You may think you’re ready for your wedding, but there's just one more thing. There's one more present to buy! Not only do you need to promise to love them for better or worse, but you have to get them a wedding day gift. After all, it’s tradition for a bride and groom to exchange gifts on the big day. So, it’s time to start searching for the perfect present. Whether you two want to keep it practical or sentimental - that’s up to you. Here’s our advice regarding the bride and groom gift exchange.
Wedding Dress: Wedding Shoppe | Photography: Sarah Olfelt
Unique Groom Gifts to the Bride (& Vice Versa!)
Gifts for your bride or groom are so much fun to buy. After all, you two have a lot to celebrate! Now you get the chance to solidify that commitment with a gift. While it doesn't have to be expensive, it must come from the heart. Here are some of our favorite wedding gift ideas for the bride and groom gift exchange!
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Bride Gifts From Groom on Wedding Day:
So, you're searching for the perfect wedding gift for your soon-to-be wife? We've got you covered! Whether you need last minute wedding gift ideas or are looking for something sentimental - here are our favorites.
1) Gold 'Mrs.' Necklace for the Bride
A bracelet, pair of earrings, ring (not her wedding band), a necklace… something special. Jewelry is never a copout, especially when you’ve put thought into it. She'll be able to wear this 'Mrs.' necklace forever - and it will always remind her of your wedding day!
2) Charcuterie Board (For a Bride That Loves to Host!)
Personalized Charcuterie Board Wedding Gift
If your bride-to-be loves personalized items AND hosting events ~ she will love an engraved charcuterie board! Not only will she love that you thought of her interests, but she'll love that it's custom made for you both to enjoy!
3) Personalized Ring Dish with Initials
Initial Ring Dish for Your Bride
If you two are opting for smaller, more thoughtful gifts for your exchange, this is perfect! This personalized ring dish is a sweet gift that will show you care. And, it'll go along beautifully with her new ring.
4) Cute 'Mrs.' Sweatshirt in White
White Mrs. Crewneck Sweatshirt
If you're going on a honeymoon - or you just know she'd love showing off her new title - a cozy 'Mrs.' crewneck is a great option! Your soon-to-be wife will think it's the cutest thing!
5) Anniversary Journal (For a Sentimental Bride)
A wedding gift that keeps on giving! Show your bride that you're looking forward to your future together. An anniversary book will be the perfect way for you to remember future celebrations of this special day. Start by filling out a page on your actual wedding day!
6) Wedding Card for Your Bride
A Letter to My Wife on Our Wedding Day
Whether you’re giving a gift or simply exchanging messages, a card is a must! Jot down the reasons why you love her, and everything you’re looking forward to during marriage. Your bride-to-be will be blown away by your thoughtfulness.
7) 'Our Story' Wall Art
This adorable gift for your bride will make for the perfect decor! She will love how sentimental this present is, and it will take you back through memory lane. Plus, it’s an amazing keepsake. Be sure to double check to make sure you have your locations correct!
8) Custom Wedding Spoons (For a Bride Who Loves to Cook)
For if she loves to cook - or simply wants an adorable kitchen! This wedding gift for your bride will brighten any meal. I mean, just look at how cute these custom wooden spoons are.
9) Quirky Scrapbook (for Nostalgic Brides)
'You and Me' Scrapbook Journal
Show her you've been thinking of her - no last minute gift here! Prior to the wedding day, fill in all of these cute prompts about your love for her. The adorable design will take her back to her middle school diary days!
Wedding Day Groom Gifts From the Bride:
We can't forget about gifts for the groom! Show your soon-to-be hubby that you care by choosing the perfect wedding gift for him. Here are some of our favorite unique wedding presents for the groom.
1) 'Letters to My Husband' Journal (For the Sentimental Groom)
Show your soon-to-be husband how much you love him! Get a head start on your wedding gift to him, and start journaling about your favorite memories, qualities, and future goals. He'll absolutely adore the sentiment.
2) Custom Wedding Cufflinks for the Groom
Personalized Wedding Cufflinks
Every guy needs one nice pair of cufflinks, and you know he’ll cherish this personalized pair forever. This wedding gift is both thoughtful and practical! What groom doesn't love that?
3) A Nice Watch for the Groom
Get him that fancy timepiece he’s always wanted! Maybe even a personalized pocket watch? Attach a little note to it that says, “See you at 3:00,” or whatever time you’re saying “I do.”
4) Engraved Compass (For Adventurous Grooms)
Are you a couple that loves to travel? If so, this will be the perfect gift for your groom on the wedding day! Have a special message engraved into the compass to make it even more heartfelt.
5) Personalized 'Why I Love You' Wooden Puzzle
'Why I Love You' Wooden Puzzle
A really special gift for a sentimental groom! This personalized puzzle will definitely be appreciated by your husband-to-be. Plus, it'll be so much fun to write out some special messages to him.
6) Custom Leather Wallet (For the Practical Groom)
Custom Engraved Groom's Wallet
This gift for your groom doubles as sentimental and practical! This gorgeous engraved wallet will remind your hubby of this moment for years to come. This is one of our favorites!
7) Personalized Wooden Ring Dish
Custom Wooden Ring Dish for Him
Today is the day that your groom will start wearing his ring! Make sure he has a safe place to store it. He'll love this wooden ring dish to put on his nightstand.
8) Custom Wedding Handkerchief for Groom
Personalized Handkerchief for Groom
If you’re looking to take a more traditional route, a wedding handkerchief is a must. You can personalize a heartfelt message for your husband to carry with him. This wedding keepsake will be passed on for generations to come!
9) Personalized Cigar Humidor
Give your husband an excuse to sit back and relax before the ceremony—he’ll thank you for it. Make this wedding present even cooler by personalizing it with wedding details!
Gift Exchange Ideas for the Groom or Bride:
But wait, there's more! Here are some wedding gifts that either the bride or groom can get for one another. You can either buy or DIY these creative wedding gift ideas.
1) Personalized Memory Box w/ Photo Storage
Let's be real - anything with your wedding date is something you instantly love! A memory box is the perfect place to store photos from your dating years - or for new wedding memories! This makes for a great gift for a bride or groom.
2) Custom Wedding Mugs (For the Outdoorsy Spouse)
For the adventurous couple, or any newlyweds heading for a mountainous honeymoon! This unique wedding gift will be an adorable keepsake. Plus, you know you'll use it!
3) Custom Book Stamp (For the Avid Reader)
If your future spouse has a hobby associated with books or crafts - this personalized stamp is such a thoughtful gift! It's even more fun if you are able to put your new shared name (or both of your initials!)
4) Personalized Vinyl (For the Music Lover)
If your spouse-to-be has a deep love for music, get them a gift personalized to their interests! This adorable personalized vinyl is the perfect place to memorialize your wedding song, or another meaningful tune.
5) Bucket List Book for Newlyweds
What better way to start out your life together than by writing down your hopes and dreams. Whether you want to travel the world or build a business together, map it out in this book! Having a bucket list together will keep you excited and motivated.
6) Engraved Wood Cutting Board
This is the perfect wedding gift for your soon-to-be spouse. It's especially great if they're a bit of a chef (or if you want them to be!) This personalized wedding gift for the husband or wife will look absolutely amazing in your kitchen.
7. Hand-Written Love Letter
Shop: WarwickSunday
A handwritten note is one of the easiest wedding gifts that often turns out to be the best. Save some money and simply let your fiancé know why you love them so much and can’t wait to spend the rest of your life with them. Find a 'to my bride' card here.
8. Night Sky of Your Wedding Night
Shop: OurLoveWasBorn
This thoughtful wedding gift will touch the heart of your significant other. Whether you choose the night you met, fell in love, or your wedding night - you can't go wrong! Pick a night that means a lot to the both of you, and reminisce about that night sky for years to come.
9. Custom Wedding Photo Drawing
Shop: PrettyPrintedCo
An adorable way to remember your wedding day! This custom wedding drawing is such a cute wedding gift for the bride and groom gift exchange. Your spouse will love this - and the fact that you can include your pet!
10. Personalized Wedding Whiskey Decanter Set
Shop: The WeddingPartyStore
If either or both of you are whiskey fiends, this makes for the perfect wedding gift! This personalized whiskey decanter set will be a fun way to celebrate your marriage.
11. Framed Wedding Vows
Shop: EmmaAndTheBean
Wedding vows are forever - so why not frame them? If you're looking for a unique wedding gift for the bride or groom, this is it! Framed wedding vows also make for a gorgeous decoration in your home together.
12. Engraved Beer Glasses
Shop: EverythingEngravedAZ
A little liquid courage never hurt anyone! Buy your bride or groom their favorite booze and a few personalized glasses to go with it. (This is especially great for couples who love to hit the breweries.) Personalized wine and beer glasses, growlers, flasks, and even whiskey barrels are available.
Bride & Groom Gift Etiquette
On the wedding day, when is the best time for the bride and groom to exchange gifts? Again, there are no set rules, so feel free to choose whatever fits into your schedule. Common times to exchange wedding gifts are after the first look or right before the ceremony. This gives the bride and groom time to take a breather together before hitting the aisle. Or, if you aren’t planning on seeing each other pre-ceremony, have the maid of honor and best man deliver the gifts.
Love the night sky frame! My parents have one of their wedding night!
So many ideas, my brain!
Love this! I’ve been struggling to figure out what I want to get my guy.
Love all of these ideas, the shoes were great
Such a wonderful ideas can’t wait to surprise the bride.
This is so sweet.
The custom wedding photo is so beautiful and creative!!
The custom wedding photo is so beautiful and creative!!
I loved all the ideas , So many good options!
Loved the survival kit! My fiancé and I have a relationship full of humor so that’s great.
Love the cold feet socks idea how cute!
Definitely a great article and very helpful! I’ll be needing this help when it comes time to purchasing thoughtful gift for my husband to be!
All these are SO cute..now to make a choice.
Love all of these ideas very cute
Thanks for the ideas! Love it!
Thanks for the tips!
Love the survival kit box! Great idea!!
I love the personalized ring dish!
Such great ideas!. I can’t wait I want to give them all to my special person!! ❤️❤️❤️
Great ideas!
This is one thing I hope I can make very special. I live all of the ideas and I’m looking forward to picking and using the best one!
Definitely using a lot of these!!!
Definitely using a lot of these!!!
I love the idea of the anniversary journal
I love the idea of framed vows
These are great ideas..I love the message on the bottom of shoes by DunkiD’s!
Omg such great ideas! 😍
Love these ideas so much! Very helpful
I love the ‘story of us map’, so cute!
I love the idea of having a newlyweds bucket list!! Too cute!
Will definitely be using this for gift buying! Such cute ideas!
These gave me some great ideas!
I have been looking for the perfect gift for my bridesmaids I’ve gotten so many ideas just from this blog I’m so excited to continue my search and pick the perfect gifts!
Wedding gifts are very important rather than getting a gift that may already be given or a gift that is not useful to them. It will be great if the couple can create a wedding registry and we can also get it without any gifts being wasted. To know more check on : https://www.weddingwishlist.com/gift-registry
I’ve been looking for a perfect gift for my best friends wedding, I really like this idea. My best friend and her fiancee love to travel so maybe I will look for a perfect picture frame for them.
Thank you :)
I love the bucket list book. What better way to start your new life together?
Is it bad to forward this to my soon to be? ;) SO many good ideas!
Wow! what wonderful awesome Idea. It’s really so helpful for me.These fancy and wedding style reuses feels me glad.thanks for Sharing.
This is great! I didnt realize this was a thing so Im glad I read it!
I like the gift idea of anything that says wifey or hubby
This was very helpful. Fiancé didn’t know gifts were a thing so I’m sure he will look at this again.
Love the ideas!
I love the ‘Open Later’ letter ideas. I actually ordered cufflinks for a holiday gift so he can plan to wear them on our wedding day. One less thing he needs to coordinate and I know he would want something special.
These are great ideas! I think I have mine in mind, but it’s a secret!
These are such great ideas! I love the cufflinks!
awesome ideas thank you so much
This is the hardest part for me! My fiancé is wearing an engagement ring, so I’m giving him a watch as a ‘wedding band.’ Now I need to think of something else good for a gift!
Amazing ideas!! I never know what to get my fiancé and I’ve been stressing so much over what to get him for the wedding. This really helped!! Thank you.
I love all these ideas! I’ve been thinking about these for awhile.
I’m so glad I found this article. I wasn’t sure where to start with gift ideas for my fiancé but this article definitely gave me a good starting point. Hanks for the ideas!
Awesome ideas!! Thanks!
Cute ideas!
So cute!
This came at such a good time for me! Thanks for the ideas
Thank you for posting this blog! What great and unique ideas to think about to give my future husband!
I love the idea of stitching hidden messages onto clothing. It’s such a sweet gesture and special because only the two of you know about it.
So many good ideas! I love the little gifts through the day idea. I’m going to do that one, maybe custom watch as the topper! See you at 4 my love
Love the travel map and scrapbook ideas!
LOVE the idea of a watch for the groom’s gift! My fiancè is a total watch guy!
Such cute ideas! Thank you for the inspiration!
Wow, I love how personalized these are!
Thank you for these amazing ideas!!! I love the note on the watch and simple handwritten letters.
Some of these ideas are becoming more common but cute and classy nonetheless!
I personally love the idea of exchanging letters to read just before you see each other for the first time on your wedding day. Having letters to “open when…” is another great idea!
I can’t wait to put a few of these to use on our wedding day!!! Great ideas!
I love the “cold feet” sock idea! I might end up doing this one.
So many cute ideas!!
These are so helpful, and so cute. Sharing this with my fiancé, as I know hes going to have a hard time thinking of a gift hahaha. Thank youuu for sharing ?
It’s so hard to buy something for someone who goes out to buy things if they want it. This is a great article with great ideas.
I loved all of these ideas! Thank you Wedding shoppe for sharing! I have had multiple great experiences at the Wedding Shoppe!
Such good ideas!
Thank you Wedding Shoppe for such a wonderful experience! I love these ideas!
So many cute ideas!! I love the mugs :)
So many cute ideas here! thanks for sharing!
Thanks for the ideas!
We love traveling together so the scratch of map is such a perfect idea, thanks!!
I was just thinking about what to give my fiance… great advice!
These are some really great ideas!
Aww, I love these ideas. Is it too much to do them all! ;)
I love the mugs! Such a cute idea!
So many great gift ideas! My fiancée and I love to travel, so I love the scratch-off map idea!
Love these ideas!
I love the idea of little gifts throughout the day!
I love these ideas! My fiancé hates when I buy him gifts so it’s great to see many DIY-ish ideas. Meaningful and memorable.
I love love love this blog! My fiancé and I were thinking about doing custom gifts that we’d only get to see in person on our honeymoon- on the wedding day we were thinking we’d give each other small hints as to what was going to happen. We love surprises, so it’ll be exciting and fun!
Very awesome article! I love the diy photobook!
Even a pair of socks for the groom with a cute note is a good gift.
Very helpful! Love these ideas. Thank you!
This was great, I love the idea of the Hidden stitching in the tie it’s so unique and I also love the fact that I can show him this article to give him a few ideas for my presents as well ;)
I absolutely LOVE the idea of writing a message inside the band of a watch!! I also really, really like the idea of a bucket list book. This list is exactly what I have been looking for!
I’ve been looking for ideas and this is extremely helpful. :) I ended up with some cute little shoe stickers that say “SoulMates”… but the engraved watch is an absolute must have. He will cry… in a good way!
I often read your articl