We chose to keep our bridal party small, with both Mr. Coach and me choosing three of our closest friends to stand next to us on our wedding day. I was pleased with the decision when we made it, because I think I will really enjoy having just a few of my favorite ladies with me on the big day. Now that I’m thinking about gifts for them, I’m even more pleased, because it allows me to do something special for each of them without having to worry about breaking the bank over a huge bridal party!
I have plans to find a special gift for each of these ladies, possibly a unique necklace for each of them to wear with their dresses, or maybe just a fun care package. I’ve even thought about taking them for a spa day, since there’s only a few of us and I could probably make it fit with the budget. The only problem with this is location—we will all be in different cities up until the day before the wedding. So, I think having a personalized gift to give to each of them is going to be the best option.
Along with the gift I choose for each of them (which is still to be determined), I want to have something for all of us to wear while we’re getting ready on the big day.
I’ve seen a lot of people choose robes for their getting-ready attire, but I just wasn’t feeling them. If I was going to go with robes, some of the printed ones are gorgeous, but I really want to wear white the entire day of the wedding, including getting ready—I plan on milking this bride title for all it’s worth!
Image via ShopMomento on Etsy
This shop has tons of prints to choose from! / Image via UnderWrapzRobes on Etsy
Another option is personalized tanks or T-shirts. However, the idea of wearing a regular shirt really didn’t sit well with me because of getting our hair done then having to remove it. I would rather wear something with buttons or something that can easily be taken off when we want to put our dresses on.
Image via TheLittleBridalShop on Etsy
Image via PerfectLittleDetails on Etsy
Then, I came across the option of personalized men’s Oxford shirts and fell. in. love. I’ve only recently seen pictures of girls doing this, but I thought it was a great idea.
I love the crisp look of the all-white shirts, possibly with red monograms to match the girls’ dresses? I also really like the idea of giving the girls a shirt that’s a little different, like the blue stripes below, or maybe even a solid red with white writing, and have theirs be opposite of mine.
*All monogrammed shirt photos found at shopmemento on Etsy!
Either way I LOVE this idea, and FMIL Coach said she could help me out and monogram them on her sewing machine, which should save a lot of money since they’re going for about $40 a shirt on Etsy! The shirts will be perfect for getting ready since they can easily be unbuttoned with no worry of messing up our hair!
My only problem with the shirts is that, unlike the robe, I don’t think the girls would get much use of it after the wedding. This is the main reason that I’m planning to not only have the shirt for them, but another gift as well that they can wear or use. Such a nice perk of a small bridal party!
Any suggestions on colors for the monogrammed shirts? Has anyone gone this route with the shirts, or done something else really unique for getting-ready attire?
I’ve never seen the oxford shirts used this way for a wedding before. I really like the uniqueness and how each shirt would be personalized! I would do the girls a color shirt (maybe one of your wedding colors… or a lighter shade) and then have your shirt be white so that you stand out! I love the look of all the girls in similar “getting ready”… so cute!
Cute! We have to go out to the salon to get our hair done so I’m not going to do any getting ready kind of clothing — I want them to be able to wear something they’re comfy with in public!
I like the idea of a cute something to wear while getting ready, it’ll make for great pics.
I did monogrammed robes but I also got them each an individual gift that they could use after the wedding for the same reasons you talked about 
I love the button up shirts, but I didn’t think any of my girls would wear them again. But they make for LOVELY pictures! And much more affordable than robes!
Was considering doing monogrammed oxfords as well- but went with towel robes instead. Love the look!
This is so cute, I’ve never seen the men’s shirts done before! We couldn’t do cute getting ready clothes since we had to go to a salon, so I am always envious of those who coordinate all their ladies’ attire
I love these!! I didn’t buy them for the ladies, but purchased one for myself for when I get my hair done (I have a few wardrobe changes for the morning lol)
I love this idea. But….. here comes (probably) the dumbest question ever….. For the monogram, is it your middle initial which is the supersize middle one, or your last name, with the smaller letters being your first and middle names? I love the look of monograms, but I need to figure this out first!
I love the name over the inital in the first pick! A bunch of brides I know did this for their girls. I thought about it, procrastinated, and wound up not doing them, haha.
I love the robes, but agree with you — those Men’s Oxford’s are To. Die. For! LOVE THEM SO MUCH!
I really like the shirts! If they are oversized enough they could be worn as PJs in the future! I was thinking of personalised necklaces and maybe a robe or even a towel, something they can use again!
Mis Iris, I believe the large middle letter is the initial of your last name. The initial to the left is for your first name and the initial to the right is for your middle name.
These shirts are awesome!
I’m planning on doing this for my wedding too, but I plan on using iron monograms. I’m hoping everyone will use them for pjs afterwards.
I’ve never seen Oxford shirts before either. I do agree that you probably wouldn’t get a lot of use from it after the wedding, but it still is a cute idea.
@Miss Fairy: haha, I will be doing a few wardrobe changes as well – I just couldn’t make up my mind!
@Mis Iris: It looks like DoxieDuo already helped you out, but just for clarification: your LAST NAME would be the middle letter in the monogram, with first and middle name on the left and right, respectively. So, the monogram letters are the first letter of your First, Last, and Middle name, in that order! Hope that helps!
I love it! And I would totally wear it to sleep, lounging around maybe even with some tights to Wal-mart. I’m not exactly sure how someone would not wear it… to be honest.
Thank you Miss Coach for such a lovely blog write up! We actually learned about the idea of the oversized monogrammed shirts at a January bridal show in Atlanta. We had brides ask us if we had heard about it. I loved the idea and that week was on the hunt for men’s white shirts that were not see through! It was not an easy task.
We did find them and we do offer them in different sizes for brides that are petite or have petite bridesmaids or if you want the shirt to be more tailored looking and to wear with jeans. The XL is great for PJ’s like others mentioned. It just depends if you want to wear just the shirt the XL is longer to cover you while you are getting ready. But if you wear shorts you can go with a M or L and the shirts aren’t as big. We don’t have the sizes listed in our Etsy shop as sometimes we run out of the smaller sizes as they are not as common for men’s shirts. We have become popular for the shirts thanks to pinterest. But if you are interested in smaller sizes just contact us and we can let you know the sizes we have.
I’m making my girls their own rhinestone tanks to wear. They are stretchy enough that they can pull the straps down and just slip out of them when they are done.
Mrs. Coach, Dallas Age and Occupation: 21, Undergraduate Student Fiance's Age and Occupation: 23, Retail Sales/Management Engagement Date: October 14, 2011 Wedding Date: October 2012 Venue: Piazza in the Village About Me: I was born and raised in the piney woods of East Texas, but Dallas has recently stolen my heart (along with Mr. Coach, of course!) I love classic rock, suspense novels, and my sweet Mini Aussie puppy, Memphis. My fiancé and I are planning a traditional wedding filled with romance, and we can’t wait to combine our own personal touches with a timeless affair. We’re young in years, but are also old souls that love good food and great music, and enjoy many things that are well before our time. We’re planning this wedding together, learning lots, and relying on good wine and reruns of Seinfeld to keep us sane along the way!
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