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Never give an even number of flowers
Italian present-giving carries a few rules that are not obvious. Flowers are given in odd numbers, and chrysanthemums are strictly for cemeteries — handing a bunch to a host would be a startling gesture. Avoid giving knives or scissors, which are said to cut a friendship, unless the recipient hands back a coin to buy them; the superstition is half-believed and wholly observed. Wine is welcome, but at a dinner where the host has chosen the food, a bottle may read as a comment, so flowers or a dolce from a good pasticceria are safer. Birthdays have their own shape. The person with the birthday is expected to pay — offro io — which inverts the Anglo-American assumption completely, so if a colleague brings pastries to the office on their own birthday, that is the convention rather than unusual generosity. Tanti auguri is sung to the same tune you know. And one to avoid: wishing someone happy birthday early is thought to bring bad luck, so wait until the day itself.