When to register?
At Eventfully Designed, we always recommend starting your registry as soon as you get engaged! It is a fun and exciting part of the process that keeps gifts and tracking those gifts seamless! Below is an outline of our favorite registries and a guide on how to get started.
Types of wedding registries
There are so many options when it comes to registering for gifts. Most of your favorite big box stores, such as Target, West Elm, Crate & Barrel, and Neiman Marcus, and many others, offer registries.
If you’re more into adventures and experiences, there are registries for those as well! You can even ask guests to donate to your favorite charities.
Whichever direction you decide, make sure to include your registry links on your wedding website! This will ensure guests have all information they need for your big day in one place!
4 questions to ask your partner when choosing a wedding registry site
We recommend discussing with your partner the following questions:
- How confident do we already feel about having what we need for the new home? – many couples are just moving in together for the first time after getting married, so thinking about home appliances, decor, and bedroom/bathroom/kitchen items is a must. Do you already have a vision for where you want to source these things from? If you already have the home furnished and ready, you may want to shy away from big box stores and more general registries, and think about something more adventurous like honeymoon or experiences.
- Speaking of that – how’s our honeymoon budget looking? – It’s becoming more and more common that couples will get married and then continue saving money later for the honeymoon. If the home supplies and decor are not a priority, you may want to divert people to donating into the honeymoon fund.
- What areas of the home are we really lacking in? – Let’s say you have the kitchen already covered, between you and your partner. What about decor? You may want to focus more of your registry into the items that you most need in the new home. If your partner has very specific ideas about how to outfit the kitchen or the bathroom, give them that area and make sure you pick the other areas. There’s always room to “divide and conquer” if you need to!
- How are we making sure everyone has access to the registry? – Make sure it’s visible on your wedding website and/or invitation for starters. But also, consider access in another way: if you have a lot of family who are out of town in different cities, are these stores available in those cities or can everyone order online? It’s not a bad idea to run through the wedding registry shopping experience on a brand’s site just to make sure no one from out of town will have any issues / questions about the registry.
Here are some of our favorites to help get you started:
Top 10 traditional wedding gift registries
Household items, decor, and furnishings to help make a house a home:
- Amazon
- Anthropologie
- Bed, Bath & Beyond
- Bloomingdale’s
- Crate & Barrel
- Macy’s
- Target
- West Elm
- Williams-Sonoma
- Pottery Barn
Top 3 charity registries
Ask guests to donate to your favorite charity:
Top 2 universal wedding registries
Universal sites that allow you to register for items and experiences from multiple sources:
Honeymoon & experiences
Sometimes moments and memories can be the best gifts. Register for an experience or the honeymoon of a lifetime: