About Relationships

What makes a wedding ceremony special? It is the most awaited ceremony for the couple to be wed since this day is when they take their vows to spend the rest of their lives together. It is also one of the few occasion when the people who matter most to the couple come together, all looking their best, to show their support and share in the couple’s happiness.

Many people are involved in the wedding from the initial pre-wedding preparations to the actual wedding day celebration. The bride can go crazy if she tries a one-woman show on this one. The parents of both the bride and the groom, the couple’s immediate family members and relatives and the friends who have been wonderful witnesses to the beautiful love that the couple has shared before finally deciding to become husband and wife, will all be there ready to help them make this day extra special.

The couple gets to choose among their closest friends who their bridesmaids and groomsmen will be. These people will play important roles during the wedding as they have always done in the past. Usually, the wedding entourage will be composed of the couple’s best friends or siblings.

What better way to show the couple’s appreciation to friends who have shared their time than to give gifts they could keep? For example, bridesmaids would be delighted to receive jewelry boxes where they could keep important items. For the groomsmen, exquisite cigar boxes and engraved money clips will be good choices, although a common favorite, which also adds a more elegant touch, is a nice pair of groomsman cufflinks.

Groomsman cufflinks are unique and decorative fasteners that hold together two sides of the cuffs. These are a classy alternative to buttons or to the ribbons being used a long time ago. They have a basic design of two cylindrical posts with a decorative end visible to the public. They can be worn either ‘kissing’ (with the ends pinched together), or ‘barrel-style’ with one end overlapping the other. Of the two, the ‘kissing’ cuffs are usually preferred. It is usually engraved with special notes or messages to give the cufflinks a more personalized look. The materials used in groomsman cufflinks can vary from silver to leather to those having precious stones.

Cufflinks date back to the 17th century. French cufflinks, which comes as a result of European influences to America, are now becoming a popular trend. The French “cuff links” are used on French cuffs, one where the material is folded back onto itself and held together by a French cuff or silk knot. A French cufflink offers a more elegant and fashionable look than the standard cufflink.

There are probably a lot more ideas for traditional groomsmen gifts. While these are certainly just a few ideas, be sure that you spend time contemplating the importance of this gift. You just have to pick the one that best fits your recipient’s personal taste and personality. With all the choices now available, there surely is a special gift that will fit each groomsman perfectly!

Whether your interests are in silver, gold, artistic, sports, or other theme-related cufflinks we’ve got you covered. Cufflink Aficionado carries a broad range of men’s silver cufflinks designed to meet each connoisseur’s individual style and interest. Our selection of wedding cufflinks are sure to top off that perfect look.

So, you buckled over and got your girlfriend that engagement ring she’s been pestering you about since your seventh date. Of course, back then, she was more subtle – so, do you see us being together and so, do you want to get married?

Now, though, six years into the relationship, she was not all sweetness and light about her long wait to become Mrs. You. By this time, she’d picked out the ring, called you her fiance to anyone she could, and grumbled incessantly about her biological clock and how her mother was right about all the cow and free milk stuff that she used to pooh-pooh.

Congratulations! You’re engaged!

As luck would have it, you’re the groom. Have you noticed how much easier all this wedding stuff is – a snap, really – since you realized that, Hey, I’m a guy! If your girl is the traditional bride – and most of them are pretty traditional when it comes to realizing that Barbie moment once and for all – you have virtually nothing to do.

That doesn’t mean that you won’t be asked to make a decision. Or many. You will look at everything from cakes to tablecloths to flowers, and Your Pookie will require an answer from you.

The best way to get the answer right is to say, “So, what are you envisioning here? Hmmm…which cake best gets that idea across? What are your thoughts?”

Whatever her thoughts are, echo them. Tell her often that her good taste was part of what attracted you to her in the first place, and you really place your trust in these matters in her capable and slender hands.

That’s one thing off your plate.

You also have to pick out the wedding ring. In the olden days, a guy would choose a ring – engagement and wedding, or the ubiquitous bridal set – and the girl would say yea or nay, and that was that. The woman is more involved now in the whole picking-out process, but it’s still up to you to foot the bill. And really, if you can’t foot the bill, it’s highly unlikely that you should be getting married.

That doesn’t mean that it’s not okay to tell Your Beloved that you can afford This Group of Rings over Here, and none of them Over There. You can be subtle, by having the rings already laid out to be presented to her, if she’s not a gold digger looking for a rock the size of her original breasts. God forbid she’s looking for one the size of the new ones!

If she is a gold digger and you’re not in the position of financing her whims, you need to do two things. First, always know the name of a good divorce lawyer, because it’s not going to last. If she’s marrying for money and you don’t have any, you’re just a train depot on the way to the Promised Land.

Second, you must bribe the jeweler. Tell him that he must say that only strippers wear stones that large, and that the society ladies always go for a smaller, quality stone in good taste. Most gold diggers are also wannabe social climbers, and this will enable you to spend your money in the way you want without having to listen to pouting and spouting for the rest of your engagement.

Your parents are expected to throw the rehearsal dinner, but if you’ve been working for more than two years, they may expect you to foot the cost for that. Really good restaurants often have affordable menus for large parties and very nice private rooms – look into that option, because it will prove cheaper in the long run than a hotel with its really high liquor and service costs or a venue in which you have to bring in a caterer and rent tables, chairs, plates, and the works. If you choose someplace trendy and stylish, the only thing you’ll have to do for decoration is buy your fiance a nice wedding gift – and you have to do that, anyway.

Another groom output requirement is the honeymoon. This can be big or small, depending on your circumstances and both of your work schedules. You can go and luxuriate in the fine hotels of Europe or you can go to the Pocono’s and have a private hot tub party in a heart-shaped Jacuzzi or one shaped like one of those saucer champagne glasses. Be sure to include Your Darling in the planning, or you’ll get pouting and spouting, and she will also buy all the wrong clothes for her long-planned, much-anticipated wedding trip.

Lastly, it’s your job to buy gifts for your groomsmen. Traditionally, these gifts have ranged from silver flasks (which could lead to DUI arrests), fine handkerchiefs with the initials embroidered (snot receptacles), silver or leather boxes (confiscated by the ex-wife or ex-girlfriend during the next breakup), tie clips (out of style since about 1978), silver pens (run out of ink and then sit in a drawer for 45 years), and cufflinks.

Cufflinks for your groomsmen are like earrings or bracelets for the bridesmaids – the perfect gift. It gives you partial control over their accessories for the day – you’ve already told them what to wear on most of their other body parts – and classes up the whole joint, whether it’s the downtown cathedral or the chapel on the Strip. Traditionally, cufflinks have been engraved with the wedding date and the bride’s and groom’s initials.

I have to say that I abhor this tradition. To me, it’s tantamount to making each groomsman a T-shirt that says I Was Bob and Jill’s Groomsman. In other words, something that no one ever wears again.

It’s not necessary to print your initials and wedding date all over a gift to someone else. You don’t do that for other gift-giving opportunities, and really, a gift is not about you: it’s about your appreciation for all they’ve done for you and a token of your very great esteem for them. They’ll remember that you gave them the gift, and they’ll know the reason for the gift. They aren’t monkeys, dammit.

With that in mind, consider buying cufflinks with each groomsman’s own initials engraved on them. The groomsman can wear those engraved cufflinks for any number of special events – after wearing them to your nuptials, of course. They will be perfect for work or for weddings, for the christening of you children and testifying in your very unlikely divorce trial.

In other words, they will be an investment gift.

Other options for cufflinks include silk knots or enameled cufflinks in your wedding colors. Paired with a tie in the same hues (which should also be your gift), this is another gift that can be used again and again. If nothing else, the groomsman will be grateful not to go have to pick out a beautiful tie on his own.

Lastly, if you want to really personalize your gift, choose a variety of cufflinks that capture each groomsman’s individuality. This could be with a choice of styles relating to professions, hobbies, or preferred university. After all, even at the wedding, your guests are only going to see your very stylish and satisfied groomsmen standing next to the frankly terribly bridesmaid dresses – and the differences in the cufflinks will be a nice little surprise, a stylish touch, as if you, and not your New Wife, had been the one with Good Taste all along.

Whether your interests are in silver, gold, artistic, sports, or other theme-related cufflinks we’ve got you covered. Cufflink Aficionado carries a broad range of groomsman wedding cufflinks designed to meet each individual’s style and interest. Our selection of engraved cufflinks are sure to top off that perfect wedding look for that perfect day!

I love a tuxedo as next as the much person, but it is not the only option for wedding attire for a groom. Unless the wedding is to be very formal, in the spring and summer months, it can be so much more fresh and modern to lighten things up a bit. Enter the khaki suit: appropriate for an elegant daytime wedding yet perfectly in style for the season, it can be an excellent alternative to either a tuxedo or a traditional navy suit. These are some ideas on how to style khaki suits for the groom and his groomsmen.

One of the fantastic things about a khaki suit for a groom is that it is both classic and fresh at the same time. It also feels more celebratory than a business-like navy or charcoal suit, which is ideal for a wedding. Being a light colored neutral, you will also find that a khaki suit allows you to be as expressive as you want with the rest of the groom’s attire, including his shirt, tie, boutonierre or pocket square, and cufflinks.

A spring garden wedding is a wonderful place for a khaki suit. Instead of a basic white shirt, why not have the men in the wedding wear shirts in a pastel color? Pale blue is always handsome, or select a shirt color which coordinates with the wedding colors. Light yellow shirts are very springy and surprisingly neutral. A discreet pattern on the groom’s shirt, such as a tiny gingham check would be a marvelous addition.

A great idea for a tie for a garden wedding would be one with a small floral print, such as a Liberty floral. It would look fresh and springlike with a khaki suit and light colored shirt. If your groom will not go for a floral print, a small print in a motif which appeals to him could be nice, such as a green and white golf design. Keep the rest of the accessories simple, such as a classic pair of silver monogrammed cufflinks (these also make great groomsmen gifts). A cheerful daisy boutonierre would be a great finishing detail.

In the summer, khaki suits are perfect for nautical themed weddings. What could be more crisp and classic than khaki paired with navy and bright white? For a dash of color, mix in subtle accents of lime green or red. Starting with the shirts, pair the khaki suits with either a pure white or an elegant French blue. Embrace the nautical theme with anchor or sailboat cufflinks, which are not only terrific gifts for groomsmen, but also for the groom himself. Select a tie which either has diagonal stripes or a discreet nautical print. Motifs like anchors, ships’ wheels, knots, or whales are just a few appropriate tie motif ideas (check out places like Vineyard Vines for great looking options).

If your groom likes strong colors, another great look for a khaki suit is to pair it with a sherbet color for a casual summer wedding. Try a mango or pale lime shirt with a crisp finish, which would be ideal for a wedding with an orange or green theme. Another option is to stick with a basic white shirt, but let your groom have fun wearing a tie in his favorite color, whether it is a summery turquoise or a deep purple. When the wedding is informal, you may consider substituting a decorative pocket square for a more traditional boutonierre.

With so many ways to wear one, the khaki suit is really the go-to look for spring and summer grooms. Handsome but not stuffy, the khaki suit is the perfect compromise between wanting to look polished, yet summery. Best of all, unlike a tuxedo, the suit will become a versatile part of his wardrobe for the future.

Bridget Mora writes for Silverland Jewelry about weddings, fashion, and etiquette. Visit us at http://silverlandjewelry.com/ for an incredible selection of groomsmen gifts that your guys will love.

A wedding is a joyous occasion that calls for special gifts in honor of the event. There are countless beautiful options when it comes to bride and bridesmaid gifts, but finding just the right thing for the groom and groomsmen can be a bit more intimidating. Here are some ideas on fantastic gifts for all of the men in your wedding.

It is customary for the groom to give the bride a fabulous piece of jewelry on their wedding day. Many brides would like to reciprocate, but have no idea where to begin. Somehow a new PS3 game cartridge just doesn’t seem right for a wedding gift! The best wedding gifts have lasting value, just like the best marriages. It is even better if they can be engraved with the wedding date as a special souvenir of the event.

Sterling silver gifts are always nice choices for both the groom and his groomsmen. Most men do not wear a lot of jewelry, but there are two classic options for jewelry gifts for the men in your wedding. The first is a timepiece. Silver pocketwatches are a very elegant and classic gift idea. If the pocketwatch is a gift from the bride to her groom, it would be lovely to engrave the watch with the date of the wedding. For groomsmen gifts, personalize the pocketwatches with each man’s initials in a block print.

The other jewelry gift that is a timeless choice for men is a handsome pair of cufflinks. This is a particularly appropriate gift for a black tie wedding as the men will all be wearing shirts with French cuffs. How much nicer it would be to wear your own special set of cufflinks rather than the ones from the tuxedo rental shop. Look for sterling silver cufflinks that can be monogrammed, or black onyx stones set in silver for a classic masculine style. Either way, you will have very attractive gifts for your groom and his groomsmen.

There are a couple of additional possibilities for wedding jewelry gifts for grooms. One is a heavy signet ring in gold or silver. Have it engraved with his monogram in a classic block style font on the top of the ring, and put your wedding date on the inside of the piece. Couples who were brought together by their faith might also consider exchanging wedding gifts of a religious nature. For the groom, a handsome large silver cross, crucifix, or Star of David would make a meaningful weeding keepsake.

It is also very thoughtful to give wedding gifts to the other men in the family, especially the fathers and grandfathers of the bride and groom. Cufflinks are always an excellent choice. You could also go with something simple such as a bottle of very good wine with a silver corkscrew and bottle stopper set. Include a personal note from the happy couple thanking the parent or grandparent for his love and support, and you will have a very special gift.

Bridget Mora writes for Silverland Jewelry about wedding planning, jewelry, and gift ideas. Timepieces are a very tasteful gift for the men in your wedding.

The biggest topic of conversation among the single women in offices today may just be the company holiday party. This isn’t because the company holiday party is going to be any great shakes – we all know what company parties are like. However, it is a chance to dress up, and even more, it’s a chance to integrate your work life with your personal life by introducing that special man to your career colleagues.

Now, you ladies who are looking at skimpy dresses and spiky heels and a big chance at the open bar for four straight hours need not read further. The fact is that it really doesn’t matter who you bring to your company party and what he looks like: just keep picking up your hourly check and watching the clock. You’re not the kind of girl that gets promoted, so go ahead and kick up your heels and let off some steam. Get drunk, even.

No one expects anything more of you.

This article is for those of you who have a career plan and hope to use this social opportunity to advance your job path – by playing it smart and showing management that pulling you up to their level is going to benefit them and the company.

The tone of your holiday party outfit should be sleek and sophisticated. Your cleavage and your hemline should be modest – let the festivity come from the quality of the material and construction, not from glimpses of your birthday suit’s finest moments. The outfit should not be overly loud or tight.

Think Audrey Hepburn, not Britney Spears.

If you aren’t certain how formal the event is, ask around. It’s probably best to ask someone who has impeccable office style; I would say that if someone is getting it wrong at the office, she’ll probably get it waaaaay wrong at the holiday party.

You can take a cue from the dress code in your office. If most days you wear suits, find a simple, pretty suit and wear it with a dressy top and great earrings. The little black dress – provided it’s not too little – is always a great alternative, and a good quality LBD will be an investment that lasts you for years. An elegant shirt or sweater with well-tailored pants or a great skirt will also be a hit.

One aside on the sweater: say ‘no’ to the holiday sweater. People shouldn’t wear snowmen or candy canes or Santas on their clothing once they’ve graduated from toddlerhood.

You look great – professional, smart, and ready to accept any challenge. Now it’s time to concentrate on what will take you slightly longer: getting your man up to snuff.

Everyone wants a date for the company party. However, this is probably not the time to have a date night with the guy you got drunk with at the club the other night. If you don’t have a reasonably good idea of how he behaves in public, do not bring him to a work function. This could be your last date with him, but your colleagues will remember it forever.

In addition, this is not the time to leave a man to his own devices. Tell him what to wear. Tell him what to wear. One more time: tell him what to wear.

For your company holiday party, your boss may decide to wear a silk shirt unbuttoned to his navel with jeans embroidered with daisies. It doesn’t matter. He’s the boss, and if he wants to exhibit all kinds of bad taste, that’s his poor choice.

Your date – whether he is your husband, your partner, your boyfriend, or just a good friend who is serving as your chummy eye candy for the evening – should wear a suit. A classic two-button or three-button suit, made of excellent dark fabric, and sewn with vent construction is what every man needs. If your man doesn’t have one, make it his holiday gift. A four-button suit will make him look like a member of OK Go or a member or the ESPN football panel, and people will remember him – just not in a good way.

For the most formal of parties, a classic white shirt with French cuffs is de rigueur. A colored shirt will work well for less formal – or even casual – parties. A dark-colored tie with a sophisticated, understated pattern and well-polished dark shoes will look classy and timeless.

A pair of holiday cufflinks will give this ensemble a bit of personality as well as polish. There are number of holiday styles available for those men who will want to stay true to the spirit of the event, but a pair of enamel cufflinks will add a splash of stylish color and still be perfect for other times of the year. Even a set of French knots – classic silk cords available in a variety of color choices – will add a great finishing touch.

Go forth in style. And don’t drink too much.

Whether your interests are in silver, gold, artistic, sports, or other theme-related cufflinks we’ve got you covered. Cufflink Aficionado carries a broad range of holiday cufflinks designed for every special holiday occasion!

I remember the when my dad was a young junior executive – I don’t even know if companies have

So he didn’t have any money. But he still dressed well enough to rise rapidly through the ranks of his company, to be invited to dinner at the boss’ house, and to be invited to join or even lead a number of professional organizations.

Sure, he was a great guy, and obviously really able to do what it was he was paid to do. But – and it must be said – there were a lot of other capable, personable guys in that company’s junior executive program. What was the difference that made my dad the Boy Genius that everyone wanted to promote?

This was the day of the leisure suit. The guys who wore them – like the guys who wore satin-trimmed track suits – were actually the stylish ones, the ones out ahead of the pack. They were, frankly, far-out and funky – and that was considered a good thing.

Think about it. Back then, all the cool friends wore leisure suits. Jack Tripper’s friend, Larry, wooed the chicks back at the Regal Beagle with his light green and burnt orange polyester twosomes. Bobby Ewing, J.R.’s younger and arguably better-looking brother, wore leisure suits in both polyester varieties and denim varieties – invariably with a Stetson. The entire cast of Welcome Back, Kotter – with the exception of Principal Woodman – wore leisure suits.

Come to think of it, until the later 1970s, when the leisure suit became a joke and gave way to the ubiquitous blazer and jeans, all the cool guys wore leisure suits. If you look back at advertisements from the era, you’ll even see leisure suits in black wash-and-wear – suitable for funerals and weddings.

Eaghh.

In fact, if you look back to television shows, only the square guys wore traditional, tailored men’s suits. Of course, in many cases these suits were of the hideous, nondescript gray polyester – remember that color? It was almost a pinky-gray, if such a thing is possible. Not commanding. Not memorable.

But still….but still. Those were the guys who were successful. In a high school in which the only teacher actually ever seen was Gabe Kaplan, it made sense that he was eventually promoted to principal (of course you didn’t know that; nobody watched the show for that many episodes). But in the Real World (the real Real World, not the MTV one), the only thing that people would have said about Mr. Kotter in the Teacher’s Lounge is, “Did I ever tell you about that goofy-ass teacher who is teaching the Sweathogs?

And back to J.R. Sure, he was a manipulative bastard, and sure, he got shot. As an aside, I don’t remember Who Shot J.R., though I do remember that Bobby was dead for a year and they had a funeral and then he came back and it was all a dream but they never told the people on Knot’s Landing – who went to his funeral – that it was a dream, and they mourned his memory until they got cancelled. But – back to J.R. – he was the epitome of power (possibly the guy that Donald Trump emulates) and he was rich an powerful and he got the ladies, as they may have said back then, if they weren’t saying he got the girls or the babes.

And he wore real suits.

Granted, no one wears leisure suits anymore. However, it’s a really good example of stupid things people wear because a lot of other people wear them. If you’re baffled by the popularity of the leisure suit, then be baffled by just about everything else that men wear today that’s not classic.

Because classic is what gets you to the finish line, with the big guys and the yachts and the wives who haven’t let themselves go. Or at least the salaries that allow you to buy a new sofa when the dog does something unspeakable to the old one.

The secret: two suits. Dark gray – charcoal – and dark blue. If you only have two suits, you don’t need to venture into the land of brown or light gray or other colors. A variety of shirts – white, light blue, striped blue-and-white – and a variety of ties – a couple of red or burgundy, yellow or gold.

Shoes and belt should be black. Buy a belt with a silver buckle, and a simple, elegant watch in a silver-tones metal. All of these classic items can be worn before dark and after dark.

And while cufflinks might seem to be a bit of extra bling the plain truth is that they are basics. They hold your cuffs together, for Pete’s sake! Button-down shirts, as convenient as they are – and with the button-cuffs they normally sport – are actually casual-wear. Who knew? They’re a little preppy, but not anything that can be worn after 6 – so why bother until you have the basics covered?

The general rule of wearing men’s jewelry is to match metal with metal. Oh, that’s not what the men’s magazines say – but tell me one CEO of a major company who’s wearing a purple suit with a bomber jacket and harem pants…

OK, none. So listen to me, dammit!

Since we’re just starting out, you don’t have a good belt with a brass or gold buckle yet. So make your cufflinks silver. The good news is that sterling silver is considerably less expensive than gold, but just as tasteful. You can choose a simple engravable cufflink with your monogram, or a simple initial. Or pick a classic tubular or sterling knot. There are even cufflink lockets – which will score you major points with whomever you choose to immortalize in photo wrist-reachiness…your spouse, your children, your boss, Jessica Alba…

The basics – but the classic basics. Your foundation, the rock upon which you shall build your wardrobe. Start now, and look good for the new year.

Whether your interests are in silver, gold, artistic, sports, or other theme-related cufflinks we’ve got you covered. Cufflink Aficionado carries a broad range of men’s cufflinks designed to meet each connoisseur’s individual style and interest. Our selection of engravable cufflinks are sure to top off that perfect look.