Weddingbee Blog

Before beginning the registry process, Mr. Jasmine and I came up with a basic plan of action: we would register for (1) fine china, flatware, bedding and special decorative pieces at Bloomingdales, (2) cookware, bakeware, and all cooking appliances/electrics at Williams-Sonoma, and (3) everyday dinnerware, serving pieces and other miscellaneous items at Crate & Barrel.On Sunday, Mr. Jasmine and I embarked upon the first stop in our registry adventure: the Bloomingdales Home Store in downtown Chicago. I was so excited!
Bloomingdales Home is kind of overwhelming and I was initially worried that we would quickly get lost among all the choices. Luckily, Bloomingdales pairs you with a registry consultant who walks you through the entire process, gives you advice and tips, but also gives you space when you need to mull things over. We had a wonderful consultant who made us feel completely at ease and gave us lots of really wonderful guidance.

The most difficult decision by far was choosing a china pattern. I’m a naturally fickle, whimsical person, so I wasn’t sure how I was expected to choose a china pattern I would like tomorrow, let alone forty years from now. We decided our best bet was to choose something classic, elegant, and sophisticated: Vera Wang for Wedgwood’s Imperial Scroll.

The rest of the process was much easier, probably because the china pattern really sets the tone for the rest of the table. Our consultant was nice enough to set up a “fantasy table” for us by setting out one place setting of our china so we could mix and match flatware, glassware, and table linens to see what matched best. It really helped us visualize what everything would look like all together.

We also chose a few really lovely vases, picture frames, decorative serving platters, and bowls that we could keep forever and would become really cherished items in our new home. We were wisely advised to wait on registering for bedding as their stock turns over fairly quickly and we wouldn’t want to register for something that ended up discontinued. So we’ll head back to Bloomingdales in May to choose towels and bedding.

Here are some of the best tips we picked up during our Bloomingdales registry:

(1) Do Your Homework: I wouldn’t recommend registering without doing a little homework/research first. Before Mr. Jasmine and I registered at Bloomingdales, we made a trip there just to check things out and see what we liked/didn’t like. It really helped us figure out what our style was, how we wanted our home to feel/look, what was practical/impractical for our life, what ideas we had for home decor/interior design, etc. I also thumbed through tons of magazines and looked at a lot of websites. I’d never really decorated a home before (my current apt is a sad little mishmash of college furniture and hand-me-downs), so I didn’t really know what I wanted. It helped a lot to get a cohesive idea in my head before we started because otherwise, it would be so hard to figure things out when you’re looking at a million options.

(2) Edit, edit, edit: There is certainly something about that scanner that can cloud your judgment. Right after we finished registering, we went back over our list with our consultant. There were items that we scanned that we couldn’t even remember! We trimmed down our list before leaving. Later that evening, Mr. Jasmine and I looked over our list again and still found that it could use editing: more items needed in one category and less items of a certain price category in another (Bloomingdales has a great feature that allows you to see your registry purchases by price and advises you how many items you need to register for in each price category for the amount of guests you expect). Don’t be afraid to keep refining your registry until you get it right!

(3) Be realistic about your needs: I realized that as appealing as it sounds, I didn’t *need* silver– stainless steel flatware would suit us just fine. And as much as I wanted to be the kind of woman who uses platinum chargers, I realized that I would barely ever use them and I would be better off registering for the cookware we so desperately need. While it’s perfectly fine to register for things you may not need now but will need in the future, be realistic about the kind of couple you are and the lifestyle you lead.

Stay tuned for part two: Williams-Sonoma! Do you have any registry tips to share?