmaids, not if random strangers agree with how you did so? If you don't want to/don't have the money to spend on gifts like this, then don't. Mine worked out perfectly and I know my best friends better than your condescending responses would suggest. Also.. the OP stated she was looking for a gift in the $30-40 range, which is exactly what mine was. Nowhere in my post did I say this was the only right way to do the bridesmaid gift and for me personally, if I was the one lurking, I would've appreciated a post like this because it is MY style. For God's sake, we're talking about a change purse, a bracelet, candy and a gift card in a box? That's "too elaborate?" If anything, someone could simply pull ideas or find inspiration based on what someone else did, which is exactly what I thought these forums were for? Not for the wedding police to barrel through the threads with closed-minded and condescending commentary.. Thanks though.

P.S. If this is how you people react to things like this, you fun-suckers would lose your minds and burn me at the stake over the gifts our flower girls and ring bearer got Should I have been more mindful of what the 4 and 5 year old's personal style was or given them a cheaper teddy bear so it would be easier for them to say no? Lighten up, folks.

This thread was about gifts for BM's.  The inference was that these gifts were to serve as a "thank you" to present AFTER the wedding.  Your suggestions were specifically mentioned as gifts to give BEFORE a girl even agreed to be in your wedding party. 

I see no condescending remarks.  I stated a personal opinion that I felt that spending upwards of $40 just to ASK someone to be in your wedding party is an unnecessary waste of money.  Again, it seems elaborate relative to the purpose behind the gift.

You probably should lurk a bit more to understand how forums work.  Anyone is free to post on any comment.  Your post, in addition to gift giving IDEAS, also included the reason behind your gifts.  I, and others, are perfectly free to comment on whether I think "proposal" gifts are necessary, cheesey, or a waste of money.  Nowhere in my post did I say it was the wrong way to ask a BM to join you on your wedding day.  For those lurking, they may have panicked thinking they DID need to spend time and money coming up with a creative way to "propose" to their BM's.

This could not have been a more benign post.  Your beyond overreaction, name calling, and defensiveness to a few comments makes it clear you are not ready for internet forums.  "Us" fun sucking wedding police are plenty "light".  You, however, really do need to simmer down. 

Knottie6ce6f87cca4bfccc

Haha thank you for your wisdom. I don't know what I would've done without it. I'll show myself out. 

MobKaz

Knottie6ce6f87cca4bfccc said:

Haha thank you for your wisdom. I don't know what I would've done without it. I'll show myself out. 

Here is another lesson to be learned by lurking a bit before posting.  The internet is forever.  Once you are quoted you cannot delete your post.  Deleting posts is also considered poor etiquette on forums.  Our wisdom is only helpful if you heed it, grasshopper. 

drunkenwitch

I smell a vendor.

Heffalump

MobKaz said:

flantastic said:

Knottie6ce6f87cca4bfccc said:

I know this thread is a bit old but I wanted to share what I did for future lurkers as I'm pretty proud of how they turned out.   As corny as it may be, I think it's cute to "propose" to your bridesmaids with gifts in order to ask them to be a part of your day. My fiancé's last name is Silvers, so I decided to make my entire gift related to the color silver. I found these adorable glittery, silver boxes to put everything in at a local paper store. I ended up giving each bridesmaid a silver "knot" bracelet/bangle ($6 on Etsy and so cute), a silver tin of Godiva white chocolate "Pearls" ($6 on Amazon), a shiny silver leather Coach wristlet that I found for a steal on Black Friday at the Coach outlet (originally $75 each, $19.95 on Black Friday), and a Charming Charlie's gift card (a popular, fun jewelry store where I'm from) that I put in a gift card holder that looked like a silver engagement ring. I also put in a homemade card that I made on Microsoft Word that said "Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue, found my #SomethingSilvers, now all I need is you. Will you be my bridesmaid/MOH?" and an old picture of each bridesmaid and I in each of their boxes (printed in black and white to flow with the rest of the box). #SomethingSilvers ended up being our wedding hashtag. The girls loved the boxes. They've all been very close friends of mine for a long time and it felt really good to be able to put together something they could get really excited about and be able to use even after the wedding and still think of me and my big day, as opposed to giving them something typical like a shirt that says "bridesmaid" that I know they'd never wear again.

Sounds like you got really caught up in the cute idea of the pun and forgot whether your bridesmaids wear jewelry and accessories like that normally and might have preferred something less silver and more to their taste, or whether the elaborate gift for "proposal" would make them feel more pressured to say yes even if they couldn't really afford to be in your wedding.

Since this is supposedly for lurkers - Lurkers, I promise you that just because you've been close for a really long time doesn't mean that a) you all have the exact same style, b) they would tell you if they were having money issues or c) they would tell you if they hated your gift.

Spending @$42 just to ask someone to be a BM seems like a foolish waste of money.  I agree that if one of these girls was reluctant, such an elaborate, and unnecessary set up would certainly make them feel awkward, to say the least.

That was my thought.  $42 for a box of crap. 

Gifts should be received gracefully, it's true.  But they should also be given thoughtfully.  This "proposal" feels like it was all about the bride, not her friends.  God help them as planning gets underway.