Christening Gifts Blog - Recent Posts

If you had invested in silver only three or four years ago, you would have seen the value of your holding increase by nearly 400% at todays prices. This is all well and good if you had the foresight and capital to make such an investment, but, unfortunately we are not all so lucky and the cost of silver is having a dramatic knock-on affect in other areas.

Here at CHRISTENINGsilver, we have tried very hard to keep the price of our sterling silver Christening gifts as competitive as possible, reducing both margin and costs whilst maintaining quality. Unfortunately, in some cases, the weight of silver in some products means we are currently purchasing them at a higher price now than we were selling them for 5 years ago.

We appreciate that when buying Christening gifts our customers are often working to a budget and we want to offer the best choice and quality possible at competitive price points. For this reason we are introducing a range of silver plate Christening gifts to meet demand. These gifts are manufactured by the same silversmiths responsible for our sterling silver range and in many cases to the same designs. The craftsmanship and finish are the same as our sterling gifts and the depth of plating in most cases allows for engraving.

This silver plate range will be growing over the next few months. For more details, visit our Silver Plate Christening Gifts pages

The King James Authorised Version of the bible is being celebrated this year – 400 years old and the language is still some of the most resonant in English. No matter what your religious persuasion, the seventeenth century translators certainly knew how to turn a phrase or two … apart from all the “begatting” that goes on in Genesis which can be a bit tedious.

Around the same time, using similar language, the Book of Common Prayer gave us the foundation for worship that lasted hundreds of years. Apart from the occasional tinkering over time, the Book of Common Prayer survived until the 1980’s when the Alternative Service Book was introduced, followed by the Common Worship series in 2000. Many of the changes were probably overdue with old services like the “Churching of Women” receiving their just deserts. Unfortunately, however, the erosion of that wonderful 17th century language had also begun in earnest.

And now, in 2011, the General Synod of the Church of England has decided to revisit the Baptism Service … to tone down the language even more.

The media have not been slow to label the process “baptism lite”, or as one commentator put it: “Christenings without much Christianity.”

This dumbing down of the service is designed to make it more accessible to us poor “non-theologically versed Britons”. Apparently, the language is not “earthed enough” and that non-churchgoers at the service may be squeamish about declaring that they “reject the devil and all rebellion against God” and renounce “the deceit and corruption of evil.” So there is now a desire for change.

This is a pity.

Firstly, the Church is underestimating the audience it is trying to placate. Those of us who do not regularly attend church enjoy the poetry and ceremony attached to a church service. To take away the bells and smells is often to take away the mystery. The Church’s reasoning is that by making the language more everyday they are allowing the service to resonate better with people’s experience of life. But don’t the majority of people seek something more from a church service, something that will lift them out of the everyday and help them to aspire for improvement in both their lives and the lives of others?

Secondly, with around 160,000 Christenings taking place each year in the UK, the Christening service is still seen as an important rite of passage. Surely a bit of poetic mystery wouldn’t be out of place on such an occasion. A Christening is the perfect opportunity for the Church to welcome people to the faith – an anodyne, prosaic service will probably be as uplifting as a PowerPoint lecture from your HR manager on Health & Safety.

Luckily, the speed at which the Church moves in matters of faith and doctrine can never be described as lightening fast and it will be many years before we see the new service in all its grounded, approachable glory. And maybe, just maybe, the authors of the new service will look back to the original language of the Book of Common Prayer and realise that there is power in provenance … the understanding and connection come from the way it is delivered.

We are always adding to our range of Christening presents and now have 8 different egg cups and egg cup and spoon sets to choose from, with prices ranging from £59.99 to £155

The latest addition to the range is an egg and spoon set from a respected Birmingham silversmith. We chose this Christening present for its simple lines and quality of manufacture.

Our range of traditional and contemporary Christening Gifts is growing as we add new products to the range.

Sterling silver children's cutlery sets have been popular Christening gifts since Victorian times, but, unfortunately, the cost of silver over the last year has made such sets prohibitively expensive. A child's sterling silver cutlery set will now set you back over £200, which, in today's economic climate makes such items a rare purchase. For this reason we now have in stock a range of silver plate cutlery Christening gift sets, competitively priced at only £39.99. They come in three different designs: A traditional Old English pattern; a 19th century Dubarry design based on a Chippendale style; and a classic Art Nouveau La Regence pattern. Understandably, these sets have been very popular in 2010.

After four successful months, our Christening gifts engraving service is proving increasingly popular.

The St Christopher pendant with initials has been the most regular choice, offering a personalised, lasting Christening gift for under £30, whilst sales of napkin rings, bookmarks and cufflinks have increased month on month. However, the Christening gift to benefit most from the new engraving service is undoubtedly our traditional silver egg cup.

A classic Christening present, this silver egg cup has become even more popular now that it can be engraved with a simple set of initials. The majority of customers are choosing the engraver's "English Script" for the initials, perfectly complimenting the style & design of the cup.

A new sterling silver cross bookmark has been added to our Christening gifts range and at under £30 it represents excellent value for money.


Containing 9 grams of silver and at 2 inches in length, this bookmark is an elegant present for those on a budget. We also offer an engraving service for this product, providing a personalised sterling silver gift for under £40.

This bookmark is manufactured and hallmarked in London.

More information can be found at our Christening Bibles & Bookmarks page.

We've added another super Tooth Fairy box to our Christening gift range.

Over the past three years, taste and fashion may have changed, but our range of keepsake Christening gifts has maintained its position as one of our most reliable Christening gift lines.

Our first tooth fairy keepsake box, from a celebrated Sheffield silversmith, has always been popular and, at under £40, offers an attractive gift of high perceived value at a very competitive rate.

comes from a London jeweller. The box is engraved with the words "first tooth" and is priced at £49.

Another exciting Christening gift has been added to the Christening Silver product range. This pretty Silver Baby Rattle is competitively priced at only £79 and comes in an elegant presentation box. As Christening gifts go, this is definitely a winner - a great present for a baby girl or boy.

Our range of silver baby rattles has become increasingly popular over the past 12 months and as a result we are adding three new rattles to the gifts on offer. This first rattle is hallmarked in Sheffield. The next two rattles will be added to the collection in March and come from a London silversmith. Once again, these are assayed and hallmarked ... unbeatable Christening gifts!