Category Archives: Bridal Shower

Bridesmaid Gifts: DIY Element; Part 1 of 2 Posts

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I would just like to say I so appreciate the emails and comments on this blog.  I am so happy I’m able to provide insight to you girls on your wedding planning.  This post is finally here after a request from one of my readers last week, so here you are!

I wanted to get my bridesmaids something other than the typical gift and it took me a while to find something special for them.  I was on the hunt for a DIY gift idea, so I started making a shadowbox frame that was meant to hold a photo me and the bridesmaid at my wedding.  This turned out to be WAY too tedious (I had 8 bridesmaids!) and not nearly pretty enough, so I axed this idea.  (Still – in the event I wanted to do this for later, I had a solo photo taken with each of them at my wedding.)

So instead, I decided to do a “Bridesmaid Survival Kit” for the DIY Element of the bridesmaid gift after seeing a post online about a similar thing.  It was really well received by the girls so I think this is something all brides should totally consider giving your bridesmaids!

Shopping List:

-Cello bags, recommend 4×9 or bigger (can be bought at Michaels or here on Amazon.com)
-Cardstock to print labels
-Stapler

For inside the bags:
–Advil or other painkiller
-Nail File
-Hand Sanitizer
-Mints or Gum
-Feminine Products
-Kleenex (for those tears!)
-Band-aids (for the feet – I got cute with it and got Hello Kitty bandages)
–Shout Wipes
-Lipgloss or chapstick

Some people with bigger budgets (and less than 8 bridesmaids!) can also perhaps include a nice nail polish that is in your wedding colors.  It’s a cute addition and is something that the girls can all use for the wedding.  For the lipgloss, a cute idea is to get Stila Lipgloss Trios and give one each to the girls – these are usually only $12 at beauty supply stores and they come in nice colors.

Step 1:

I printed this ADORABLE templates (free, too!) from 100layercake on nice card stock and cut them to size.  I used a paper trimmer because I am OCD.

Step 2:

I started shopping for all the items on my shopping list (above) 2-3 months before my wedding – I went to Target and shopped in the travel section for the shout wipes, the Advil, kleenex (for those tears!), and band-aids.  I also went to Bath & Body Works and picked up the hand sanitizers there ($1 each!) because they come in really great scents.  The mints were also from Target, got the travel pack of Tic-Tacs and Breath Savers.  I think in retrospect I would have picked up the Victoria’s Secrets mints for that aspect… because the heart shaped tin is TOO CUTE.

Fun story: On the day of the wedding, a bridesmaid asked if I had Advil and her kit had it; another had some stain on her dress and the shout wipes also came in handy!  *yay*  The purpose of this gift was for it to be a truly useful gift and it made me happy that they used it.

Step 3:

Start putting all your items in the bags!  Do not underestimate how long this project takes.  I spent QUITE a few hours assembling this kit – do this at least 2 months before your wedding like I did.   Stuffing the items into the bag and stapling the tags over really takes a while.

Here’s the final product, which I think was truly worth the effort:

Bridal Party Survival Kit – Final Product

This was part 1 of a 3-part Bridesmaids Gift.  Visit later this week to see how the full gift turned out!  I was beyond thrilled with how the full gift turned out with the custom elements.  Stay tuned!

Total Project Cost: About $10/kit.

XOXO,
Sidra

Bridal Shower: Sex and the City Style!

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Bridal Showers are soo much fun! My sister is getting married at the end of December, so naturally I get to return the favor and plan an amazing bridal shower for her!  We initially were thinking of doing a Mediterranean/Moroccan Theme (for which we scoured Raj Tents for inspiration!) but we had to change the theme to Sex and the City. There’s a lot we can do with SATC!

I was inspired by the New York Skyline at sunset–the beautiful colors really spoke to me: blue, orange, pink, and the blackened buildings against the skyline.  I was careful not to think “too pink” because she’s not as in love with pink as I am.  Here’s a quick inspiration board I came up with using StyleMePretty‘s incredible service:

I like the idea of periwinkle blue table covers (probably cocktail height), orange, pink and white paper lanterns stringed along with lights, pink cocktails a-la Samantha, Carrie, Charlotte and Miranda’s favorite Cosmos, Hors D’Oerves and mini-foods as the main course (because really, how else do New York girls stay skinny?), and of course a fabulous assortment of desserts. I’m thinking cupcakes with little Martini glasses and High Heel cutouts atop them, macarons (yum!) and cute desserts in shot glasses (Pier 1 has super cute ones!).

My cousins and I haven’t discussed the menu yet, but I’m imagining sliders with a side of fries in a cute cone cup as our main courses. Maybe even truffled mac-n-cheese (delicious!) in cute single serving cups…. hmmm the ideas are endless!

Do you have any ideas for main dishes?

The “No Boxed Gifts” Explanation

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Sooo… this is kind of awkward.  And I’m sure my non-Pakistani friends were like what does “No Boxed Gifts” mean when they opened up the card (and by card I mean in the insert, because I didn’t want to write in ON THE CARD!).. it’s so normal to us as Pakistanis/Indians because it’s what’s expected at our weddings.  We say “no boxed gifts” because it’s the norm in our cultures to walk in with an envelope because we see it as a way to set the couple up for their financial future, to help towards say the down payment towards their home, or just to help them getting started.  They also tend to give gold jewelry if they are close members of the family, but wedding gifts in our culture aren’t seen as items for the home, but things to get the home started.  It’s extremely common at our weddings to do this.

It’s a wedding, people don’t come empty-handed but then again it’s so awkward bringing it up.  Etiquette says don’t mention the place you are registered on the card (have the bridal party spread the word), so etiquette masters would probably say do not even say “no boxed gifts” on the card because it’s just rude.  It’s a Pakistani/Indian cultural thing, they tend to give cash at weddings.

I myself thought it may be conceived as tacky to request “no boxed gifts” but it’s normal in Pakistani culture.  Also, South Asians (in general) cannot be trusted with a gift registry.  If a couple is registered at, say, Macy’s, and are registered for a Ninja blender the Desi aunty or uncle might go and get the  Cuisinart blender because it’s on sale and it’s more in their budget, and reason “well they need a blender” and completely disregard the fact that Ninja blender might just match the couple’s taste & color scheme better.

We tend to invite 400 people and that would just result in an outrageous amount of gifts…. most of which you don’t need.  How many different knives sets can you accumulate?  Also, my family has been stockpiling things for my wedding for years —  rug, check; flatware, check; dishes, check; pots & pans, check.. you get the idea.  I also already have the Kitchenaid stand mixer I need because I lived on my own for a while.   It just made more sense for the no-boxed gifts request.

I still think it’s awkward to ask for it,  it’s awkward that I’m writing about it, but I feel I have to defend it and explain it to my non-Desi friends.  It’s not because we want money or because we are greedy, it’s because it’s typical in my culture, and we knew if we did register to appease our friends, we would get way too many gifts.

I think there’s a proper way to do this and to write this on your invitations.  I’ve seen a couple explain it as “we intend on moving to the East coast so we kindly request no boxed gifts” and some others just plain ask “we kindly request no boxed gifts” yet others have rudely said “NO boxed gifts” without even a please.  So, it’s all in how you word it… I personally don’t really see how it’s more different than putting the Macy’s registry insert (that Macy’s provides!!) in one’s invitation ensemble, though.

and… I think in a day and age were most couples live together before getting married, I wonder HOW you even register for a wedding when you more than likely have all the stuff you need.  I wouldn’t register for fine china (because I don’t want it) and we only added stemware to the registry for the Macedonian event because my sister-in-law encouraged it… but do I want fancy crystal glasses, not really.  (so yes, we have a registry for our Macedonian event because Macedonian people aren’t used to the “no boxed gifts”).

Royal Albert Collection at Macys

So this is just a little explanation of the Pakistani culture of “no boxed gifts” for those who don’t know what this means and might accuse me of being tacky, because I’m not!!!

ALSO as a cute funny note, my dad invited my neighbor (a Asian couple in their 70s) and they sent over a gift… they sent us a beautiful jug that was not in a box but in a gift bag, because that was their interpretation of the request. SO CUTE!!  This jug is adorable and we absolutely love it!

(UPDATE 6/4/2013: bringing a “boxed gift” to the wedding wouldn’t come off as rude of the guest if you wished to do so; cash/gift cards are just preferred and you should do what works for your situation.  I loved the floral vase we got from my neighbor!  I have to admit it’s not been used yet, but neither has our cash – we are saving that to put towards down payment on our home – which in this horrid real estate market is a huge blessing to have been gifted from our wedding guests two years ago).