In the past, I’ve done several articles on the dangers of having your wedding registry at certain stores.  My warning on some of these stores has been to some of the horror stories that I’ve heard of either continuous bad customer service or even a rotten return policy. Thus far, I haven’t really offered up any good stores with which to have a wedding registry, and it just kind of hit me that I should really start talking about which store I went with for our wedding registry, and how it worked out for  me. There are some great locations to get do your wedding registry with, and I chose to have a Bed Bath and Beyond wedding registry. Let me tell you how it went.

Opening the Registry

Around the time that my husband and I were planning our wedding, it seemed like every spare moment was filled with some kind of activity. If we weren’t at work, then I was doing wedding planning, going for a run, working at our church, or getting ready to pack up my stuff to move after the wedding. My husband’s schedule wasn’t any better. So when we found ourselves with an extra hour to spare, we decided to be productive and visit our local Bed Bath and Beyond to set up our wedding registry. Honestly, I didn’t even think about having to set up an appointment.

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Tags: bed bath and beyond wedding registry, online wedding registries, wedding registries, wedding registry, wedding registry online

I have to admit, taking care of your wedding registries is one of the most fun parts of wedding planning that you’ll get to do. Even if you don’t really like shopping ( which I don’t), it’s still kind of fun to go around the store with your scanner and your fiance and pick out stuff for your new home together. Plus, one of the great things about wedding registries is that there really isn’t a limit on how much you register for, the number of stores you register at, or what is in your wedding registry. So basically that means, the sky is the limit. Of course, if you’re having a teeny wedding with only 50 in attendance, it wouldn’t make much sense to register at four different stores for hundreds of items. Wedding registries are a great way to tell your guests what you’d really like to have for your new home together, and wedding guests will typically appreciate not having to think of a gift themselves. Traditionally, wedding registries only consisted of dishes and linens, kitchen appliances and other odds and ends, that isn’t the case anymore. There are lots of different types of wedding registries that you can go for, which can really come in handy when you’re looking at your wedding registry.

The Traditional Wedding Registries

As I mentioned above, traditional wedding registries consist of handy items for the home’s function and decoration. This includes silverware, dishes, table linens, bath linens and towels, kitchen appliances, and other cooking utensils. Typically, this is still the most popular kind of wedding registry.

Entertainment Wedding Registries

It’s a known fact that couples are getting married later in life than they used to. Therefore, many couples already have the items they want or need for their new home together. Therefore, many couples choose to have an entertainment wedding registry. Entertainment wedding registries can include televisions, DVD players, DVD’s, board games, video games, sound systems, or more.

Wedding Registries for Tools

Another popular wedding registry that many couples are looking into is creating a wedding registry for tools and power tools. This is helpful if the couple plans on re-vamping their home and doing some home repairs. It can include gift certificates to home repair stores, and much much more. This can be very handy for the fixer-uppers some couples seem to love.

Wedding Registries for Money

Many couples who already have everything they need for their new home can also create a wedding registry which basically just asks for money for a particular purchase they plan to make. Many loan companies and honeymoon packages can set up accounts where your guests an go make make donations towards the honeymoon of your dreams or towards the down payment for a new home.

Wedding Registries for Charity

This is something I ran into a while ago that didn’t even know existed. If there is a charity you feel very strongly about, there are some charities that can set up a wedding registry for your guests to donate money to your favorite charity in lieu of gifts.

There is a lot to consider when it comes to creating your wedding registries. Some guests may be offended if you only ask for cash, so it would be a good idea to create a traditional wedding registry as well for wedding guests who would prefer to buy a gift that will last instead of donating money.

Tags: wedding registries, wedding registry, wedding registry for cash

Chances are, if you’ve never lived by yourself, or have had to set up your own home before, then you might not realize how many things you need to keep everything looking great and running smoothly. This includes setting up your wedding registry to make sure that you are registering for everything that you both will need to set up your new home together. A wedding registry checklist is a great place to start looking. A wedding registry checklist is basically a categorized detailed list of items in the different areas of your home. Of course, depending upon your situation or what you already have, you may not need to register for everything on your wedding registry checklist. Before we went and did our wedding registry, I looked at several wedding registry checklists just to get an idea of everything out there, what I might need, and sometimes even a quick definition of what that item was. Here are some great advantages to using a wedding registry checklist when working on your wedding registry.

Wedding Registry Checklists are Everywhere!

It seems as though every store that has a wedding registry also has a wedding registry checklist, and thats fine. You can also find them in bridal magazines, on the Internet, and even in books and other wedding planning kits you’ll find with a little bit of research.

A Wedding Registry Checklist Leaves Nothing Out

With as much stuff as you have to remember and take care of while working on your wedding planning, your wedding registry shouldn’t be a huge headache or a hassle. Having a wedding registry checklist will make sure that you don’t forget to register for something important that you need. Plus, if you have multiple wedding registry locations, you can make sure you’re not registering for the same thing twice by bringing your checklist to compare.

A Wedding Registry Checklist is Optional

You really don’t have to use a wedding registry checklist, although it can make your life easier. I looked at a few before we went in to do our registry…so I kind of knew what to expect. Plus, at our wedding registry store, we had a representative take us from area to area within their store and tell us what we would need from that area, or what is popular with brides. She was so great in her knowledge of a wedding registry checklist that we didn’t really need one in the store. While we didn’t always go with her opinion, she was very handy and full of information and advice.

As I said before, you can find many different wedding registry checklists nearly everywhere you look. Collect a few of them and compare which items they have to make sure that one is not leaving anything out. Then, cross off anything that you don’t want or already have. That is a great place to start for your wedding registry. Then, take your scanner and have at it!

Tags: wedding registries, wedding registry, wedding registry checklist

When my husband and I were doing our wedding registries, it never occurred to us to register inside of a shopping mall. We don’t really have a shopping mall around us, and the one that we do have is pretty pathetic when it comes to the kinds of stores they have. Plus, we just don’t really like going to the mall. But, it seemed all growing up that every wedding our family went to, the bride and groom were registered at Dillard’s and had expensive china patterns picked out and silver serving sets, and that just didn’t fit the kind of things that we were going to use, or our style. Now I know that things have changed from when I was a kid, and that department stores aren’t the only place to have your wedding registry, and that wedding registries can be as varied and unique as the couple themselves. I was doing a little research on some of the department stores that have wedding registries, and found that Macy’s wedding registry isn’t really thought of all that highly. Let me explain.

I visited their website and poked around a little bit for information about getting a Macy’s wedding registry started. One plus they totally have is that you can sign up for their registry online, and I believe once you do that, you can add items to your wedding registry straight from your computer. Personally, I’d rather be in the store looking at the item, but sometimes you can’t always get out and do that. Also, they have a great wedding registry checklist that you can use to make sure you’re not forgetting anything while doing your registry. From formal china to casual china and everyday dinnerware – they don’t leave anything out. There are lot’s of Macy’s around to make it easy on your guests, and they offer different bridal bonuses that you can take advantage of as well, such as wedding websites and other online tools to help aid your wedding planning.

But then I started looking around on the Internet to see what people were saying about having a Macy’s wedding registry, and from what I understand there is a lot of disappointment in some pretty important areas.

Customer Service - Many couples have complained that they were rudely brushed off by sales clerks, and told to come back and make an appointment when there was no one else working on a registry at that time.

Returns & Exchanges – Many couples have also complained that when you try to do your returns without a receipt (and face it, many wedding guests will not attach their receipt), that Macy’s will only give you credit for the lowest price on that item from the last 6 months, despite the fact that they have in their records the actual price that was paid. So you’re potentially losing a lot right here.

I understand customer service depends on the store you visit, but there was an awful lot of complaints about it – from many different sources. There are already so many hassles and problems when it comes to planning a wedding that you really don’t need any more hassles and problems with your wedding registry. Plus, having to handle the returns and exchanges once you get back from the honeymoon is hard enough without having to haggle and fight with a sales clerk over fine print. They’ve already made a fortune off your wedding registry. My opinion from what I’ve seen, unless your family and friends are avid about attaching gift receipts, it may be best not to have a Macy’s wedding registry.

Tags: macys wedding registry, online wedding registries, popular wedding registries, wedding registry

I remember when I was growing up (and that really wasn’t very long ago), that whenever my parents would go and buy a wedding gift from a registry, they would go to a fancy, upscale department store and spend a good deal of money on the gift. In fact, from what I understand, back then the places most couples did their wedding registries were in upscale parts of some of the more expensive department stores. This just isn’t the case anymore. These days, brides are registering for gifts at a wide variety of stores. In fact, Target is quickly becoming one of the most popular places for couples to have their wedding registry. A Target wedding registry has some great benefits that will attract lots of attention from couples, but you need to be careful, or you could wind up in a big mess later on.

Target Wedding Registry – Why it’s so Great

Having a Target wedding registry is great for your wedding guests who may have a pretty tight budget. You can get some really chic looks for a lower price than you would a fancy department store. Not only that, but their online registry is perhaps the most popular of all. Brides love having a Target registry because of the popular designs and colors their store’s have in stock, plus the fact that not everything they are registering for is overpriced. You really can’t beat it. Plus, Target’s wedding registry offers a lot of great benefits such as checklists, and tips and tricks to help you have a smooth wedding day.

Target Wedding Registry – Why You Need to Watch Out

Target has recently adopted a pretty strict return policy which can seem to treat their customers like thieves and liars.  I’ve heard many many horror stories about not only their return policy, but also their registry malfunctioning. For example, instead of just scanning the bar code of the item and the bar code of the couples name, the store also requires that you circle the items, but they don’t tell the customer or YOU about this. Then, when it is not done, there is a huge chance that the item will still show as available in your wedding registry. Then, because of Target’s return policy, many couples get stuck being unable to return duplicate sets of gifts. This is not a situation you want to get stuck in, especially if you want to use Target exclusively for your wedding registry.

So, while a Target wedding registry may seem like something of a dream to you, you really need to tread carefully in this area. The last thing you need is a battle between yourself and Target once you get back from your honeymoon. My advice, if you must do Target then limit your Target wedding registry to just a few items that you like, and leave the majority of items to another, more wedding registry store. If you’ve used a Target wedding registry in the past and loved it or had problems, please write in and let me know… I appreciate all comments!

Tags: online wedding registry, popular wedding registry, target wedding registry, wedding registry

It seems as though people are constantly asking for some great wedding gift ideas for their friends or family. They want to get their loved ones something special for their big day, something to show the bride and groom how much they love them and are celebrating with them. I totally understand. You want your gift to mean something, and be memorable for the couple for years to come. My dad was in the same boat when it came to our wedding, but also wanted some special gift ideas for something that he could do. We talked about it, and my husband has a bad back, and the beds that he had been sleeping on in the past provided no support for him, leaving him in pain throughout the day. So we went bed shopping, and my dad also bought us a great set of new mattresses that would support his back and help him feel better throughout the day. And my husband has never had fewer back problems since I’ve known him (and I’ve known him for over 10 years now). If you are looking for some special wedding gift ideas, and are wondering what to do, then here are some great hints to help you get started.

Wedding Gift Ideas off their Wedding Registry

I know this one sounds silly, but think about it. The bride and groom have specifically chosen each item on their wedding registry as something that they want for their new home. So their wish list should provide you with some great wedding gift ideas. If you want to do something special for them, then one option is to get your wedding gift ideas from their registry. Look at what they have registered for, and choose one of the nicer items, or one you really know they want and may not get themselves if no one buys it for them. It will really mean something that you buy them something so thoughtful like that.

Wedding Gift Ideas – Look for a Need

Another idea for finding some great wedding gift ideas is to look for a need. For example, my dad buying us the bed to help my husband feel better was greatly appreciated, and something that we couldn’t buy for ourselves. Otherwise, if the couple is having money problems, then more great wedding ideas can come from this too. Some great wedding gift ideas are to donate towards the honeymoon, or offer to pay for something in the wedding, the couple is sure to appreciate it.

Be Careful with Your Wedding Gift Ideas

If you are looking for some wedding gift ideas that are a little more personal than something off of their wedding registry, then tread carefully. If the bride and groom really wanted something, then chances are it is on their wedding registry. But if you know the couple very well and know that one of them has always wanted a particular item then go ahead. You don’t want to be remembered as the guest who bought you this gigantic horrible painting of a kitten when what they really wanted was a vacuum cleaner.

Be sure to base your wedding gift ideas off the tastes and preferences of the bride and groom. Not sure what those are? Then just check out their bridal registry and look and see what kinds of things they like. I can totally understand wanting to look for special wedding gift ideas for that best friend or family member getting married. It’s not always fun to go to your best friends wedding, or your sister or brother wedding and only have bought them measuring cups and a utensil holder. I totally understand. But just read me here, if you are looking for special wedding gift ideas not on their registry, make sure it is something that they will enjoy for years to come.

Tags: wedding gift ideas, wedding gifts, wedding registry

With the ever expanding use of the Internet and, it should be no surprise that they can play a large role in wedding planning as well. Many couples today are starting to create a wedding website and pass out the information to their family and friends. These days, you don’t have to be a master coder or computer genius to create your own wedding website. It is actually pretty easy and just about anybody can do it. Here are some great benefits for starting your personal wedding website, as well as a link to the best place to set up your wedding website that I have found.

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Tags: create a wedding website, create your own wedding website, free wedding website, free wedding websites, personal wedding website, Wedding Planning, wedding registry, wedding website, Wedding Websites

In the past, couples got married earlier, usually moving straight out of their parent’s home to a new home in married life, and didn’t have a lot of their own stuff for starting a new home. But now, people are waiting longer, often having their own homes before marriage, and once they decide to get married, both the husband and wife may find themselves with the dilemma of having two of everything. Maybe everything you have is hand-me-down, you want or you just want all new stuff. But now you’re wondering, can my wedding registry ask for all new stuff?

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Tags: online wedding registry, wedding, wedding registry

With so many people waiting longer to get married, many already have homes set up and filled with what they need and use, and the last thing they want is more stuff. Plus, with the rising costs of weddings and people paying for most if not all of the wedding themselves, cash is usually a welcome gift. But many wonder just how to register for cash or let people know they would prefer cash over gifts on their wedding registry without appearing rude to their family and friends.

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Tags: online wedding registry, wedding registries, wedding registry

Wedding registries are a great way to tell your guests things you need and would like for your new home. When preparing to create your registry, depending on your situation, it may be better to register at several different places, both nationally for those out of town guests, as well as local stores. Most stores have some type of wedding registry program set up, but if not ask to speak with the management and they will usually work with you to create something to help you out. Also, more stores have online wedding registries that you can sign up for as well. For the couple first starting out, below are some of the basic things to remember when creating your wedding registry.

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Tags: online wedding registries, online wedding websites, wedding registries, wedding registry