A Reader Story
The Gift Everyone Photographed at My Granddaughter's Baby Shower
I'll be honest: for forty years I was the "useful present" person. Towels. Vouchers. Once, memorably, a salad spinner. Appreciated, thanked for, forgotten by teatime.
So when my granddaughter's baby shower came round in June, I decided things would be different this time.
I'd seen these quilted baskets online - soft cotton, a little ruffle pocket on the front, the kind of thing that looks handmade even though it isn't priced like it. I ordered one in Blush Rose, filled it with muslins, a little cardigan, bath bits and a small bear, and tied a ribbon round the handles.
It was the only gift that got photographed.
Not politely photographed. Properly photographed - passed around the room, "where is this FROM", three of her friends typing the name into their phones at the table. My daughter-in-law now keeps it next to the changing table, and I get a small feeling of triumph every time I see it in the background of a photo.
Since then I've done the same trick twice: a housewarming (filled with tea, biscuits and a candle) and a sixtieth (wine, chocolates, good soap). Same reaction both times. The basket is the wrapping - and it's the part they keep.
My three-step gift formula
- Pick a print to match the person - soft florals, toile or gingham.
- Fill it with small things they love. Nothing over a tenner needed.
- Tie a ribbon round the handles. Done. No wrapping paper, no gift bag.
One more thing worth knowing: they run a buy-one-get-one-free offer at the moment. So the sensible thing - and I say this as a Yorkshirewoman - is to give one and keep one. Mine lives in the hallway and holds the post, the dog's lead and my library books.
