Wedding registries can be exciting or dreadful, depending on how you look at them. How do you decide between the millions of products and color options that there are out there?? It can be exhausting if you don’t have any idea where to start or if you don’t really care about place settings and fabric napkins. I was stoked about getting our Ninja Coffee Bar but didn’t waste my time adding a silver serving platter to our list.
Photo by Andi Bravo Photography.
It all depends on your personality and taste. I know some ladies who would put a new shiny Kitchen Aid stand mixer at the top of their list, but I also know some ladies who wouldn’t touch one of those things with a 10 foot pole.
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Or if you’re like me, you really want one because it’s SOOO pretty in that mint green color, but let’s be honest… you would use it once and then just stare at it for the rest of it’s existing days. Am I right?! (We got the Kitchen Aid hand mixer instead and I’m so happy with that decision!)
Photo by Andi Bravo Photography.
Where do you fall? Would you love to have a few practical things, but would also prefer that your guests spend their hard earned money on gifts that you REALLY want? After all, your wedding isn’t about receiving gifts — especially the ones you might never use. Sure, you really need that new set of silverware, but do you really need a marble rolling pin if you bake once a year around Christmastime (or like, never)? Maybe you’d really like a little extra cash for you honeymoon, or a monthly coffee or wine subscription…
My husband and I fell right in the middle. We wanted nice things for our new home together, but we also wanted some experiences as gifts too! That’s why I think it’s necessary to have multiple registries. Not to expand the quantity of gifts available to register for, but to expand the variety of the types of gifts you register for.
Here’s what I think you should do…
Choose a registry with a household name that everyone on your guest list will be comfortable purchasing from, such as Target or Amazon (yes, Amazon has registries!) Then, choose an additional registry like Zola or Etsy that has more non-traditional gifts.
With Zola you can register for things like cooking or fitness classes, as well as things like dishes and household items. Etsy is the perfect place to register for personalized gifts, like a sign with your new last name or matching Mickey Mouse t-shirts for your Disney honeymoon (if you can convince your future hubby). We registered at Target and Zola!
My top 5 picks for recommended registries!
- Zola Registry – This is my top recommendation because of the wide variety of gifts to choose from. There is an option for “cash funds” so that you can give guests the option to contribute to your honeymoon fund or even just a savings account! The sky is the limit, you can be as creative as you want with Zola. If your “married couple goals” are to backpack through Europe for a month, make it your main registry option!
Sign up with my link and Zola will give you $50 to spend on their site! (For referring you I will also get $50 in Zola credit) Zola also offers free shipping, price matching, and 10% off registry items for a year after your wedding. If an item sells out before someone purchases it from your registry, it will show up as sold out on your list and it’s not a hassle at all to just add another item in it’s place. That only happened with one of our items and it was just a taco rack. Not a big deal at all. Except that now I really want some tacos… - Amazon Registry – Literally, almost anything you want can be found on Amazon, which you most likely already know. I’m a huge Amazon fan! I was so close to having a third registry because I really wanted an Amazon Registry. We picked Zola instead because of the “cash funds” option, but I’m convinced anyone would be more than satisfied with the Amazon Wedding Registry. Offers include, but are not limited to, free shipping plus 20% off items post-wedding.
- Target – Target is my happy place. I can (and often do) walk around the store for hours. Starbucks iced coffee in hand, trying on clothes, and checking out what’s new in Bullseye’s Corner is just way too much fun for me. Having them as our main registry made everything so easy because with the Target Registry app, you can scan an item you love in the store and it will instantly be added to your registry. I love technology! BONUS: Target Wedding Registry pairs perfectly with The Knot’s Wedding Websites, which is what we used!
- Etsy – If you don’t know what Etsy is, stop reading this right now and click my link to their site (just don’t forget to come back)! A vintage and handmade paradise — you can find the most amazing products on this site. It’s also the perfect place to find trendy wedding decor and even wedding dresses, if vintage or handmade is your style. We found several things from Etsy to use as wedding decor. Hopefully, you’ve come back to my site by now and you didn’t get lost for hours searching for your registry items just yet, because I have one more recommendation!
- Wayfair – Last but definitely not least. I seriously wish I could have registered at all 5 of these places. I didn’t know as much about Wayfair when were planning our wedding, but I have heard some amazing things about it lately which is why it made my list. I checked out the website and browsed their products and believe me, you’ll want to do some browsing too! They offer some very competitive prices, as well as free shipping and 10% off registry items for up to 6 months after the big day.
Happy Wedding Planning!
Hopefully after reading this, you feel much better and more informed about choosing a wedding registry (or two) that is right for you. It’s a part of wedding planning that’s meant to be enjoyed, not dreaded! If you’d like to learn how you can DIY your entire wedding, read my blog post about my Nashville Plantation Ceremony and Sunday Brunch Barn Reception.
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