How To: Wedding Registry

Hi there!

My guess is... You are reading this because you just got engaged, if that's the case - CONGRATS! If my guess was wrong, welcome anyway! I'm glad you're interested on how to organize your home with these funky gadgets. This post will contain some of the best items I got through my engagement and even after my wedding (with the gift cards we received)! There are few questions to ask before even diving into the fun stuff.

Is It Wrong To Register At Multiple Places?

A lot of people may be under the impression that you need to have one main registry. Some people may think it is appropriate to have one main registry as well as a smaller registry. Well Honey, I am here to tell you that this is your day and you should feel free to have as much or as little on as many registries as you want. If you want one registry just for decor at a store, one for kitchen items at a completely different store, and one for bathroom items at a third store... That is totally acceptable in this new and improved time of fine living we have going on!

Where to Register?

The answer to this question may differ according to your location. I had a lot of different opinions about where to register. It also may differ according to how comfortable you would be spending on someone's wedding gift, as well as how comfortable you are asking people to purchase these item on your registry. The three places we registered were Amazon, Bed Bath & Beyond, and Target.

We decided to start with Amazon because it was the easiest and had the most benefits. The had plenty of perks. People could purchase the gift off of your Amazon registry and have it shipped directly to your home. This is super convenient for a lot of people now-a-days. Amazon also has a discount for the items you do not receive off of your registry. You can purchase anything off of your registry for 20% off after the date of your wedding if you are a prime member, and 10-15% off if you do not hold a prime membership.

The soul reason we chose Bed, Bath, & Beyond is for their nice sheets. Christian (my husband) is really picky about the softness of anything that is categorized as "comfy." We went to there and felt a hundred sheets and registered for our favorite pair. They also have a lot of nice items that can't really be found at somewhere like Target or Walmart.

Target was my favorite place to register. I thought they had everything we would need and more. We chose Target because it is one of my favorite places to go to on a weekly basis, so why not register there too?

There are a million and one places to create your wedding registry. Your decision varies on more than you think.

Things to consider when choosing where to register:

How much money is appropriate for your guest to spend on you?

What stores are local to you?

What stores are local to your guest?

What stores ship directly to your apartment, home, etc.?

What stores give discounts for the items you may not receive off of the registry?

What stores have great varieties of items?

What store will cover your living room decor as well as your kitchen essentials?

Here is a helpful list of places to consider when creating your registries.

• Amazon

• Bed, Bath, & Beyond

• Best Buy

• Crate & Barrel

• Dillard's

• Macy's

• Pottery Barn

• The Container Store

• Wal-Mart

• Wayfair

• Williams-Sonoma

What to Register?

I feel like a lot of people struggle with figuring out what to register. I know we had thoughts of "do we have too many items on our registry?" "Is this item too expensive to go on our registry?" "No one would buy a house plant off our registry." Let's get ride of some myths first. Are there too many items on my registry? The recommended number of items is 1-3 items per 1 guest. This assures that the guest will have plenty of options to chose from. Is this item too expensive to put on my registry? I can't tell you that the most expensive item on your registry will be bought, but I can tell you that the most expensive item(s) were bought off of ours. People may come together to split an expensive item. People may just feel extra generous. I had the two most expensive items on my registry (a kitchen aid mixer & an espresso/coffee pot machine) bought off of my registry. I also had some friends come together and split the cost of the furniture we wanted for our home. I know those prices tags were a pretty penny, but I am so thankful for the efforts people made to bless Christian and I. So my advice, put whatever you want. It may not get bought, but it might!!

Appliances

There are of course your regular items that you should always add to your registry, like a coffee pot and a toaster. Then there are the great secrets of the kitchen that I am about to tell you about. Some of these items may be costly, and some of them are under $50!

We'll start with this appliance called the "Fry Daddy." This appliance is under $30 on Amazon. This will give you those homemade beignets, crispy french fries, or those tasty chicken nuggets. It is so easy to use, and it is easily one of my favorite registry item. Registered on Amazon!

This Ninja Blender was not on my registry, but I am overjoyed that I received this. It comes with multiple single serving blending cups. This makes for easy morning breakfast. It is the best blender I have used. Again, it wasn't on my official registry, but I did receive it and I use it all of the time.

This crock pot is a God-sent item. I registered for this specific one because it is programmable. This is a special feature that I couldn't live without. I would recommend only registering for the crock pots with this feature. Truth time: I actually received a crock pot that did not have this feature and I returned it for this one.

This Coffee Pot. This One. Right Here. This was on my registry. I thought... "No one would pay over two hundred bucks for it, but I will just put it on there anyways." Well a very good friend of ours did get this for us. It is a dual coffee machine. Half of it is a full 12 cup coffee pot, while the other half is an espresso machine WITH a frother.... Is frother a word? I am not sure, but I know it froths the milk to make a latte from heaven.

This kitchen aid (I previously mentioned) was an item I also never thought someone would purchase off of our registry. Let me tell you, I shed a tear when someone decided to bless us with this. I would recommend anyone put this on their registry. This is a great tool for cooking or baking. You can make so many things with this from mashed potatoes to homemade cookies! I recently made shredded chicken tacos thanks to this bad boy.

Storage

Storage is something great to register for. Storage is generally less expensive, compared to appliances. It gives your guest great options, or allows them to use it as an add on to the gift they had in mind.

These lazy suzan storage containers are perfect for corners of cabinets or for pantry shelves. It makes the hard to reach become the easily accessible. You can store spices or snacks.

I won't even lie... These OXO Pop Container Sets create a sexy pantry. Now you know you are an adult when you can't stop thinking about how organized your pantry is. On a serious note, these create a beautiful and organized pantry space.

These rubbermaid storage containers are ESSENTIAL. My husband brings his lunch to work almost every day. I do not know how we could survive without these easy to store / easy to use storage containers.

MISC Items You Won't Regret.

These next few items are quirky but amazing.

The Trolley Dolly is a necessity for anyone who buys groceries and has to walk more than five feet from their car to their door. It is multi-purposeful. This little dolly is something I like to put all of my groceries in when going from my car, through my parking garage, up the elevator, through the hall, and finally into my apartment.

It takes the pain away from carrying a million bags on your arms when bringing groceries inside... Just to almost get to the door and one of them to break. Oh yeah, it was the bag with the carton of eggs in it.. I hope this never happens to you. I know it never will if you get this dolly though.

This steamer is a great add on to your wedding registry. It pretty much replaced all of my ironing. It is compact, so it travels well. This steamer is so easy to use and works great.

Decor

One category to add to your registry is decor! I thought my mom was crazy when she told me to add decor to my registry, but I am so glad I listened to her. I put things from fake plants, to lamps, to kitchen rugs, to decor pillows. I received almost every piece of decor that was on my registry. This means my home is all nice and decorated.