The holiday season coincides with the peak of engagement season – did you know that the majority of people get engaged from November to February? You can thank me later when you bring this up as your next fun fact. So if you are newly engaged (or suspect you will be soon), a current bride, or recently married, or if you love someone who is and wants a great holiday gift – here is the 2023 Bridal and Wedding Gift Guide. This is from someone who loves giving gifts (and is really good at it)!

But first, some qualifications: My love language is gift-giving, and it’s a title I wear proudly. I got married in 2022 (and wish I’d had a guide like this!). I’m also a wedding content creator who works with countless couples as they plan their weddings. That means I spend every weekend seeing what couples use (and don’t).

My honorable mention top gift would be a deposit payment on wedding florals or catering. But because that just isn’t feasible, here is the next best thing!

Framebridge Gift Card

This is one of the most coveted gifts! I think we got 4 of these gift cards to Framebridge during our wedding planning and used every single one. You truly cannot go wrong with this gift. Obviously after the wedding, you will want to frame some (all?) of the special moments. The beauty with Framebridge is that you can truly make custom art. Some of my favorite ideas:

• Framed handwritten vows (or handwritten letters)

• Creating a shadow box with your wedding details. This is what we did and have the shadowbox framed above our bed. I tried to include some non-traditionally framed (is that how we say that?!) items, so I cut a portion of my dress, added our name place cards – a few of the fun elements of our wedding

• Photos from your honeymoon – The Framebridge gift can extend beyond your actual wedding day. Whether it’s a photo, a matchbook, or a cork from a special meal on your honeymoon, you can make one-of-a-kind, 100% personalized art.

Watercolor ornament

This ornament is my current favorite gift of 2023. (Shhh, don’t tell my family that I’ve already ordered one for each of them!) You can go the classic route with an engagement photo or wedding photo. It will be beautiful! But I actually love these ornaments with landscapes and buildings. Maybe it’s the place you and your partner first met, a sketch of your venue, or your favorite sunset from your honeymoon. I love how this is a gift that can hold so much sentimental meaning and yet still be so beautiful!

nice glassware (Estelle cups)

A wedding splurge that I actually think is always worth it is wedding glassware! Whether you prefer coupes or martini glasses, flutes or…something else – I’ll leave that to you and your vibe! I do think it’s a worthy investment to buy nice glassware that you use on your wedding day and beyond, becoming a part of your home. The best in the business – in my opinion – is Estelle. You can choose your size, style, and even color (also, what a sweet something blue!!)

Embroidered pajamas

If there is something that a nearlywed loves, it’s a personalized item with their wedding date. To make it something that they can then add to the wardrobe? Chef’s kiss ‍. A nice pajama set can make an appearance on the wedding day, honeymoon, and every day in between. You can personalize with their new initials, name, wedding date, or partner’s name to to the sleeve, breast pocket, or collar! Here are a few of my favorite pajama brands below:

• Daily Sleeper ($$$$) – OK, insanely expensive for pajamas, but as someone who has a pair I have to say they are so iconic that I have worn them as regular clothes

• EberJay ($$$)-  The softest Pajama Set Ever. You can ask for their wedding color(s) (See: Little details that bring your gift up a notch)

• JCrew ($$)- I buy these every holiday season for someone I love and have nearly every color of these PJs. My mom wore these in black on our wedding day!

• If you are not a pajama person, this vibe can still be achieved with an oversized button-down. How chic!!!

House cleaning

Although it’s not a super sexy gift, sometimes practicality cannot be beat. The weeks before and after your wedding are kinda chaotic. Actually, really chaotic. People are visiting from out of town & across the world, you have DIYs and boxes all over, it is messy. A beautiful mess, but a mess nonetheless. Having someone come and clean before or after your wedding is a massive help. It’s just one less thing to worry about. My pro tip is to have them come right after your wedding before you leave (or during) your mini-moon or honeymoon. To come back from all the adventures to a spotless house! There’s nothing better.

A makeup lesson

Hear me out here: A makeup lesson is something that many want, but don’t even know where to start. Most people won’t spend the money on this for themselves. What’s a better time to do this than during your wedding season? You are taking so many photos–as you should, dress shopping, there’s showers, bachelorettes, etc.! I think everyone should learn a natural makeup look they love and also know their go-to event makeup. So many of these lessons are targeted at making you feel comfortable and confident, and typically they teach you about products that are going to be the best for your skin type. So you are learning about your unique face while also learning proper technique AND using/learning with products that won’t cause breakouts.

Verstolo (Diamond Rentals)

Want to wear diamonds, but don’t own them? You aren’t alone here, me either! Verstolo is here to help. Verstolo is a diamond rental company where you can choose pieces for any of your celebrations to rent and then return afterwards. So many of the couples I work with use them – they are gorgeous in person and something I wish I knew about when we got married. I will 100% be using on our honeymoon. It’s not awkward to ask for this, I promise. You’ll want to look stunning on your wedding day without the corresponding price tag!

Card box

OK I get it, it’s the last item on the list. Don’t scroll away just yet and let me tell you why a card box is the best gift on this list. Reason #1 – The card box is cost-effective, as you can get these reasonably priced. My favorite is actually from Amazon!

Reason #2 – It’s one of those little wedding expenses where couples often say “eh, I don’t really need one. Let me save and put our money towards something else.”

Reason #3 – After your wedding, you can place this on your mantel and it’s turned into a little memory box. A place where we put cards, tickets, and little mementos of our year and married life. I have had couples re-use these card boxes during their baby showers. It truly has so many uses.

• Examples of other card boxes I LOVE:

  • Thank you XO

  • Personalized Card Box

  • Metallic Mirror Box

Feel free to send this to your partner, your future in-laws, or your bestie. If you think they need a little extra reminder feel free to DM me their name and I’ll send them a super cryptic message that’s like “I think you’d really like this blog post” – kidding, kinda!?

Whatever you are celebrating this holiday season I hope this guide gives you some ideas!