Gifts for parents that didn't pay for the wedding???

The way I see it is that you don't give them a gift to sort of pay them back for helping with the wedding, you give a gift because you love them and want them to have some little something to remember the day by. My parents aren't helping pay for my wedding either and I'm planning on getting them a nice picture frame to put a wedding photo in for my mom and a keychain with a little note for my dad. Twenty bucks each and they're happy, so why not?

Gifts for parents are not expected but if you give them they are meant as a token of your appreciation for their love and support not because they contributed to your wedding.

Parent gifts aren't tied to financial contribution for the wedding. I have always seen gifts given as sentimental ones, photos from the wedding nicely framed, charms, cufflinks, that sort of thing. Since I have been on these forums, I have heard of people giving more extravagant, non-wedding related gifts (I have not seen this in person). My parents are paying for zero weddings for me, and I'll give them a small gift at the rehearsal. FH's mom, who is paying for the rehearsal dinner will receive a comparable gift.

I agree, just because you're parents didn't help pay for the wedding, you should still get them gifts. My Mom asked for a framed picture of my FH and I from our wedding day, but I really wanted to give something to both parents for the day of. I bought my Dad cuff links that say, I loved her first on one and the other says Father of the Bride. I got my Mom a necklace of a hummingbird which signifies my Grandmother in our family. That way she can have my Grandmother with her on our big day. I also plan on giving my parents a weekend stay at a Bed and Breakfast as a thank you. My parents only gave me $5,000 towards my wedding, which is more than I wanted to take but they insisted. You're parents helped mold you into the person you are today. And you've found love in someone else. You owe you're parents all of that! Def get them a gift, doesn't have to be crazy or expensive but just something to let them know you appreciate everything they've sacrificed and done for you.

Giving a gift to your parents is entirely up to you and not required. However, a gift shouldn't be a "Thank You" for any sort of contribution; rather, it's more of a "Thank You" for being a part of your special day.

I think the gift giving to your parents is more like a “thank you for raising me and loving me, now here’s my parting gift while I go forward” type thing. I am giving gifts to my parents even though they aren’t helping for the wedding. But I am giving a “better” gift to my FILs because they are helping with the wedding

One set of parents aren't and one set are helping with the wedding but I got identical huge picture frames for their family photo we end up doing on the wedding day, both sets of parents have been there for us and we just want to give them something.