Real Weddings: Always a Bridesmaid...Wedding Registry

Three months and counting…
Yep, in just 90 days, a year-plus of planning comes together in one crazy evening shared with friends and family. How’s that possible? Didn’t we just get engaged? Didn’t we just pick a venue? Oh my lord, I need to hurry up and lose those 15 extra pounds so I can get fitted for my custom suit.
Ok, exhale. But inhale when getting fitted. Please.
Over the next 90 days, I’m going to post periodically with updates on the wedding countdown…from final invites, to RSVP regrets, to wallet tightening tantrums, to caterer conundrums, to paper cut ridden cuticles, to bachelor parties, rehearsal dinners and the rest of the merry madness.
Here’s the truth. This is all going FAR smoother than I could have every imagined. I know, bite my tongue. There are three whole months left for things to go terribly wrong. But, I’m an optimist.
And I think the good energy my partner Preston and I share with each other really helped this process go fairly well. There was that meltdown in Sur La Table over stemware…but once we put down the registry gun and hugged it out, we could resume scanning tableware in bliss. It’s the small things, people.

This week let’s talk registry. I’ll admit, I’ve been looking forward to this part for 20 years. Picking stuff out and having people buy it for me? Uh, sign me up. Here’s the rub. Having lived on my own for nearly 20 years now, I’ve accumulated a lot of “stuff” over that time…for the kitchen, dining room, bathroom, you name it. I realized, wow, I really don’t need anything.
Then I talked it out with Preston. We can’t just expect people to give us cash and not do any type of registry. Right? We already planned to donate funds to our favorite charities in our guests’ names as part of our favors, so that idea was out.
Then I thought, wait, most of that “stuff” in our house is mine…not Preston’s. Very little had been gifted to us together. Suddenly, not unlike the Grinch on the top of Mount Crumpit with a sleigh full of swag, I realized the registry was more that just new items for the house. It was our chance to build a collection…together.
So we decided to register for some nice dishes and flatware. We shopped together, made decisions together, battled it out a little together, made up together and finally chose those pieces we would use to entertain our guests…yes, together. Cathartic and bonding, it was a great exercise in teamwork. If we can pick teaspoons we both like, we can conquer the world…right?
Here’s where we registered for our tableware…a great place called Heath Ceramics. Handmade in northern California, this native loved the Golden State connection. Plus, they are non-traditional and great looking. If you have a taste for the original, check them out here, heathceramics.com.
See you next time!

Blog post by Always a Bridesmaid Contributor Darren Elms.
Photo courtesy of Heath Ceramics.