The Untraditional Wedding Registry

My best friend going up is going to have her first child in a few months, and I was just looking at her registry last night for the baby shower. It reminded me that around this time last year, I was adding things to my own wedding registry.

I'm going to get this right out of the way and let you know that I am not a fancy person. I coupon and try to find the best possible deals. Even if I was a celebrity or had endless amounts of cash, I wouldn't pay full price for things. Normally, a lot of people make sure to add China to their registries and other incredibly expensive stuff. I, on the other hand, am practical, and I wanted to choose items that I would use in my everyday life. I live in an apartment, so there is no room to have an extra set of plates that I may use once a year. It's completely fine if that's your thing; I'm just trying to give you an idea of why my registry may have been more untraditional than others.

I was excited to make a wedding registry, but I wasn't sure where to even begin. I remembered that I saw that you could create a registry on Amazon, so I quickly went to their website to double check. I am an avid Amazon buyer; I receive multiple items a week. I can attribute that to my illnesses and the fact that I don't get out a lot anymore, but regardless, Amazon is my go-to for pretty much any and every thing.

I realized that Amazon was such a different choice, but it was also the best choice for myself and would be easy for anyone buying off of it. When someone chooses Macy's or Crate & Barrel to register with, I can almost immediately picture the type and style of items that one could find there. With Amazon, I knew my options were endless. I could actually find those fun and quirky things that were my style rather than conforming to a store in which I really had no connection to.

I don't have any friends or relatives that have used Amazon's gift registry before, so I really had nobody to refer to. If you've ever made an Amazon wishlist before, it's so similar to creating that; if you can do that, you will not run into any issues. I certainly didn't complete my registry in one sitting, and that's exactly why it's so great. I took a little time each day to add a few more items. The things that I registered for ranged from a mid-century looking circular dining table to very funny husband and wife mugs that I knew I couldn't get anywhere else.

In my personal circle of people, there isn't anyone who doesn't use Amazon or dislikes purchasing from there. Various people told me at my shower that they had so much fun choosing what to buy because it was so different than what others traditionally do. I added items that I really needed and were congruent with the style of my apartment.

I highly recommend that if you aren't feeling very comfortable with the stores out there who do registries, seriously consider Amazon. It was one of my favorite things about the wedding process and wasn't stressful!

In addition to Amazon, I did wind up registering at Target and Walmart, too. The items that I registered for at these two stores were minimal compared to how many I put on the Amazon list, but I also was able to find specific things that I was looking for from these stores that I couldn't get other places.

So why Walmart? I don't watch her show on television, but I do love all of The Pioneer Woman's items that Walmart sells. She has a special line of kitchen and household items that she only markets at Walmart. Since I like vintage items, I was attracted to her stuff and was hoping to be able to add some of her pieces to my kitchen. The people at my bridal shower thought it was really cute stuff, and the best part was that it was reasonable! When I searched for The Pioneer Woman on Amazon, I did happen to find some items that must have been from a prior season at Walmart, and I did add some pieces to my Amazon registry as well.

I added Target because I wanted to have a few things that someone could look at in a store, just like the Pioneer Woman items at Walmart. My mother-in-law is that person. When I told her that I was going to use Amazon for my registry, she asked what people who wanted to see the items in real life were supposed to do. She made a very valid point, and I wanted to make that option available. I am the epitome of a people pleaser; all I want is for everyone to be happy. It was not difficult at all to just choose a few extra things.

In the end, things were bought from all three places. They all offered the option of getting the items delivered to your home, and Walmart and Target also offered the option of store-pickup, where people who work at the store searched for the items on the shelves and had them ready at customer service for you. I loved everything that I received. I loved that people had fun looking at my choices and being able to pick from a wide selection. I loved most of all that I was picking stuff that I really wanted and knowing that it wasn't super expensive.

Never feel like you need to make yourself uncomfortable just because other people are doing it. I was so comfortable with the whole process and felt like everything was "me". I'm telling you....being a money conscious person really follows you in all areas of your life, even if getting married is a one time deal and it's the time where you should ask for those things you wouldn't normally buy yourself.

Oh, and if I do wind up having a child, you will most definitely be finding my registry on Amazon.

To all of the brides out there and couples getting married soon, I wish you a beautiful lifetime together. Make sure to really look at the details on your wedding day...the details that you put so much time and effort into for months. I made sure to do that because someone gave me that advice, and I'll forever have those images in my head and be able to remember those moments.

Since I loved using Amazon for my wedding registry, I have included a few of my favorites that are currently in great use here in my apartment!

Dining Room Table & Chairs

This was something that we really needed. Before moving in, we had purchased a circular table and chairs that were used and repainted them. After a couple of years, the paint started to chip, and we wanted something modern that could fit in with the rest of our apartment. To me, these two items were reasonable compared to other choices out there. They did require us to personally build them, but it was all worth it in the end! My bridal party all wound up chipping in together to get this larger gift. I think it may have been the most expensive thing I put on the registry.

Shower Curtain

As I mentioned, I have a quirky, creative side to me, and I love fun prints and patterns. I looked for so long to find a shower curtain that I liked, and this is what the end result was. I asked for some matching green bathroom rugs, green towels, and some brass starburst wall decorations to complement it.

The Kitchen Storage Set

Here's where my love of vintage stuff comes into play. My kitchen was mainly black, white and red, and I was hoping that I could re-decorate it with blue decor similar to things that were used in the 1950's in people's kitchens. These storage containers gave me life....and storage too! Did I ever think I'd own a bread box? Not in my lifetime! However, it's something that I use every day now. I love the colors and love their labels. They were great for wanting to do something different without changing absolutely everything. I highly recommend them.