Grooming with the Groomsmen

Your groomsmen and you have been together since your school days, but that's no excuse for looking like grungy teenagers when standing at the altar. Grooming for your wedding is an important step that not only makes yourself look confident and handsome, it gives you a chance to relax and enjoy the moment. Take this opportunity to bond with your groomsmen with some groomsmen gifts that will make you all look your best. What the Bride Goes Through Did you know that brides take a full day weeks before their wedding to make a "run through" with a professional hair and make-up artist? This goes a little overboard in the guy handbook, but it does make a standard to what you should live up to on the big day. Finding a Man Spa Not surprisingly, the market for the male spa is growing. If you live near a city, it's easy to find these male grooming sanctuaries complete with their mahogany floors and overstuffed leather seats. I know what you're saying, you're right - they are expensive. You could likely get the same kind of service at a spa or stylist for a significantly less money, but you'll be trading the ambiance and their ace in the hole "the perfect shave." The Straight Edge Razor There is no better "man moment" than when the barber chair is tilt back, the warm towel slides off your face and you feel the warm, rich lather of shaving cream right before your professional shave. It's one of those things you have to do at least once in your life. To find one of these places, try searching for 'professional shave' in your area or another option is to visit The Perfect Shave, which seems to have upscale shave specialty shop in most major cities. Be looking to spend about $50 on a shave and a haircut (they're sure to throw in some extra stuff like a scalp massage and drinks). If shaving at home is more your thing, you can still share the moment with your best buddies with personalized gifts of this Personalized Mach3 Razor & Badger Brush on Chrome Plated Stand. The act of shaving is a zen-like activity. When you do it yourself, make sure your doing it right by reading the Guide to a Close and Comfortable Shave.

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Grooming with Jewelry

By Michael O'Connor, Jewelry and Style Expert It may be the bride's day, but the groom should look good for his wedding, too. Although no one is fussing over the guy issues, many men today are not afraid to show emotion (the room might get a little dusty when he gives out his groomsmen gifts). Whether he's a jeans-and-T-shirts man or a "wouldn't be caught dead sweats" guy, the wedding day is a time to show a more polished side. Jewelry can be a subtle way of making a strong personal statement. Men's Jewelry Trends Men are more open to jewelry these days, opting for platinum that offer a masculine look, feel and weight while providing durability, lasting luster. Because platinum jewelry is generally 95% pure, unlike 18k-gold that is only 75% pure, it is hypoallergenic. In the past few years, jewelry designers step increase their collections for men by giving them more options to express their personalities. This extensive gent's line from Precious Platinum has a timeless selection of in handsome and masculine finished platinum including tie pins and rings, pendants, and cufflinks. The tie accent is a simple way to make your tie pop with any suit you wear. When it's time to pick out your groomsmen gifts, don't overlook designer dog tags, cuff bracelets, and belt buckles. Resurfacing a quarter century past its heyday, the ID bracelet is back, but in personalized versions engraved with names, dates or mantras that mean something special to the groom and his buddies.

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Groom's Cake Gallery: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

When it comes to weddings, the bride gives the groom complete control over three things: picking the groomsmen gifts, planning the bachelor party (if she lets him have one), and the groom's cake. If you never heard of a groom's cake, take a look at our groom's cake gallery. Here are grooms cakes for geeks, hunters and sports fans, Homer Simpson types, and the world's worst cakes just for fun. Bon appetit! Best Grooms Cakes for Geeks: Is there a better love story for geeks than Mario and the Princess? Look at how cute they look at top of the castle! This geeky groom's cake comes from the WeddingBee. Now you can have your XBOX and eat it too. Most women only dream about smashing the XBOX; this bride got to take her frustrations out on the cake. Sweet. From CakeWrecks.com, this Wall-E masterpiece takes the cake for being the geekiest and the most amazing. There is some serious food art going on with this cake. But who wants to eat Wall-E? Best Grooms cakes for Hunters and Sports Fans: Another hilarious groom's cake disaster from CakeWrecks. Nothing says "I'm getting married" better than a severed head in a helmet. Do you think he has helmet hair? Creepy. We hope there's not a live duck hiding out in this groom's cake. This camo cake comes from Who Made the Cake. Remind you of someone? You and your groomsmen perhaps? If so, think about getting your "dogs," personalized poker sets for groomsmen gifts. New groom's cake rule: no cake should ever have eyes. Who wants to devour a cake when it's staring at you? Shudder. Most Unhealthy Grooms Cakes: Instead of that cupcake tower your bride-to-be begged for, why not pick donuts for your groom's cake? In the immortal mumblings of Homer J. Simpson, "mmm...donuts." Here we have a donut-burger concoction. If only the baker could incorporate beer! If you have a favorite donut in mind, giant-size it for your groom's cake. Check out this huge Krispy Creme replica. Does it have the same pillowy goodness as a real Krispy Creme? If so, we'll take two. W2orst Wedding Cakes EVER: Either this is a cake wreck or it is the most brilliantly crafted cake ever made. What happens when the bride and groom cut the top tier off and freeze it for their first year anniversary? Does the bride's head sit in the freezer for a whole year? Yikes. This health hazard of a cake from TackyWeddings. Did it ever occur to the bride and groom that money carries germs? Think about where those dollars were before they ended up on the cake. Our bet: Vegas bachelor party. Shudder. We imagine the guests weren't pleased with this sashimi surprise. That's right, this rainbow cake is crafted entirely out of sushi! Whatever happened to fondant? If you had your fill of tacky cakes, shop Groomstand for tasteful groomsmen gifts and more. Remember guys, don't make your groom's cake a replica of yourself or your bride. Unless of course, you're throwing a Halloween wedding.

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Groom Scores with Football Wedding

September's Marrying Man of the Month trusted his wife to plan a wedding they would both enjoy. Before the Bears home opener, the bride and groom exchanged vows during a Sunday morning football themed wedding at the Chicago ESPN Zone. Read full Chicago Sun-Times article. The groom, Shawn Kelley, could have selfishly set his own wedding agenda. Reluctantly, Kelly gave up on flowers, a tuxedo and some swanky groomsmen gifts to let his new bride, Lindsay Huetson, follow her heart. "We were spinning around ideas for a casual, fun wedding, and this just popped into my head," says Lindsay. Since the groom is a Steelers fan after growing up in Pittsburg, the couple has divided loyalties to their NFL teams. After the Bears announced their first home game was against the Steelers, the couple figured it was serendipitous to hold their wedding before the game. The newlyweds wore jerseys and caps of their favorite players (the Steelers' Troy Polamalu and the Bears' Devin Hester) while walking down the aisle to the "Monday Night Football" theme. Even Officiate Michelle L. Oxman got into the football spirit with lines like "Will you give up your status as a free agent and make the welfare of this team your highest priority?" After their reception at the ESPN Zone, the couple ventured down to Soldier Field with the hopes of finding two tickets to the big game. Rain on your wedding day is supposed to be a lucky omen, and by the look of how much it rained on Sunday, there was a good chance this couple was lucky enough to find some empty seats. In case you were wondering, this was the first wedding reception at the Chicago ESPN Zone. The sales manager, Randy Hajduk, says he'd love to see the trend catch on, but admits most wives might not agree to a football themed wedding.

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Great Gifts Under $20 For Your Groomsmen

Spending a lot getting ready for your wedding is going to happen, so there are plenty of reasons why you'd need an affordable groomsman gift. Either you're thinking ahead on spending and budgeting or it's a last minute thing and you're trying to stay in that budget. That can be difficult to stick to though with all of the really nice gifts out there with prices that aren't so much, so what's to choose from that works as a cheap gift but isn't going to be under appreciated? We've made a quick link-list to gifts for your groomsmen under $20 to make it easier for you to browse things.. quickly. Pocket Knives and Multi tools Engraved Glassware, Flasks, and Barware Travel Accessories, Sports & Outdoor Men's Accessories and Grooming Cigar Aficionado Golf Accessories Executive Groomsmen Gifts Wallets and Money Clips Rawlings Leather Accessories Bachelor Party T-Shirts, Books & Cards Engraved Bar Accessories Personalized Pens & Writing Accouterments

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Grand Daddy of Gifts for Groomsmen

What can be a better in the world of gifts than gifting really high-end, sophisticated items to help with the consumption of their favorite libations and expensive cigars? I can't think of anything better. In fact, if my grand dad was still alive and he laid his eyes on this ridiculously great looking Four-Piece Cigar & Bar Set he'd have been really impressed. I'd take it a step further and say that he would have likely had a conversation with my father about these that might have sounded something like this. "He's a good boy. Not a putz like you always call him. He offered me his flask which was filled with the good stuff, not the cheap-o well whiskey gut rot you always put in yours. Now who's the putz?!" Who indeed I think to myself. Who indeed...ah...I really wish ole Pop was alive right now. I can't think of anyone who I'd like to share a drink with more. Trust me on this one, your favorite guys will love getting these as gifts. It says, "You're important, and I know that you're important, and I want the people that come into your house to know that I know that you know that you're important." Most of all it really lets everyone know that you can't be a putz with taste like this. Cheers to the grand dads around the globe. And cheers to you. Technorati Tags: cigar bar sets, cool gifts, groomsmen gifts, guy gifts

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Good News: Groomsmen Gifts Sale Extended

Good news if you missed our store wide 10% off sale on groomsmen gifts. Our store wide sale was extended to 5/31/09! Free ground shipping on orders over $150 still applies and our quantity discount can save you 10% when you purchase 6 or more of the same item. This is one sale you don't want to miss. Buy your groomsmen gifts today before the sale goes away!

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Golf With Your Credit Card

What will they think of next? First the golf gods built us metal woods, which became titanium drivers and now they've invented a credit card sized device to give as groomsmen gifts or keep for yourself, engineered to hold your marker, divot fixer, groove cleaner for your irons and woods and last but not least it includes a ballpoint pen! We've seen a plethora of different unique and compact designs to hold our most valuable assets while we tour the links and give as groomsmen gifts, but this is just sheer ingenuity at its finest. After you've finished up eighteen with a birdie to win all the skins, you'll pull this slender and sleekly designed all in one card out of your pocket and use the lanyard hole to strap it to your bag. Great groomsmen gifts like this don't need to cost a fortune either. This heavyweight gift item carries a flyweight price tag, but Mister or Miss Golfer doesn't need to know that. They certainly wouldn't guess it by looking at it. Imagine chunking your approach shot or chili dipping your chip shot to the green -- normally you'd do a quick wipe with your golf towel to remove the turf, but now with a built in groove cleaner you can instantly have your irons gleaming before you chunk your next shot with them. How about the beauty of not having a pocket full of jingling pennies that you would normally use to mark your ball on the green? This is a real ball marker, fellas. Don't be too quick to lend it to the other guys in your foursome or you might not get it back -- your best bet is to spread the wealth by giving these as groomsmen gifts. If golf is their game then the tool logic golf card should most definitely be the name. Look forward to hearing your comments on this one. Not all golf groomsmen gifts are created equal and this one deserves to be mentioned.

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Global Groomsmen Gifts: Wedding Customs from Around the World

If you think the chicken dance is weird (it is) wait until you see these wedding customs. Better buy your groomsmen top-notch groomsmen gifts or you risk kidnapping, public humiliation, or worse. Keep in mind that every wedding ritual comes from somewhere, but we think most are used solely to embarrass the bride and groom. Blackening the Bride In Scotland, the bride is kidnapped and covered with eggs, feathers, and other gooey substances. Then, she is paraded through town and into the local pubs. Warning: this video might cause a sudden flashback to hazing week. Stealing the Groom's Shoes Bengali weddings are elaborate, three-day affairs. And you thought planning for your one-day wedding was a nightmare! In Bengali custom, the bride's younger siblings and cousins steal the groom's shoes at the celebration. To get his shoes back, he has to pay the kids off promptly or go barefoot. Log Sawing Out of all the weird wedding traditions, German log sawing takes the cake. The bride and groom, (in formal wedding garb) must work together to saw a log in half. If they can do it without turning on each other, they'll look forward to a happy married life. The couple that saws together stays together! Break a Dish and Make a Wish As another German wedding tradition, friends of the bride and groom shatter dishes before the wedding and the couple cleans up the shattered pieces afterwards. This tradition prepares the couple for married life and gives them good luck. We think it's used to test the groom's domestic prowess. If he sits down and lets the lady clean up, it wasn't meant to be. But if he gets up with a broom, a good groom you'll see. Now that you know about the other wedding customs out there, the garter toss and dollar dance don't seem so bad. Neither does the stag party. In case your wedding party plans to kidnap and humiliate you, bribe them with groomsmen gifts and more from GroomStand.

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Game Day Picks Are Important

You get your fantasy teams picked out as fast as they're ready to be made, so why not get the drop on picking your groomsmen too? We're not saying to rush into any decisions, but earlier is better in this situation (just ask your soon to be wife!). In fact a little story about a guy getting married and calling up one of his old school friends, who remembered him to be something of a big practical joker, and asking him to be best man shows just how important not rushing is. Anyways the best man got a hold of the groom's lottery ticket prior to the wedding and jotted down the numbers. He held onto them for his best man speech and announced that all of them as friends followed the lottery and he was going to read off today's winning numbers. So as he's reading them off the groom is really starting to get excited until finally he jumps up and yells "I'm rich!" and starts running around showing it off. His wife is excited too, congratulating him and telling him how happy she is that they are rich. The groom just asks "we're rich? No I'm rich, and I've been sleeping with your sister for the last two months!" as he runs down and grabs her sister's hand and leaves the reception. Basically sums up the idea to give thought to who you choose as groomsmen. Not necessarily ones that won't play a joke on you, but if you do just make sure not to make a fool of yourself or ruin anything. In fact if they do pull one you can get back at them with any gifts that might make a good inside joke. Getting your groomsmen personalized gifts would even let you throw a little message in there so whenever they use it they'll have to remember the joke. That's probably how any wedding day jokes would go so it's only fair! Tags: groomsmen gifts, groomsmen, gifts, groom, best man, jokes,

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From Beer Belly to Six-Pack: Groom Camp Wedding Workout Guide

Tips, Tricks, and Groomsmen Gifts for Getting Healthy Welcome to the Groom Camp Wedding Work Out Guide! With these healthy tips, tricks, and groomsmen gifts you're well on your way to deflating that spare tire. Many brides try some sort of vigorous exercise program before the wedding: Pilates, dance, kick boxing. While a penguin suit conceals more than a strapless white dress, grooms and their groomsmen should use the Big Day as motivation to turn the beer belly into a six-pack. Remember, people will be looking at your wedding pictures 50 years from now. You don't want to be the dude with a beer gut hanging over his cummerbund. Suffice it to say, neither do your groomsmen! Rather than giving them something that packs on the poundage, give your guys sports-themed groomsmen gifts guaranteed to get them off the couch. And to make it interesting, give them some competition! No Beer for You Go to the fridge right now. Crack open a beer and drink it in our honor. Then, put away pilsner until after the bachelor party. Beer is full of carbs, calories, and other things that make you bloated. Say goodbye. If you can't, only drink on special occasions like the SuperBowl. Stick to our plan and that beer belly will turn into a six pack. Get Physical Three things you need: a gym membership or workout room, a workout buddy, and some kickin' iTunes. The rest is up to you. Work out three times a week until it's a month before your wedding. Once you hit crunch time, amp it up to four times a week. Alternate between lower and upper body exercises and give yourself a day of rest between each work out. Get Off the Couch with These Groomsmen Gifts: We've seen enough Dr. Oz (only because our fiance won't turn off Oprah) and Fit TV to know that exercise is an important part of a healthy lifestyle. But most guys can only pretend to race people on the elliptical for so long. Guys need some real competition! Get active with sports-related groomsmen gifts like engraved baseball bats or personalized golf gifts. Give these gifts to your groomsmen with an added note that says you'll beat them in golf or take them to the batting cages. Eat like a Champ: Now that you're off the couch it's time to develop some healthy eating habits. See a physician and come up with a diet plan. Replace the steak with nutritious items like grilled chicken and fish. Watch out for fatty foods. Order dressing on the side. Drink water. Cut down on sugar and complex carbs. A healthy diet is easier said than done. But weight loss is oh so rewarding. Especially when you unveil the new you in a new pair of speedos on the honeymoon. In all seriousness, read this article for 14 Health Foods that Aren't healthy at all. It's extremely helpful to those of us (ahem) that think chicken strips are somehow more healthy than a burger (they aren't). GroomStand tip: Be sure to let your tailor know about your goals and how much weight you want to lose so he can adjust your tux. If you have any wedding weight-loss success stories, we want to know! How did you do it? Tell us your secrets and we'll publish your advice in one of our future issues. Once your ready, shop for personalized gifts for groomsmen at GroomStand.com.

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Friday GroomTube Fun: Wedding Hair Wig Out

Grooms get their fair share of wedding stress: Finding a paunch-concealing tux, picking groomsmen gifts that don't suck, and planning the end-all, be-all bachelor party. Most of us don't have locks worth spending more than 15 seconds thinking about (unless you're John Stamos or Owen Wilson). However, for brides, hair is just as important as the dress. Don't believe how important hair is to a bride? Watch this hilarious wedding hair wig out. Pray your bride doesn't have a freak out like this. Wedding Hair Wig Out

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