Unique Bridesmaid Gifts for a Traditional Wedding Celebration

It is customary for brides and grooms to provide their bridesmaids and groomsmen with gifts. Gifts bestowed upon the wedding party are simply to thank your special friends (and sometimes relatives) for participating in your special day. While it is customary, it is not required, though it is usually greatly appreciated. Gifts for your bridesmaids can be as extravagant as you can afford or as simple as you like. There are no concrete rules as to what is appropriate and what is not.
The gifts you give your bridesmaids may depend on your budget, how traditional your wedding is, and on your personality. Whichever route you take, it is a good idea to go with unique gifts. Traditional bridesmaid gifts include jewelry, stationery, and photo albums. Here is a unique spin on these typical gifts, and some other good ideas, to make you stand out as the unique and exciting bride!
Jewelry

Jewelry may be the most traditional bridesmaid gift there is. Many brides give their bridesmaids a pair of earrings or necklace that would complement their bridesmaid dresses for the ceremony. While jewelry is an excellent idea, why not break the mold and give your bridesmaids handmade jewelry that is made by you.

If you have absolutely no idea how to make jewelry, that is fine. Seek out a local jeweler and design the jewelry specifically for your bridesmaids. Whether you actually fashion the jewelry with your own two hands or design it with a jeweler, the sentiment is the same. Your bridesmaids should love it.

Stationery

Many brides opt to give their bridesmaids stationery. While it probably should be the other way around, especially since the bride may need to write thank-you note upon thank-you note after the wedding, stationery is a classic bridesmaid gift. Instead of buying a pre-packaged set of note cards and envelopes, consider making your own for your bridesmaids. Although good quality stationery is an excellent gift, it will mean more to your girls if you give them handmade stationery.

Making your own stationery is not as difficult as you may think. Simply go to your favorite paper retailer and pick out some good quality note cards and separate sheets. A good paper store should have a wide variety of cardstocks, sizes, and paper types available. Buy some stamps while you are there and stamp each note card or sheet to make a set. As you do this, keep in mind the personal tastes of each of your bridesmaids so that you can tailor each set to each girl’s style.

Photo Albums

Bridesmaids often receive beautiful photo albums from the bride. In most cases, these photo albums are empty and must be filled. Though of good quality, they are often from the store, which any bride can obtain. To put a unique spin on the classic photo album, think about simply filling it before you give it to your bridesmaid. You could print out copies of photographs of specials days that the two of you shared (do this for each bridesmaid so that each album is unique) and perhaps with some beautiful paper and a nice pen, place a caption on each page that illustrates the memory.

Popular Bridesmaid Dress Colors For A Summer Wedding

A great way to ensure an elegant wedding ceremony is to coordinate your bridesmaid dresses with the overall theme of your wedding. Make an attempt to choose colors that will match the season and simultaneously create a graceful atmosphere. In recent years, weddings have become much more permissive of personalization, meaning that you can use just about any color you choose no matter what season your wedding is in. Summer is amongst the most popular time of year to have a wedding, with the broadest array of color swatches available. 

One of the most important aspects in choosing bridesmaid dress colors is to think about how the dresses will coordinate with the colors of the season. For instance, in the middle of winter, crisp blues, purples, and silvers can beautifully accent the accompanying weather. However, for summertime weddings you might want to go with bright colors that reflect the warm season. 
For a summer wedding, there are a certain colors of bridesmaid dresses that can make your bridal party stunning while adding to your overall wedding theme. It is a good idea to tie in the main colors of your wedding whenever possible. It is more uncommon to choose bridesmaid dress colors that are not the same as the wedding invitations, flowers, and so on. Therefore, when choosing bridesmaid colors, keep in mind that they should be cohesive with the rest of your wedding, whatever you choose for them to be. 

Choosing great colors for summer weddings often involves thinking about the other aspects that have helped you choose your wedding theme. These can include weather, the location of the wedding, and flowers that are most common during the summer months. For early summer weddings, pastels are typically used to play off of the spring tones. These can include pinks, purples, and other light colors such as greens, yellows, and oranges. As summer progresses, the colors tend to become deeper and darker. Weddings that are held in June and July can include some very exciting colors such as popping purples, bright pinks, and stunning yellows. 

Many bridesmaid dress colors in spring and summer weddings tend to revolve around the flowers that are most popular and in season during that time. Characteristically, light purples and pinks are seen in the spring when tulips and lilacs are in bloom. A wedding during this time would use similar colors for bridesmaid dresses. As you will notice, during the summer months, flowers get deeper in color and darker as well. In this case, bridesmaid dresses will be darker and more vibrantly colored as well. As the summer winds down and fall starts to make its way, you will start to see extremely deep and fall-like colors coming through, such as oranges, reds, and deep yellows. 

If you think about flowers and what is in bloom during your wedding planning process, you will have great wedding and bridesmaid dress color options available. However, there are also other ways to choose bridesmaid dresses for the summer. Sometimes doing the opposite of what is expected is a great way to have bridesmaid dress colors chosen. For instance, if your summer wedding is being held in the evening, a stunning color might very well be black, or a deep, dark green or purple. Although these are typically seen in the wintertime, they can make quite an impression in the summer as well. It is important to remember that as long as the couple is happy, the colors to choose from are endless. 

There are also ways to bring the theme of your wedding in with the colors that you have chosen. For example, if you are having a wedding near the water or on the beach, sea colors are an extremely good choice. Sea greens and blues can work well next to the water, and help to accentuate the theme that you have chosen for your wedding. On a beach, or for another type of fun and exciting wedding such as that, you can do just about anything from off white to flower patterned to classic black or sand colors. 

When it comes to color choices for summertime weddings, you can really use your imagination and design your wedding to your liking. Options are endless in regards to color as it comes down to personal preference. Your bridesmaid dress colors are simply the beginning of choosing a wonderful theme, beautiful colors, and accessories to make your day elegant and special. Therefore, take your time, and decide upon the colors that you love the most, because being happy with your wedding choices will help you make your day even more special.