Wedding gift lists should be fun to create so, if the toaster and coffee machine are already covered, be artful and use this as an opportunity to introduce colour and individuality with artworks, textiles and accessories
Wedding gift lists were originally designed to help couples starting out together and, while the practical gifts are always welcome, most of life’s essentials (toaster, coffee machine) are more than covered for most of us.
While it’s always a good idea to put a few luxe versions of practical essentials on the gift list – a fabulous Mauviel copper saucepan or Alessi wok, for instance – this is also a golden opportunity to look at textiles and other objects that surround you. Seeking out a few special objects that add a designer edge is a great way to refresh your home and, for the giver, there’s the knowledge that their gift will be memorable.
At wedding gift list company Prezola, there’s a strong focus on working with new – as well as established – designer names to ensure that everyday objects are anything but dull. While the designer credentials are there, the price tag makes them eminently affordable for lower to mid points of your wedding gift list. This means that the objects you choose for your list can be as individual as you are – even the humble tea town or oven glove has had a makeover.
Everyday fun
Designer items don’t have to be big-ticket. There are lots of affordable everyday objects in the mix, some of which may even inspire a whole decorating theme. For instance, Prezola’s Thornback & Peel range comprises a fabulous selection of retro-eccentric textiles and kitchenalia that offers the twin virtues of being useful and individual. Even the humble oven glove can be a pleasure to use if you choose its Fish Super or Rabbit & Cabbage design (£25 each). You will find a variety of fun prints – from Lobster to the weird and wonderful Jelly & Pigeon design – these also appear on other everyday items such as trays and cushions.
Glamour prints
There are some great designer names at Prezola that you can add to your wedding list to bring glamour into your home. For instance, Clarissa Hulse – already a leading light in British textile design and strongly influenced by her peripatetic childhood spent in the Czech Republic, Thailand, Italy, Spain and Greece – does colour and texture simply brilliantly. At Prezola, you can introduce this in small ways, via one of her cushions (£19-£45), although a pile in complementary or contrasting shades would be even better and could make a brilliant new focal point in a neutral room. Alternatively, opt for larger items such as her Watercolour Patchwork Duvet Set (£95-£125) to bring a colour pop to your bedroom.
Go designer
Prezola has some exciting young designer names in the mix. Bath-based illustrator and designer Ben Rothery produces beautifully detailed nature-themed artworks and these are available as 100-run limited edition giclee prints that you can frame for yourself (£30 each). Another go-to young designer name is Jimbobart (aka James Ward), who has designed commission pieces for names such as Lacoste, Hyundai, Moleskine and Uniqlo, as well as producing illustrations for leading national newspapers. You can own one of his distinctive and charming animal drawings on a set of stacking coffee cups (£42.50).
