Of all the gifts exchanged on a wedding day, the one from a bride to her dad tends to produce the most tears. Father of the bride cufflinks are a way of saying what's hard to put into words while the hairdresser is still working and the car is due in twenty minutes. He'll feel them at his wrists as he offers his arm at the back of the church, and he'll see them again when he stands up to give his speech.
The moment she gives them to him
Most brides hand them over in private, before the photographer arrives or just after, in the quiet room where he's waiting for her to come downstairs. Some leave them with a letter on his bedside table the night before. However you do it, allow a few minutes; this is rarely a gift that gets opened quickly and put straight on. If he's likely to be emotional, you might ask the photographer to be nearby.
Photographs from her childhood
The design that fathers of the bride treasure most is almost always an old family picture.
- Her hand in his. A shot of her as a toddler walking beside him, holding one finger. On a wedding day, the echo is impossible to miss.
- On his shoulders. At the zoo, on the beach at Polzeath, at her first football match.
- Then and now. Her as a little girl and the two of them on the wedding morning, side by side in one image. For this, choose the second photo from a fitting or the engagement and keep the style similar.
- Her handwriting. A line from a childhood birthday card ("To the best Daddy in the world") or a new note written for the day: "Thank you for everything, love always."
- The date and her new name. For fathers who prefer something understated, her initials before and after, with the wedding date.
Rescuing old family photos
The photo you want is often a print in an album, faded or a little soft. It's still worth using. Remove it from the sleeve if you can, and photograph it flat beside a window on a bright day, holding the phone directly above to avoid a slanting angle. Switch the flash off; it bounces off glossy prints. A scanner gives even better results if someone in the family has one. Then crop around the faces, since backgrounds of old carpets and sofas add nothing at this size. Black and white or slightly faded colour can look lovely and timeless on the silver-coloured finish, so don't feel the need to over-edit it.
Pairing them with his wedding outfit
Whether he's in a morning suit with a waistcoat or a lounge suit and tie, the square cufflinks sit neatly at a double cuff. Remind him to wear a shirt with French cuffs on the day, or buy one alongside, because some hire shops supply button cuffs as standard. If he already owns a favourite pair, these will quickly take their place for every family occasion afterwards.
How to order his pair
- Upload the photo or handwriting, or two images if you're doing a then-and-now design.
- Check the live preview on both cufflinks, dragging and zooming to centre each face.
- Order through our secure checkout. Your full-resolution original is used for printing, and the cufflinks are made in our Cornwall workshop and gift boxed.
A single pair of father of the bride cufflinks is £40 with shipping included. If you're ordering for the father of the groom, best man and others too, five or more pairs are £15 each with £5 shipping per order, and every pair can carry a different design.
Something he'll wear long after
When the wedding is over, he'll wear them at christenings, at other people's weddings, perhaps at a grandchild's graduation, and each time they'll bring back the moment she took his arm.