Recently married couple calls wedding guests to complain their gifts weren’t expensive enough: ‘I sell those sweaters for $350(AT LEAST) a piece and my partner sells sets like that for $300. I guess we should have sent an envelope with cash instead 🫩’

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Olivia Arocena • Writer and Editor
Sep 6, 2026 6:00 PM EDT

Why don't they charge guests upfront and stop this madness?

Here's a little preemptive truth-telling: they don't because they know almost nobody would come to their weddings. Of course it's nice and helpful to receive an expensive, useful gift, but we can't expect all our loved ones to be able to afford or provide that. If we're setting up a venue only to receive collaborations, shouldn't we be upfront about it? So people don't think they're coming to our wedding to celebrate our love, but to give us money.

Last year my cousin got married and tried to pull this stunt, charging everyone a fee to attend his wedding. He tried to communicate it with humour, and don't get me wrong, I thought it was funny and transparent. At least it was better than silently expecting an expensive gift.

The thing is, I, for example, couldn't afford it and was too ashamed to tell him, so I ended up not going and not saying anything. So his wedding ended up being exclusively for people who had enough money, and that is sad for such an important event in one's life.

You are allowed to not like a present, but you shouldn't feel entitled to call your guest and tell them that, if they didn't know, it had to be worth a certain amount of cash beforehand. I sincerely don't know when weddings have become a full-blown cash grab.

Weddings are supposed to be a beautiful day that celebrates love, and if that comes with beautiful presents, better! Also, can't we value some things by how much time it took to make them? Is money the measure of everything?

Do you think this is normal behavior for an unwritten rule like this?

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  • KEN CARE OF
    via Olivia Bollen

    The moment of the gifting

    Not actual story subjects

  • AITA for not giving a gift that “covers the plate”

    My partner and I got invited to his best friend's wedding, he was the best man and I was a plus one. We spent A LOT of money to be there. He paid for the bachelor party about two
    via No_Whereas_2018
  • months beforehand too. Flights, three nights in an upscale hotel (where the rehearsal dinner was at the first night and cocktail hour the second night so we couldn't go to a
    via No_Whereas_2018
  • cheaper hotel it had to be this one), he had to rent a $400 tux because it had to be this exact one, shoes had to be the exact brand and were $150, basically everything had to be
    via No_Whereas_2018
  • perfect no exceptions. We probably spent $5,000 just to be there. And this wedding was NICE. I'm sure they spent over $70,000 on it. For their wedding gift I knit them. sweaters, about $150 on
    via No_Whereas_2018
  • yarn and 80+ hours spent on them. He's a potter and made them a set of bowls and plates. Friend calls to catch up, and brings up our wedding presents to them were not what they
    via No_Whereas_2018
  • Cheezburger Image 10661458176
    via rocknwool

    The very lovingly made yarn sweater

    Licensed media provided as editorial context

  • were expecting and traditionally the gift was supposed to cover the cost of our plates (dinner). ??? We are both very obviously artsy people, our crafts were not unknown
    via No_Whereas_2018
  • to them. The wife regularly tells me how beautiful my pieces are. I sell those sweaters for $350(AT
    via No_Whereas_2018
  • LEAST) a piece and my partner sells sets like that for $300. I guess we should have sent an envelope with cash instead
    via No_Whereas_2018
  • & Mr Mr & Mrs A
    via Photos by Lanty

    The envelopes with cash they should've sent instead

    Scene shown is a visual representation

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wedding party wedding drama relationships wedding
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