Wedding Gift Registry Do’s and Dont’s-Wedding Wednesday

Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in this post are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”Wedding Gift Registry planning can be a fun time for engaged couples. Usually, you should create your registry about 6 months before the wedding date to allow for gifts to be purchased for engagement and shower gifts as well as for wedding gifts. Summer and Aaron are 4 months out from their wedding date and they are just now working on their registry, due to extenuating circumstances. They are buying a house and its contents! Their friends are heading back out on to the mission field and they are selling them everything in one big package deal. Due to this fact they were waiting to create their registry until they had a basic inventory of what they are getting with the house so that they use their registry wisely.

While they will need linens and some personal touches to make the house their own, they don’t need the bulk of kitchen items usually found on a wedding registry, especially since the current owner is an amazing cook and owns some awesome kitchen items. What the kids really need, in all honesty, are Ikea gift cards. Unfortunately, Ikea doesn’t offer a gift registry and asking for gift cards is tacky. The one thing in the house that needs to be updated are the kitchen cabinets, counters and floor. They have it all mapped out from Ikea and we will be putting the info on their wedding website, so hopefully some of their guests will help in this way.

There are some do’s and don’ts for planning your wedding gift registry so I thought I’d share some of those with you first. Remember, if you aren’t a couple who need expensive bone china, don’t register for it. It is 2014-register for what you will actually use regularly and then add in a few “special occasion” items like a turkey platter or electric carving knife for when you host the family Thanksgiving celebration.

Wedding Gift Registry Do’s

• Talk with your fiancee before heading to the stores about color schemes etc.
• Make a list of what each of you already own and are bringing into this marriage. No need to register for things you already own.
• Register at 2-3 stores. At least one should be brick and mortar, not all your guests will shop online. For those that do, you can create an Amazon Wedding Registry.
• Register at stores with different price points so that there is something in every guest’s price range.
• Do check your registry occasionally to check if items are no longer available.
• Do share about where you are registered by word of mouth, your wedding website and in shower invitations.
• Do keep a log of gifts received and who sent them.
• Do send out thank you notes within 6 weeks of receiving the gift. The sooner the better.
• If you really don’t need a lot of household items, you can register for your honeymoon with Honeyfund.
• Register for enough gifts, if you have 150 wedding guests and only register for 50 gifts you create a difficult spot for your guests.

 

Wedding Gift Registry Dont’s

• Do not include gift registry information in with your wedding information.
• Do not ask for cash.
• Do not check your registry right before a party or shower, it will take away the surprise of opening your gifts.
• Don’t go overboard. This is a wishlist but guests can spot greed a mile away.
• Don’t register for personal items or clothing.

Next week I’ll be sharing what kinds of things to register for, and I’ve created a Wedding Gift Registry Printable to make sure you get what you want and what you need.