Meet Los Angeles-based Wedding Coordinator, Amber Gustafson of Amber Events! Amber is in love with texture, things that sparkle, vintage clothes, cheap beer, and expensive wine. With over 50 weddings planned - and executed flawlessly - if there is anything Amber knows a lot about, it is weddings. Amber is our newest Wedding Guest Survival Expert and she is here to remind you that affordable, creative and meaningful wedding presents and bridal shower gifts truly do exist. Thanks Amber!

From Amber:

Ah, wedding season! The invitations start rolling in, each more beautiful than the one before! You RSVP yes, mark your calendar, and then ask the Maid of Honor where the happy couple is registered. Nordstrom? Of course; the place where the cheapest pair of socks is like $12.99.

If the question foremost on your mind this season is how you are going to afford to give nice gifts, then this article is for you. Each gift listed below is under $30.00.

Bridal Shower Gift Ideas

Vintage Handkerchief

Every Bride should have a cloth hankie to use when she walks down the aisle. For $6-12 at an antique store you can find clean, gorgeous, white handkerchiefs with handmade tatting or lace trim. Many times they are monogrammed and you can find one with her initial or the initial of her new last name. Take it a bit further and embroider her wedding date on one corner in either white or pale blue thread. Even if you can’t sew, just Google “embroidery stitch” for step-by-step instructions.

Stationary

If your friend is a classy person, she will be writing a LOT of Thank You notes over the next few months, so either a set of beautiful letterpress Thank You cards or personally designed stationary (more on that below) will come in very handy.

Name Change Kit

If your friend plans on changing her name, then this $29.95 gift will save her an obscene amount of time. www.missnowmrs.com is a name change tool that is the best thing since sliced bread. The bride-to-be enters all of her information in just once and the program spits out all the forms and letters she needs to send to every place in the world that has her maiden name.

Wedding Gifts

Framed Invitation

This might seem a bit silly, but a lot of brides don’t think to frame their wedding invitation and after the wedding it goes into a box never again to see the light of day. I recommend taking their invitation to a picture frame store and choosing a frame that matches their personal style. Modern couple? Have it floating in a glass block frame. Traditional couple? Choose a luxurious mat and a beautiful dark wood frame.

Christmas Ornament

For the couple that celebrates Christmas, a photo frame tree ornament engraved with their wedding date is something that they will love. They will be able to put their favorite wedding photo in it and enjoy it for years to come. Personalization stores such as Things Remembered carry engrave-able ornaments.

Bottle of Wine

Choose a bottle of wine that either has some significance in the name of the vineyard, or just a good bottle that you know they will love. Write a letter and include stories of when they were dating, quotes about love, or a meaningful poem. Attach the letter securely to the bottle of wine and write a specific date that they are to open and consume it. Maybe a 5, 10, or 20 year anniversary? As the years go by, the wine becomes more and more valuable to them. As does the letter that is unopened.

Napkins

In my opinion, handmade things carry 100x the value of purchased items, so if you can sew just the tiniest bit, a cloth napkin set that fits their individual style would be so meaningful (and eco-friendly)! For step-by-step instructions on how to sew cloth napkins, see my Amber Events blog.

Stationary

Anyone with basic publishing software like Microsoft Publisher and some heavy cotton card stock can create personalized stationary for the couple. Are they music lovers? Scan a sheet of music and have it be faded in the background of the card with their initials in the forefront. Make sure you purchase matching envelopes to go with the custom stationary. And make sure they know it is handmade so they know to appreciate it! Whenever I make gifts for friends, I attach these cute little “Made with Love by Amber” cards to them.

Engraved Doorknocker

Granted, this gift is a bit more than $30.00, but I love giving a brass or stainless steel engraved door knocker with their last name and the year their new home was established (i.e., “Jones” on the first line and “Est. 2010″ underneath). A marriage is the creation of a new family and what better way to celebrate than to have it as the first thing people see when they come to your home?

Happy gift giving this wedding season! Don’t break the bank!

Related topics:

1. The Gift Of Cooking - Los Angeles Edition
2. What To Expect At A Quaker Wedding
3. Best Wishes Bride. Congratulations Groom.
4. Bridal Shower Gift: The New Mrs. Is Gonna Love A Rockin’ New Wallet For Her New IDs!
5. Cordless Wine Opener - A Great Gift Idea
6. This FIAZ CO Clutch Is A Clutch Bridesmaid Gift

Have a great wedding survival tip to share with the Survive Wedding Season community? Email your tips to solutions@surviveweddingseason.com.

Your Attendance Is Appreciated! ™

I firmly believe that couples who cook together use what’s on their registry and I love the idea of treating the bride and groom to a creative cooking class as a wedding gift.

Sometimes the wedding registry just doesn’t cut it. Or if you wait too long it’s all sold out. What’s worse than sold out? Only four hand towels. What’s even worse than lonely hand towels? When all the available gifts are well over $200 and you are not part of a group splitting costs. 

Your options? Give the gift of cash or gamble on non-registry items. I can only advise that if you are going to gamble, your odds get shakier the longer you wait to play like when my boyfriend and I went to a wedding in Santa Barbara and I did not even search the wedding registry until the Saturday before the wedding. Low and behold the not-so-huge wedding registry was totally sold out.

Personally, I prefer not to give cash as I really enjoy picking out presents. But etiquette-wise it is absolutely a-ok to give cash gifts should you choose. This was to be my third time ever attending an in-town wedding (i.e., a wedding to which I could drive) and given that attendance did not depend on the additional costs of airfare and hotel, I really wanted to have a gift in hand - or at least have purchased it by the wedding date.

Meanwhile when it comes to out of town weddings I am very firm about the one year to get a gift philosophy as the costs associated with travel are pricey and I need the time to save up for the gift. So with a week to go until our drive to Santa Barbara we were giftless and for me the thought of a delayed gift really felt like settling. Two days later, I received my daily email from Tasting Table LA and learned about Niki Tehranchi, a local, LA-based, private chef who hosts cooking class dinner parties in her home and owns a cooking school called EATZ.     

When you sign up for an EATZ class you not only learn to cook a five-course meal in three hours while sipping wine, you are also one of fourteen (max) dinner guests. Upon learning about EATZ on Tasting Table LA and checking out the company website, class schedule and prices this was looking more and more like a wedding gift with a lot of potential. I sent my boyfriend the link and the cost and he was in. So I contacted Niki Tehranchi about picking up the gift certificates as I was down to the wire and did not have time to wait for the cards to come in the mail.

The Friday before the wedding I went over to EATZ’s West Hollywood location and the outdoor dining area was absolutely adorable and romantic. These particular soon-to-be-married friends love trying new and unique experiences and I immediately felt like they were really going to enjoy this. When I picked up the cards they were sharp and printed on a quality card-stock paper with bright red and inviting envelopes.

Each gift certificate was $85 dollars, so $170 for two (which I split 50/50 with my boyfriend) felt like a quite reasonable spend on a wedding gift - especially since we also had to spend $130 for a night at the Pacific Crest In By The Sea, gas money and a taxi from the reception at Stella Mare’s back to the motel. As a side note, the wedding ceremony was right on the beach across the street from the motel (one night of convenience and affordability trumped luxury at this location) and Stella Mare’s was absolutely picturesque, intimate, romantic, delicious and beautiful. If you or an engaged friend are looking for a Santa Barbara wedding reception venue this is definitely one to check out.

So how did the bride and groom enjoy their EATZ cooking class? They loved it! They participated in the Christmas Party Cooking Class, met a lot of repeat customers (always a good sign) and learned how to make peppermint bark, party meatballs and more. They enjoyed the experience together and their only wish for the night was for a bar stool next to the prep table to rest on while watching the instructor. Otherwise, I think they want to try another class with friends.

Related topics:

1. Couples That Cook Together Use What’s On Their Registry
2. dbO Home For Stylish & Unique Wedding Gifts
3. The Bride’s Garter - Unique & Personal Shower Gift by Julianne Smith
4. Giving Back to The Bride and Groom by Rush Hambleton
5. Tastebooks Make Great Bridal Shower Gifts
6. Get Gifting - The New Wedding Card Box by Marni Gold and Linda Protovin

Have a great wedding survival tip to share with the Survive Wedding Season community? Email your tips to solutions@surviveweddingseason.com.

Your Attendance Is Appreciated! ™

Thrilled, thrilled, thrilled to know Hello Super 8! Their wedding films are beautiful and classic. Each film is just as unique as the wedding it captures; all on super 8 film. It was my friend Olia, of Olia Designs, who introduced me to Megan of Hello Super 8 and I sure am happy she did.

I am absolutely in love with the ”hello guestbook.” Think of it as a photo booth in motion and a hello super fun way for guests to leave a message for the just married couple. The actual filming is done without sound so all the messages are written on cards or chalkboards and there are fun props for guests to use while messaging. It is completely interactive and shareable and a clever and creative approach to the traditional wedding guestbook. Check out the Hello Guestbook from Hello Super 8 on Vimeo below.

As a perennial wedding guest I hope to one day participate in a “hello guestbook” experience.

Related Topics:

1. Giving Back to The Bride and Groom by Rush Hambleton
2. A Professional Wedding Photographer’s Tips For Looking Your Best In Photos by Amanda Kraft
3. Maid Of Honor, Grab Your Girls and Your Guns
4. Design Affordable Flowers Like A Pro by Sarah von Pollaro
5. Professional - AND Affordable - Wedding Style & Makeup Tips by Karen Gorham
6. Make A Funny Face! A Unique Wedding Gift Solution

Have a great wedding survival tip to share with the Survive Wedding Season community? Email your tips to solutions@surviveweddingseason.com.

Your Attendance Is Appreciated! ™

The wedding I attended on New Year’s Eve involved a beautiful and meaningful Quaker ceremony. I have now had the privilege of participating in two Quaker weddings - one in Pennsylvania and one in California - and as a non-Quaker I trust this might be a bit uncommon. In case you find yourself invited to a Quaker wedding I wanted to share with you what you might expect based on my most recent experience.

First of all, there is no priest or minister in a Quaker wedding. The couple essentially marries each other before God with the guests as witness. The Quaker wedding I just attended actually had an officiant but this was because the wedding took place in California and required an officiant for the legality of the union.

All of the guests, including the couple, are seated. The couple faces the guests and the ceremony begins with a period of silence. This is a time to pause and reflect on the moment. All guests are encouraged to stand up during the ceremony and share their thoughts about the couple.

When the couple feels ready to officially become husband and wife they will rise, take each other by the hand and exchange their vows and rings. The traditional Quaker vow is, “in the presence of God and before these our families and friends, I take thee (bride’s/groom’s name) to be my wife/husband, promising with Divine assistance to be unto thee a loving and faithful husband/wife so long as we both shall live.” In addition to this traditional vow my friends also shared their own vows.

The couple then signs the Marriage Certificate. Next their parents sign the Marriage Certificate as well. Afterwards all of the guests sign the Marriage Certificate as both witness to the ceremony, and in support of the marriage.

Related topics:

1. Hindu Wedding Ritualsby Vicky Choy
2. What To Expect At An Interfaith Wedding by Cantor Debbi Ballard
3. Expert Survival Tip: What To Expect At A Rehearsal Dinner by Kathy Goodman
4. Planning An Unforgettable Bachelorette Party & Bridal Shower by Kristin Kendall
5. Stick To Your Gut! Be A Great Bridesmaid! by Ariane Goldman
6. How To Not Attend A Wedding   

Have a great wedding survival tip to share with the Survive Wedding Season community? Email your tips to solutions@surviveweddingseason.com.

Your Attendance Is Appreciated! ^™