Not attending wedding - Gift Ideas

blacklilly

Hi All,

A colleague of mine is getting married shortly and unfortunately I am unable to attend the wedding.

I want to gift something small but am totally out of ideas. I'd be looking at spending approx €50 (as I say just something small).

I feel its a little crass to just throw €50 into a card.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

endacl

Voucher for a nice hotel/spa always works.

blacklilly

endacl wrote: »

Voucher for a nice hotel/spa always works.

Is it bad form to give a voucher that only covers part of the cost though?

lawred2

blacklilly wrote: »

Is it bad form to give a voucher that only covers part of the cost though?

If I thought that either the bride or groom were likely to consider such a thing as 'bad form' then I'd have to reconsider why it was that I was considering giving them anything whatsoever.

GingerLily

A voucher for somewhere that does a nice brunch would be nice.

Champagne is always welcome

Arnotts BT or Dundrum gift cards are always useful

missmatty

It's up to you in the end but lots of people gave us 50e in a card, some who were attending and some who weren't. Some were relatives, so 50e from a colleague I'm sure would be very much appreciated by the couple.

jlm29

Meal voucher, somewhere local that does nice lunches- a hotel or restaurant or wherever.
You could give a voucher for a shop, or a one for all voucher either. I doubt they'll be expecting it, so whatever you give them, the thought will be appreciated.
I also wouldn't put €50 in a card. It's a bit confirmation, IMO, but I'm a bit funny about things like that!

Addle

€50 in a card or a bottle of champagne of equal value.

Vouchers where the bearer has to add to the value can sometimes be a hindrance rather than an addition, especially if someone is saving/paying for a big event!

blacklilly

Addle wrote: »

€50 in a card or a bottle of champagne of equal value.

Vouchers where the bearer has to add to the value can sometimes be a hindrance rather than an addition, especially if someone is saving/paying for a big event!

Thanks, you've said it better then I could have re:vouchers

clint_silver

blacklilly wrote: »

Thanks, you've said it better then I could have re:vouchers

An exception to that might be One4all cards, theyre accepted by many retailers. Everyone needs to go to argos/boots etc now and then. Just if you wanted something slightly less confirmation-like* than an actual 50 note. If I got a O4A card off someone I worked with, Id be happier than champagne.

*great way of putting it by j1m29 above.

baby and crumble

If you know what alcohol (if any) they like (maybe whiskey, rum or gin) you could get them a nice bottle, maybe something unusual.

love_love

baby and crumble wrote: »

If you know what alcohol (if any) they like (maybe whiskey, rum or gin) you could get them a nice bottle, maybe something unusual.

Seconding this, and maybe get them a couple of nice tumblers and specific ice cube moulds for whatever it is they drink. You could defo do that for €50 - Dunnes homeware actually has some lovely and unusual tumblers.

Money in a card, easiest for you and most thing they will appreciate.

zoobizoo

We got and have given €50 / €60 voucher for a place that would cover the cost of a brunch / lunch / main meal for two.

Nice to have for when you return from honeymoon...

pwurple

Not vouchers please. Just found a voucher a few weeks ago that someone gave us for our wedding a decade ago. At the bottom of a box of cards when we were moving house... 200 euro worth. The place is gone out of business since, but the voucher would have been out of date anyway.

Feel bad that the person spent their money on that tbh, and it was wasted.

jlm29

pwurple wrote: »

Not vouchers please. Just found a voucher a few weeks ago that someone gave us for our wedding a decade ago. At the bottom of a box of cards when we were moving house... 200 euro worth. The place is gone out of business since, but the voucher would have been out of date anyway.

Feel bad that the person spent their money on that tbh, and it was wasted.

That's annoying! I love vouchers. Love them! But if someone gave me a bottle of something alcoholic, I'd be horrified that they'd wasted their cash on that! It's so couple dependant!

noveltea

For some of my friends weddings that I could not attend, I gave them a chopping board but it had there names on it and the date of the wedding. For another I got them the Mr. & Mrs photo frame and one other I got personalised pillowcase.

Sebastian Dangerfield

Going against the grain on vouchers here, but we really appreciated them. After the wedding we were saving for a house so it was great to use up the vouchers, even if we had to add a little bit.

I think a restaurant voucher in their locality works, if you dont want to give cash.

Malari

For someone you know very little about, cash is certainly the safest.

But I think vouchers show a little more care and effort, as long as you know where they like to shop, or eat. It means you can associate a thing that you buy, or a meal you've had, with the gift-giver. In my mind, it seems of more value to give a €50 voucher for somewhere you know it will be spent, than a €50 note.

If you are guessing, or giving a gift, it's a risky little game! I would likely burn in the stove a wooden chopping board with wedding details carved into it, but maybe you know someone who would actually love something like that :pac:

heretothere

I think I'd just gice cash. It's what I always give.