Wedding Gifts – We’ll Take Cash, Thank You Very Much

No matter how easy you think it should be to ask your guests for cash, rather than the time-old list of household items you feel obliged to need in order to set up home, there will always be those horrified by the very idea that you’ve shied away from the ritual of accepting gifts.

Money is for charities, bonuses and bank loans, not for gifts from family and friends, the traditionalist die-hards will mutter.

But in the wake of Kate and William’s example of charitable donations, and in today’s financial climate, couples getting married now are in greater need of a cash boost than a Kitchen Aid.

And there is no disguising the fact that you’re asking for money. Yes, you could opt for the gift registry where one particular retailer gets to increase its revenue from your wedding, or a honeymoon registry where your guests help you foot the bill for a rather expensive holiday that is over in a matter of days.

Or you could ask them for cash.

But how do you circumvent the idea that asking for cash is just plain ‘rude’? How do you get around to telling your guests you’d like the moolah please without actually saying it?

Best option? Go for both. Give those who are appalled at the idea of giving money the chance to choose from a gift registered at weddingABC, but also let your close relatives know (so that they can tell those who ask) that you’re busy saving for a bond on a house or similar.

The registry need only cover the basics, for those guests who really are uncomfortable with the idea of giving money.

There are also online registries that allow a guest to give a gift that is tantamount to giving cash – like ‘tickets to a play’ or a ‘wonderful night out’. Explore these options. Conversely, set up your own list of ‘gift ideas’ that include similar, so that guests are giving cash, but towards something specific.

Then again, you could simply cut down on the costs of the wedding, ask your guests not to bring gifts at all, and use the money you need so badly for your home, instead of for the big day. That way, everyone wins.