Built For Two: Gifting The Girls

I am a pretty awkward person at times, especially when it comes to giving and receiving gifts.  I had been carefully gathering what I gave to my bridesmaids for months but when it came to actually giving it to them, I did it very awkwardly.  Basically I just put little piles throughout the room for each of them with their gifts, awkwardly pointing to their pile as each walked in.  It's the thought that counts? 

Anyway, enough about the awkwardness - let's see what they got!

Personalized Hangers

I bought these from Weddingbee user PersonalizedHangers4u and I was very happy with them.  I also got myself a "Mrs. Bicycle" hanger.

Coozies
My friends are big coozie people.  I didn't know this was a thing until moving to the South, but now I am never without two coozies in my purse - one for me and one for Mr. B.  Our collection at home is probably larger than it needs to be but it pales in comparison to some friends (Bridesmaid Lemon, I am talking to you!).  My friends also love monograms so I combined the two for this part of the gift.

I spent a lot of time thinking of the perfect color and pattern combination for each girl - that's right, each got a different pattern, color combination, and monogram shape.  Some were easy, especially my college football-loving friends, and some were more difficult (my NYC-dwelling sister had probably never even seen a coozie, let alone a monogrammed one) but I think I got each bridesmaid something that showed their personality.  I ordered these from Etsy seller It's Not Business, It's Personal and I was very happy with the product.  I am pretty sure I got this suggestion from Mrs. Camera.

Pearl Earrings
I got each bridesmaid a set of pearl studs, backed in sterling silver.  I did not tell them they needed to wear them to the wedding but gave them that option.  I think all but one or two ended up wearing them!  I purchased them from a few different sources, nothing important to report here.

Embroidered Bags
My mother hand made these bags for each bridesmaid.

Hand made as in bought fabric, turned that fabric into a tote bag, and then embroidered the tote bag (with her embroidery sewing machine).  She is beyond talented and I am so appreciative that she did this.  A lot of my bridesmaids ended up using these to carry their stuff to and from the wedding, so they were very helpful. 

Overall, my friends seemed happy with their gifts!

I thought I would be the only one giving gifts that morning but Stepdaughter A informed me she had something very special for me.  Apparently she and Stepson M went with their mom to buy me a gift.  She handed it to me with the sweetest card that told me how happy they were I was marrying their father.  I did my best to keep it together but that was certainly an unexpected surprise.

They gave me a necklace with my new monogram!  I wear it almost every day and A gets so happy when she sees it. 

Next up, the guys get some gifts and they begin to get ready.

Miss a recap? Get caught up here!

• We got to Savannah and hosted a haunted pub crawl.
• We spent the day getting our nails done and playing golf.
• We rehearsed the ceremony.
• Our rehearsal dinner was delicious and fun. 
• I woke up early and made some bad TV decisions.