Building the Perfect Wedding Registry in your Kitchen: Part 1

By Elisabeth

First off, creating a registry for your wedding can be DAUNTING, especially for the kitchen. Who's to say what items you'll be using years from now? Should you register for china? Crystal? Silver? What color scheme works for both of you now, but both of you 10, 15 years down the line?

I can say I registered for China/Crystal/Silver and got about 6 place settings total of everything. Not bad! Not bad if I actually used any of them. Not bad if they weren't still packed in the original boxes in my garage for the past TEN years. (Now this might not be the norm, but I never got the hutch I've always planned on having to display these items, plus with three young kids in the house now, it's still not the first thing on my list.)

I enjoy having the silver since it's the same pattern as my grandmother. The crystal is also the same pattern as the rest of my family and I love it. I truly can't wait to use them. The china is another story. I registered for a lovely pattern, but I don't think it's for me anymore. Yes, I need to actually open the box and take a look to make sure, but my advice would be this: Classic, simple patterns can last a lifetime.

There are millions of places to register, but you want to keep in mind the people on your invite list. If some people have a Williams-Sonoma, but not a Crate and Barrell nearby, you might want to register at both. Or, you may find everything you need at Target or your favorite department store may be your preference. People will order online, of course, but a lot of people like to go into a store and buy their gifts, especially people who are not computer-savvy.

Let's start with place settings, shall we?

Whether or not you choose to register for china, your everyday plates can still be your go-to plates.

These are the ones I have from Crate and Barrell for day-to-day use in my house. The thing you want to keep in mind, or hope rather, is the longevity of the pattern. Over the years, I have broken a couple of plates, and/or decided to add more to my collection. Having these still available to purchase 10 years later? AWESOME. Of course you can't predict this when picking out patterns, but go with something you think you'd like to stare at day in and day out while doing the dishes.

A flatware set like this is a great basic, yet classic choice when it comes to silverware. Pick a pattern that suites your taste, but is in a decent price range for you and your guests.

You can register for $5 glasses or find some great $1.50 ones like these to round out your daily ware. The ones I have are $1.50 a glass and if on the strange occurrence one does break, going back to Crate and Barrell to replace it and/or add a few more does not put me out.

Now, one to special stemware!

We registered for red and white wine glasses plus a set of 4 beer glasses. We currently only have the 3 beer glasses left. Everything else broke. On a whim, we purchased a set of 4 red wine glasses at a liquor store and have been extremely pleased with the durability. Point is this, if the glass itself is very thin, like the ones we had, they are way too fragile especially if you plan to clean them after having drank a glass or two.

Maybe this stemless wonder would have somewhat helped out in the clumsy department. I don't think these were in or hip 10 years ago, but I think I need to make a trip out to my local wine store and stock up!

Now, clearly this is just a start regarding the registry for the kitchen. Next week I'll be back discussing the must-have small appliances.

Stay tuned...

And please, if you have any advice to add to this series, feel free to comment! 

 

{photo credits: crateandbarrel.com}

Comments

[Cass]

Thanks for this, we're going to start registering next week and it reminded me that while we have a lot of stuff for our kitchen, it would be nice to have more of the place settings for the pattern we have (have 4 now).

Can't wait for the next installment!

[elz]

I wish I would have registered for more serving pieces. We entertain A LOT. It would have been nice to have more dishes up front. I've been buying white serving pieces here and there for years to get a collection that finally meets all our needs. I also think everyone should register for a Le Creuset, but maybe that's part of your next registry series?