10 Global Treasures that make Great Wedding Presents

August 21, 2014

Whether you’re working out what to request on your wedding registry, or deciding what to buy your best friends for their big day, ProjectBly has you covered. From across the globe we’re bringing you story-filled and timeless treasures that are far from the run-of-the-mill gifts that get pushed to the back of the closet. Here are our top ten picks:

1. Art Work

Did your friends have to battle against the odds to be together? Was there an ill-fated love triangle, a troublesome villain and possibly a supernatural sidekick involved? If so, we can’t think of a better gift than this vintage Bollywood film poster, bought from devoted collector Shahid Mansoori in Mumbai’s Chor Bazaar.

Shop: Kinare-Kinare Original Lithograph (1963)

2. Symbolic Tapestry

Do you know your beloved’s spirit animal? In Vietnam, partnerships are deemed appropriate, or not, by the signs of the zodiac and this tapestry celebrates two animals with a very bright future. Whether it is hung on the wall, or draped over a favorite couch, the rich symbolism turns it into a pretty perfect wedding gift.

Shop: Naga Meets a Goat Tai Tapestry

3. One-of-a-Kind Cutting Boards

The saying goes that the couple that cooks together, stays together. We fell in love with these wooden chopping boards when we spotted them on the back of a bicycle in Hanoi’s Old Quarter. The soft wood won’t wear down knife blades and the boards are great for serving cheese and charcuterie – perfect for anyone who loves to host. Made from the trunk of a tamarind tree, these boards will last forever and look equally impressive on the table or hanging up on a kitchen wall.

Shop: Tamarind Cutting Board

4. Love Bracelets

If a boy from the Red Dao tribe falls in love with a girl and wishes to marry her, he must ask his parents to order a pair of ‘love bracelets’ and take them to the house of the girl. These brass-etched bangles are part of a collection of bracelets collected over a woman’s life, each used to mark a momentous occasion. Bought from the women of Ta Phin village in Northern Vietnam, these bracelets are the perfect way of remembering your best friend’s big day or saying thank you to your sanity-saving bridesmaids.

Shop: Red Dao Brass Memory Bracelets

5. A Cozy Throw

If you’re looking forward to snuggling up next to your honey after the madness of the wedding has quieted down, why not ask for a warm throw to drape over your armchair or bed. Not only are these vintage Moroccan blankets the ideal balance of masculine and feminine, they are also worn as shawls by young women of the Aït Haddidou tribe on their wedding days.

Shop: Antique Striped Handira Berber Blanket

6. Stylish Bowls

Kitchen classics are a staple of almost every wedding registry and these fine-grained wooden bowls make for perfect centerpieces, great for everything for salad to fruit. They go with just about any kind of dinnerware and flatware we can imagine.

Shop: Tlacolula Wooden Bowls

7. Suzani Bedding

Traditionally embroidered by Uzbek brides-to-be for their dowries, it’s said that potential mother-in-laws would discern at the quality of the suzani before looking at the girl herself to judge whether she was a suitable match for her son. Suzanis make up just one part of the many rituals that mark Uzbek weddings, and we love the way this one looks as part of a new set of luxurious bedding.

Shop: Saray Suzani

8. Cocktail Tray

If part of your vision of married life involves cocktail parties with your other half, then you may want to steer your friends and family towards buying you a vintage tray. This antique brass tray from Malaysia is one of our favourites, and carries drinks just as well as breakfast in bed.

Shop: Antique Brass Tray

9. Stylish Headboard

Some Ghanaian kente-style cloth would be the perfect fabric for creating a unique headboard for your friends’ new home together. Every kente cloth represents a proverb and the Obi Nkte Obi Kwan Mu Si design expresses the Akan philosophy that one should be tolerant if someone offends you because no one is infallible. Patience, forgiveness, reconciliation and sympathy – all good reminders to never go to bed angry with your partner.

Shop: Vintage Obi Nkte Obi Kwan Mu Si Kente

10. Something to toast the happy couple

Above all weddings are joyful occasions and we believe that the greatest gifts are the ones that make people happy. This jaunty little guy was designed as a festive shot glass for wedding celebrations, so why not raise your glass, or bull, to the happy couple. Salud!