My mom and I were shopping in a used furniture store and we saw a picnic-set backpack. I remember those were THE wedding present a number of years ago—I wonder if they still are? They’re just so charming and romantic, with their tableware for two, their wine-bottle holster and plastic wine glasses, the whole concept of newlyweds picnicking on a grassy hill. And yet the picnic backpack we saw was completely unused, and a friend of mine offered a similar report: that they had even registered for a picnic set, but then never got around to using it a single time and so finally re-gifted it to another couple.
This is not a large enough sample on which to base a decision on the suitability of the “picnic set as wedding gift” idea. For one thing, it’s really a sample of ONE couple: for all we know, the unused set at the used furniture store could have been from a couple who received two or more sets as gifts. And my friend who told me they never used their set was not a member of a couple that went on hikes and picnics BEFORE they got married, so they may have just gotten caught up in the idea that everything would change as soon as they were married—just as many women have a foggy concept of wearing long white nightgowns and sitting in rocking chairs as soon as the baby is born.
So the first thing I would like to know is whether you received a picnic set as a wedding gift, and the second thing I would like to know is if you have used it. And then I would like to look at some options, partly for the fun of seeing what’s available, partly for the usefulness in the current wedding season, and partly so that people can say, “Yes, we got one—hey, it’s the third one down!”
The Picnic Time Insulated Backpack for Two (photo from Amazon.com) is similar to what my mom and I saw.
The Picnic Time Brittania-Carnaby Street Wine Tote (photo from Amazon.com) is (1) more expensive and (2) has less things. But I like it more, and I think I’m more likely to tote wine than I am to backpack a lunch.
I looked at several baskets that seemed to have a serious design flaw: each was set up to lie on its side for filling and unloading, so that the “carrying position” of the basket was a 90-degree shift from the “loading/unloading” position. Get everything niiiiiice and settled—and then pick it up and everything flips and falls to the back, which is now the bottom. The Household Essentials Willow Picnic Basket (photo from Amazon.com) solves this problem, and also ups the charm with classic woven wood. It’s service for four instead of the more romantic service for two, but let’s think of it as having a wine glass and a water glass each.
Or here’s another wood option, but for two: the Picnic Time Barrel Picnic Basket (photo from Amazon.com).
The Piccadilly Picnic Basket (photo from Amazon.com) is adorable in both design and name. Piccadilly Picnic!
Well, or I also like the look of the Household Essentials Oval Basket (photo from Amazon.com). The oval shape doesn’t seem practical for packing things, and it’s service for four (though there are only three of each utensil in the photo), and I’d like it better if the fabric were the more classically picnicky red-and-white…okay, never mind, I’ve talked myself out of it.
The Sutherland Hampshire Commons Basket (photo from Amazon.com) looks like a very sensible design: it can be loaded/unloaded from either the top or the side, and it has a nice sturdy-looking shoulder strap.
Oh, man, is this adorable? A picnic backpack for kids! (photo from Amazon.com) I wish it had some reviews: I want to know if it’s practical as well as cute.
This is clever: the Lands’ End Bike Picnic Basket (photo from LandsEnd.com) attaches to a bicycle. Now we can add a “bicycle built for two” image to our “newlyweds picnicking on a grassy hill” idea!
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So, do you have one of these? And do you use it?
This is so funny, because as soon as I saw the title but before I read the post, I thought, “Hey, WE got a picnic backpack for our wedding, but we never used it and finally gave it away!”
So, there you go.
Dr. Maureen | July 25th, 2012 at 11:18 am
My husband was in a wedding in 1995 and that couple received SIX picnic sets! I don’t think they even registered for one, but many people must have thought they really needed to go on a picnic!
Denise V. | July 25th, 2012 at 11:26 am
Got a regular picnic basket as an enagement present 15 years ago. Never used it. Donated it to a rummage sale.
Before I even met my now-husband, I thought picnic baskets were hugely romantic. I wonder if I ever mentioned that theory to the friend who gave it to me, or whether it’s a widespread delusion?
Slim | July 25th, 2012 at 11:35 am
We got one of the non-insulated picnic baskets for our wedding and I moved it three times before donating it. It seems silly to not be able to bring perishable food, like a ham sandwich or chicken salad or COLD DRINKS, on a picnic. My wheeled cooler is much less attractive, but way more practical.
Linda | July 25th, 2012 at 11:42 am
Received 2 I believe (8 yrs ago) and never used. Not sure why, I think the always seemed too formal or something. Like we just threw a blanket in the car and food in a cooler?
Rachel | July 25th, 2012 at 11:44 am
My sister recently regifted hers, and I am about to regift one at another wedding. *shh*
Nowheymama | July 25th, 2012 at 11:48 am
I wonder if it matters when you got married or not because I have not seen picnic baskets in an actual store in years! I got married in 2000, for the record.
We received a wicker picnic basket where everything falls to the bottom when you pick it up. Used it once and donated it a few years later. We also received a backpack for 2 like in the first picture and we used that one a few times, but it sat unused for many years after we started having children and I got rid of that one too.
I gave my very good friend a picnic basket when she got married that year too. I should ask her when she got rid of it!
Chris | July 25th, 2012 at 12:05 pm
We have a wine picnic backpack thing (similar to the Picnic Time Brittania-Carnaby Street Wine Tote) and we have never ever used it. Not even once.
Ris | July 25th, 2012 at 12:08 pm
I haven’t ever gotten or given a picnic basket. But I do have one friend that it would make the perfect gift for because she and her husband actually do go on picnics in meadows with champagne. She has a vintage bike with a wicker bike basket!
I have given some consideration to getting one for picnics in the park with kids. But in the end I went with the wheeled cooler. Much less romantic, but I doubt most of those baskets have slots for juice boxes.
HereWeGoAJen | July 25th, 2012 at 12:23 pm
Like you, I LOVE this idea–cute baskets! little straps and pockets for all the utensils etc.! romantic picnics!–but unfortunately fall into the “thought we’d use it, never did” category. To be fair, I think ours was just a wine set, with wine glasses and room to carry a bottle and maybe a little room for food/cheese, and the wine glasses were broken when we opened it. I don’t have it any more so I think we must have returned it after the wedding.
Robin | July 25th, 2012 at 12:32 pm
I received one as a “reward” gift for an accomplishment at work and thought it was the lamest gift ever, because while in theory I thought it was kinda romantic, at the same time, I was the wrong kind of people. We don’t picnic, and not in the grass. The closest we come to that is stopping the car while we eat fast food inside it. I think I kept the actual bag/cooler around for awhile but I got rid of the cheezy plastic snap-together wine classes… but that was 2 houses ago and I have no idea what I did with it.
jen(melty) | July 25th, 2012 at 12:33 pm
Ours was more of a tote and we actually still use it for the summer symphony series and family reunions. We only have one child so we throw her stuff in with ours.
Heather | July 25th, 2012 at 1:16 pm
Ha. I got two picnic sets for my wedding (3 years ago, if time matters). I didn’t register for a picnic set, and while I hang on to them both (one backpack, one basket) with the hope of SOMEDAY, I’ve only used the blanket out of the basket to bring to sporting events where I had to sit on the ground.
Andrea | July 25th, 2012 at 2:40 pm
We bought ourselves a picnic basket thing and used it several times. The main reason we stopped using it was lack of time, and now it’s less suitable because it’s a set for two and we’re a family of three. HOWEVER, I grew up eating outside quite a bit (hiking, camping, picnicking/cooking out, etc) and our go-to drygoods camping basket for four that my parents got when they got married. So that’s had almost forty years of use. But again, they are camping/hiking people. My husband won, at a work party, a wine and cheese picnick set with actual glass glasses and a marble board in a handy insulated carrying case (with his former company’s logo on it) that we have never used ever because we aren’t wine drinkers and wouldn’t be likely to drink wine outside even if we were because most of the places we go outside at are public places that don’t allow glass bottles and/or alcohol.
Brigid Keely | July 25th, 2012 at 2:46 pm
I don’t have one of those. And while they’re cute, I can guarantee if I did have one, I would never ever use it.
Mary | July 25th, 2012 at 3:40 pm
We were given an Eddie Bauer picnic set for our wedding. We didn’t register for it or anything, but I did think it was a nice gift. I think we went on a picnic once before we were married. After we received the picnic set, it sat in our pantry for five years or so; then I finally gave it to Goodwill.
-R- | July 25th, 2012 at 6:00 pm
Add me to the list of got one as a wedding present and never used it. Gave it away somewhere along the line.
jess | July 27th, 2012 at 11:03 am
We received a picnic basket for our wedding 10 years ago. We did not register for it, but when we opened it I thought it was charming. We have never used it. Our version of a picnic is sitting on a big rock while out hiking and pulling sandwiches and bottled water or granola bars out of our backpacks. No plates, no silverware, and definitely no wine glasses. We are simple people.
Brandy | July 27th, 2012 at 1:20 pm
I received one for my shower (two-ish years ago), and we actually do use it pretty regularly! It’s the insulated-bag-on-a-frame style, which I love. You can mash plates, glasses, food, and cooler packs in easily, and it collapses for storage. We live within an hour of the VA wine country, which is where the basket gets the most use, although I have busted it out for the occasional picnic or outdoor summer concert. It is not something I ever thought about in terms of, “Wow, I could really use a picnic basket right now,” but since I have had it, it has almost inspired me to come up with fun activities where it would be useful. I’m pretty sure I would not feel the same way about a non-insulated basket; the cute cooler function is key.
Kate | July 27th, 2012 at 1:21 pm
We received a no-nonsense camping picnic set that we use whenever we camp. My in-laws have a backpack like the first and we use it for happy hour on the beach. They joke about how yuppy they are.
juliloquy | July 27th, 2012 at 1:39 pm
I never received a picnic basket for my wedding, and they were very in vogue at the time. However. I’m not sure I would use one, although we did use to hike a lot back then. I think the backpack ones - especially the first one, with that wine bottle holder! - are way more practical. I kind of covet that, but then, I’m not sure I would be drinking wine on picnics anymore. Plus I live in a climate which isn’t exactly picnic conducive, you know? Ah well. We can all dream.
Nicole Boyhouse | July 27th, 2012 at 2:46 pm
I’ve never been married, but we do have a picnic basket and we do use it regularly in the summer. My kids and I have a membership to a local “swim club” that is surrounded by grass and picnic tables with grills, so the basket is used a lot to contain and easily transport our picnic supplies. I know where everything is, and once it’s washed after use it’s all repacked for the next time. Easy-peasy.
I would LOVE to have, and would absolutely use, a backpack 2-person picnic set as well! That kind of thing would be GREAT for when I take my 7-yr old to the pool for just “a couple of hours.” What an easy way to bring a couple of drinks and a few snacks! I might actually need to buy one!
Rebecca | July 27th, 2012 at 2:55 pm
We received an insulated picnic backpack (it looks a lot like the top one) for our wedding in 2002, along with a waterproof blanket, and I use it ALL THE TIME. For trips to the beach, parks, outdoor concerts, etc. It’s also great for potlucks (which we seem to go to a lot of) where it’s BYO table service–so handy to already have everything we need in one place and just be able to grab the bag and go.
Erin | July 27th, 2012 at 4:10 pm
We got one for our wedding 7 years ago and have never used it. It’s a basket much like the last one on your list but no bike attachment. It’s been gathering dust.
Amelia | July 27th, 2012 at 5:02 pm
One set of utensils is displayed with the plate.
Michelle | July 27th, 2012 at 6:55 pm
I always wanted one of these, but did not get one until I have a one year old. So…. have not used it. I agree with you on the design flaw of the ones your pack on way and then carry another. And while we are very much into hiking and eating, we aren’t the type to do it with wine along, so those wine centric ones aren’t as much up my alley. (I drink plenty of wine, just prefer to NOT have to walk afterwards…)
And I love the kiddo one–I can see us doing more kid-centric picnic than anything.
phancymama | July 27th, 2012 at 7:00 pm
Maybe include a guide to short area day hikes? Especially for couples who are more aspirational than tried-and-true picnicker/hikers?
Melospiza | July 31st, 2012 at 9:08 pm
I received one, I loved its cuteness, I never used it. I always felt like it was easier to grab a single paper plate than to completely unpack the whole picnic bag. I feel like if I ever had a compelling reason to use it the first time that I would have used it more after that. But that’s probably wishful thinking as well. Verdict: adorable but totally useless.
Robin | August 3rd, 2012 at 4:15 pm