When you receive a beautifully wrapped gift, it makes you feel special, right? When you get to share that gift with your spouse, it is an extra special experience. Then, imagine that gift includes carefully selected items from a friend that will bring you closer together. That is the experience I seek to build for all of our couples. Today I am sharing how I partnered with a friend to step up my gifting game this year.

This year, I decided to do something a bit different when it came time for client gifts. As things picked up and I slowed down, it became more clear that I didn’t have the time I used to, to scour the town for the little details that share my heart and message with my couples. So, instead of heading to the internet, I called on my friend Liz at Loved and Found Box. From the first email with Liz to create custom gifts, it was not only easy, but she prompted me to really think about the intent behind each item more than usual (which is saying something!).

Once I started explaining my previous gifts, the reasons behind the items and what I was looking to refine this year, Liz sent me multiple options to include. What I loved about that was that I wasn’t just enlisting her to curate for me, but with me. We started with the vision I had and what the gifts should communicate to our sweet clients. From there, the options were further refined and we were able to finalize something really special!

Before I tell you what we decided on, let me share with you why these gifts are so important to me and the HHE brand. From day one, Harper Hadley Events has been about loving people well and encouraging them to do the same. Even though these gifts are wrapped beautifully, smell good, taste good and make people feel special, that is the cherry on top. The substance and thought that I put into them are why I think they resonate and really help create the experience I have built for our couples.

Marriage is one of the most sacred, uplifting, encouraging, challenging and wonderful gifts we have in this life. Hollywood often leads us to believe that marriage is only comprised of the romance and picture perfect moments. Just like life, that is not always the case. While I absolutely hope that you have more laughs than sorrow, part of our mission is to encourage strong marriages that focus on the roots that carry you through those harder days. Encourage you to choose your spouse every, single day. One of the ways I strive to do that is to remind people to find the joy in the simple, in between, everyday moments. Each and every piece of this beautiful gift was chosen to encourage you to do just that. So, what did we include? Alright, alright – take a gander!

Pink ring dish (wrapped in that beautiful watercolor paper) – A safe place to put your beautiful rings when doing the dishes after cooking dinner together or your earrings after a night out to the theatre. A safe place to land when you come home from a rough day. A beautiful heirloom to pass to your children someday.

Oliver Pluff MJ Coffee – To brew on slow mornings and sip on the porch, giggling and dreaming of what your future holds. Or maybe in the first few minutes of your day before the kids come clambering downstairs vying for your attention. To savor in the quiet and just be with each other.

Illume Gardenia Ceramic candle – The smell of your grandmother’s garden or a favorite perfume your mom used to wear that makes your home a bit cozier. To burn when you snuggle up on the couch with your favorite movie or book. To create those smell triggered memories for your family.

Sugarfina Champagne Bubbles and Bourbon Caramels – because they are delicious and we all deserve a few indulgences! It is the little sweets and fun things in life that keep things light and fun.

Cottage Hill Magazine – A beautiful collection of honest, real life-giving encouragement for marriage, art, inspiration, love and taking the less travelled path. This magazine and the articles in their online journal are reminders of what truly matters in life. Encouragement that your story is uniquely yours and worth fighting for.

Whether you are an HHE couple who receive this box or reading this because I included pretty images, I hope that you’ll find some inspiration and truth in the thought behind them. That my strings of words on this small space of the internet brings you some joy and encouragement and maybe, just maybe, helps you strengthen your marriages even a little bit.

xoxo, Jenn