Welcome bags...what to include??

[onedrop]

I thought I''d posted this earlier but for some reason the post disappeared???

In any event....I refuse to count the days until our wedding because I am afraid to find out how little time I have to take care of details.

Most of the big tasks have been completed thanks to the fact that we are having a destination wedding and our wedding coordinator has been pretty good in handling things. The resort has taken care of so much that I haven''t really had that "wedding planning" feeling and thus little excitement....until now! Yesterday I had my first fitting for my gown (yes I am waaaay late on that) and things went great! I''d had a nightmare a couple of weeks ago that I wouldn''t fit into my dress, but everything was A-ok with that. And today I ordered FI''s wedding band. After completing these last two things I am feeling VERY excited, which is great because you only get married for the first time once!

What I need help with is deciding what should go in the welcome bags for our guests. We will be getting married on the beach in St. Croix, US Virgin Islands and I''d like to have something nice for the guests who took time to be with us in a far off place. I am ordering some really cute customized gift bags which should arrive soon. And I am thinking maybe we will include sunscreen, maps of the island and a program of the weekend''s events. Other than that do you have any other suggestions or advice on what to include/what not to include and how to transport them????

Thanks!!!!

 

[dtnyc]

I think that the sunscreen is a great idea- also a program/booklet listing the weekend''s itinerary and stuff to do is great too. We did a little brochure w/ schedule for the weekend, places to eat and sight-see in the area.
We also did 2 bottles of water
a "split" of wine (from the town where my in-laws have a summer home)
a 2 pack of awesome cookies from my hometown (Baltimore
a bag of crab chips- again Baltimore

It''s nice to give ppl water- hotel water can be icky- and if they drink too much at your wedding they will need to rehydrate the next morning, w/o shelling out by hitting the mini-bar!

Also I am a fan of putting something sweet and something salty to munch on!

We didn''t do customized bags- just bought silver ones from paper-mart.com and then we tied the brochures to the outside of the bags...

also you can find mini/travel size things of toiletries at www.minimus.biz- a friend is ordering sunscreen from there for her wedding bags.

 

[diamondfan]

I think things that are indigenous to the area and also things that mean something to you two personally are always nice!

 

[sumbride]

along with the sunscreen, maybe a bottle of aloe? It''s hard to find when you need it and they may have forgotten to pack it, while they''ll probably remember their sunscreen.

dtnyc... were they Berger cookies by any chance? I LOVE those!

 

[jcrow]

check out the tourist/visitors bureau for the area. they usually have maps and brochures and things that they''ll typically give you for free since you are bringing visitors to the area and they''ll be staying in hotels.

here''s some of the items we included in ours:

booklet that included a map of the area, restaurant guide, attractions, etc.
zapp''s potato chips - a local favorite
tony chachere''s seasoning - a local favorite that they can take back home
mini bottle of tabasco - a local favorite that they can take back home
a cd of various local music (not a burned cd)


i''d don''t remember everything, but we really tried to make it a city specific goody bag.

 

[dtnyc]

Date: 3/23/2007 9:22:52 PM
Author: sumbride
along with the sunscreen, maybe a bottle of aloe? It''s hard to find when you need it and they may have forgotten to pack it, while they''ll probably remember their sunscreen.


dtnyc... were they Berger cookies by any chance? I LOVE those!

sumbride- They were Berger cookies! I love them too! 2 days before the wedding my mom and I went to the bakery and picked up a case of the 2 packs! The bakery was in a sketchy hood- but it was SO cool! It smelled SO good! you could have od''d just smelling the sugar.

 

[sumbride]

Date: 3/23/2007 10:17:05 PM
Author: dtnyc

Date: 3/23/2007 9:22:52 PM

Author: sumbride

dtnyc... were they Berger cookies by any chance? I LOVE those!

sumbride- They were Berger cookies! I love them too! 2 days before the wedding my mom and I went to the bakery and picked up a case of the 2 packs! The bakery was in a sketchy hood- but it was SO cool! It smelled SO good! you could have od''d just smelling the sugar.

YUM! I don''t need to find out where the bakery is! That would just be too dangerous to know. I give a pack of them to anybody that comes to visit us, but we can''t keep them in the house... too dangerous!

 

[dtnyc]

Date: 3/23/2007 10:21:59 PM
Author: sumbride

Date: 3/23/2007 10:17:05 PM

Author: dtnyc

Date: 3/23/2007 9:22:52 PM


Author: sumbride


dtnyc... were they Berger cookies by any chance? I LOVE those!

sumbride- They were Berger cookies! I love them too! 2 days before the wedding my mom and I went to the bakery and picked up a case of the 2 packs! The bakery was in a sketchy hood- but it was SO cool! It smelled SO good! you could have od''d just smelling the sugar.

YUM! I don''t need to find out where the bakery is! That would just be too dangerous to know. I give a pack of them to anybody that comes to visit us, but we can''t keep them in the house... too dangerous!

ha ha- my mom used to buy them in bulk at Costco!
We bought the 2 packs for the wedding - I have to admit I ate one 2 days before the wedding and probably 2 the day of too!

 

[Harriet]

What are Berger cookies?

 

[sumbride]

Date: 3/23/2007 11:10:14 PM
Author: Harriet
What are Berger cookies?

They''re AMAZING fudge topped shortbread cookies... with a LOT more fudge than cookie!

From the City Paper:
Best Cookie
Berger Cookies
(800) 398-2236, www.bergercookies.com

Less is more, but sometimes way too much is just right. Thus we honor the humble, homegrown Berger cookie, the true Baltimorean''s madeleine. The treat tops--actually, more like overwhelms--a modest, buttery vanilla wafer with what seems like a solid inch of dark, creamy chocolate. The cookie-to-frosting ratio is just absurd; according to Charles DeBaufre, owner of DeBaufre Bakeries, the cookie''s sole manufacturer, a whole Berger cookie weighs in at about 1.25 ounces and the wafer weighs only about a quarter of an ounce. This is one snack food that, unless consumed fresh from a freezer, is practically guaranteed to melt in your hands, not to mention your mouth. According to DeBaufre, the Berger has probably been baked in Baltimore ever since the Berger family landed here from Germany in 1835, recipe in hand. Today the Berger cookie''s fame has spread far beyond the Chesapeake basin, as transplanted Baltimoreans order boxes delivered by mail (the cookie has its own Web site for when the e-munchies strike) and Mobtown moms send Bergers off to college with their kids. DeBaufre says the bakery (which is strictly wholesale and mail order, with no retail space) has shipped them as far afield as Switzerland, Venezuela, and Hong Kong. But it''s hard to imagine that the Berger cookie is more beloved anywhere than its own hometown, even though we gained a pound just writing about them.

 

[jaz464]

I really chose more fun things, than useful stuff.

For the guys I did sunscreen, a couple of bottles of the local beer (+ bottle openers since they weren't twist off), some cigars made locally, and a box of matches with a cute saying and our names. These were placed in personalized gift bags.

For the girls I found the cutest straw bags from walmart for about $5.99 each. I put a tropical gel candle inside, some rose petals made of soap for the bathtub wrapped in a cut pink box, and a set of glass coasters with a tropical theme.

Everyone got a rum cake made there in the bahamas as well.

http://www.blissweddingsmarket.com/store/000388.htm (coasters)

http://www.blissweddingsmarket.com/store/000345.htm (candle)

I also got my labels (which I placed on bamboo fans and the greatest monogrammed labels, which I placed on the candy boxes which were at each person's place setting from this site http://www.blissweddingsmarket.com/index.htm

I got my personalized gift bags from here:

http://www.thestationerystudio.com/index.cfm

 

[KristyDarling]

The last wedding that I attended also included (in addition to the things you''ve mentioned): breath mints, snack-size cracker packages, bottled water, and chocolates. And, of course, a really nice letter welcoming us to the wedding and thanking us for coming. I don''t think you need to get too fancy...just the thought itself will mean a lot to your guests. I was moved by the fact that a welcome bag was even prepared for us. It was a very nice touch.

 

[Harriet]

Sumbride,
They sound "delish", as Rachael Ray would say.

 

[monarch64]

Chapstick (or other lip balm) with sunscreen!

Maybe packets of Kleenex tissues? Sometimes hotel tissues can be scratchy, and ladies who are attending the wedding might appreciate a purse-sized packet to carry with them for the wedding.

Of course these are just suggestions and not necessities. Onedrop, best wishes and congrats! Good luck to you for your wedding!!!

 

[onedrop]

Thanks for all of the ideas! I think I will use a combination of everything that was mentioned in the bags, especially the sweets, aloe and the chapstick. Hadn''t even thought of those things. We''ll need to keep bags and contents small because we have to travel with the bags. I procrastinated too long to have them sent ahead of time.

And of course...thanks for the story behind the Berger cookies. Had no idea the even existed!!!

Dtnyc: we are from the same area of the country...crab chips are definitely a MD thing!

Monarch...thanks for the well-wishes! As I see my name getting closer to the top of the brides-in-waiting list I am starting to get really excited.

Maybe I''ll start a new thread for this question, but just in case any of you come back to read...if you had a wedding elsewhere than in you where you were living, how did bring your dress? Did the airline count it as a personal item? I am definitely not checking it for fear it will get lost!

Thanks again ladies!

 

[jaz464]

Date: 3/25/2007 5:51:46 PM
Author: onedrop

Maybe I''ll start a new thread for this question, but just in case any of you come back to read...if you had a wedding elsewhere than in you where you were living, how did bring your dress? Did the airline count it as a personal item? I am definitely not checking it for fear it will get lost!

I rolled my dress as tightly as I could and put it in my carry-on. It came out perfect. I didn''t even have to iron it.

 

[Siamese Kitty]

Do people still use (underwater) disposable cameras? That might be an idea.

How big are your bags? It would be neat to get a nice beach towel from the resort, even if it wasn''t used during the trip.

I think the beverage/food ideas are great. I''d also really appreciate the sunscreen chapstick!

If the bags are smallish, the only other thing I thought of is maybe some type of gift certificate/voucher. I don''t know if you''re doing an AI, but maybe one for drinks at the hotel bar/the sundries shop/a water sport?

 

[mdyer]

Hey guys - did you give each guest a welcome bag or did you give one per couple?

 

[jcrow]

Date: 3/27/2007 4:31:09 PM
Author: mdyer
Hey guys - did you give each guest a welcome bag or did you give one per couple?

we did one per room.

 

[dtnyc]

One per room. We had them given out by the hotels when people checked into the blocked off hotel rooms.