Soo… I was in the paper again yesterday, as part of an article on the indie craft movement and the New Orleans Craft Mafia’s four year anniversary! You can see the article online here (along with a picture of me — they had to use the one where I was trying not to laugh!). I was also the Featured Artisan on Handmade News as part of their [Craft] Mafia month!
Italian Family Wedding 1927 NYC via Whiskeygonebad @ Flickr
In other news, I need your help! My sister’s wedding is coming up in just a week and a half and I still haven’t figured out what to get them for a wedding gift! I’m totally stumped, and to further complicate things they haven’t registered for ANY gift registries that I know of. They’re doing a very low-key ceremony and barbeque reception at my mom’s house, so it’s pretty non-traditional. But I still need to get them a gift, right?
My sister and her fiancee will be moving to Jackson, Mississippi in a few weeks for his new teaching job (high school English). She’s a trained pastry chef. They’re both big board game geeks. I have NO idea what they need, no idea what to get them. My mom is just giving them money to help with their move and getting settled into a new life. Should I be lame and boring and get them a Target gift card or something? I’d love to find something handmade or eco-friendly if possible, but at the same time I don’t just want to shove my likes on to them, if it’s not something they’ll like or use. I’m getting down to the wire here, and if I can find something online I need to order it ASAP. Does anyone have any ideas? Please! I can use all the help I can get on this one!
{ 13 comments… read them below or add one }
What about some bamboo cooking utensils? Cutting boards, spatulas, and spoons? I know that mine are lifesavers because I can’t break them, and from a gal who dated a gourmet chef, you can never really have too many spoons or cutting boards…
I once commissioned an artist to make a piece of artwork with my friend and her fiance’s name and the date of the wedding and stuff…actually it was Jack who does the paper-cutting art. But he might need more time than that. Also, my friend left her husband after 6 months so I probably wasted my money
I like those pottery painting places, there’s one in the warehouse district and I think there’s one on Oak St. That’s a good way to create a personalized gift (like a platter or something) and you’re artistic so I’m sure it would come out great!
I think it’d be a win-win if you made up a board game for them. You can design it how you like and make it work however you’d like, and they’d be able to enjoy it together. If you’re not up for doing all that, try looking around your house and see what you use most or find most useful. This way instead of making something you can just buy something no one would think of and they’d still use a lot. You can also make pot holders (gloves and regular square ones), I’d say buy a welcome mat but those aren’t that nice of a gift to get…
Also, I think it’d be nice if you made them both a relaxation kit. It’d include candles, maybe an ambiance cd, bubble bath gel, message oils, all things like that because not only can they use it for the honeymoon, but to remind themselves to take it easy every so often so they don’t loose it after the wedding and planning with everything. You can also make/buy thank you cards as she may forget to do so in the midst of craziness brides dub a wedding.
Here’s some links I found that may or may not be useful and maybe will spark some new ideas.
Hope this helps!
Adorable apron
cups you’d fall in love with
soaps
ouija board necklace
It would be fun to do a gift of traditional good luck charms or good fortune tokens. I got a wedding gift of a woven doormat, a bag of rice, chopsticks, and so on that all stood for positive things my friend explained to me. It was really neat!
I have to second the bamboo utensil idea. I’m not a pro chef by any means, but I do a lot of cooking and baking and my bamboo boards and spoons and such are seriously my favorite and most used items.
One of my favorite gifts we received for our wedding was our wedding invitation professionally matted & framed. It was something I never would have thought of doing for myself, but it is very special & hangs in a prominent spot in our home. Is there anything they don’t have they will need to get started in their new home?
Thanks for all the suggestions everyone! I think I might have to check out the bamboo kitchen utensils, although I love the traditional good luck wedding gift idea!
You might find a cool bit of handmade art at http://www.giveartfully.com/ (or maybe a gift certificate so they could decorate their new place.)
i always like the idea of just giving money to a charity and then sending them the notice like “hey! you didn’t register, so i bought a village a cow from you. way to be!!” hefer international is a great website! or you can always sign them up for a food club and they can get a special treat once a month in the mail. my friends always liked that!
Kate, I’m a big fan of charity donations… I did that for another friend’s wedding when I didn’t know what to get them. And I got my mom a Kiva gift certificate for Christmas this past year.
I like to try and tailor the charity donations too though, sort of to the person/couple’s personal interests. And honestly, this is awful but I’m really not sure what kind of charities they support the most? Although I do love Heifer International… that’s definitely a good option!
I have also been stumped as to what to get them for their wedding. They have a small (and I mean very small) registry with Wal-Mart and on http://www.thingthatiwant.com. Because we are supposed to bring our favorite quote with us, I have considered taking my quote and framing it for their new home. I am also worried about what to wear!! Anyway, I feel that anything made with thought are always the best gifts. Good luck! P.S. As a florist, I LOVE the vintage wedding picture!!!!
Whether the wedding has happened yet or not, a nice sentimental gift to give them would be a bottle of wine not to be opened until the 10th anniversary. Along with it you can attach a nice poem about marriage. I had given this gift to a friend for her wedding along with a CD of the Chicago Wedding Band that played at her reception. So for 10 years they can be reminded of their wedding day with the wine bottle, and for the rest of their lives they can keep that CD that has songs from their wedding.
Hey I just stumbled across your site. Well done! I specialize in custom handpainted wedding keepsake boxes and picture frames. These are personalized with bride and groom’s name and wedding date as well as vows or reading from the wedding or love quotations in my calligraphy. Take a look at my site. http://www.oneheartstudio.com. ALSO I have a few gameboard paintings that I have for sale on etsy – I could easily add their names and date to front/side edge or back
Thanks for taking a look.
Caitlin Dundon
One Heart Studio