Wedding Week 2015: Wedding Gifts

With wedding planning comes the joy (and sometimes stress) of putting together your wedding registry! You are able to pick items that you need, want and love and put them out there for your guests to purchase. The registry can take many forms and can include a wide variety of items depending on what you and your spouse pick out. Dustin and I registered at The Plaid Giraffe in Wichita, Williams Sonoma and Target. We loved all of the above. Each had the different items we wanted to register for. Some other places great for registering are Crate & Barrel, Pottery Barn and Anthropologie. 

One of the things I hear all the time from people registering is "We don't need china, we will never use it!" Well I'm hear to fight against that argument because I absolutely love our china. Growing up, my grandma always used (and still does!) her gorgeous china place settings. It also helps that my mother works at a store that sells amazing wedding china. I would walk around her store and gaze at the detailed patterns and vibrant colors of dishes as a young girl dreaming of my registry - oh, at the age of 10 you didn't do the same? When my time came to pick out dishes, my mom and I had a blast. There are so many fun pieces you can put together to make a drop dead gorgeous place setting. I absolutely love our china:

Read more details here.

To help me with this fight is my fabulous friend Lynn. Her husband, like many others tried the argument that they would never use the china...

"Basically China Mondays, as you know, got started to spite my husband. I wanted to prove to him that the expensive and pretty dishes that we registered for really would get used more than once in our lifetime. I had a ton of fun the first "formal night dinner" that we had and the idea of using our China once a week turned from spite into an opportunity to formalize one meal a week, experiment with making new meals I've never made before, share the evening with friends and family when possible, and make sure that my husband and I always remember to spend at least an hour or two a week of quality, sit-down-at-the-table-and-talk time. #ChinaMondays have been a success in more ways than one way!" - Lynn

Gorgeous wedding with a gorgeous couple!

She even has pulled in some friends in on the fun! We definitely need to get in on this China Monday fun...

Dinner at Katie & Spencer's

It helps that she has amazing china from The Plaid Giraffe - seriously that blue is gorgeous! Also, I noticed her amazing flatware mixed in there. I love her China Monday idea!

Now, if you are on the guest side of a wedding, you have to figure out what to get the couple. I think one important thing to keep in mind is that they appreciate the gift no matter how big or small. When brides register for something like china and pottery, guests are nervous to buy just one plate or glass. Don't be! I'd get a plate and jump with excitement. They are trying to build a collection and every little bit helps. Plus, it's the thought that counts as always!

I put together a little guide to help get registry and gift ideas flowing. If the couple you are buying for doesn't have a registry or the registry is picked over, here are some ideas that are fun, simple and unique:

1. MacKenzie Child's pieces - Water Goblets | Cookie Jar 2. Rifle Paper Co. - Recipe Box | Art Print 3. Annie Glass - Ruffle Chargers (as seen in place settings above) 4. Social Manor - Monogrammed Guest Towel 5. Acrylic Monogrammed Trays - Social Manor Small & Large | Mark & Graham 6. Target - Colorful Colander 7. Oil & Spices - Williams Sonoma Olive Oil & Balsamic Set | World Market Salts 8. Anthropologie - Coasters 9. Williams Sonoma - Dish Towels 10. Williams Sonoma - Soap Sets

All of the above items are things I own or have purchased for others. My MacKenzie Child's and Annie Glass pieces are some of my favorites. My cousin (and matron of honor) got us the Rifle Paper Co. art print since it matched the style of our wedding and it meant so much to us! My friend (and bridesmaid) ordered a custom Mark & Graham acrylic tray and it's perfect for our bar items. Our colander from Target was green and everyone got us that because it was so fun - haha seriously we kept opening them! The Anthro coasters were actually a birthday gift, but they are a coffee table staple. The other towels, soaps and seasonings are great things that people love to have, but hate to buy. Hopefully with all the different price ranges, you are able to find a way to give a fun and loved gift to the newlyweds!

Lots of Love,

Wedding Week 2015: Add Some Character

The Little Box of Character was first started back last summer when I was the Matron of Honor for my friend Megan (you can see her fab wedding in yesterday's post), so it's roots are in the wedding world! With that said, I wanted to share with you all ways to incorporate Love of Character into yours or someone else's special day.

The original Little Box was the Little Box of Bachelorette Character:

Little Box of Bachelorette Character $10

I wanted something that all the guests would love and that was a nice thank you to them for coming. Of course, it also needed a touch of party! With the snacks and Advil, they worked great and were useful. Plus the girls loved having something to pull their hair back with at the pool. Since the boxes add a pop of pink, they added to the decor of the room (love a two for one!). I am able to customize the box for your bachelorette party with colors used and you can pick the quote for the box to go with your theme. You can read more about the fun weekend here!

Next on the bride's list is the Little Box of Wedding Party Character:

 Little Box of Wedding Party Character $12

Love of Character Hair Ties - Will you help me tie the knot? $5

Asking your bridesmaids, flower girls, etc. to be in your wedding can be so fun! They're excited, you're excited and you want a cute way of showing it. Above is the standard Little Box of Wedding Party Character. You can also custom order them if you have specifics that you would like to have included in the box. These are great because they give you the adorable hair ties, a notepad, snacks and a confetti pop to show the excitement! They can also be customized with your colors. If you already have an idea for asking or need something small, you can purchase just the hair ties. They are a cute way of asking, plus girls love something useful like hair ties! Both of these options can also be used as wedding party "Thank You" gifts on your special day - just choose a different quote for the box.

What about celebrating the bride herself? Well that brings us to the Little Box of Engaged Character:

Little Box of Engaged Character - Kate Spade Necklace Edition $60

Little Box of Engaged Character - Sweater Koozie Edition $23 

Little Box of Engaged Character - Ice Tray Edition $20

Cheers! Card by Make Things Co. and You're Tying the Knot Hair Ties $4.50 | $5

The Engaged series is a popular one at Love of Character! You want a fun way to celebrate a newly engaged friend or family member and these boxes and card do just that. All are great options, you just need to decide what best suits your bride-to-be. The necklace is a special edition and is perfect for someone you are very close with - Kate Spade has the best wedding jewelry! The sweater koozies are perfect when you also are wanting to give the groom a little something. They are hilarious on beer bottles! The ice cube tray is a fabulous girly gift. All about the bling and they are so fun for parties (especially bachelorette bashes!). They are fun after an engagement too because it's a fun girly shape. If you want to send just a small congrats, Make Thing Co.'s card paired with a pack of You're Tying the Knot! hair ties is perfect and under $10.

Add some character at the wedding:

Wedding Guest Books $35

You're Engaged! Confetti Pops & Custom Party Confetti Pops $3 | $3.50

You can add character to the wedding itself with a gorgeous hand covered wedding guest book. We also added a Custom Order option, so you can have more say in the colors and style of the book. My Aunt Mary made the guest book for our wedding and I loved it because it was different from the classic books, plus it was a pop of color. With the blank pages, people were able to write notes (which got more entertaining as the night went on). Second, you can purchase fun confetti pops for your wedding and/or for wedding showers, bachelorette parties and rehearsal dinners. There are the usual multicolored or white/gold options and we recently posted a custom party pop option - you can pick your colors and the saying. They would be fun for your wedding party to have and pop right as you walked out!

All of the option above are available in the online shop: www.loveofcharacter.com and please feel free to contact us with any questions about customizing, quantities, etc. We would love to help add some character to any of your wedding events!

Lots of Love,