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Marriage customs have undergone countless modifications over the past few centuries. It is no longer uncommon for couples to be already established within their career and home life. More often than not these couples are now marrying at older ages leaving little space for the traditional “wedding registry”. Gone are the days of the young couple with the clothes on their back and a small cramped apartment. So here lies the question: What is trending in wedding gift giving today?
Globally, the exchanging of money has been the rising trend in wedding gift giving. Most likely, this is due to the percentage of couples living together before marriage, nearly doubling over the last 2 years. Couples who live together before marriage undoubtedly already own pots and pans. Sure, they can opt to make a wedding registry that will allow them to upgrade to designer pot and pans but what a waste that would be! These couples are more likely to opt for money to help pay for things like their honeymoon, a new car, down payment on a home, or a baby/family making fund.
Now what about the couple who has it all? Some couples have been known to rule out gift giving entirely. The growing popularity of extravagant weddings are leaving guests with enormous expenses such as travel, hotel stays and pre-wedding events such as engagement parties, bridal showers, etc. As you can imagine guests are spending a hefty amount on the new couple before they even attend the wedding reception. A trending idea for this type of circumstance could be to leave an open invitation for guest to donate money in the couples’ name to an organization of their choice. For example, LGBTIQ+ couples getting hitched could be drawn to the idea of supporting marriage equality. Registering for charitable gifts is a great way to help make the world a better place!
Now let’s say that the happy couple “have it all” and are not registered for any charitable or tangible gifts. What do we get them? Here are some upcoming ideas for 2016 unique wedding gifts:
- A Netflix (or similar) membership
- Gourmet couples’ cooking classes
- Gift certificate for a bed & breakfast getaway
- Membership to a wine/beer/fruit of the month club
- Tickets to a local concert, art museum, aquarium, etc.
If all else fails… maybe we should stick to the oh-so ever-easy gift of cash. After all, it is globally trending for a reason!
