Event Planning Content
A bridal or wedding registry is a list of wedding gifts that an engaged couple has selected in advance, and recorded at some location or retailer. Nowadays, some sort of registry is usually expected, whether you want to go the traditional route or are trying out a modern wedding. Whether you’re asking for help setting up your new home, or sharing your taste and style with guests who want to shower you with love. But even so, let say you have put everything you wanted on your wish-list, how are you even supposed to spread the word while remaining in the boundaries of basic etiquettes? Like most wedding-related matters, the answer to this question has its own set of rules.
Here are EventDone’s tips for prepping your gift registry for you guests.
From the moment you have announced your engagement, your close friends and family will most likely start thinking about gifts you may want and they may want to send. Register as soon as you can, preferably around the same time you create your wedding website so you can share your wedding registry details on there as well.
While it might seem tempting to post your registry link on your social media profiles, it might not be a good idea. It might also make you appear materialistic to others. But on the contrary, posting a link to your wedding website, which has your easy to find registry links, is quite a good idea.
One of the best ways to let your guests know about your registry is probably your wedding website. Having a one-stop-shop for everything your guests need to know is a great way to organize everything planning from invitations, to sharing information. When putting your registry online, include links to the stores as well, so that your guests may easily access and navigate them without much of hassle.
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Just because you feel most comfortable shopping through online retailers, doesn’t mean your guests will feel the same. Try to include physical, in-store options. Two to three locations are ideal, try to give preference to larger stores that have multiple branches in the different areas where many of your guests live. The in-store option definitely makes certain guests more comfortable purchasing gifts, as the store can do special services such as gift wrapping or offering suggestions.
It's always best to provide a large selection of choices. Let say you have invited 100 guests, you’ll probably need around a minimum of 125-150 registry items. About a third of your items should be under $50, a third from $50 - $150 and the rest $150 and up. As for including a high-end margin? Know your audience. For some of your guest, having gifts that max out $200 would be too much – but for others, they may want to give you $1000, even $5000 gifts. We suggest you don’t include too many big-ticket items, in most cases keep the thousand dollar ones to a select few.
You can also include gift vouchers for those who want to gift you cash.
Whenever is a good time, but approximately after six weeks from receiving your gift, try a handwritten note that references the specific object and the guest, and reflect how and why you will enjoy using it. In the card, thank them for their relationship, their support at your wedding, and any other personal messages you wish to share. Emails and calls can be used, but there is nothing like receiving a heartwarming, handwritten thank you in this day and age.