The Wedding Party: Gifting the Groomsmen

I received a question yesterday from a reader, Carly, who was asking about ideas for wedding party gifts. While I can't publish exactly what we are getting our wedding party (because some of them read this- hey guys!), I definitely have plenty of ideas to go around! My biggest thing when it comes to buying wedding party gifts is to make each gift as personal as possible. By "make it personal" I don't just mean monogram it, although anything monogrammed makes a great gift in my opinion! What I mean is that I do not think every person in your wedding party has to receive the exact same gift. You have different relationships with different people, and I think your gifts to each of them should reflect that. Since this is a picture-heavy topic, I will be focusing on the groomsmen today, and tomorrow I will give you some ideas for your ladies!

• One gift that I am particularly fond of is the Personalized Louisville Slugger Bat. These can be personalized with a name, date, even the receiver's favorite baseball team, like this:

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These bats are about $62.00, they come in several finishes, and you can buy hardware to display them on a wall, so they are an all-around good option. And yes, Alicia, the D-Backs reference is for you:)

• Staying with the sports theme, since it applies to so many guys, next up are Sports Cufflinks from Cufflinks Depot. These cufflinks can be personalized to just about any team for any sport that you can think of. A word of caution, cufflinks are great for guys who actually have opportunities to wear them, so be sure that your guys will use them if you go this route. One particularly cool pair that I found (that I'm sure my brother will salivate over as he reads this) are these Yankee Stadium Historical Seat Wood Cufflinks:

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I have to admit, those are pretty awesome. The blue that you see is an authentic piece of wood from a Yankee Stadium seat that was removed in 1973. Since the current Yankee Stadium is soon to be a thing of the past, these are a great collector's item. They are a little pricier, at $150 per set.

• The next item, also sports related, is a framed print that the receiver could put in his office, "man room" or anywhere else that he sees fit. Let's say that your groom and one of his guys happened to be at a really great game for their favorite team, whether it was the World Series, Super Bowl, or just a regular exciting game, this would be a very personal gift, as well as being one that will definitely get used. One in particular that is close to my heart would be this one:

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I know it is too small to read, but it is a framed print from 2007 when Kentucky (finally) beat Louisville in football. This one is an example of what is personal to us, and a couple of our groomsmen, so I think it makes a great gift. This particular one costs $145. Framed sports stuff like this will generally run you about $75-$150.

Generally, but not always, sports-related gifts are great for groomsmen. If you live in a city where there is a sports team that all of your guys follow, then you have so many options for great gifts. You could always buy them tickets to a big game, because memories like that can be even better than a tangible gift. Or, you could just buy them all season tickets if you happen to have a money tree growing in your back yard!

So, where does that leave you if your groomsmen aren't into sports? Well, there are still plenty of options for great groomsmen gifts. Just try to be as personal as possible! Here are some ideas:

• One really great website for some male (and female) pampering products is The Art of Shaving. Their stuff is also available at Nordstrom's. They have a whole section just for gifts that are basically old-school barbershop style shaving kits. They are great for guys who love to be pampered, whether they will admit it or not. Here is an example:

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That is the 4 Elements of a Perfect Shave Kit, and it will cost you $100. There are 4 scents to choose from, and refills are cheaper so this could be a great investment for your guys.

• Another idea? Tools. My fiance wasn't a big tool guy until a couple of years ago, and now he loves them. When we watch home improvment shows, he is always sure to comment on the tools being used, and exactly what quality they happen to be. If your guys are into tools, your groom generally knows it, and will know what brand they are partial to. Since pictures of drills and saws aren't exactly pretty, I'll spare you the visual. But a simple trip to Lowe's or Home Depot should do the trick on this one.

• Then there are the electronic-minded guys. I know that buying XBOX, PS3 or Wii consoles are big for groomsmen gifts, as well as iPods, which are a great idea if your groomsmen are active and could use them for working out, or travel a lot and could use them when on the go. An iPod is always a great gift idea, if you should happen to have groomsmen that don't already have them, which I'm sure is rare these days. If this is an option, the new iPod Nanos will run you about $150 each, and they come in a lot more colors than they used to.

Well, I think that this list should at least give you a good start on some different routes for groomsmen gifts. A good plan of attack is to figure out what each individual guy is into, set a price range, and buy gifts as personal to each man as possible. I really think the days of monogrammed flasks and beer mugs are behind us because, well, a lot of men already have that stuff. There are so many great options out there if you just get creative! I hope this list has helped, stop by tomorrow for Part 2: The ladies!