You’ve been invited to your first bridal shower -- or, as one of the bridesmaids, maybe it’s up to you to host one. Either way, you have good reason to be almost as nervous about it as the bride will be on her big day because you have to come up with the right bridal shower gift ideas.

Spending too little money on your gift will make you look chintzy; spending too much will make you look insincere. An overly predictable gift will make you look lazy; an overly unique gift will make you look competitive. Here are some bridal shower gift ideas that are both clever and useful:

Online shopping gift cards. While there are local shopping malls that offer cards that be can used in any of their stores, a gift card from one of the big online retailers reflects the fact that the bride or newlywed to be may not have much spare time for bricks and mortar shopping. If you’re aware of the bride’s hobbies, find a retailer that specializes in the products she’d be most interested in.

Customized “Opoly” games. Just by uploading some photos, you can present the bride with one of several available versions of a personalized board game based on the classic Monopoly. The Luxury Tax is replaced by the Anniversary Tax, the Chance and Community Chest cards by Get Lucky and Family Jewels, and Go Directly To Jail is replaced by In Therapy or Visit In-Laws!

A Lazy Susan. No, it’s not a drink, it’s a tray that rotates (as illustrated above). Whether they’re made of wood or stone, have one or two tiers, or are kept in a cabinet or on a table, a lazy Susan is a bridal shower gift idea that makes storage and retrieval of small objects such as spice jars easy – and easy to keep within reach.

Stainless Steel pots. If you insist on getting kitchenware. If they’re too pricey, try a cast iron skillet — but only if it’s pre-seasoned or includes seasoning instructions. Will last forever, enough said.

Relationship and romance books. Not the drugstore Gothic kind. Marriage preparation literature should be more along the lines of a game plan for staying married. Look for books featuring questions about love or relationship quizzes for couples. If you order them as e-books, you could print them out, put them in a nice binder, and wrap them up with copies of them burned to a CD. At the end of the day, the very best gift you can give a bride is “job security,” isn’t it?

All in all, you want bridal shower gift ideas that project your thoughtfulness, sense of value, initiative, and flair for originality.