Life

The delicate art of regifting wedding presents

REGIFTING presents, is it the height of rudeness or a guilty secret? And what do you do if someone buys you a chainsaw as a wedding present?

Three quarters of couples who took part in a recent survey said they had received at least one 'unusual' wedding present, including the chainsaw, a garden fence, banjo, children's clothing vouchers and a box set of Father Ted DVDs.

Half of couples also admitted regifting a present, with cutlery sets, wall art, ornamental statues and photo frames top of their list.

Victoria Square in Belfast asked couples to complete a survey and found that gift giving has changed over the years. In the eighties it was toasters and towels, while in the nineties mugs replaced toasters. The noughties saw bed sheets and wine glasses being gift wrapped and handed over on a couple's big day and in recent years photo frames have taken over as a the gift of choice.

In the past five years the most common gifts received were money (65 per cent) and home furnishings (36 per cent).

Presents that were regifted included cutlery sets, dinner sets, photo frames, champagne bottles, ornamental statues, kettles and wall art.

And here's the list of the more unusual gifts received:

A garden fence


Children’s clothing vouchers


Back scratcher


A banjo


Paper napkins


Personalised doormat


A book of popular children’s names


Hair brush set


Chainsaw


Teeth whitening kit


Hair straighteners


Box set of Father Ted


Orthopaedic pillow set


A spade


Kitchen bin


Fluffy lamps


Personalised clock


Chocolate fountain


12 dates - one for every month of the first year of marriage


Salt and pepper shaker


Lawnmower


A wooden spoon

Victoria Square is holding a wedding event on September 5 and 6 when it will launch its wedding gift list service which allows friends and family to contribute towards an online gift card, meaning a couple can choose how to spend the money across the shopping centre, in stores and restaurants alike.

For more information visit www.victoriasquare.com