Creative and Fun Wedding Ideas Made Simple Creative and Fun Wedding Ideas Made Simple
We’ve all heard the saying that “it’s the thought that always counts.” But while that’s often used as a friendly excuse to not giving a gift at all, we see it differently when it comes to presenting something handmade. Gift items you’ve specially prepared for the members of your wedding party, for instance, show that it’s both the thought and the effort that count!
The range of gift choices is wide indeed. You could give something that you’ve totally made from scratch, like a packet of hand drawn note cards, a box of your famed oatmeal cookies, or bars of handmade soap. You could also give store-bought items that you’ve transformed into something personal, like a picture frame holding a treasured photo or a lovely box containing cards of family recipes. Or you could prepare an assortment of items—both handmade and store bought—and assemble them into extra-special gift baskets.
3 Easy Tips to Keep in Mind
Before you make or buy your bridal party gifts, we suggest you consider the following:
1. Time constraints & ease of making or buying – Remember that you’ll have a lot going on as the wedding draws near! So consider ideas that are easy to find and assemble from sources easy to get to.
2. Budget – Know your budget per recipient. If you are giving a group of 5 bridesmaids and 3 groomsmen, then you may want to plan how much to spend on each person. Do you want to spend more on particular persons in the bridal party that you are closer to?
3. Same or different gifts? – Once you know your budget, then you can decide on whether or not to make or buy the same gift for all, or a different gift for each one. Or you may opt to prepare the same item for the bridesmaids, another for the groomsmen, and identical gift baskets for both sets of parents.
Personalizing & Packaging
Now that you’ve scheduled and budgeted for your bridal party gifts, it’s time to get personal. What special qualities or features of each gift item will make them meaningful to the recipient? It’s also time to think packaging—particularly when the items have been so thoughtfully made or chosen, and have a special significance behind them.
Something fresh and sentimental, such as the bowl of fresh roses above, looks stunning wrapped in red organza. Or you could use a clear glass champagne or ice bucket to pack an array of gourmet goodies, like chocolates, wine, cheese crackers, and roasted coffee beans—each packaged in fabric or woven gift boxes. Hint: Adding fresh fruit is not only healthful, but also budget-friendly!
Making the Packaging Part of the Present
When giving an entire bundle of different gift items, it would be great having the packaging itself as part of the present! Like the glass champagne bucket in the previous example above, the idea is to select a container large enough to hold your treats while being a practical and pretty gift, too. Simply add a colorful ribbon and a custom-made tag bearing the recipient’s name. Then, either present the gift packages at the reception, or have one waiting in each guest’s room if yours is a destination wedding.
As for other packaging ideas, a galvanized beach pail, for instance, would make a whimsical holder for a variety of beach essentials—perfect for welcoming the bridal party to an out-of-town wedding [see Surprise Your Beach-Wedding Guests With Gift Buckets]. Or an elegant woven handbasket, as shown above, would be just the thing for a wedding located by a vineyard. Load it with a variety of specially baked breads, cheeses, jars of jam and pâté, a bundle of decadent chocolate truffles, an embroidered bag of sugared or chocolate-covered almonds, a pretty picture frame tucked with a precious photo, and a bottle of wine, of course.
There’s more! Check out these other articles on handmade gifts and/or packaging that you can make yourself:
Fabulous in 4! A 4-Step Gift Wrapping Project with Sinamay
Be a Princess for a Day at a Spa-themed Bridal Shower
Go Vintage with a Victorian-inspired Hatbox
The Sweetest Packaging for a Chocolate Themed Party
What to Keep in Mind
1. Start by reviewing your pre-wedding schedule, your budget, and your list of “special recipients.” Will you give uniform gifts, or different ones for each?
2. If time permits, gifts you’ve crafted, baked, or assembled yourself are truly wonderful ways to say, “You’re special!”
3. If you opt for store-bought items, select gifts that are meaningful and significant to you and the recipient.
4. Select packaging that’s no-hassle to put together—like our organza wraps and woven gift boxes—while giving your handmade presents a decidedly elegant, stylish look.
5. For gift baskets, why not make the container part of the present? An elegant serving tray, an ice bucket, or even a terra cotta pot makes a wonderful container. Use your imagination!