I need some wedding advice. I summon the wisdom of DU.

[cloudbase]

Background

My wife and I have been invited to the wedding of our (long time) friends' daughter. They are Thai, but of Chinese ethnicity. The groom's parents are Chinese.

The bride and groom haven't registered for very much as of this time, but both have careers in New York and probably don't need much to make a single household from what they've got now.

Soooo......

What is considered an appropriate gift? Conversely, should anything be avoided?
Should any colors of dress be avoided? Are any colors considered to be a good omen?
Any other tips or hints you can offer will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

[KG]

1. when in doubt, i always give picture frames as wedding gifts.

[SteppingRazor]

2. The only good luck/bad luck colors I know of as far as Chinese superstition...

red is generally good, black is generally bad. Also, if you're going to give a cash gift, try giving it in eights. For example, give $88. Do not give anything in 4s. The Chinese word for 4, tsi, is the same as the Chinese word for death.

Then again, if the people getting married are thoroughly Asian-American, these things probably don't mean much. Any Asian friends of mine that were born and raised in this country generally don't follow Eastern superstitions.

[cloudbase]

6. Thanks!

That's the kind of stuff I need to know. Keep 'em coming.

[soleft]

3. Thai or Taiwanese?

I don't mean to suggest you don't know the ethnicity of your friends, it's just that I have three friends who are Taiwanese, with Chinese ethnicity - so I thought I'd check.

[cloudbase]

5. Definitely Thai.

On both sides, the parents are immigrants. The children are all American.

[soleft]

7. OK, so I asked my Thai friend

And here's what she said:

Off the top of my head: no time pieces (clocks, watches), no sharp objects. Also, black (and/or white) is the color for mourning. Other than that, anything they would give to western bride and groom is fine. It’s very nice of your friend!

[cloudbase]

8. Thanks for passing that along.

That's really helpful information. Please pass along my gratitude to your friend, too.

[malta blue]

4. I know nothing of the colors, etc. but a nice

wine basket is always a great gift. And the recipients will think of you when they enjoy it.

You can give them a nice sparkling with some fruit (although this basket would need to be consumed right away). Another option is a port with chocolates...anyhow, you get the idea...