Here's what Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are asking for instead of wedding gifts

And it couldn't be more them...

(Image credit: Tim Rooke/REX/Shutterstock)

And it couldn't be more them...

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding is finally here, marking an end to months of prep for the royal family and close friends of the couple.

It's tradition that, ahead of their wedding day, the bride and groom issues a gift list so that friends and loved ones can gift them something useful for newly-married life.

But Prince Harry and Meghan Markle aren't your usual bride and groom, so it's not surprising that their wedding gift list is a little different from your run-of-the-mill nuptials.

In a statement released on social media last month, Kensington Palace shared that the couple have requested well-wishers to make a donation to one of seven charities close to their heart in the place of a wedding present.

The charities include Children's HIV association (CHIVA); homeless charity Crisis; the Myna Mahila Foundation, supporting women in Mumbai's slums; Scotty's Little Soldiers, a charity supporting children who have lost a parent in the Armed Forces; young persons charity Street Games; marine conservation organisation Surfers Against Sewage (SAS); and, finally, the Wilderness Foundation.

Each charity represents a social issue that the couple are passionate about, according to Kensington Palace.

We think it's a really lovely idea that celebrates who Harry and Meghan are – and is much better than a Kitchen Aid or Dyson Hoover.

Like we needed another reason to love the newlyweds!

Lucy Abbersteen
Beauty Contributor

Lucy is a freelance beauty editor and contributor at Marie Claire, and has written for titles including Glamour, Refinery29, Popsugar, woman&home and more. She was previously Marie Claire’s junior beauty editor. During her career, she’s covered everything from backstage beauty at fashion week to interviews with famous faces like Drag Race royalty and Little Mix. As for her beauty ethos, she’s a big advocate for not having to spend a fortune on beauty products to get good results, and when she’s not got beauty on the brain you’ll find her reading or hanging out with dogs.