What to bring to a christening? A guide for godparents

A christening is the only celebration whose guest of honour will remember nothing of it. That is exactly why choosing a gift is so hard: the person it is for can't use it yet, and the person you hand it to is the parent – who, at that moment, mostly wishes for one box fewer in the living room.

Who a christening gift is really for

It is worth getting this clear in your own mind before you set off shopping. There are three different kinds of gift, and the three are not the same:

The first is meant for the child, for later. It is the one they will take out ten or twenty years from now: a framed quotation, a personalised keepsake, a letter. Here beauty matters more than practicality.

The second is for the parents. It can be something that helps right now – but this is more a kind gesture than a gift, and it is usually something for close family to take care of.

The third is for the day: something that lives right there on the table, among the guests. A table decoration, a guest favour, something that can be taken home at the end of the day.

Most disappointments come from mixing the three up. A beautiful but useless object does not become any better because we meant it to be practical.

It's different for godparents

A godparent is not a guest. By tradition, theirs is the gift that lasts – the one that, years later, everyone will still know came from them. It is the only role in which you can safely choose something lasting without seeming intrusive.

The classic godparent's gifts – a cross, a medal, a Bible, a silver spoon – work precisely because they don't follow fashion. If you choose one of these, there is just one question worth asking yourself: who is going to put this on display? Because whatever nobody displays ends up at the bottom of a cupboard, however valuable it may be.

Whatever can't be displayed in a modern home ends up at the bottom of a cupboard – however valuable it may be.

What gets used up, and what lasts

The best christening gifts usually have something that gets used up and something that lasts. The part that gets used up creates the moment: it is unwrapped, tasted, passed around. The lasting part is the reason to take it out again later.

Our GALAMBOM box is built on exactly this duality. Inside is a handmade gingerbread – made with, among other things, white rye flour, local farmers' blossom honey and cane sugar at the Milimári Sütiműhely bakery in Budakeszi – and beside it a hidden satin ribbon which, when you pull it out, reveals a single sentence. The gingerbread gets eaten. The sentence remains. What's more, the gingerbread can also be hung on the tree, as it has two slits at the top.

There are twenty-four different messages, so two boxes will almost certainly not say the same thing. You will soon be able to read more about this in our piece on the ribbon.

How much people usually spend

There is no rule, and anyone who says otherwise is mistaken. What is worth knowing: a godparent's gift is usually in a higher bracket, the guests' gifts more modest, and it is not good form to compete between the two. If you're unsure, ask the parents what they need – that is never offensive, and it spares both sides a great many unnecessary things.

The same logic applies to wedding favours and to First Holy Communion guest favours. When the family gives the guests a favour, it is the number of pieces that counts, not the value of each one. For this, our customers usually choose our christening selections, at a better price from ten pieces.

What to avoid

A few things almost always go wrong. Clothes bought without knowing the size – babies grow at different rates, and a size 68 meant for summer is no use at all in winter. Noisy toys – it's the parent who will regret those, not the child. Scented toiletries – for an infant, that is a medical question, not a matter of taste. And overly personal engraving, if you aren't sure of the spelling of the name or of the date.

Timing

If you'd like a handmade gift, allow at least a week or two. Our boxes are currently available to pre-order and ship from early November; for larger, custom quantities it is worth letting us know in advance. Within Hungary, parcel locker delivery is free over €42.00 and home delivery over €84.00; to Austria and Germany, shipping is €22.37 – you'll find the details on the shipping page.

If you choose ours

We have gathered our christening gifts on a separate page, and you will also find them, together with gifts for other occasions, on the Occasions page. If you can't decide which one would be right, write to us – we'll help you choose, and we won't try to make your basket bigger.