We have a long time until our wedding, 19 months!

So far we’ve booked a date, a venue, a band, a photographer… then we put it all on hold for 3 months to prioritize what was easily the busiest time of our lives with work and school.

I was really surprised by how easily we made these decisions, but I guess they felt natural and we went with our gut. Ryan was excited and very decisive, which makes it a lot easier.

Now when it comes to some of my personal decisions like picking a wedding dress, or trying hair and makeup - I have no idea where to even begin! I’m not looking forward to making those choices.

But showing some of my favorite people how much I appreciate them?! Sounded like fun!!

It was time to ask some bridesmaids to be in my wedding!

I wanted a chance to gather them all together for a fun day, but didn’t want to outright state the occasion over text. I’m not very good at keeping secrets and I told most of them at some point this Fall. So I decided to host the small group at my parents house in Westchester, and told the girls to come for a ‘ladies lunch’.

Because December 1st was officially holiday season we decorated the house nice and cozy for Christmas.

We set up some champagne drinks and a warm fire in the living room.

We organized afternoon tea in the breakfast nook.

The dining room table was all set for lunch, using my moms beautiful wedding china. I decorated the space with some photos of us.

My Mom was such a huge help creating a menu for the day and cooking us up an amazing meal. I handled the cheeseboard!

I just wanted to give them a little something to show how appreciative I was to have them as friends, and that it meant a lot to me they would stand by my side on my wedding day.

So I made them each a little box with some things I like, and thought they would like too!

Unsurprisingly, most of it was edible.

The Bridesmaid Box

I like the combination of blush and sage colors, so I ordered some things I wanted in that general theme. I wanted to make it feel floral and rustic. If I liked that maybe I’d continue on with it for my wedding as well!

Rather than a box I picked out some wooden planters to hold each gift, which can be used as a little garden later! Wine felt appropriate for a celebration. I ordered some custom labels for table wine to personalize it a bit and applied them to the r… — Rather than a box I picked out some **wooden planters** to hold each gift, which can be used as a little garden later!
**Wine** felt appropriate for a celebration. I ordered some *custom labels* for table wine to personalize it a bit and applied them to the rosé. I love rosé, but also it felt right with the theme.
I found a great shop on Etsy that does **custom beaded bracelets** and ordered one for each of the girls using their nicknames. They were super simple but I liked how the colors turned out!
I gave my Mom one too as the hostess, and I regressed to a 3rd grader and made one for myself LOL.
Then I layered in a **custom cookie** for each gal, because these are so delicious.
Lastly, I found these **rustic burlap and lace jewelry baggie**s at Michael’s, as well as the **Bridesmaid cards** in each box!

I’m sentimental, so the cards were important to me. I knew we’d be giggling all day and I might not have a chance to tell everyone how special they are to me. I think the cards are great whether you’re giving the gift in person, or sending something!

How many times can I put “Will You Be My Bridesmaid?” on various items and present them to my friends?

Afternoon Tea

We finished off the day with some dessert, and our family’s favorite past time… afternoon tea!

We used my Moms beautiful tea set and china, and topped the tower of deserts with a little recognition to the hostess! Her wedding cake topper from 1984!

My Mom and Grandma baked tons of petite deserts for the tiered stands and I have to give them all the credit for the presentation!

The Cookies

My friend runs her own business called Custom Cookies by Jenna. She is insanely talented! I have been looking for an excuse to order something from her, so I requested some custom cookies as a part of the gift to each bridesmaid.

They turned out so beautifully!

Not only did she completely execute the color scheme and ideas I shared, but she came up with her own concept that was even more gorgeous than what I could’ve imagined or explained!

She even created some custom cookies for Ryan and me as a surprise. When my family opened the box they cried!!

It was such a great day and I was so happy to get all my best friends together and kick off the wedding festivities! I felt so lucky for this great group of gals :)

I am really grateful to have so many amazing friends we’ll get to celebrate our wedding with - our bridal party and beyond.

Let the fun continue!