As the spring wedding season approaches, you may have the challenge of choosing a gift to present to the lucky bride and groom in your life. Faced with rising costs in planning a wedding, many couples are opting for more practical wedding gifts, including cash and increasingly popular gift cards. Wedding registries range anywhere from Tiffany’s to Target, with Target and other median retailers perhaps considered the more functional options. Good grief—my nephew and his new wife were actually registered at REI, an outdoor sporting goods store! The couple’s most coveted gift? A North Face VE 25 Tent,  “engineered to withstand the extreme conditions of high-altitude alpine environments.” How times have changed…sigh.

Back in the day, newlyweds began their married life based on traditions handed down through generations. A bridal registry typically included the couple’s sterling silver flatware, “good” china and crystal patterns, as well as their “everyday” versions. Fine linens were monogrammed and serving pieces carefully chosen to complete the bride’s table setting when she hosted her first formal dinner party. Although the modern bride may find this protocol somewhat extravagant and impractical, there’s something to be said for gift-giving, as well as entertaining, the old-fashioned way.

There’s certainly a place in this world for convenience and practicality; is there also a way to blend functionality and elegance? Yes—the answer is pewter! Polished pewter looks remarkably like sterling silver but since it is non-tarnishing, needs only occasional care with a gentle polish (we recommend Mish’s Pewter Polish). Pewter is lead-free, food-safe and will not rust or corrode. Handled properly, pewter will last for generations. It offers the best of both worlds, style and good taste with ease of care.

Rekindle the tradition of classic sophistication. Consider presenting custom engraved pewter and sterling gifts to the bride and groom or to the couple celebrating a memorable anniversary. Silver and Pewter Gifts offers a wonderful collection of trays, bowls, candlesticks, coffee and tea sets, pitchers, barware, or one of our newest pieces, a lovely set of Water Goblets, perfect for toasting the joy of the occasion and sure to become family heirlooms and remembrances of a lifetime.

P.S.—Instead the North Face VE 25 Tent, I gave my nephew and his bride a beautiful 8” Pewter Images Tray, custom engraved with the couple’s own wedding invitation. They later confided that it was the most personal, and without a doubt the most special, wedding gift ever!