Wedding Season? Our gift guide is here to help!

It’s that time of year again, get the suits dry cleaned and the hat box down from on top of the wardrobe then sit down with a cup of tea and read my guide to winning at wedding presents.

So weddings from start to finish are a political minefield. Day guests, night guests, you’ve been invited your cousin hasn’t, how much to spend, is a cash gift thoughtful enough? My own wedding last year has made me much more focused and less stressed about gifts. We received such generous cards and gifts that we were thoroughly over whelmed by kindness. We asked for a honeymoon contribution which often doesn’t sit well with older guests, therefore we also had a gift list registered at John Lewis, however we stressed to people we really didn’t need anything (yes we used a cheesy poem from the internet about pots and pans!) We ended up more than covering our honeymoon that was on our credit cards and when we returned embarked on giving our garden a makeover too. Having said that, I really appreciated it  when people had taken the time to give us gifts that were useful to us, so here are my top gifts from across the web.

• Nkuku Kiko Photo Frames - These Instagram hits make framing moments in your life, as well as photos, really easy so you can keep your wedding flowers, invitations or honeymoon tickets. Have a look here. When you do get your wedding pics back there's always a shortage of frames. We got this one from The White Company which is gorgeous and goes in every room in the house.

• Scented Candles -  We received a couple of candles and they were used almost as soon as we landed (recovering from a monkey bite/rabies injections took its toll!) Newlyweds are still in a blissful honeymoon period and there’s nothing more romantic than candle light. I love our Fired Earth Candles as they are beautifully presented and have a really long burn time. We also got a couple of Jo Malone sets which always get my vote.  

• Lovely Little Company Lightboxes - Our best-selling A4 Lightboxes and accessories make a perfect gift for your newlyweds. They can relish in being the new Mr & Mrs Jones and let the whole world know! With 85 letters and symbols anything can be created (as long as it fits on three lines!) The celebration pack is also a must!  

• Personalised prints and artwork - Notonthehighstreet.com is the go to destination for customised wedding gifts, prints, mugs, keyrings. If you know the couple really well this is ideal. If you don’t and you’ve never set foot in their house, you could be in dangerous waters! Our ‘Love is all you need’ picture is a winner, black and white will go in any colour scheme and will remind the couple of you every time they see it.

•  Champagne -   An oldy but a goody! Who doesn’t like a good bottle of champers to crack open. A perfect cure for the honeymoon blues. For those couples that have EVERYTHING, try adding some accessories too – a champagne bucket, ice tongs, contemporary glasses or our MR & Mrs mugs from Keith Brymer Jones. Even though it’s a more traditional gift, when the new couple entertain it’s a gift that’s sure to come out of the cupboard and impress.                    

There are so many wonderful shops on the high street, go out and have a look in your local indies, but keep an open mind. Sometimes the best gifts are those you stumble across unexpectedly, not the ones you search endlessly for. Lastly keep things practical, if it’s not something you think they would use, don’t risk it – I would much rather give a gift that will see some use, rather than put away in a drawer! Things for the kitchen are always practical, mugs, lovely nibbles bowls, a casserole dish! And if you don’t know them very well – avoid anything too personalised, it might not be their taste. And if you’re really stuck.... a spa treat or lovely meal will always be appreciated post wedding storm.