14 couples share the best wedding gifts they received

We had said we weren’t going to bother with an actual print off and fill wedding album – why would we, when everything’s digital? But actually I’m really glad my aunty ignored us. I love the fact it’s so nostalgic and tangible; the smell of leather and sound of tissue paper between pages reminds me of looking through my mum and dad’s album when I was little. I also love the idea of our son looking through it, asking who people are, forcing out old memories to relive it again.

– Steph and Mark, Kent

These napkin jewels were something we would NEVER have bought for ourselves (far too luxurious!). When we first saw them, Robert said “no one is going to buy them for us”, and then his aunt and uncle ended up getting them! Every time we have people round for dinner and get them out, we laugh about it, and our guests always say how beautiful they are; like jewellery for the table. Most importantly though, we both love that they’re something we can pass down to our children.

– Blair and Robert, London

This was a lovely unexpected gift from my friend’s parents. Whisky Frames produces hand-crafted photo frames from retired whisky barrels, and as staunch whisky drinkers who often base our travels around distilleries, the perfect next logical step beyond our growing collection of bottles was to bring a little bit of the barrel home too. Each frame is hand-numbered and so ours really does feel as unique as a rare aged dram.

– Tal and Maor, London

One of my cousins bought this for us as we were obsessed with toasties when we are younger! It is literally the simple pleasure of cheese and bread as to why we use it so much – it’s also great for a comforting fridge clear-out lunch/dinner when you can’t be bothered. I think we love it because it feels like kids food but acceptable – it’s honestly the best thing ever.

– George and Claire, Reading

We were gifted these Bluebell alphabet placements – one for each of us. Then when we had children we got one for each of them too and they love organising the dinner table and deciding who sits where. Plus it helped them learn their letters early.

– Kate and Robin, Wiltshire

Our Le Creuset casserole looks as new ten years later and is so versatile. It’s used at least once a week, often more. It’s super expensive, so not something we would usually be able to afford to buy for ourselves – it was on our list, but we were surprised at how incredibly generous people were and didn’t expect to be bought it.

– Iain and Anna, Belfast

Simple, stylish, and used far too frequently! We always raise a glass to the person who bought our wine aerator. It wasn’t on our list actually but it has been such a welcomed addition and unfortunately for our waistlines, it gets used an awful lot.

– Nicola and Alex, Kent

This Dualit toaster was on the list we had at Peter Jones when we got married in April 2000. 21 years of regular use, and it’s still going!

– Elizabeth and Andrew, Chester

My friends from uni clubbed together and bought us National Trust membership. It wasn't on our list, but we love being outdoors, walking and exploring so it was a brilliant gift. We have lots of National Trust properties near us and we use it a lot when we were on holiday or weekends away in the UK. And the free parking is not to be underestimated either – a lot of the outdoor spaces and coastlines we like to walk along offer NT parking so that was an added, unexpected bonus. Plus it was the first document with my new married name on, which was exciting.

– Jenny and Andy, Surrey

We got a rather lovely voucher to stay at one of The Pig hotels for a minimoon, as we had to cancel our honeymoon, and we were thrilled to receive such a kind gift. We also got a food gift voucher to eat there by chance – we only got married last week, so we’re staying at The Pig on The Beach next month.

– Anna and Henry, Bath

I won’t profess to know anything about comparable record player quality, but what I do know is that this Roberts turntable has brought endless hours of joy to me and my husband while we’ve been indoors during lockdown. Although this is on the pricier end of the present scale, we used a gift list service that enables a few people to chip in for a more expensive dream product. Bluetooth speakers have their moments, but there’s nothing quite like popping on a vintage record on a Sunday afternoon.

– Harriet and Ryan, London

Having amassed three households' worth of tat after various house and country moves, we opted for a books and wine gift list. As wonderful as collecting all the past Booker winners was, the best gifts were boozy. We received four bottles of 2005 Dom P, which have been drunk at various life stages since: our honeymoon, a house move, the birth of our son and most recently, my husband's 40th. It's light, sweet and weirdly doesn't induce a hangover.

– Cathy and David, London

My mum got us two really nice Samsonite suitcases. They were a thoughtful gift because it suggested that we would have years of travel together ahead of us. Ideally we would have wanted some personalised luggage a la The Darjeeling Limited (we had Wes Anderson-themed tables at our wedding), but these are more practical, built to last and, importantly, they hold stickers well.

– Ciaran and Lucy, London

The KitchenAid is a beautiful piece of machinery that has transformed the way we cook. From sauces to cakes to meringues, there is no recipe that can’t be improved with a twirl of its beaters. We’ve ended up using the thing so much we’d even stir our tea with it if we could!

– Caroline and David, London