To give the newly weds exactly what their invite requests?

[BeeFreeForTea]

I've been invited to a wedding (family). They've requested people don't give cash or gifts, but put in a scratch card.

AIBU to just put a £5 scratch card in?

I'm really not sure. They've asked for it, after all. I usually give wedding couples £50 or £100 to close friends and family.

I'm not sure I'm comfortable putting £50 worth of scratch cards in... Says she who religiously plays the lottery twice a week

We asked for no gifts but if people felt bad about it we had an oxfam gift list. We genuinely didn’t want more stuff. We loved that most people honoured our wishes.

Get them the scratch card - they mean it.

What a ridiculous waste of money.

Oh I think that is really sad. I wouldn’t spend much and then give them a charity gift card like Wateraid or Cafod. Cafod sends a gift card so it lets them know. Or pay for a Guide Dog for a year and they will receive Pup Dates.Or a voucher for a meal.
Why would you do any of this?

What a ridiculous waste of money.

Buying people crap they don’t want that’s going to sit in the attic gathering dust forever is far more wasteful than this.

I think the problem with the request is the uncertainty over how much to spend

Only in your head. Most people would buy a couple of scratch cards and not over think it.

Only in your head

And the OPs it seems, hence the thread.

And yes, a waste of money because a large percentage are going to be useless bits of card.

Indeed, far better to spend the money on a toaster they don't need, or the Mumsnet favourite, a photo frame, that will go straight to the charity shop.

At least those 'useless bits of card' take up far less of the earth's precious resources.

I think its quite a good idea actually and I dont see why you should feel uncomfortable about spending the usual amount. They obviously don't need much that can be bought for 30, 40, 50 quid or whatever but a decent lottery win could change their lives. And it's also donating to charity of course.

The only think I'm slightly uncomfortable with is that they can exactly how much money everyone has spent but then I guess they could if specific things were picked off a wedding ist too.

I'd just put my usual sum of money in the card, or a voucher for an experience like a nearby cinema that is very likely to be used. I don't have an objection to someone choosing to put a scratch card in, but I don't like a blanket request to do it. Gambling can be a sensitive subject.

I don’t think any B&G would expect their guests to spend £50 on scratch cards. That’s ridiculous.

And let’s compare:

Piece of household crap that B&G don’t want. You’ll probably spend more than £30 on that. With no value to the recipients (in fact negative value as they have to store it and feel guilty about it).

A couple of quid on a scratch card. Far less money wasted, it’s a bit of fun to scratch them all. Plus the tiny chance that they’ll win big.

As wedding presents for this day and age go, far preferable.

Indeed, far better to spend the money on a toaster they don't need, or the Mumsnet favourite, a photo frame, that will go straight to the charity shop.

Why do people never learn?

I would buy a £5 scratch card and make a £45 donation to a Gamblerling charity 😂

I wouldn't buy a toaster or a photo frame, but I wouldn't have the first clue how much to spend. I think its annoying when people ask for things like this and don't specify an amount.

I couldn't live with myself if I put a 5 scratchcard in a wedding card!

bert3400 that's what I would want to do as well

it sounds to me as though they've requested cash - so, say, 100 quid - but part of that - say a fiver - is a scratchcard.

Not just a scratchcard.

Huh? The OP specifically says they dont want cash.

I couldn't live with myself if I put a 5 scratchcard in a wedding card!

You couldn’t live with yourself if you gave your friends what they politely asked for for a wedding present?

Nope.

sorry @Trewser I've had coffee now. No cash.
Sounds fine to me - I'd spend 20 quid on scratch cards and have a good laugh if they won

it sounds to me as though they've requested cash

Is it just me or are the reading comprehension levels on here reaching new lows?

I would buy a £5 scratch card and make a £45 donation to a Gamblerling charity

Only on Mumsnet is a wedding invitation the perfect opportunity to let everyone know how morally superior you are.

I also think this is a great idea. Just buy them one or two. I still can't believe people spend upwards of £50 on wedding presents anyway, (I never do and only heard of it on MN, presumably all my friends think I'm really cheap )

I'm intrigued as to how much they will get. I remember reading that while the odds on the lottery are always the same, scratch cards are (obviously!) designed and printed so there could be more or less big winners at any given time.

If they got e.g. 100 scratch cards I would guess they're fairly likely to get several small wins £5-20 and a reasonable chance of a bigger one eg £100-£500? I don't buy them myself so I don't know how common that is. Seems like they can have a takeaway-> nice meal out on it at least!

I think it’s a test.
Some sort of social experiment.
The idea is to wheedle out the snobs who ‘couldn’t bear to attend the wedding anyway’. To see who buys unofficial Poundland cards and who decides to give to a charity they’re not interested in.

Just buy one, OP.

I would probably get £20 worth.