Tuesday, 26 November 2024
Tuesday, 26 November 2024
The wedding season of 2024-25 is here. According to a survey by the Confederation of All India Traders, an estimated 48 lakh weddings are due this year, compared to 35 lakh in 2023.
We are sure you will attend your fair share of those, but before you wrap up that bouquet or grab the first item on sale, take a moment to understand: Is your gift destined to bring joy or regret? Yes, there are some weddings where you just go to mark attendance and don’t really want to break the bank by buying lavish gifts, but as with everything there are certain boundaries that must be maintained.
Here's a handy The Telegraph Online guide – compiled after speaking to a few couples who tied the knot this year and last year – on the gifts to avoid.
Unless you want to be remembered as that guest.
1. Bouquets: The fastest way to bring down a Bride’s smile
"We were inundated with bouquets, they wilted faster than our post-wedding energy levels." said Aakriti Soni, who got married last year in December.
Flowers are beautiful, fragrant, and utterly useless after 72 hours. Sure, they brighten up the room briefly, but they leave nothing memorable except a pile of wilting petals and an awkward trip to the trash can.
“These bouquets are beautiful, but they don't really reflect who we are. They leave us with nothing worthwhile to remember and don't demonstrate the giver's consideration or effort,” said Soni.
So if you’re considering flowers, just skip them and get a potted plant instead. At least they stand a chance of survival, unlike your relationship with the couple if you clog their wedding venue with an unwanted bouquet.
2. Clothes: A sizeable mishap
"The shirt and pants didn’t fit me, or my sense of style," said Vaibhav Pandey who tied the knot last year in December.
Gifting clothes to a groom? Though the move is bold, unfortunately, it’s usually a terrible one. Gifting random apparel screams like “I don’t know you, but here’s a generic medium-sized shirt with a questionable print.”
Pandey said: “No person can select the right style or right fit or even colour for someone else, because for anyone, clothing is a very personal choice and the sizes did not even match. Anything meaningful or thoughtful that relates to the newly beginning journey of the couple feels so much nicer for a wedding instead of generic items like clothing.”
Unless you have a direct line of contact to their tailor, avoid clothes as gifts. It’s not just the thought that counts, it’s also the fit.
3. Wall clocks: Timelessly impractical
"The wall clock was intricate, but it didn’t match anything in our home," said Priya Sharma who got married this month.
A wall clock may sound like a timeless gift, but it’s just time-consuming to find a spot for it or make it fit your own idea of interior decor.
“Such gifts can become impractical or burdensome for the couple,” said Sharma. “I feel wedding gifts should focus on utility or personalisation, ensuring they bring genuine value to the recipient's life. Instead of decorative items, practical options like gift cards or household essentials can be more meaningful and appreciated.”
If your choice is purely decorative, ask yourself: will it survive the ruthless judgement of modern home aesthetics? If the answer is no, do not gift them.
4. Outdated alarm clocks: Ringing in regret
"Who even uses alarm clocks anymore," asked Vvihan Gulati, who tied the knot last year in November.
With smartphones and smartwatches ruling the day, giving an alarm clock is like gifting a horse and buggy in the era of Teslas. The couple doesn’t need a new way to wake up, they’ve got wedding stress and in-laws for that.
Next time, ensure to skip the throwback gadgets. They belong in a museum, not a wedding gift pile.
“The gift-givers decided to go old-school and present us with a relic from the ’90s. I suppose they wanted to make sure we didn't oversleep on our honeymoon or something. I'm still trying to figure out what the thought process was behind these gifts,” said Gulati.
“They tried, I suppose. But next time, maybe a gift card or a bottle of wine would be a safer bet,” Gulati added.
5. Giant stuffed animals: A third wheel nobody asked for
"A stuffed bear; it was so big, it needed its own postal code," said Rashi Agrahari, who got married in July this year.
Why give a stuffed bear to newlyweds? Perhaps to ensure they never forget your generosity or the space it takes in their house.
“We were living in a small apartment in Germany at the time, and there was absolutely no place for this plush monster. It took up the entire living room corner, and we started calling it ‘the third wheel’ on our couch. We ended up giving it away to a local charity, but it could’ve been an Olympic sport to get it out of our front door without tripping over it. A practical gift, or something we could actually use, would have been much more appreciated,” said Agrahari.
Practical gifts are the way to go; otherwise, you risk turning into the guest everyone remembers for gifting a sofa-sized toy that had the tag of the world’s most awkward wedding gift.
6. The Candle Stand: A gift that burned out fast
"We don’t use candles, and the stand didn’t match our décor, it was more of a dust collector than a thoughtful present," said Himani Sehgal, who got married in February this year
A candle stand may look like a classy gift, but it’s often the wedding equivalent of a white elephant. Unless the couple moonlights as Victorian-era romantics who dine by candlelight, chances are the candle(s) will be forgotten in a corner of their home. And even if they do use candles, the odds of your stand matching their décor are close to none.
“Weddings are a big deal, and gifts should reflect the couple’s personality or something that will actually be useful to them in their new life together, rather than being a random item that ends up in storage. It’s better to give something more meaningful or practical,” added Sehgal
So, dear candle giver, weddings are about lighting up the couple’s life, not leaving them in the dark about what to do with your present!
