Bridal Shower Gift Idea

I get asked about gift ideas at least once a week. Sometimes, you just don't want to write another check to the bride and groom. Because, let's be honest: weddings can get expensive for guests. If a couple has an engagement party, a bridal shower, and then a wedding, that's three parties, three cards, three checks.
When people ask me about how much to give for each occasion, there's my simple rule of thumb. Take what you want to spend and give 25% at the engagement party, 25% at the shower, and 50% at the wedding. So if you have $200 you can give the couple, that's $50 at the engagement party, $50 at the shower, and $100 at the wedding. If there's no engagement party, follow a 25/75 rule (25% at the shower, 75% at the wedding. So with that $200 budget, spend $50 on a shower gift and $150 at the wedding).
But, honestly, I'm gonna suggest that you don't just write checks every time. For the wedding, yes, that's custom. But for the shower, I always encourage gifts over cards. A couple will register and this is when it's customary to purchase a gift off the registry. But sometimes, you want to add your own twist to a gift.
If you do this right, it can be amazing. My friend Jordan, she gave us one of the most useful bridal shower gifts. So of course, I had to take photos (of, well, most of it).

We registered for the Real Simple triple laundry sorter and she purchased that off of our registry. But she didn't stop there. She bought us items that we didn't register for -- but were completely useful. She bought a laundry basket (which Pete actually needed) and filled it with laundry items (she filled it with purple tissue paper too, which I thought about saving and reusing since that was our wedding color, but they ended up getting tossed).

Everything she put in the basket is incredibly useful. She filled it with:

• Tide pods
• Clorox stain remover and color booster
• Tide liquid laundry detergent
• Clorox bleach stain remover for whites
• Gain dryer sheets
• Downy Unstoppables

Now, you can choose whatever you'd like, but definitely use her items as a guide. She got everything you need for laundry, which is ridiculously practical. And the practicality of it is what makes it such an amazing gift. See, when you're wedding planning, a lot of your money is going towards your wedding. You plan a budget based on the amount of money you have saved and/or can save by the big day. When you set a date, you stop going out to dinner and stop buying new clothes. You buy groceries because you have to eat, but you won't let yourself spend money on anything that's not a necessity. Laundry products, yes, they're a necessity, but they can be expensive (and, if you live in an apartment complex like we do and have to pay $3 to wash and dry a load, it adds up). So to just say, "Hi Bride. I'm paying for all your laundry products for the rest of the time you're a Miss" ... it's fantastic.

And it's one of those gifts that I'll remember too. For a long time (and every single time I use them). Just like the mugs and note we received.

Plus, what was great is we live in North Carolina but my bridal shower was in New York. So Jordan sent the laundry sorter to our address in North Carolina, but brought this bridal shower gift idea with her to the shower. She attached a photo of the laundry sorter to this gift so we knew she got it, but I didn't have to figure out how to pack it in the car to drive it back home with everything else. So smart.

If you're looking for a bridal shower gift idea, you can shop from the couple's registry. Or, like my friend Jordan, you can shop from the registry and from your own imagination to create a great gift. A little creativity can go a long way.

BRIDAL BABBLE: What's the best bridal shower gift idea you've thought of?