MyRedPacket.co.uk Blog

When you actually think of everything your parents have done for you, it’s quite humbling.  Not least of all, when you’re getting married, and I don’t mean helping with the burden of cost.

Sure, they may contribute financially, but it’s the other things, like their support and reassurance, their direction, recommendations and walking you down the aisle.  Add that to all they’ve done to bring you up well-adjusted, happy and centred - how will you ever thank them?

It’s traditional to give a gift of thanks to all who helped out with the ceremony - the bridesmaids and other attendants, your best man - even the people who did the catering.  But, without your parents (on either side of the family) the event wouldn’t even be taking place - have you thought of that?!

As you take your next step in your life’s journey, leaving behind the comfort and security of your parents’ grasp; becoming someone with their own family and responsibilities, it’s natural to reflect on the first part of your life and the people who have nurtured you through this time.

A unique gift, given at your wedding, may not come close to thanking them for all they’ve done, the years of pure support and encouragement they’ve given, but short of donating a kidney, what else can you do?

• Personalise

It’s the very least you can do.  Rather than buying the first gift you see, put some thought into it.  Not only find the perfect present, but have your message of love and thanks emblazoned across its front.  For example,

Pop one of the best photos of you and your betrothed in there too and you’ve got a gift that will take pride of place on their mantelpiece.

Or, how about saying, “Cheers, Mum/Dad!” on these:

• Be Unique!

Short of reverting back to your nursery school days and making them a gift, buy them something that’s not traditional, useful, sentimental or ornamental - but slightly bizarre!  Something that will raise a smile at the reception and which few other parents will hold.

I know of parents who wouldn’t ask for, or accept, a gift, rather wanting the money to be spent on the happy couple’s future.  However, this situation may make the happy couple a little uncomfortable, knowing that their parents may have parted with huge expense towards the wedding, combined with everything else they’ve ever done for them.  And how will this look to your other guests when you’re handing everyone else a token of thanks and seemingly ignoring your parents?  In this situation, a novelty gift doesn’t cost much but still allows the bride and groom to pass their appreciation to the people that matter.

So, if you’re wondering what I mean by ‘unique gifts’, take a look at these:

Quirky, fun, yet able to bear the most important messages of your love and thanks.  Few weddings nowadays can afford to push the boat out so items like these may be all you can afford, after everyone and their uncle has emptied your budget pot.  They may not be made of the finest crystal, and the chocolate may not make it to your return from honeymoon but they’ll raise a smile.

Whatever gift you choose to thank your parents for everything they’ve done will never match their sacrifice.  So, don’t search to the end of the earth trying to find the right thing - look no further than the huge range of traditional and fun gifts we have at MyRedPacket! Click here to see our range of wedding gifts for parents

This Christmas, why not buy someone a gift that’s a little different?  They’ve probably had all the soap sets, socks and cookery books that life can throw at them, which, admittedly, don’t take too much from one’s imagination to buy.

A naming gift is such a personal thing and completely unique to the person you’ve bought it for.  Not sure what a naming gift is?  Look at this:

This name a rose gift is not just great for a gardener - this gift would suit anyone this Christmas.  Contained inside the presentation box is a variety of rose that has yet to be named. And one which can be named after the recipient.  Don’t you agree that this is a very unusual, personal gift - after all, how many people, other than celebrities, have a flower named after them?  Neither is the name ‘just between you’ - no; once named, the variety of rose will be published in the International Rose Naming Registry which appears in the British Library.  Something to boast about at parties, wouldn’t you say?

That’s not all you can ‘name’.  This next Christmas gift is literally out of this world: Name a Star

You can take a currently nameless star and call it after your wife, husband, son, daughter, aunt, uncle, sister, brother….or dog, if you like.  They will receive the co-ordinates and a guide on how to find their star which will remain named after them forever.  The name will also be registered in the Star Registry which will be submitted to the British Library.  If you think your loved one is a ’star’ you can now put your money where your mouth is!

Talking of space, you can send a message into the cosmos too.  Once you’ve decided on your message - “Happy Christmas Darling”, or whatever else floats your boat, send it to the broadcasting centre detailed in the gift box and they will beam it into space - this can, theoretically, be detectable for 1,000 years.  So, it’ll last longer than that set of pans you were going to buy them.

These gifts are ideal for those that are otherwise hard to buy for.  You know, those people that seem to have everything.  Well, I doubt they’d have their own rose.  Or their own star.

There’s more.  You can dedicate a tree after someone.  This gift sees a physical sapling placed in the ground on their behalf.  It won’t ever belong to anyone else, it will always be theirs.  Not only a special gift for your loved one but you’d be doing your bit for the environment too.

For the young ones, you can give them their own magazine - well, sort of!  If they race to the newsagents each Tuesday to get their latest copy of Closer magazine then this gift will be right up their street come Christmas. 

This personalised magazine notebook is just ready to be filled with all the gossip and stories happening in their world and could set them on the path of becoming a roving reporter!  The cover of the book can be personalised so that their name is part of the headlines!  It’s a much more preferrable way of getting on the front cover of Closer mag than falling out of a nightclub like most drunken Z-listers.

There’s so many gifts that you can personalise which just adds that extra dimension.  You cannot be accused of ‘not putting enough thought into it’ when you’ve gone to the trouble of having their name emblazoned across the front.

It’s a given that there are thousands of Christmas gifts out there but most are just a current twist on a traditional item.  By choosing these unusual, unique gifts you are ensuring your loved one doesn’t forget it in a hurry.

After all, how can they?  It’s literally named after them!

Haven’t you sometimes got bored of seeing the same gifts on the shelves, or even receiving the same things yourself?  Wouldn’t you like to give a gift that makes someone say, “Wow!”?

Some items don’t even look like gifts.  For example, look at these:

They look like Mum’s gone straight to Iceland and bought the family size gateau, but they’re actually top-quality face towels made to look like strawberry tarts.  They look good enough to eat and they’re practical too!  Great as a stocking filler or just a little something to put a smile on a loved one’s face…..before they wash it with the face towel.

There are plenty of novelty gifts available for someone who never quite grew up.  Technology may be used for fantastic things like re-creating the creation of the world in the Hadron Collider.  But it can also be used to plug a dancing cactus into the side of your laptop.  Amazing.  You can buy gadgets to tone your (ahem) love muscle, fake parking tickets, fake dog poo, fake Asbo certificates - all guaranteed to humiliate someone, somewhere.  I’m sure there is someone in every person’s life who they’d like to play pranks on - in fact, I’m already up to double figures with people on my humiliation hit list.

There are some hugely practical gifts out there that are unique and stylish.  The keyring below could literally be a life saver - it stores paper money in it, so should there be an emergency where you’ve lost your wallet, or even easier to do - come out from the house without it - there is always this emergency fund with you.

You might think this is not the most extravagant gift but the minute you get one, all your friends will be saying, “Where did you get that?  I could do with one of those/like someone to buy me one/please give me it”.

Then there are the types of gifts that are sheer novelty.  They don’t provide much practicality but they’re just loads of fun!  Racing grannies and fighting granddads, for the little kids and big kids; shooting duck games, finger drums, wind-up break dancers, bullsh*t detectors, backwards clocks, remote controlled tarantulas….I could go on.  Bring any one of these out at a party and people will flock to have a go.

I think the success of these kinds of toys are because we never truly grow up.  We watch our kids with their toys longingly after a hard day’s slog and think, “I want to have a go!”.  Because we can’t just take over the kids’ toys we buy our own adult versions - because as Mars said, “Life is work, rest and play”.

Although it may be true to say that unusual, gadgety gifts are more for men, you’d be surprised to know that there are just as many for women.  Like this chocolate calculator - “The Choc-u-lator!”:

Perfect for a lady’s work needs yet don’t be surprised when brought out from the desk drawer all female colleagues’ tongues will be salivating.  In fact, it may be too tempting to use!

There are so many unique and unusual gifts and gift ideas out there; perfect fillers for birthdays, anniversaries, Christmas - even Valentine’s Day for the more wacky couples!  It doesn’t matter how outlandish or off-the-wall your recipient is, there is always a gift to suit!

Hello All, welcome to My Red Packet’s blog. The world seems to have gone blog crazy, so we thought we’d join in on the action and provide all you lovely people out there, looking for some inspiration on unique gifts and gift ideas, our dedicated blog on this very subject matter (we’ll also have some general chit chat as well) . Afterall, that’s what My Red Packet is all about- an online shop, providing the latest gifts and gadgets. 

So, finally, after months of, well, not having the time to get our blog of the ground, it’s finally completed! Now it’s just a matter of blogging to my hearts content!

Anyway, let me introduce myself personally, as i’ve given myself the job of looking after this gift ideas blog. My name is My Linh ..yes, you may be thinking, ooohhh, there’s a bit of a link between My Red Packet and My Linh? Well if you are thinking that, you’re right. I’m one of the founders of My Red Packet. Gosh, i can’t believe, we have just reached our first anniversary of trading! (”congratulations” i hear you say). It’s been an excellent year for us, and i’d like to say big THANK YOU to all our customers who have purchased from us. We’ve received some wonderful feedback on the gifts and service we have provided.  This is the most enjoyable part of what we do…it does put a big smile on my face!

Sorry…i digress…back onto what My Red Packet is all about..you now know where the My has come from. Red Packet also has a reason behind it. Red Packet aka ‘Laisee’ (in Cantonese) is a long standing Chinese Tradition where gifts, such as money and jewellery are given in Red Packets, on special occasions, such as Chinese New Year, Weddings and Birthdays. The Red Packet symbolises good luck, health and good fortune. The Red Packet can be imprinted with various symbols and one of them being the word LUCK printed in gold. Here’s a picture:

It’s also considered to be good luck to keep one with a coin in it, with you close at hand. Being Chinese myself, i’ve received and given quite a few of these Red Packets…i keep one in my wallet and use one as a bookmark. Those who have purchased from us, i hope you like the lucky Red Packet you got!

Before i dash, i must explain our slogan- Give as Good as You Get. There’s a double meaning to this. As a customer, someone who is looking to purchase a gift, we believe that giving to others sould be as good as you get from others. For us, the retailer, the level of customer service that we give you should be as good as what we would want to be given. Hence we promise to give you the highest level of customer service. Hope that explains it!

Bye for now, i’ll be back soon. Do check back with us, it would be great to have you around!

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