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Wedding gifts can be only a click away
by Maggie Hyde
Midland Reporter-Telegram
By Megan Lea Buck
Assistant Lifestyle Editor
With fine china or money for a honeymoon only a click away, the Internet has revolutionized the concept of the bridal registry. Web sites such as weddingchannel.com and theknot.com offer assistance to brides in all stages of planning their big day. When it comes to picking out potential wedding gifts, these sites provide one-stop shopping for brides and their wedding guests as they support links to stores at which brides can register and guests can shop. Online registries not only save time for the engaged couple because they can add to and update their registries from home, they also may save guests a trip to a department store.
Registering online also can simplify issues for out-of-town guests. Now, even if the bride has registered at a store not located in the guest's hometown, he or she can buy a gift online. Guests also can avoid the hassle of traveling with a --possibly large and probably breakable -- gift as most Web sites will deliver the package directly to the bride.
Amber Chalfant of Midland found online bridal registries helpful for planning her June wedding in Dallas. Chalfant registered at Crate & Barrel, for everyday dishes and kitchenware; Bed, Bath & Beyond, to allow guests an opportunity to buy gifts in-store; and Joanne's Fine Gifts, for china, crystal and silver. Chalfant said she received more gifts from her online registries than from guests who made purchases at the stores. With her immediate family in the Dallas area, the groom's family in Midland and other relatives across the nation, Chalfant said most of her out-of-town guests opted for online shopping "so they could ship it and not have to worry about taking it with them" to the wedding. Chalfant also liked the fact online stores would ship directly to her home without giving out her address. "And, they wrap it for you if you order it online," she said.
Registering online didn't only make the process easier for wedding guests, Chalfant explained it was simple for her to update her registries online from home. She also found more choices when registering both in-store and online.
"It was nice because I got to see what was in the store and what was online ... There were a lot of things I saw online that they didn't have in the stores," she said.
Along with giving brides a larger range of choices as to where to register for traditional gifts, wedding Web sites also furnish couples with a variety of non-tradtional registry options. Of Weddingchannel.com's 20 registry Web site links, eight direct the bride to non-traditional registry sites. Included on the site's list is amazon.com, which sells dinnerware and electronics along with books but only exists on the Web. A store aptly named Bottlenotes gives couples who love to entertain the opportunity to register for bottles of wine. Restoration Hardware may be a perfect fit for the couple eager to buy their first home, while REI may appeal to couples who prefer campouts to formal dinner parties. An article on theknot.com urging couples to "give your wedding registry a facelift" separates couples into categories such as environmentalists and food lovers and makes registry suggestions to match their specific interests.
Some couples now are asking their guests to chip in on the honeymoon. Weddingchannel.com lists links to four travel/excursion registry Web sites. Starwood Honeymoon Registry's Web site allows couples to "plan the ultimate honeymoon (and) let your friends and family pay for it." Couples who plan to honeymoon, or even to marry, at a Sandals or Beaches resort have the option of adding the trip to their registry so wedding guests can help fund the get-away.
Traveler's Joy Honeymoon Gift Registry Web site asks if brides "prefer flight patterns to china patterns." The site explains its "service is similar to a traditional wedding registry, but rather than offering gifts such as housewares and fine china, (they) help you register for the honeymoon of your dreams."
Another option for couples, Cloud 9 Living calls itself an "experience gift company that transforms unique and memorable experiences into unforgettable gifts." On this site, couples can register for excursions such as dinner cruises, hot air balloon rides, skydiving or dancing or cooking lessons.
Weddingchannel.com also offers a charity registry that gives the couple two options for donating to their favorite cause. The Web site will make a donation to the chosen charity each time a guest purchases a gift from any of the bride's registries listed on the site or guests may choose to make the charitable donation their wedding gift to the couple.
Even with so many new online options for registries, weddingchannel.com etiquette writer Peggy Post advises brides to "make sure the stores you choose offer 'brick and mortar' options" as some guests may not be comfortable purchasing a wedding gift on the Internet. Post also reminds couples who "opt to create a non-traditional registry, such as one for sports equipment, electronics, furniture, stock or a home mortgage, it's still a good idea to register at a national store for more traditional gift items."
Assistant Lifestyle Editor
With fine china or money for a honeymoon only a click away, the Internet has revolutionized the concept of the bridal registry. Web sites such as weddingchannel.com and theknot.com offer assistance to brides in all stages of planning their big day. When it comes to picking out potential wedding gifts, these sites provide one-stop shopping for brides and their wedding guests as they support links to stores at which brides can register and guests can shop. Online registries not only save time for the engaged couple because they can add to and update their registries from home, they also may save guests a trip to a department store.
Registering online also can simplify issues for out-of-town guests. Now, even if the bride has registered at a store not located in the guest's hometown, he or she can buy a gift online. Guests also can avoid the hassle of traveling with a --possibly large and probably breakable -- gift as most Web sites will deliver the package directly to the bride.
Amber Chalfant of Midland found online bridal registries helpful for planning her June wedding in Dallas. Chalfant registered at Crate & Barrel, for everyday dishes and kitchenware; Bed, Bath & Beyond, to allow guests an opportunity to buy gifts in-store; and Joanne's Fine Gifts, for china, crystal and silver. Chalfant said she received more gifts from her online registries than from guests who made purchases at the stores. With her immediate family in the Dallas area, the groom's family in Midland and other relatives across the nation, Chalfant said most of her out-of-town guests opted for online shopping "so they could ship it and not have to worry about taking it with them" to the wedding. Chalfant also liked the fact online stores would ship directly to her home without giving out her address. "And, they wrap it for you if you order it online," she said.
Registering online didn't only make the process easier for wedding guests, Chalfant explained it was simple for her to update her registries online from home. She also found more choices when registering both in-store and online.
"It was nice because I got to see what was in the store and what was online ... There were a lot of things I saw online that they didn't have in the stores," she said.
Along with giving brides a larger range of choices as to where to register for traditional gifts, wedding Web sites also furnish couples with a variety of non-tradtional registry options. Of Weddingchannel.com's 20 registry Web site links, eight direct the bride to non-traditional registry sites. Included on the site's list is amazon.com, which sells dinnerware and electronics along with books but only exists on the Web. A store aptly named Bottlenotes gives couples who love to entertain the opportunity to register for bottles of wine. Restoration Hardware may be a perfect fit for the couple eager to buy their first home, while REI may appeal to couples who prefer campouts to formal dinner parties. An article on theknot.com urging couples to "give your wedding registry a facelift" separates couples into categories such as environmentalists and food lovers and makes registry suggestions to match their specific interests.
Some couples now are asking their guests to chip in on the honeymoon. Weddingchannel.com lists links to four travel/excursion registry Web sites. Starwood Honeymoon Registry's Web site allows couples to "plan the ultimate honeymoon (and) let your friends and family pay for it." Couples who plan to honeymoon, or even to marry, at a Sandals or Beaches resort have the option of adding the trip to their registry so wedding guests can help fund the get-away.
Traveler's Joy Honeymoon Gift Registry Web site asks if brides "prefer flight patterns to china patterns." The site explains its "service is similar to a traditional wedding registry, but rather than offering gifts such as housewares and fine china, (they) help you register for the honeymoon of your dreams."
Another option for couples, Cloud 9 Living calls itself an "experience gift company that transforms unique and memorable experiences into unforgettable gifts." On this site, couples can register for excursions such as dinner cruises, hot air balloon rides, skydiving or dancing or cooking lessons.
Weddingchannel.com also offers a charity registry that gives the couple two options for donating to their favorite cause. The Web site will make a donation to the chosen charity each time a guest purchases a gift from any of the bride's registries listed on the site or guests may choose to make the charitable donation their wedding gift to the couple.
Even with so many new online options for registries, weddingchannel.com etiquette writer Peggy Post advises brides to "make sure the stores you choose offer 'brick and mortar' options" as some guests may not be comfortable purchasing a wedding gift on the Internet. Post also reminds couples who "opt to create a non-traditional registry, such as one for sports equipment, electronics, furniture, stock or a home mortgage, it's still a good idea to register at a national store for more traditional gift items."
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