What kinds of things are the guys interested in? I bet we could come up with all kinds of unique gifts for fishing buddies, golf enthusiasts, music buffs, or even couch potatoes. It is hard to come up with generic unique ideas.

Well, one is out of college only 1 year and loves hockey and the other is married with second child due before wedding and I know he likes wines and cooking.
IMHO I think Tim should do the gift certificate (are you listening Tim?) thing to a nice restuarant. It doesn't need to be enough for groomsman and spouse or girlfriend! But he seems stuck on a gifty type of thing.
I'm sure he can't afford hockey tickets.
Kathy G in MI

Love the idea of the magazine subscriptions! How nice that they can have something so individual...Hockey News or Sports Illustrated for the hockey enthusiast, and perhaps Epicurious (or similar)for the other...if your son purchases one copy of each and places it into a gift basket with 'stuff' representative of each, that would be a wonderful gift! Magazines are so nice to find in my mail-box, yet can be so costly for a young family:love it! ;-)

What about personalized gifts? The wine enthusiast get a great bottle of wine, and wine opener or something, and the hockey player gets a great jersey and or tickets to a game... etc.

Gift certificates to places like Burger King. The guys I've given them to really liked 'em : )

How about an engraved set of calling cards? Can't get much more personal than that.

We gave the guys a nice pen--sort of boring, but we kind of felt you couldn't go wrong. I found one that *looked* sort of like a Mont Blanc fountain pen but wasn't as expensive (and wasn't a fountain pen either).

And I did see them using it a couple of times (the ring bearer was thrilled, LOL!)

Wacky ones, about $60, some a little less
http://www.artbrown.com/category_1column.aspx?Category_ID=2&;

classy ones, $65 to $90
http://www.artbrown.com/category_2column.aspx?Category_ID=25&;

also classy (this one has the crocodile leather, for $25!)
http://www.artbrown.com/category_2column.aspx?Category_ID=32&;

Why does a groomsman's gift need to be "unique"? I think I'd do better if I thought about what these friends and relatives would enjoy, not what would make me, as the giver, feel clever or "unique."
I mean, Talley Sue's suggestion of a beautiful pen probably wouldn't win a prize for originality, but I think it is an EXCELLENT idea. Classy, lasting, personal, okay to have more than one, possible to choose a different style for each guy -- a great idea.
Similar ideas: a really good umbrella (not the two-month-lifespan kind we buy ourselves) or a good wallet.
But everyone is different. I'm sure some guys would prefer a pub sign!

ooh, a really good umbrella--I found that the $25 umbrella was the one I was able to not lose!

DSIL gave everyone a fancy metal "suitcase" of BBQ tools. I think he found them at Home Depot.

But "unique" doesn't mean that the giver "exerted an extra effort to think what gift is appropriate to him/her." I don't think that's what posters mean when they ask for help with ideas of "unique" gifts -- how could someone on an internet forum help think of a particularly appropriate gift for people they don't even know? Personalization does make the gift unique in a technical sense, I suppose, but I doubt that seeing my initials on some doodad would mean all that much to me or make me feel more valued than a non-personalized gift would. I think posters asking for ideas for "unique" gifts mean they want something that hasn't been given before. For all we know, they are planning to give the same "unique" gift to all the attendants.

If what you want is to be "unique," then give the guy a porcupine.

But if what you want is to give a gift that will make the recipient feel valued (whether for a wedding or any other occasion), then stop worrying about coming up with a unique or clever idea and just think of what will please him/her, not make you look creative. I would rather have a beautiful pen or piece of jewelry -- notwithstanding that those are common gifts for an attendant -- than something chosen solely because it is unusual.

I especially like getting a different thing for each attendant, chosen especially for his/her tastes and interests. I think it is nice when brides and grooms show that they know they are not the only important ones by choosing gifts that shows they think of their friends and relatives as individuals whose own lives and interests are important, not just their role as attendants in the wedding entourage. That's why the worst gifts are the ones engraved or printed with the bridal couple's names, wedding date, etc.

Yes, gellchom, I meant unique for his/her tastes.
Well, the wedding was 4 years ago and I sure don't remember what Tim gave the groomsmen (one of my DS's was best man).
I was surprised to see this post back up to the recent posts. I guess the same old questions just keep getting asked, over and over again, for the same old problems.
Good luck everyone, Kathy G in MI, 4 years later

My daughter and her fiance are giving the guys dop(hope that is spelled right) kits........you know, the leather "bags" that hold their travel toiletries.
Seems that most travel a bit and this was an idea that stuck with them.
I am hoping that we can find ones where we can engrave their names or initials!
Hope this helps.
Julie

THey had tons of ideas though from gift cards, watches, engraved key fobs and/or money clips, billfolds, car kits.....just tons of ideas out there. You might even just check out gift sites and see what they recommend. Should be a ton of ideas out there with Fathers day approaching!!!

Julie, I hope you don't mind my saying it, but I think I would skip putting the names or initials on gifts. I don't think it really adds much, and just in case it's the fourth Dopp kit or billfold or something the guy has gotten recently, I would give him a break and make it possible to exchange it for something else, or even regift it (I am one who approves of appropriate regifting). As most of these guys all "travel a bit," it's not unlikely that they already have Dopp kits. They may well appreciate a fresh one (I would), though.

A few different people got my daughter towels for her graduation. It was nice of them to have her name embroidered on them, but she has more than she needs and they don't match the colors she wanted, and now she can't exchange them. I'm sure she will be able to use them anyway, but I doubt the givers would really have cared if she had exchanged them for a different color.

By the way, I was curious about the origin of the term "Dopp kit," so I googled it, and it's interesting. Check it out at http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-dop1.htm

If you want to add names to the Dopp kits, you could find a charm, and attach it to the zipper pull.

You can get dog-tag shapes, ovals, diamonds, hexagons, vaguely diamond shaped silhouettes, and others. They're about $15 (can be much more, of course)

Then they could keep using the tag long after the kit wore out.

Perfect idea, Talley Sue!