When Your Presence is Not Present Enough
Sometimes is hard to know what to spend on wedding gifts, along with the other related events to the wedding such as the engagement party and wedding shower. When it really comes down to it, spend what you are comfortable with – there is no point in spending above and beyond your means just to ‘keep up with the joneses.'We have a few creative ideas that you can use to help with your gifting – and the great thing is you can customize how much you spend based on your budget:
Contribute to their honeymoon – Couples may setup their ‘honeymoon registry’ via sites like HoneyFund, but even if this isn’t an option, if you know where they’re headed, you can research a restaurant or activity you could buy them a gift certificate for.
Picture Frame – ok, so this may sound regular and simple, however, you could attach a little note that says you will gift them one of their favourite photos from the wedding to fit in the frame. This is a lovely keepsake that sometimes couples might not take the time to do until later and you can help them start.
Create a ‘first picnic’ basket – complete with a blanket, a few treats, a bottle of bubbly and a little note ‘to your first picnic together.’
If you’re creative or handy, you may wish to make the couple a thoughtful gift like a piece of art, furniture, or quilt.
If you are invited to all of the wedding events, The Knot gives a great breakdown of how to divide your budget between all of the events:
20% on the engagement present
20% on the shower gift
60% on the wedding gift
“That means if you're spending $250 total, you'd spend $50 each on the engagement and shower, and $150 on the wedding present. If you're only invited to the shower, then spend the extra 20% beefing up the wedding gift.)” – Source theknot.com
Just remember, start by deciding your budget for the wedding (and related events), then plan from there. You can still give a thoughtful and heartfelt gift to the couple no matter how much money you have.
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