I am in no way a wedding registry prodigy, nor did Mr. C and I do everything right when it came to building our list registries. HA. If only! I'm sharing our experience with registering to shed some reality on the whole thing and hopefully give a few helpful tips + tricks to use when it comes time to put your registry knowledge into action. Without further ado...
Mistake #1: Failing to Make a Plan
It's almost embarrassing to admit Mr. C and I's first trip to Target was sans any sort of list/checklist of what we needed as a married couple about to start building a life together. We scanned things only as we came upon them in their respective aisles, which lead to us forgetting some of the "essentials" (How could we forget the toaster?!) and including some of the more obscure "desired" items (I'm lookin' at you, wok!).
Tip #1: Be Prepared with a Customized Checklist
While I love that the internet is full of generic "Wedding Registry Checklists" that can be incredibly helpful for the couple that has no idea of what they'll need to fully stock their home, they can also be incredibly overwhelming and full of items that are not really needed, and don't really make sense to the couple's life together. The Knot may suggest that I need crystal drink wear, but I know that if Mr. C and I were to actually get formal dinner wear, it would just collect dust on our shelves and take up precious room in our cabinets. Before going out and completing our registry, we sat down with multiple different wedding registry must-have lists and used these generic lists to make our own checklist. This way, when we got to the store we didn't have to spend time assessing whether we actually needed that item (this probably saved a lot more time than we realized - hallelujah!) and were able to start searching and hunting for that item to check-off our own customized registry checklist. Your checklist can be on your phone, or a printed out version, but I definitely recommend separating each item by category and/or room in which it will be used. Since I'm semi-OCD I printed our list out, complete with little boxes I could check-off after each item was added to the registry.
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| Image via Troll Meme Generator |
I was convinced by friends, wedding magazines, and online wedding blogs that I absolutely, 100% could not live without a KitchenAid stand mixer. If I didn't register for it, my cooking skills and performance in the kitchen would surely suffer as a result. Well, I took the advice of the wedding experts and registered for one during our first registry experience. It was big and beautiful in all it's bright-red glory, and even though I was a little sticker-shocked by how much it was, I reluctantly scanned it and continued with Mr. C to find our next much-needed, big-ticket item. I didn't think much about it until I returned to our registry a few weeks later and realized that it was by far the most expensive item on our registry and the item we probably needed the least. Without any further thought, I removed it from our registry (I can hear the sounds of hearts breaking all across kitchen's across America).
Tip #2: If You Don't Need it, Don't Scan it
While I would love to own my very own KitchenAid stand mixer one day, it's not a priority on the list of things Mr. C and I need right now. At this very moment, we need the basics. We need a microwave, and a toaster, and a good quality set of pots and pans. Once we're well established in the way of kitchen gadgets and gizmo's a plenty (please tell me you sung that in Ariel's voice), and I learn how to be a domestic housewife, I'll consider adding a high-quality stand mixer to the mix. Which leads me to tip #2...if you don't need it (/don't have room for it/it doesn't make sense to your lifestyle), don't scan it. Even if The Knot and BB&B and Target tell you that YOU NEED IT or else your life as a newlywed will suck, don't register for it. I'm obviously talking about the items that you see on the generic lists I mentioned above and think, "Huh?? I really need that?", not the items you really cannot live without (towels, flatware sets, dinnerware). If you're not 100% sure on whether or not to register for something, scan it knowing that you can always make changes to your registry lists on the store's website if you decide you don't need it anymore. Also, including gift cards on your registries is always a good idea.
Mistake #3: Not Soliciting Advice from Married Couples
We took some time to poll a few of our married friends on what they wish they knew before they registered, but we realized that we never flat-out asked them for their list of items they regretted registering for or wished they had. In the middle of our first registry experience I realized that I had completely forgotten to get this info, and wondered the whole time we were registering if we had forgotten any of the "must-haves" according to our friends and family.
Tip #3: Use the Knowledge of Those that Have Gone Before You
Prior to venturing out a second time, we ended up asking a large number of our married friends and family to fill us in, and boy, did they ever! Per their advice, we ditched the idea of owning an ice-bucket and tongs (seriously, these are on every wedding registry checklist I found) and decided to add a vacuum cleaner. Other suggestions we got were to add a couple inexpensive board games for the weddings guests who'll want to get you something "fun" off of your registry, as well as some power-tools and needed-but-not-fun items, like a laundry hamper. While every couple is different and "needs" different things, it's a great idea to ask already married people their input on wedding registries. This may seem incredibly obvious, but I know a lot of engaged couples that consult only the generic wedding registry lists and not married couples that actually know from experience what's needed and what's not. The easiest way to poll the largest amount of married people at once is, you guessed it, Facebook! Post a status asking about wedding registry must-haves and regrets and you'll not doubt get lots of answer from those that want to help you out and make the process easier for you. Sharing is caring, even if it's through social media.
Mistake #4: Not Registering for A Wide Variety of Gifts at Various Price Points
Since we failed to go in without any plan whatsoever, Mr. C and I ended up registering for things as we came upon them, which meant that a lot of our items ending up being around the same price range (over or around $50).
Tip #4: Include a Variety of Gifts to Fit Every Price Point
What I didn't know was that there's an actual way for bride-to-be's to figure out how many gifts should fall within each price range. I found the below chart after Mr. C and I's first registering trip and it has helped immensely when building the rest of our registry. We made sure to register for lots of "smaller" items while making sure some more expensive gifts made it on the registry as well. I liked using this chart because I was able to tailor it to my own guest list and the number of guests invited. I also recommend registering for more than you think you'll need. Many stores, including Bed Bath & Beyond, having registry completion programs that allow you to get a discount on all the items that weren't purchased - score!
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| Chart via Bridal Guide |
Thankfully, completing our registries was less of a headache after we figured out the easiest and most effective way to do it. Even though it was a frustrating experience at times, it was humbling to stop and realize that the items we're registering for were going to be purchased by our incredibly generous wedding guests who want to help Mr. C and I start our lives together. That in itself made all the stress and frustration worth it.
Any other registry tips + tricks that you learned along the way?
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