You could go the whole hog and buy them travel insurance. Aah, precious memories!
So, not a gift for their Italy trip, but since this is the second marriage for each, how about a nice decorative boomerang that they could display on a wall? They both bounced back and found each other.
The fact that they are remarrying shouldn’t have any bearing on what kind of gift you give them. Think of what they could really use or what they might really like and shop accordingly.
I have found that the gift of a nice picture frame is always welcome.
A fire extinguisher is my go to gift for housewarming parties unless I knew they already had one. It has always been appreciated.
As for the OP, maybe a piece of tasteful artwork for their home.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B010O9793M
That is attached to the front of our kitchen island.
Would any of you who are recommending buying artwork for somebody seriously want to have to display in your own home random artwork chosen for you by someone else?
No, I most definitely would not. Thank you for bringing this up.
Here’s a gift I’ve given for weddings and anniversaries that’s always been a hit: send a photo of the happy couple to a site that will make it into a movie poster. You decide on the title, format, etc.
Example:
Second Time Around Productions Presents
JOHN SMITH and JUDY BROWN
in
AT LAST
(Sorry, I can’t figure out how to center stuff on here.)
At the bottom of the poster, you can put their kids or attendants in supporting roles, their parents as producers, sound effects by their dog, etc. I’ve used real movie posters as models when I’ve done it so the posters look more authentic. It takes a bit of thought, but people seem to get a kick out of reading the credits.
Frame it and voilá! You can add personalized champagne glasses and a bottle of bubbly to celebrate the “premiere,” if you like.
Just a suggestion.
OP states that these people have money so if you think of something like a bottle of Dom Perignon or dinner at a fancy restaurant…well, they could get that for themselves and may have already arranged it.
As others have stated, something like art—well it could be ok but if your taste is different from theirs? That’s dicey.
It seems to me you’re left with trying to be clever, thinking of something they overlooked, hence my suggestion.
Part of the trip is getting there. Creature comforts like neck pillows or other things may be greatly appreciated. I once flew from Chicago to Calcutta and what a beating one leg of that trip was—screaming children, trapped for hours on a full plane (12 hours in the air IIRC). My kingdom for some ear plugs! Not sure where OP’s people are leaving from, though, or duration of flight.
I still have my neck wallet, though it’s a plain, simple cloth one. Sometimes I see it (it’s in a fire safe with other documents) and think, ‘Damn! I gotta travel again!’ I would hope the trip to Italy is the first of many travels for the happy couple. If so, good traveling accoutrements are worth having. And it seems you could frame such gifts that way—with best wishes for the first of many trips together. But being well off enough, maybe they already have traveled, have this covered.
And before I forget, I’m sorry if I missed this upthread. Are you sure the “second time around” angle is good? OP knows them, and maybe it’s fine but Mrs. L and I are on second marriages as well. If someone had given us something along those lines or highlighted the second time thing, I don’t think we would have enjoyed it. I would think ‘That was a long time ago and we’re looking forward, not backward.’
Maybe it depends on the delivery…if that’s ok with the OP’s couple, fine.
Totally agree on the “second time around” thing - I know it was just one person suggesting it, and it wasn’t the OP, but that’s such a bad idea! I would really hate that.
Back to the OP I’m getting married this summer, for the second time, and it’s his second time, as well. We’ve been together for years, and really don’t want or need anything from other people. (We’re just having a very small ceremony with our kids there and getting it done, so your friends may be in a different head space.) I would say, a nice card, bottle of whatever they drink, and some money to spend on their honeymoon. At some point they have or are going to combine two households and likely have more than enough “stuff” and have their own decorating style. The only other thing I could think of would be something related to a mutual hobby they may have, but you’d have to know what they already have related to that. If they’re older, like we are, the last thing they will likely want is more stuff they have to find a space for!
I truly appreciate the thought you Dopers have put into this - clearly more than I had. Thanks for all the ideas and the anti-ideas. All important input. We’ll take it from here!
I’m not recommending it, and, no, I like to choose my own art. You have to really REALLY know a person’s taste well to be successful with this kind of gift.
For example, the tree art thing is perfectly fine, but not my taste.
Either cash or a nice set of high quality bedding. People who are combining households rarely buy new sheets because the ones they currently have are still perfectly good. I’ve given bedding to several couples for their second marriages and have always received what seemed to be sincere thanks for them.