I must say, I was pretty proud of our wedding registries. I was always disgusted with those lists of what to register for on various wedding websites (ahem, The Knot) that included garbage like $75 picture frames and other junk.
But, you know, I’m a judgmental person, so maybe not everyone thinks those types of items are crap. Perhaps there are people out there that want that type of stuff. Initially, I just wanted cash, but I know you can’t ask people for cash outright. But, after a while, I started to really covet the items we registered for, so I whether we got a physical gift or just cash!
I, however, am not one of those people. Everything I registered for I had an intended purpose for and could generally be categorized as so:
Entertaining supplies
Every time we have a party, which is often, I always seem to run low on nice serving dishes and ways to keep items at the appropriate temperature. I also like our entertaining-ware to have an eclectic feel, so we didn’t register for anything matchy-matchy (of course, this is a personal preference). When I go on vacation, one of the things I like to buy are unique serving dishes. Therefore, none of our stuff actually matches.
Household DIY tools
Although Ken doesn’t like to admit it, he is quite handy and has a really creative mind. We would also like to tackle different DIY projects around the house, but sometimes DIY just seems so expensive if you have to pay $200 up front for an expensive tool. So, we registered for a lot of tools. If you notice that our registry is devoid of certain major tools (like a drill, table saw, ratchet set, etc., it’s because we already own those tools)
Kitchen Upgrades
Basically, I wanted to be able to throw away practically every pot and pan in our kitchen after the wedding and start out with new ones. Our pots and pans are a mishmash of college dorm-quality mac-and-cheese size pans, and items that have been left behind by college roommates or really cheap items that were purchased when we were completely broke starting our professional jobs post-college. As geeky as this sounds, I did a LOT of research on the different type of cookware materials, such as cast iron, stainless steel, anodized, etc. So, I didn’t register for any "set" of pots and pans. Rather, I made a list of the most frequently used sizes of pots and pans that we use, and I registered for cookware in different materials.
Cash?
I know that it’s impolite to ask wedding guests for cash. But on our wedding website registry page, we explained to our guests that we were planning on a number of household projects in the next several years, including a complete kitchen renovation and new siding and windows. We were hoping they would take this as a hint that cash was a welcome gift.
So, here’s what was actually on our registry. We registered at Amazon, Bed Bath and Beyond, Crate and Barrel, and Macy’s
Pots and Pans
- 10 Inch Stainless Steel Skillet
- 12 Inch Stainless Steel Skillet
- 1 ½ Quart Stainless Steel saucepan
- 3 ½ Quart Nonstick Hard Anodized Saucepan
- 16 Inch Rectangular Roaster
- 15 Inch Cast Iron Skillet
- 6 Quart Dutch Oven
- 13 Inch Stainless Steel Walk
- 12 Quart Pasta and Steamer Set
- Round Buffet Server
- Saute Pan
- 2 Quart Stainless Sauce Pan
- 1 Quart Stainless Sauce Pan
- 6 Quart Stainless Stockpot
- 4 Quart Stainless Saucepan
- 12 Inch Rachael Ray Hard Anodized Skillet
- Ceiling Pot Rack
Cutlery
- Flatware set for 16 (registered for two sets of 8)
- “Nice” heavy servingware, like for Thanksgiving
- Steak Knives
- Kitchen servingware in stainless steel (like ladle, spaghetti server, slotted spoon, turner, etc.) to replace our old yucky plastic ones. We also registered for some silicone servingware too to use on nonstick survaces
- Bamboo Utensil Set
- Stainless Steel Utensil Holder
- 7-inch Santoku Knife
- Vegetable Knife
- Bread Slicing Knife
- Gourmet Spreader
- John Boos Reversible Maple Cutting Board
- Stainless Steel Magnetic Knife Holder
- Kai Pure Komanchi 2 8-Piece Knife Set
Kitchen Small Appliances
- 11 Cup Food Processor
- Mini Prep Processor
- Hand Blender
- Large and Medium Warming Trays – because I always try to figure out how to keep food warm at parties
- 3.5 Quart Programmable Slow Cooker
- Electric Fondue Set
- Crockpot Travel Bag
- 4 slice Toaster
- 9 Cup Deep Fryer
- KitchenAid 6 Quart Stand Mixer
China
- Casual china set
- Wine Glasses (red and white)
- Champagne Glasses
- Cocktail Glasses
- Margarita Glasses
- Small barware glasses
- Small bowls – to use for parties and serving things like nuts, chips, etc.
- Loads of colorful serving platters and serving bowls, which I always seem to run low on at parties
- Wooden salad bar and server set
Other Kitchen-related stuff
- 2-Cup Measuring cup: because I never seem to have a clean one available when I need it
- Norpro Stainless Steel Pie Cake Server
- Meat Pounder
- Pastry Scraper/Chopper
- Dough Blender
- Ladle
- Grill Brush
- 24-cup mini muffin pan
- 9-inch Springform Pan
- Three Tier Cooling Rack
- Rachael Ray 4 ½ Quart Covered Oval Casserole
- Rachael Ray 3-Quart Large Oval Baker
- 8 Quart Stainless Steel Chafer
- Loads of mixing bowls in various sizes and colors. When I bake, it tends to be in bulk, so I hate running out of large bowls.
- 2-Tier Fruit Basket
Small household appliances
- Cordless Steam/Dry Iron. The iron I currently have is about 15 years old and never seems to iron very well. I also liked the idea of having a cordless one.
- Dyson Animal-Ball Technology Upright Vacuum Cleaner. We don’t have animals, but I sure do have long hair that ruins practically every vacuum we ever get. My hairs always get caught in the brush part of the vacuum.
Electronics
- SparkFun Inventor’s Kit
- Handheld GPS Navigator
- Laser Printer
- Vehicle Diagnostic Tool
Blu Rays
- Lord of the Rings Trilogy
- Star Wars: The Complete Saga
- Superman: The Motion Picture Anthology
- True Blood: The Complete First Season
- Dexter: The First Season
Tools
- Maglite flashlights (registered for 3)
- Cordless Circular Saw
- Clamp Kit
- Multi-Cutter
- Chalk Snap Line
- 12-Inch Precision Marking T-Rule
- Generation Green Bottle Cutter – Because all those pinterest tutorials involving string, acetone, and a lighter to cut bottles scares me
- Forearm Forklift Lifting and Moving Straps
- Jig Saw
- Auto Laser Level
- Black and Decker Work Bench
- Staple Gun
- Sander
Miscellaneous
- Travel Steamer
- Brother Serger
- Electric Foot Warming Pad – to keep my feet toasty in my office during the winter months
- Drying rack
- Air Conditioner Cover
- Weber Work Table (to go with our existing grill)
- Akro Mils Plastic Drawers. We use these as small item storage in our laundry room and our current one was full.
- Snow Thrower – for our small yard
- Bed Sheets
Well, there you have it. What was on your registries? Do you have any registry regrets?
