For a first wedding anniversary present I bought my husband a limited edition print (on lythograph paper) by an up and coming Parisian guerilla photographer, called JR. It was right up his boulevard and who knows it might even be a good investment if JR becomes the next Banksy

Alternative presents which would go down well with me would be vouchers for anything – massage, facial or a spa day, Selfridges or any of those lovely shops so that I can treat myself as and when.

Lovely places to go for the night are the Four Seasons in Hampshire, which has one of the most amazing spas, The Cliveden in Berkshire, which is very grand and also a gorgeous (but I imagine very expensive) wedding venue. I know that Julia Boggio, the reknowned wedding photographer has photographed a couple of weddings there. Last of all and I haven’t been here, but I have to the London one, is The Crazy Bear in Beaconsfield, with its kitsch rooms, beautiful terrace, outdoor pool and incredible cuisine, this is definitely on my list for my next treat. Actually top of the list once I had read about the Thai masseuse based at the hotel. Sounds like heaven.

If you’re looking for a bit of a sun, but somewhere near enough for just the weekend then Palma is also one of my favourites. I love The Portixol, a stylish, sea front hotel, Scandinavian design (or so it looks), incredible food and just the perfect weekend break destination. I have spent many an afternoon playing backgammon by the pool and sipping cocktails. It is so worth a visit.

Please do share any first wedding anniversary present ideas or places to go with me and the rest of our readers. I’d love to know what you did for yours. X

You can buy this from Handpicked Collection. Have a look at their site as there are lots of other lovely gift ideas. Also check out LMW wedding gifts for more inspiration if you are wondering what to give the couple that have everything already.

I ‘owe’ so many wedding presents… I asked one couple that I ‘owe’ if there was anything they really wanted (as I realised I am struggling to find them something cool, unusual and creative on my own!) and they told me something from Lulu and Nat (well I already know about Lulu and Nat blogged about them a while back – great stuff should have thought about that on my own).

I quite fancy this very cool union jack cushion (comes in other colours too) and there is a multitude of other lovely stuff on their site Lulu and Nat. In fact somebody gave me a lovely bright pink and orange butterfly blanket from their collection recently as a little pressie for Coco.

This is all great quality stylish homeware and linen – ideal for a wedding present that is a little bit different that the bride is guaranteed to love! If you are looking for unique wedding ideas make sure that you continue to check out LMW.

I found this whilst browsing the interwebulator on a fab new site called GiftWrapped&Gorgeous. These silver signs are the prefect pressie at £44.95 (I rarely spend over £50 on a wedding present as its the thought that counts and I think 50 quid is pretty generous anyway) You can choose from LOVE, DREAM or HOPE or if you’re asking for them on your wedding list why not pick all 3.

What do you think of these? Have you seen any other nice pressie ideas that are perfect for the couple that have everything but that don’t cost the earth?

Embroidered Butterfly cushion

If you are a bride getting married then I suggest that you point your guests in the direction of this wonderful site, Lulu and Nat, who design the most beautiful linen and bedding. What more could you want than one of their colourful quilts, the love heart pillow cases (which I have!) or the colourful embroidered throws, all made from 200 count indian cotton, and lovingly designed.

This duo are cool and stylish which is evident from their quirky designs – the stars, stripes, hearts and union jacks alongside the intricate butterflies. Lulu has previously designed for many big names like Gap and the White Company and, having now set up together they are selling their goodies in many of the top European boutiques, including Designers Guild, Liberty and The Cross. I would say that its pretty well priced with hand printed bed linen from £26, quilts from £42 and my favourite, the most beautiful butterfly embroidered wall hangings from £250.

If you are anything like me and you have a penchant for luxurious bedtime living (rather than pots, pans and crockery on your wedding list) then check out their style @ Lulu and Nat.

First of all I thought I would post about our dilemma as I am sure that this is something that everyone worries about – wedding list or not? We had mixed feelings because if you don’t have one you inevitably get loads of ‘candlesticks and vases’ and things you don’t need or like. If you do have one, well that was just something that made me feel a little bit awkward – I felt like it was a round about way of asking people for presents, when all I really wanted was for them to be there at the wedding to celebrate (maybe me just being oversensitive!). Added to this my best friends had just used Wrapit, who went bust shortly after their wedding and they lost all their presents – so that too seemed a bit risky.

I am not dissing wedding gift lists as there is definitely a time and a place for them and for many people its what will set them up for their future together, but me and lovely had loved (and lived) together for nearly 3 years when we got married, had all the pots and pans we needed, and so cramped in our little flat that the thought of trying to squeeze anything into non exsitent storage was enough to make me want to just donate it all to charity – which is actually what we did.

We decided that rather than getting things we didn’t need or want we would set up a Justgiving page for Marie Curie Cancer, which is a charity close to our hearts as we all have friends or family who have been affected. It was so nice to see the fund growing in the run up to and after the wedding and the support of all those close to us. The best thing is that we raised about £4K so whilst I was beaming from ear to ear with happiness at being married, hopefully someone else less fortunate was getting the support and care they needed. I’m not making out that I am some kind of martyr Far from it as I might hasten to add we still got lots of presents anyway, so I think we were very lucky in that department!

The wedding gift list can always be a dilemma, but remember that now there are so many options out there that you don’t necessarily have to go for the traditional list with John Lewis or a specialist wedding list company. Why not go for a list that lets you chose how you spend the money such as putting it towards your honeymoon, your garden, your new house or that sound system you have always wanted, or even allows you to save the money for a rainy day. Personally I always like to give an actual pressie so its nice to have a couple of options that you can give your guests if you are struggling with your wedding list (some people didn’t want to donate to our charity and said that they would rather than we had a donation towards buying something that we needed).

I am really interested to hear about interesting wedding present ideas, gift lists and what other people are doing for their special day when it comes to pressies. MOST IMPORTANTLY DO YOUR RESEARCH AND HAVE YOUR LIST WITH A REPUTABLE COMPANY – hearing all these couples that lost everything in the Wrap-it debacle just makes me so sad. So any recommendations from people would be much appreciated.