The Celebration of Marriage - Idea #1

Wedding Gift Ideas and Traditions. What to buy the couple who have everything.

I am such a sucker for wanting to keep the past traditions of my family alive, and even more so for wanting to create new ones.

I guess it is down to the fact that both my fiance and I have moved around so much and haven’t set down any roots (yet). Having traditions to uphold on special occasions makes you feel a little more ‘homely and stable’ regardless of your geographical position. Even our own families when we were both children moved all over the world but Christmas traditions etc remained constant.

Between us, we have elements of customs and traditions from at least 6 different countries. England, Scandinavia, USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand…

This need for stability and wanting things (traditions) to last, really hit me hit me today. I was thinking of what to buy as gifts our 2 sets of best friends who are getting married this Spring and Summer and more so, worried about what to get them, would it be meaningful enough? 

I really think that gifts that you give to a couple on thier Wedding Day should be worthy of being treasured by the couple forever. It would also be nice to start a little tradition perhaps to build extra bonds. Particularly if you are really close to the couple.

Mr S is going to be an Usher for his best friend this May; said Groom will then be emigrating shortly after his Wedding for a year of Medical Residency in Canada with his beautiful Wife, so this makes planning to buy a gift rather impossible – what could they take with them!?  Shall we get something practical, or something meaningful? Mr S has final veto on what to get them….

However, I have also been asked to be Maid of Honor at my best friends Wedding in July, we have known each other since birth, and have literally been ‘planning’ our Weddings since the beginning of time.

My issue here, is that the girl has EVERYTHING, and a very distinct taste in home decor/personal style, so that one isn’t easy either. I really hated the idea of a gift wasted, and she is well known for putting a lot of thought and personal creativity into the gifts she gives.

I want to give something really personal so have decided on this.  Are you ready for the eureka moment? ….

I am going to buy a bottle of Champagne!!! (Yes, not very exciting I know), but here comes the science…

It will be packed up and labelled stating “DO NOT DRINK, available date to drink _,_,_”. 

25 years from their Wedding date!  That is a long time to wait for a drink right!?

Inside the box I am going to write a personal letter to them about their Wedding day, how happy I am for them, how proud I am to be part of the day, and what we have shared in the course of that year.

I will continue to do this for every Wedding Anniversary right up until their 25th Wedding Anniversary. Throwing in along the way extra bottles of fizz marking the occasions such as the birth of their children etc.

I can just imagine us all at their 25th Wedding Anniversary party, bedecked with 25 (or more) vintage bottles of Champagne, marking each and every Wedding Anniversary, birth, graduation, and milestone in their lives, and best of all, being able to reminise over these events by reading the letters.

I am not sure why I have chosen 25th, probably because we’ll still be young enough to rock it and devour that much Champagne, and the letters and memories from that celebration can be treasured for the next 25 years.  Or perhaps I’ll have to pick back up where I left off and continue on with the tradition….. See you when I am 75, I’ll have a glass of Bollinger in my hand!

I do love the thought of this and may just do it for myself too! Now if you will excuse me, I am off to the Stock Exchange to buy shares in the Champagne region…..

What kinds of gifts do you like to give at Weddings, and what was the best gift your received at your own?