Wedding Gifts
The purpose of inviting guests is to have them witness a couple's marriage ceremony and vows and to share in their joy and celebration. Gifts for the wedding couple are optional, although most guests attempt to give at least a token gifts of their best wishes. Some couples and families feel, contrary to proper etiquette, that in return for the expense they put into entertaining and feeding their guests, the guests should pay them with similarly expensive gifts or cash.
The couple often registers for gifts at a store well in advance of their wedding. This allows them to create a list of household items, usually including china, silverware and crystalware, linens or other fabrics, pots and pans, etc. Registries are intended to aid guests in selecting gifts the newlyweds truly want, and the service is sufficiently profitable that most retailers, from luxury shops to discount stores, offer the opportunity. Registry information should, according to etiquette, be provided only to guests upon direct request, and never included in the invitation. Some couples additionally or instead register with services that enable money gifts intended to fund items such as a honeymoon, home purchase or college fund. Some find bridal registries inappropriate as they contravene traditional notions behind gifts, such as that all gifts are optional and delightful surprises personally chosen by the giver, and that registries lead to a type of price-based competition, as the couple knows the cost of each gifts. Traditionally, weddings were considered a personal event and inviting people to the wedding who are not known to at least one member of the couple well enough to be able to choose an appropriate gifts was considered inappropriate, and registries should therefore be unnecessary. Whether considered appropriate or not, others believe that weddings are opportunities to extract funds or specific gifts from as many people as possible, and that even an invitation carries an expectation of monetary reward rather than merely congratulations.
Letters of thanks for any gifts are traditionally sent promptly after the gifts receipt. Tradition allows wedding gifts to be sent up to a year after the wedding date. Thanks should be sent as soon as possible, preferably within two weeks.
More on Wedding Gifts
Many people look for unique wedding gifts ideas, and though giving something truly special to a newly married couple is always nice, you may not want to stray far from registry lists. In fact, if the couple has been so good as to provide guests with a gifts registry, it makes sense to choose a gifts from the registry. This helps to eliminate guesswork and will give you plenty of wedding gifts ideas from low price to high that a new couple is sure to appreciate.
On the other hand, not all couples have gifts registries, so you may need to think a little harder to come up with wedding gifts ideas. The first place to start in this thinking process is to consider the couple. A young couple establishing their first home together provides plenty of wedding gifts ideas, since they may need just about everything for their new life together. Think of the variety of kitchen items the couple might need such as: pots and pans, cutlery, small kitchen appliances, cookbooks, everyday plates, cups, glasses, flatware, and so much more. Alternately you might want to help supply the couple with other things needed for most households like bed and bath linens and accessories.
Some couples will enter marriages fully supplied with most basic household items. You can still find things for the household that the couple may not have. For instance, consider purchasing the latest kitchen gadget, a truly excellent espresso machine or a very fancy blender for instance. Other wedding gifts ideas for the couple that already has most basic things include picture frames, which will be great for framing wedding pictures, decorative vases, or attractive coffee table books. Think about the couple’s interests and you may also find other gifts you can give: nights out to a favorite restaurant, a gifts certificate for golfing, a donation to the couple’s favorite charity, or a Blu-Ray player and some classic movies.
One gifts that never goes out of style is cash. When you’re really stumped for wedding gifts ideas, chances are the couple will know just what they’d like to get with any cash gifts you give. If you’re giving this type of gifts to a younger couple, you might consider sending it just a few weeks ahead of the wedding. Then the couple can decide to use it however they’d like, for not only acquiring household things, but also possibly extending their honeymoon or expanding their budget for their wedding day.
You can of course get more creative with wedding gifts ideas. If you’ve got time on your hands you could gather photos of the couple and make them a photo collage, or try to obtain a photograph of both members of the couple when they were the children, and frame them side by side. Perhaps you have an antique or family heirloom the couple has always loved that you’d like them to enjoy now or you’re an artist or photographer that the couple very much admires.
It just always helps to think about what you think the couple would most like. If you’re really unsure of their tastes, it may be best to stick with registries, and if they’re starting their first home, be assured they will need just about everything they ask for. If you know the couple very well, you might want to strike out on a less traditional path and provide them with a unique wedding present that they can treasure for years.
