Is Your Wedding Coming Up? These Are 5 Great Gift Registries to Consider
The days are over when most people got married straight out a college dorm, and so many people already have the basic houseware they need long before they married. But for a lot of couples, marriage is still the first time they’re permanently moving in together and setting up a house, or the marriage may coincide with a move to a bigger place. For those people, a traditional registry is great. If you are already completely equipped there are now some options that give you more flexibility.
Don’t worry, we’ve got some ideas for alternative wedding gift registries as well!
Here are some the best wedding gift registries out there:
5.) Bed Bath & Beyond
This is one of our favorite wedding gift registries, particularly for those couples who have been living with roommates, in studios or in their parents’ basements until now. Even though Target probably has the widest selection, Bed Bath & Beyond covers housewares as completely as possible. They offer a 10% discount on anything on your registry that didn’t get bought as a gift, and sometimes they throw in some extra gifts of their own. Those who purchase from your registry can use those wonderful 20% coupons Bed Bath & Beyond sends in the mail as well.
Additionally, you can access your registry from online and they have locations all over if you do want to go into the store to make your choices. And on a side note, we totally recommend the Pure Beech Jersey sheets, which some of us here at Top5.com got as wedding gifts ourselves.
Start Your Bed Bath & Beyond Registry
4.) Crate and Barrel
One of our favorite wedding gift registries out there is Crate and Barrel. This is the perfect place to register if you’re taking your wedding as an opportunity to set up a more grown-up residence. Crate & Barrel sells furniture and household goods with a distinctive modern style. If you’re just starting out and need all the basics, this may be a bit more than what you’re looking for (think $20 cheese grater). But if you already know your way around the kitchen and want to upgrade to the really impressive gadgets for gourmands, then this is a reasonably priced way to do it.
As a perk, Crate & Barrel hosts special wedding registry events when the store is open only to registering couples. They provide snacks, extra assistance and demos of new products just in case you want to ask your guests for gifts they’ve never even heard of.
Start Your Crate & Barrel Registry
3.) Macy’s
If you want something a little fancier than Target, Macy’s is one of our favorite wedding gift registries. They still have everything you’ll find in any large department store but the styles may be just a bit more ornate (and a bit more expensive).
If you’re a regular at Macy’s anyway then there are extra advantages. To people with a Macy’s credit card, the store offers reward credits on anything you buy from the time you open your registry to your wedding day and on anything bought off of your registry. So if you get all the gifts you want you’ll have plenty left over to browse the shoe-section.
Start Your Macy's Registry
2.) Target
Target has by far the widest variety of the common stores that offer wedding registries, thus it is one of our favorite wedding gift registries. Not only do they have the usual department store items like linens and dishware, but they have stuff that you might want even if your kitchen and closets are fully stocked. Check out the electronics and furniture section to help you replace old stuff in celebration.
They also offer a special discount on wedding registries over and above their already low prices. And the best part is that you can start and finish your registry completely online, which means that you can monitor and make changes to it without having to go to the store multiple times. There are even more items available to put on your wish-list.
1.) Alternative Options
Aggregator options are some of our favorite wedding gift registries out there. If you really don’t think you can fill a registry with useful items at any one of these stores, there are still options. You don’t have to leave your guests wondering what to do and end up with thirteen vases and seven gravy boats.
Myregistry.com
First of all, there are sites like myregistry.com that allow you create one easy registry with items from more than one store, even those that don’t actually have a wedding registry program.
Honeymoon Registry
Another option is to skip the gifts altogether and ask your guests to help you escape them after the wedding by setting up a honeymoon fund. Companies like HoneyFund and HoneymoonWishes operate these funds very similarly to a traditional gift registry by breaking down your trip into individual gifts, such as airfare, lodging, a couple’s massage or a restaurant dinner.
Charity Registry
If you really want to think outside the box however and share your joy even more, you can ask that your guests donate to the charity of your choice instead of buying gifts. There are plenty of sites that allow you to register for donations to different organizations with tons of causes. For example, the I Do Foundation not only has a gift registry, but offers wedding favors and attendants’ gifts.
Want more ideas? Check out our best online wedding registry websites for those who want to keep it all on the internet for ease.
Can you get the gifts you want from our list or is there something we missed? Tell us in the comments below!
