TL;DR: The closer you are to the expecting parents, the more you'll spend on a baby shower gift. Typical gifts range from $25-$200 and more. Whatever amount you choose to spend, putting in extra effort to make the gift pretty and sentimental goes a long way. A baby shower is one of the happiest celebrations.
Traditionally the host will pay but this will depend on many factors. This includes the venue, budget, size of the guest list, and how extravagant it may be. For instance, you can't expect your best friend to throw a huge baby shower and pay for it all herself.
We'll break it down by relationship: For coworkers or acquaintances, people tend to spend around $30 to $50. For friends or distant relatives, many people spend between $50 and $100. For close friends or family members, most people spend between $100 and $200 or more.
Most often, the host pays for the baby shower. This is not always one person. For example, several aunts and cousins might cover the full tab of a shower at a restaurant, or a group of coworkers may help coordinate all the decorations, food and fun.
TL;DR: The closer you are to the expecting parents, the more you'll spend on a baby shower gift. Typical gifts range from $25-$200 and more. Whatever amount you choose to spend, putting in extra effort to make the gift pretty and sentimental goes a long way.
The host pays for the expenses of the baby shower. That being said, co-hosting a shower with one or two others is a good way to split the costs (and the planning).
Anywhere between $50 to $75 is an appropriate amount to give as a bridal shower gift.
Traditional Baby 100 Days Celebration Gift: ang baos
The amount given should end with an even number while favouring the auspicious number eight. Giving new parents an ang bao with $88 or an amount with “88” in it signifies wishing double fortune and blessings.
The Average Cost of a Bridal Shower Gift
According to Opperman, bridal shower gifts tend to be less expensive than wedding gifts. "Many people spend around $50 to $75, whereas closer friends and family may spend upwards of $100," she says.
The average wedding gift amount hovers right around $100, which is a great place to start, and you can increase or decrease that based on how close you are.
While the amount you should gift a couple depends on a number of factors, data from The Knot reveals that U.S. wedding guests spend an average of $160 on cash gifts. "It's common to give anywhere from $100 to $1,000.
THE ETIQUETTE
She offers these guidelines to wedding-goers wherever they might be: A distant relative or co-worker should give $75-$100; a friend or relative, $100-$125; a closer relative, up to $150.
Average gifts from family members range from $50 to $200. A cousin might spend $50, while a grandma or close Aunt might aim for a higher priced gift. If it's a really close friend, your budget might hover around $100.
People in Hong Kong, China, Korea, Japan, and Singapore hold a baby's 100th day as an especially important occasion, and some even consider the 100-day mark as the baby's first birthday.
100 Days Celebration Customs And Traditions
A 100-day celebration is traditional in Chinese culture, as it is in some other Asian countries as well.
Just like the full month celebration marks baby's first full month, the 100-day celebration marks a newborn's first full 100 days. This practice is common in other Asian countries like Korea and Japan, and it dates back to ancient times when life was harder, so it was a good omen if an infant survived past 100 days.
The first 100 days of your baby's life are considered a critical time for brain development. Even if it doesn't seem like your baby is doing much at first, there's a lot of brain growth going on.
At traditional Chinese 100 days celebrations (百日宴), prayers and food will be offered to the ancestors together with the burning of incense to wish the baby good health and protection them from bad spirits. Some families will shave the baby's head, while some have already replaced the ritual with snipping a hair lock.
This significant celebration can be traced back to ancient Chinese traditions, in which the infant mortality rate used to be very high. Hence, when a baby turns 1 month old (“Month” in Mandarin is yue, which directly translates to “Moon”), it calls for a great celebration.
Showers in China are held after the birth of a baby, as holding them before is considered unlucky). The event is a formal affair and traditionally consists of a large banquet dinner. Guests bring gifts of money in red envelopes for the new baby and parents. (The color red is associated with good luck and good fortune.)
The one-child policy was a program in China that limited most Chinese families to one child each. It was implemented nationwide by the Chinese government in 1980, and it ended in 2016. The policy was enacted to address the growth rate of the country's population, which the government viewed as being too rapid.
While most etiquette experts agree that $20-$30 is perfectly reasonable for a child's birthday gift, you can spend up to $100 on the child of a close friend or relative, says Helen Holden, founder of Counting Candles, a website that helps parents plan birthday parties.
If you're already in a long-term relationship, then spending anywhere from $100-$200 for a gift is a safe bet. If you're newly dating, then something less pricey is definitely reasonable, like, say, around $25-$50.