A Meaningful Wedding Gift

It all started with a wedding. 

Did you know that the first blanket we ever bought was for a wedding gift? 

We knew about Basha, and I loved the blankets. But, we were living the student-life at the time; I wasn’t spending $4 on a coffee, much less $100 on a blanket — no matter how much I loved it! 

When my friend Kathy announced her engagement, I knew that a kantha throw would make the perfect gift. This was Kathy’s second wedding; her first husband (a close friend of ours) tragically died in a car accident while they were expecting their third child. What a special gift, I thought, to communicate the kinship of Kathy’s hard road with another woman — both with a glimpse of some redemption. 

I brought the blanket to the wedding shower, and it was a hit! Of course the story was great, and the colors were vibrant, but the touchof a kantha is such a WOW moment in person. So soft! Everyone at the shower loved it. (I even had a Facebook memory pop up for me recently of a friend from that shower asking, “Where did you get that blanket, again?”)

I had NO IDEA at the time that I would go on to start importing and selling more of these blankets myself. No idea that 10 months later, I would launch dignify and my life would change. And, in spite of the origin story, I had no idea that so many others would buy kantha blankets as their own special wedding gifts!

Some more kantha wedding fun:

• No surprise here: most everyone we know receives a kantha for a wedding gift! Same for Amber, who includes notes to us in her orders from time to time:

• "You're basically my go to place for wedding gifts for people I like..."
• "Hi! It's me again, another wedding gift!" 
  
  
• Kayla discovered our blankets at a market in 2014. Years later, for her local, outdoor wedding, she borrowed many throws to use for the ceremony's hay-bale seating! Each blanket was available for guests to purchase at a discount, and what was left she washed & returned to us :) 
  
  
• More sweet gift messages (shared in the "notes" of the checkout):

• "I hope this blanket provides you with so much warmth and love".

• “Happy Marriage!  We wanted to get you something super special as a wedding present that you would never get yourselves and chose this stunning company.  Choose something wild and colourful or basic and neutral.  Hope you feel wrapped in love, by us, the blanket you choose, and your whole community."
  
  
• "I have fretted about what to get you for a wedding gift for too long. I love you too much, and none of the gifts seemed right! This blanket was made by a woman who needs some love in her life, and I thought it would be an appropriate gift to celebrate your love."
  
  

• "So sorry for being way behind on a wedding gift. This is for the wedding and the baby!" 😂

• Some brides have gifted a classic kantha throw or indigo throw to all of their bridesmaids! A fun symbol of the shared experience & kinship with other women.
  
  
• I wrote a blog post the week of Harry & Megan’s royal wedding, and made a bunch of funny instagram stories imagining them reacting to receiving a dignify kantha throw as a wedding gift. Unfortunately, I used a press image of them in the post (a no-no), and even 2 years later,  long after removing the photo, had to pay $600 to avoid legal troubles about it! Sheesh.

We love weddings and we love kantha blankets! It's been so fun to participate in a tiny way in some of these stories. Do you have a wedding gift (giving or receiving) story? Share it by emailing hello@shopdignify.com, or adding it in the comments below :)

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