Registries...

jenniegirl44

Ok ladies, where are you all registered or registering at?  And  how many stores?  We have a 300+ invite list, so what is appropriate amount of stores to register at?  I was thinking 3, but my MOH said to do only 2?  My choices so far are BB&B, Macys, Crate and Barrell, and possibly Home Depot or Sears (if they do a registry?)  My FI really wants to register for a safe, and I'm not sure where we can register for one and any of the first three choices.  So out of those choices, I'll pick 2 or 3.  Thoughts and ideas?

larzhope

we did BB&B and Crate and Barrel - we invited about 260 (had showers with about 80 people invited total).  I will add, though, that my extended family only gives cash for wedding gifts, so we didn't have to register for enough stuff for shower and wedding presents, if that makies sense.

In my experience, BB&B was a pain to register at just because they wanted someone to walk around with you (I had done oodles of research online about what I wanted, so I really just needed to see a few things in person and then scan everything), but other than that, they were great - they waived a bunch of shipping charges, and overall were extremely friendly.

We registered at a very busy Crate and Barrel in dt Seattle, and we only had a few things there that we wanted, but again, very good service, and we were very happy with our experience there

Hope that helps!

arunkumar

Crate and Barrel is awesome. Sign up to attend one of their registry events. They are usually held on Sunday mornings before the store opens and it's much easier to register when there aren't customers around. The staff is very helpful but they only provide help if you need it, meaning that they stay out of your way unless you have a question.

I also registered at BBB, I love this store for affordable items and they have a lot more locations than CB. But the process is annoying because they don't really leave you alone. I registered for a handful of items and then did the rest online.

I think 3 registries is fine, especially with a 300+ guest list.

Meegles4

Register where you want, don't just register at several places because you "should". You could probably fill out a 300+ item registry at BBB, so you could honestly stick with that.

But, if there are items at other places that you want, then do those. It's also OK not to have large registries at some places. We did BBB and C&B. We only had a few items at C&B, and most of our stuff was BBB.

I've heard bad things about the Target registries, so I stayed away from that. But again, we were pretty much able to find everything we wanted at BBB. I just added C&B to give a little variety and get some different serving pieces.

ETA: I'd also say we were left alone at BBB. The sales clerk stuck with us to do china (which I wanted anyway, so didn't feel "pressured") and then walked us around the entire store and pointed out the "best" things and the things least likely to discontinue (we were registering very early in the process). Then, she left us alone and maybe checked on us once or twice, which was fine because I had questions. I also went back several months later to add a couple things and they basically handed me the scanner and left me be. The two BBBs we went to were the one in Madison Heights (initial registry) and the one on 7 & Haggerty (swapping a couple items).

lauraprevost

When did you ladies register? I don't know how far in advance I need to be registering!

entropicbeauty

FI and I have registries set up at BBB, Target and Amazon. I really want to delete the target one, but I know a LOT of my friends and family go there so it will be convenient for them.

BBB has everything and it's of good quality, but pricey. I like Amazon because you can pretty much find anything and add it to your registry. Target has been a big hassle and I don't really think their stuff is high quality.

Meegles4

Laura -- We registered in September for our April wedding. We were early birds. You can go as late as a month or two prior to your showers or wedding depending on if you're having showers.

Also, take into account if you'll be engaged over holidays like Christmas/Bdays (obviously you are). Part of why I registered early is I asked for some of the items for Christmas -- and did get a couple things!

mlynn1223

We just registered at BB&B for 230 invited, 150 coming.  We registered in November for a June wedding but our shower was in December because that was when we were in Michigan (except a week before the wedding).  I agree with above posts.  Register where you want.  Don't feel like you HAVE to at several places.  Register at the places you like for the things you like.  I would say you need to at least a month before your shower.  Do it before you send out invites.  We also included on our wedding website that Lowe's gift cards would be greatly appreciated.  We made a little thing about how they do not have a registry but we have a new house and would like to do some remodeling.  Do what makes you happy!

AmyNoelle

Home Depot doesn't have a registry, but we're doing a bunch of home improvement projects.  So on our website, by word of mouth and in our shower invitations, we said that we were registered for Home Depot gift cards (as well as a registry at  BBB l).  We got thousands of dollars worth of HD gift cards, it is awesome!  I highly recommended it.

We went to Pottery Barn and couldn't find a darn thing we liked.  Crate & Barrel was okay, but they had pretty much the same exact stuff that BBB had, and BBB had it cheaper.  Nothing spectacular for us at C&B except nice furniture--and I was not registering for big ticket items like that. 

We registered late November for our wedding this coming Saturday.  People were buying immediately.  In fact, some cleaver family members even bought off our registry for our Christmas gifts which was really fun and cool, because you can always add more stuff.

lauraprevost

We are getting married next June and were planning on registering October/November but I had heard a lot of things might get discontinued over the holidays? Did anyone that registered then find that they had to keep updating discontinued items?

kd1986

I think you should register wherever you want! I really wanted to register for the Williams Sonoma bakeware, but wasn't sure if 3 places was too much. So many people reassured me it really doesn't matter. So we have larger registries at B B & B and Crate & Barrel, and then only about 8 things on Williams-Sonoma!

chickadee52287

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_michigan-detroit_registries-1?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:88Discussion:f22c0380-5645-4143-bc25-b783c436a4e7Post:f3f520ad-e2a8-4c31-a39d-22509618989e">Re:Registries...</a>:
[QUOTE]We are getting married next June and were planning on registering October/November but I had heard a lot of things might get discontinued over the holidays? Did anyone that registered then find that they had to keep updating discontinued items?
Posted by lauraprevost[/QUOTE]

<div>My FI's brother just got married 2 weeks ago and they had registered at Target for camping stuff. Apparently when they registered it was in season but when word got out where they were registered none of the camping stuff showed up on the registry until literally 2 days before their shower. Which FIs brother was really hoping they would get a bunch of camping stuff. You could definately tell who did last minute shopping, as they ended up getting 3 of the grills they registered for! lol</div><div>
</div>

mlynn1223

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_michigan-detroit_registries-1?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:88Discussion:f22c0380-5645-4143-bc25-b783c436a4e7Post:f3f520ad-e2a8-4c31-a39d-22509618989e">Re:Registries...</a>:
[QUOTE]We are getting married next June and were planning on registering October/November but I had heard a lot of things might get discontinued over the holidays? Did anyone that registered then find that they had to keep updating discontinued items?
Posted by lauraprevost[/QUOTE]

<div>I have known Kohls to discontinue things but I have not run into the same problem with BB&B.  I am not saying it does not happen.  You can log onto your registry and keep an eye on it so if something does become discontinued you can easily swap it for something else.  Also, we did not register for anything holiday specific.  It was more generic items like pots and pans, wine glasses, etc.  Stuff that doesn't go with seasons.  </div>

db1985

We registered at Macys, Amazon, and had a few things at Shop World Kitchen (the Corelle store).  We had started a registry at Crate and Barrel but then realized Macys had alot of the same stuff (and more locations) so we deleted Crate and Barrel.  For Macys we went to view a few things in person, but didnt tell the sales associates that we were registering.  Then we just added everything online at home.  So far people have preferred Macys to Amazon for the shower (but its mostly older relatives), but we think our friends will be more comfortable with Amazon.

We registered right after Christmas for a June Shower/ August wedding.  I've had to update a few things that have gone out of stock, but hasn't been too bad.

Meegles4

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_michigan-detroit_registries-1?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:88Discussion:f22c0380-5645-4143-bc25-b783c436a4e7Post:f3f520ad-e2a8-4c31-a39d-22509618989e">Re:Registries...</a>:
[QUOTE]We are getting married next June and were planning on registering October/November but I had heard a lot of things might get discontinued over the holidays? Did anyone that registered then find that they had to keep updating discontinued items?
Posted by lauraprevost[/QUOTE]

We had several items discontinue on our C&B registry, but it was the colors that discontinued, not necessarily the product. For example, I registered for mixing bowls, but the ones they had were fall colors b/c that's when we registered. When my shower rolled around (spring), they had discontinued the fall colors, but had the same set in spring colors.

Just stay away from seasonal stuff and you're OK. Also, as I said, BBB walked us around and showed us what was least likely to be discontinued. They also suggested that a month prior to the shower I check back to be sure nothing was discontinued. I did that, and found that of the 150+ things we had on the list, maybe 3 were discontinued. I simply chose different options for each thing or removed them entirely if I wasn't that sure about the items in the first place.

lauraprevost

Thanks for the help! Sorry for hijacking the thread!

sparkles776

No Laura, thanks for asking! It is really helpful for me too. I still am planning on registering late October/early November.

tatitafla

I have about 200 guests and we registered at Macy's and Amazon. I have a lot of out of town and out of country guests, so the Amazon one makes it easy for both. I have my more practical stuff at Macy's and specialty at Amazon.

Glambride09

We registered at BB&B as well as myregistry.com where we added basically anything we wanted from any store/website/etc.

It provided a great in-store only option for our traditional guests and an online option for our younger, more tech-friendly guests.

I felt pressured and overwhelmed when we started registering - like I would be judged for having too many items or high priced items - but basically learned that you need to do what feels good for you and your FI and enjoy the process.

Good luck to you!