Wedding gift for a couple in India: what newly-weds actually use, by budget, and where a candle pair fits

What to give a couple who just got married

There is no single right wedding gift in India. Close family usually gives shagun (cash in an envelope) or jewellery. Friends and colleagues give something for the couple's home: kitchen appliances, a dinner set, bedsheets, a wall clock, a showpiece. The problem is that a couple gets four of the same thing.

A useful rule: give either something they will use up, or something that belongs in the home they are setting up together. A pair of handmade candles is a small answer in the second group. From our range, hand-poured in pure soy wax in Jalandhar:

• Urli Candles, Rs 699 for a pair: two flower-shaped urli bowls with a gold rim and a yellow sunflower on top. Traditional, right for a new home's entrance or mandir.
• Floral Candle Duo, Rs 649: two peony candles, one deep rose pink and one ivory. One flower for each of them, for their own room.
• Marble Seashell Candles, Rs 999 for a pair: two marbled conch-shell vessels with pink wax shells, pearls and gold stars. Modern, for a city flat. Ships free.

We have a separate page on choosing and sending a wedding candle gift. This page is the wider question: what to give at all.

The usual wedding gifts, and what each is good for

A candle pair is not a replacement for shagun from a close relative. It is a good gift on its own from a friend, a colleague or a neighbour, and a good add-on to an envelope from anyone.

Picking by your budget

Under Rs 700. The Floral Candle Duo (Rs 649) or the Urli Candles (Rs 699). Both are pairs, so the gift is about two people. Shipping is Rs 79 on these alone.

Around Rs 1,000. Marble Seashell Candles at Rs 999 crosses the free shipping line by itself. Or Spiral Pillar Candles, set of five at Rs 799, for a couple who will host their first dinner in the new home.

Above Rs 1,000. Pair a decorative candle with our only scented candle, Vanilla Reverie (Rs 549, amber glass jar with gold flakes). Urli Candles plus Vanilla Reverie is Rs 1,248. Floral Candle Duo plus Vanilla Reverie is Rs 1,198. Both ship free.

Making it the gift they remember

The gifts couples remember are the ones that arrive when they have time to open them. At a reception, gifts go into a heap and the cards fall off. Some ideas that work:

• Send it after the wedding. A parcel at their new address two weeks later, with a note, gets opened properly. Add gift packaging and a gift note on the product page.
• A surprise for the first night home. Candles waiting at the flat when they come back from the honeymoon (arrange it with a sibling who has the key).
• Personalised. If you want their names or a wedding colour, ask on our custom orders page. Tell us the idea and the date and we will say what we can make.
• For the reception itself, carry a small bag rather than a big box, and write your name on the gift, not only on the card.

When something else is the better wedding gift

If the couple are moving abroad soon, skip anything breakable or heavy and give cash or an experience. If you know they are building a kitchen from scratch, a good appliance they asked for beats any decorative gift. If you want a large hamper of mixed items, gift stores and hamper sellers put together food, decor and home items in one box; we only make candles.

Getting it to the couple

We dispatch in 24 to 48 hours and delivery takes 2 to 7 days after dispatch, anywhere in India. Order early and check the estimate for the couple's pincode on the product page. Free shipping from Rs 999, Rs 79 below. Payment is prepaid only (UPI, card, net banking or wallet through Razorpay); there is no cash on delivery. If anything arrives damaged, tell us within 24 hours of delivery and we replace or refund it.

For the couple's first evening with candles: burn on a stable, heat-proof surface, trim the wick to about 5 mm, never leave it unattended, and keep each burn to 3 to 4 hours.