Bridal Shower

Yesterday was my bridal shower and it was PERFECT.  I had such a WONDERFUL time with my family and friends.  My bridesmaids did such an awesome job planning.

The party was tea party themed and there was so much tea and so much food - I couldn't believe it.  Everything was just over-the-top!  I also got so many gifts from our registry that I'm going to have to think of more things to register for.

Registry Rush

Bridal shower invitations are going out soon, which means my fiance and I really need to finish up our registry.  As I talked about before, we are registering through myregistry.com.  It's super convenient to link all of our registries.  As far as stores go, we are registered at Kohls, Macys and Walmart (they were the only ones that had the ancient traditional Corelle dishes that we wanted).

Once we had a list of the different appliances, etc. that we wanted, we had to decide which brand, model, etc. we were going to register for.  I found www.consumersearch.com extremely helpful in making these decisions.  So, if you're stuck on something I strongly recommend that you check it out.

So what did we register for?

Kohls
Home Classics Extra-firm Jumbo Pillows (for the spare bedrooms)
Perfect Comfort Memory Foam Pillow (LOVE these pillows)
Oneida Flatware (decent priced brand that works for all occasions)
Oneida Bake and Take 9"x13" Pan s(non-stick, sleek-looking, and comes with a snap on lid)
Oneida Cupcake Carrier and Baking Pans (non-stick, can bake a dozen cupcakes and carries 2 dozen)
Nordic Ware Springform Pans (best non-stick pans and built to last)
Zojirushi Micom Rice Cooker (pricey but worth it; auto-sets the time and temp depending on how much rice and water you put in)
Ninja XL Blender (perfect for making smoothies for a multiple people)
Wine Enthusiast Electric Corkscrew (seemed to outlast the other brands)

Macys
Godinger drinkware (reasonably-priced, classic drinkware)
Pyrex food storage containers (Pyrex - enough said)
Faberware Percolator (rated better than any other percolator and last much longer than coffee pots)
OXO containers (great for storing everything, instant vacuum seal)
Cuisinart DLC-2009CHB Food Processor (best food processor by far and includes all of the attachments)
Corningware Bakeware (Again - enough said)
Hotel Collection Bath Towels, MicroCotton (super luxurious, yet affordable)
Dyson Animal Complete Vacuum (the best for any pet owners)

Wal-mart
Corelle Dishes (last FOREVER)

IKEA ILOVEU

So my fiance and I made our first ever trip to IKEA just a few weeks ago and were absolutely in love with it.  I'm pretty sure if we have the space and money for it that we would have left with one of everything!  The first thing I did when we left the store - got onto their website to see if they had a wedding registry.  I was disappointed to discover that they didn't.  However, then I saw that they had an on-line shopping available.  That would work out perfectly paired with MyRegistry.com which I talk about here.  Basically if its on-line you can register for it.

Unfortunately, I was met with yet another disappointment.  Only the stores big ticket items - i.e. stoves, refrigerators  beds, etc. were available for on-line shopping.  This meant that all of the cool storage units, end tables, decorations and all of the other fun stuff wasn't available on-line.

We could however still link to the items description, but they would only be able to buy it at the IKEA store.  As I said before we don't really NEED anything for our home, so IKEA is the perfect way to get some "fun" upgrades.

So what do you think?  Should we add these items to our registry even if they won't be able to get them online?  Or should we politely hint somehow on our wedding website that we are ever-so-slightly obsessed with IKEA?  Or should we forget about it completely?

EDIT:  Don't forget to check out what other registry websites I considered registering here or my reviews of various department store registries here to see who the winner was.

Department Store Wedding Registries

So we are in the process of deciding on which department store(s) to use for our wedding registry.  The places that we looked at were Macys, Kohls, Bed Bath &Beyond, JC Pennys, Target, and Pottery Barn.

My top pick was Kohls with Bed, Bath, and Beyond and Macy's tying for second.

#1 Kohls

• You receive a 15% off coupon for use up to 90 days after your wedding.
• You earn 10% rewards on all gifts purchased from your registry.  You can earn up to $200 at most and can use this reward up to 90 days after the wedding.
• Earn free gifts for completion for various brands.
• Your guests can get 15% off their gift purchases of $50 or more.
• Excellent, no-hassle return policy.  

#2 Bed Bath and Beyond

• Registry available for 2 years after wedding.
• You receive 2 10% off coupons:  one for use on-line and one for use in-stores
• For every person you refer that registers you receive a $25 gift-card
• Earn free gifts for registering and/or for completion for various brands.
• With a gift receipt can return anything for in-store credit.

#2 Macy's

• Registry active 13 months after wedding
• You receive a 10% off coupon to be used up to 90 days after the wedding
• You earn 10% on everything you spend and 5% on everything that guests spend
• With a gift receipt can return anything for in-store credit 

If you are interested in the details of my hunt, check out my Wedding Registry Comparison sheet.

HatchMyHouse.com

Hatchmyhouse.com provides a fun way for guests to give money towards your home.  According to the site, it only takes 5 easy steps to get started.

1.  You start by "building" your house.
2.  You create a profile for your account.
3.  You will need to link your PayPal Premier account (you can create one for free if you don't have one) to your hatchmyhouse.com account.
4.  Personalize your profile and determine who pays the 5.9% transaction fee.  (This is the only fee.  There is no sign-up fee, etc.)  You have three choices:

• you always pay the fee = it is taken from the gift amount given
• the guests always pay the fee = it is added on top of the gift amount they are giving
• you give the guests the option of paying the fee = if they opt out then it is taken out of the gift amount given

5.  You finalize and publish your account and then you will be given a link to give to friends and family.  You will receive your gift within three days of the guests giving it.    

After looking at several sites this is by far the best cash gift registry:  it is the most interactive site and it has the lowest transaction fee that I've seen.  I think we are going to do this!

Wedding Registry List/Stores

Today Dave and I went to Bed Bath & Beyond to set-up our registry.  We had no idea what we wanted to register for, but we hoped being in the store would spark some ideas.  I think it actually helped.  Below is our most up to date list.  Any thoughts?

• Rice cooker
• Pillows
• Baking sheets
• Sheet set 
• Kitchen knife set
• Digital camera
• Stand Mixer
• Food processor
• Silverware
• Memory foam bath mats
• Memory foam kitchen mat
• Blender
• Cutting boards
• Canister set
• Toaster
• Luggage
• Wine rack
• Hanging holder for pots and pans
• Spoon rest
• Dinnerware
• Salt and Pepper shakers
• Kitchen utensils
• Spice rack
• Vacuum
• Menorah

Wedding Registry Sites

Dave and I have been working on our wedding registry.  We are considering doing three things:

1. Hatchmyhouse.com - a site that allows people to "buy" parts of your dream home.  A very cute way of asking for money for a house.  (Check out my post about the site here.)
2. Wanderable.com or a similar site that allows guests to pay for part of your honeymoon.
3. Myregistry.com - a site that allows you to register for anything that you find on-line.  You can also sync it with your in-store registries.

The best part of myregistry.com is that we can have everything that we register for available on one site.  Also, by registering in-store, we will gain the registry perks available from different stores.

This is the next big thing that we will be working on, so check back for detailed reviews of sites and stores.

EDIT:  Check out my reviews of various store registries here.  Also, my disappointing story involving IKEA here.

Engagement Party

My grandmother wants to throw an engagement party for Dave and I.  The plan is to have it in Maryland.  All of our family will be invited along with our close friends that will be part of our wedding party.

We have the date of the party set for Saturday, September 29.  We can't wait to see everyone and share our engagement with them.

Things to do for the engagement party:
- come up with a guest list
- start our wedding registry

We are planning on having the event at my grandmothers house.  She is going to set up a tent in her back yard.  She is also planning on doing invitations and linens to match our wedding colors.

Engagement Party Basics

Online Surveys & Market Research

Online Surveys & Market Research