Wedding Blog
I have been going back and forth on whether to add formal china to our registry.
Right now we live in an apartment, and even though we have a built-in china hutch, it is filled with other things, as space is precious. We could store it at my parents’ house, except for maybe a few settings for ourselves, until we get our own house. But I’ve heard you should only register for things you are going to use NOW, since your tastes may be very different 5 years from now. How am I supposed to purchase something and know I will love it for the rest of my life? Is it like a child? Do I love it automatically and unconditionally because it’s my ’wedding china’ and it reminds me of the day I married my best friend?
I know I want china someday - and when does one get china other than as a wedding gift? At the same time, it’s so expensive and I feel guilty asking for it in such a terrible economy.
But it’s sooo pretty and delicate. Eating off it, even if it is just grilled cheese, could make a bad day better. Plus, neither my mom nor grandmother has china, so there isn’t any that would passed down to me at a later date. We could purchase it ourselves as an anniversary gift after our first year of marriage, but I think we are too practical for that. Hopefully (fingers crossed) we will have a house by then, and I’m sure I would rather have new appliances than than $1,000 worth of dishes. So really, it’s now or never.
If we do decide to register, I’ve been eyeing:
Ralph Lauren - Vows
Martha Stewart for Wedgwood - French Knot in Silver
and
Vera Wang - Grosgrain
If we register for china, do we have to get crystal to go with it?
Are you/did you register for formal china? Was it worth it, or did you find that your tastes changed after a little while?
*all images from macys.com
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Share this post: The China Conundrum…
We registered for china that we could use every day and that was microwave/dishwasher/oven safe. We know we’ll eventually have to replace our every day dishes and wanted something that was suitable for daily use if we decided to use it on a daily basis.
I’ve been struggling with the same decision…but finally it came down to practicality. My fiancee and I are going to be moving soon after the wedding, possibly cross country, and the idea of shlepping very expensive and very breakable china along with us just didn’t seem like a good idea. Also, we know that in 10 year when would would actually need/use china we will be able to afford it…right now we need other things.
we did register for and decided if we didn’t get the pieces we needed, we would return it for other registry items.
i love the vera wang! great china choices!
We’re also taking the “now or never” approach…and even if our guests don’t touch it on the registry, we’ll be able to purchase pieces using our completion discount!
We registered for it, and honestly it’s the thing on our registry that I want the most. I think of it as an heirloom that will be passed down to our children. I am very partial to the Grosgrain set, since that’s the one we registered for!
I would love to have china but the fiance said no way it’s stupid, he would rather have a Dyson, which come to think of it I don’t know why because it’s not like he ever vacuums.
I’ve been struggling with the exact same thing. I decided to register for 4 settings of super cheap china in plain white with a platinum band and 4 settings of Kate Spade Gardner Street Platinum, which is $130 per place setting! They coordinate, and I hope that someday I’ll be able to fill out the set.
I know a lot of people decide not to register for china, but I’m with you … now is the time, and I know I’ll use it for entertaining and whenever I need to be cheered up!
FI & I registered for some “all in one box” china. I didn’t want to even add it but FI said that his traditional grandparents may want to gift us china so we just added some kind of plain cheap (but nice!!) stuff. Here’s the link to ours: http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?order_num=-1&BRN=1&sku=14062068
I really loved a polka dot pattern but it was about $99/setting and there was NO WAY on God’s green Earth I’d add those to our registry. Besides what if we only get 1 set? I’m not going to spend all that money to finish it! (We were told to get 8 settings…) The ones we added are pretty and timeless and cheap! HAHA
We did not register for it, but I do have my Nona’s that was passed down from my dad. That being said, I’d be in a similar situation to you if I did not have it passed. Look at it this way - it is a difficult economy, yes, but nobody will ever think anything of your having it on the registry. It is a classic item that has been on registries for generations past and will likely continue to the future. If a guest can afford it, they will buy it. If they cannot, they will move to something else There are so many gorgeous patterns (BTW-FI and I seriously considered both the Ralph Lauren and the Vera Wang patterns above ;o) ) but ask yourself if you will realistically USE and WANT it. Dont worry about now or later, dont worry about where to store it, think of practicality. But bottom line, you can always throw it on there. If you get it, BONUS! If not, reconsider it at a later date.
Now I think I’ve probably confused you more. =oP
We decided against registering for china, as we both know we’ll be inheriting it from both sides of the family in the future. Instead, we registered for simple white dishes for every day use.
I did register for fromal china. It is actually the gold version of the Vera Wang. I am glad I did. I don’t think I would buy it on my own, and I just think there is something special about wedding china that will make me smile whenever I use it. It is also something I would like to pass down someday.
I also registered for an accent plate from a completely different line. One of the nice things about the Vera Wang Grosgrain pattern, and for the other patterns you have pictures of, is that they can be jazzed up with accent pieces. So, if your tastes do change over time, you can update the china for less than buying a completely new set.
We are not registering for formal china since I feel like we won’t use it. We may get a basic set of every day dishes and then maybe some with more of a color or pattern. I also will probably get my mom’s one day. However, I really like some of the patterns you picked above.
We registered for the French Knot pattern. I liked its teacup best. I also liked that the patterns on each piece were slightly different, so if I wanted to add other components in later, it wouldn’t look too weird. I figured, I’ll never buy china for myself, so now is the time. We are both older and don’t really NEED much of anything else.
My aunt recently asked if I wanted my grandmother’s china, which I would love, but she wants me to remove the china off our registry. I am disappointed that there’s a stipulation behind getting my grandmother’s china. It was given to her as a wedding gift and she doesn’t want it.
Great picks! Go ahead and register for it! The styles you are looking at are classic not trendy. As far as the economy, people may not purchase you a set if they are unable but may buy gift cards towards the purchase. Plus, after the wedding you’ll be able to get them with your completion discount rather than pay full price on your anniversary.
I’m inheriting a lovely, floral set from my great aunt–wonderful for sentimental value, but clearly old-fashioned. The two sets you linked a elegant and simple. I don’t think these will ever go out of style. Go for it!
If you’re not sure whether you’ll want the crystal, maybe that’s what to hold off on until later. It will be much cheaper to buy for yourself later than a whole china pattern would be.
I’m not registering for china. I’m inheriting my mom’s, when it will mean something to me. As for now, I could not care a smidge about china. One more thing for me to break.
First off, your choices are all so pretty! 
I think it’s a personal choice for each couple whether they need formal china or not.
We never even looked at actual fine china from the get go, because we knew we’d never use it. We registered for an elegant “regular” dishware set (”White Trace” by Denby) to use as our “formal” dishes and cheaper plain white square dishes from Target to use as our “everyday” dishes. Two years later (woohoo!) I am glad we made this personal choice — and I’m loving that we don’t feel badly that we use our “formal” dishes all the time. Since both are simplistic but elegant, we intermingle pieces from both and the results are lovely.
we registered for grossgrain too! I figure if we dont get the complete set we”ll just return it and use the credit towards something else…like sheets or towels.
We have ZERO heirlooms. None. But neither my family nor his have the money to even purchase one plate of fine china. What’s a girl to do?? Estate sale!! We were at an estate sale and found a FULL set of fine china for…wait for it…$63 dollars!! I couldn’t believe it. And I LOVE the design!! It was like getting a handmedown from my folks, but not. You might check estate sales for some amazing vintage china!
We are not going to register for China for a couple of reasons: My mom already gave me hers (which I love!) and if she hadn’t given it to me or it didn’t exist, I can honestly say I wouldn’t have registered for it.
I know 5 brides who have NEVER used it in a span of over 5 years. I just don’t think it is practical this day in age.
I would go for a nicer quality every day set that you really like…it is more affordable for your guests and you will be more likely to get the whole set now.
My sister in law is still getting china place settings as Christmas gifts and her wedding was 4 years ago!
Beautiful choices!!!
We are inheriting my grandmother’s china. I’m really happy that we both like the pattern! We did register for everyday, inexpensive china from Crate & Barrel also.
As far as the economy, we have received several high priced items off of our registry. Wayyy more than we thought- I felt so guilty scanning some of that stuff. I say put it on your registry, and if you don’t get all that you want, maybe return it for other items you need.
We registered for both everyday china and fine china. Why so much china? Why not? We will have a variety, and depending on the occasion or meal we will have different choices. Our fine china choice is the Waterford “Ballet Icing Pearl”. It’s very elegant but definitely could be used everyday if we wanted.
I really had to giggle to myself when reading your first paragraph–I’ve never heard anyone refer to china as their child
I say go for it! I really like the Ralph Lauren and the name is just perfect for the occasion!
I registered for and received the Grosgrain pattern. I love it! I kept going back to it everytime and decided that was the pattern for us. We store it in our china hutch and used it for the 1st time this past Valentine’s Day. We haven’t had our anniversary yet. It’s this June. It’s a very simple pattern that you can interchange with other pieces. I also received silver chargers to use with it. I think if you don’t get it now you never will. Hope this helps!
The china is one of the items I am most excited to register for. I am obsessed with finding something classic, so I won’t get sick of it or regret my choice. I think all three of your choices are beautiful and classic. They definitely won’t go out of style.
I chose the Vera Wang Grosgrain as well!
I’m curious with those of you who have registered for china, did you add a charger to your place setting? I have and have been contemplating removing them. I just really, really like them
I love my china. It is all in boxes in my guest closet and coat closet, but I love having it, I love that it is mine, I love that I can pass it on to my daughters or granddaughters. If you want it, I would get it, even if you know you won’t use it for a while.
Some people truly don’t care about china…and that is completely understandable (I mean, mine is sitting in boxes!), but don’t let anybody talk you out of getting it if you want it (I had some friends be like, “why are you getting china you crazy…you won’t ever use it!”).
I like the third set, best. My FI’s been married before and bought 4 place settings of china, because the EX had to have it. I have between an 8 and a 12 piece set that, if the banding was gold, instead of silver, would exactly match it. From the black cups to the band locations.
My aunt got in, inexpensively, from her elderly, divorced neighbor who was clearing it out.
Any time we have friends over for dinner- 2-4 times a month, when we’re not wedding planning or cooking on the grill, we pull out our china and use it. It doesn’t have to be christmas/Tday only.
One of my favorite parts of getting our house was that I could finally get my china from my parents house and use it.
This is one of the main occasions you can get it. My mom got her base china as wedding stuff, and then my grandma would get her more for christmas every year.
We decided to register for china (and crystal, too). I am excited to use it for everything from Christmas dinner, to semi-casual weekend family dinners, to just a romantic dinner for two. It is so pretty, and I know that long after most of the “practical” stuff we registered for is broken/lost/outdated/etc., the china will be a useful, sentimental reminder of our wedding. Plus, my family likes to give china, crystal, & flatware as wedding gifts- they wanted me to register for some. However, my one stipulation before registering for it was that we make sure we would actually USE it. I don’t want to be one of those people who won’t get it out because they are worried it will get broken or it is too much trouble to pull it out.
My mom was adamant about us registering for China. At first we didn’t want to b/c there were other things we wanted more, like our everyday dishes, but she said that we’d probably get some of it and then it was something we could add too over the years. We chose a very classic pattern, Lennoz Federal Platinum. That way we were sure to still like it for years to come This pattern also opens us up to use accent plates from other lines and patterns to change the look. We like Kate Spade Larabee Road orJune Lane.
Also, I don’t think you have to get the matching crystal. You can not get crystal or (like us) get a crystal that goes.
I’d suggest going to Macys and looking around the home section there are a bunch of options for different prices
I felt guilty registering for our china because a) it’s so expensive, b) the terrible economy, and c) it isn’t a “need” for us. We have everyday dishes that are great.
However, china has always been a secret girly dream of mine. I was picking out china patterns as a little girl, and I figured, heck - if people don’t want to buy it, they don’t have to. If they do want to go a traditional route and get us a place setting, then it’s there for them.
And like others have said, we can use our registry discount after the fact to get more pieces if we want. Plus FI is excited about it because he figures he’ll be able to get me a new piece for anniversaries or other special occasions in the years to come!
I LOVE our china (Kate Spade Belle Boulevard). Like LatteLove, we returned a bunch of stuff to complete our china and fine silver (we got all the china, and about 1/2 of the silver, so we needed to return a bunch of stuff to complete the silver). I really love how special it makes our special meals. I hosted Thanksgiving this year and it was really nice to have fine china to serve it on. While china is expensive, you usually register for it by piece/by set, so it’s not an expensive gift for your guests, IMO. It’s funny how much people weigh “practicality” on their gifts… I typically try to give gifts that are NOT practical… I guess I consider a gift something that is a little luxurious and slightly unnecessary. I mean, who wants to get socks and underwear for Christmas? I want the gift certificate to the spa, or a nice little bag that I’ve been dying to get but never could justify spending money on! So I feel like china was the same, feel good kind of gift that I loved getting, and I love hosting with.
I registered for Vera Wang’s Empress Jewel by Wedgwood, and love it so far (but it’s only been two years!). I can mix it with Moroccan-inspired pieces to make it more modern, and know that when we are old and hosting Christmas dinner it will feel traditional and special.
I recently began a blog at http://www.kireinest.com that features daily registry inspiration. Tomorrow’s post is all about registering for dining items and is based on the timeless, elegant-but-also-everyday Eva Zeisel collection from Crate&Barrel. You may like to have a look!
All the women in my family actually use their crystal and china (and not just at holidays either), so I was excited to put it on the registry. That said, we are not having any of the traditional gift-giving celebrations (engagement party, showers, etc.), so who knows whether we will actually receive any of it.
I don’t feel bad about putting a very traditional item on our registry in a bad economy. We included plenty of inexpensive items, and we made a note that we loved all of these things and were looking forward to using our completion discount on them. There are plenty of other things (wedding related and not) to have to give up because of the economy, but a complete, traditional, dreamy registry (a wish-list, if you please) is not one of them for me.
We actually registered for china and crystal and have no where to put it. Neither of us have family that have china to pass on to us, and we LOVE to entertain. We also have all of the family dinners at our home, so we used it as a kind-of excuse. It’s the ‘now or never’ decision. If we don’t receive it as gifts, would we ever purchase it for ourselves? Probably not. We picked out a very simple pattern that would match mostly everything, with two different accents plates to jazz it up.
And I like the Vera Wang pattern- it was our second choice when picking china out!
We aren’t registering for china (my mom has a double set) and I know like you we will not be using the china anytime soon. I will say you should go ahead and register for the Crystal with or without the china. You will def use the crystal more often.
Oh and I like the first pattern the best! Very simple and will always be tasteful!
Beautiful pattern choices!
We registered for Denby - nice stuff, but also everyday stuff. Sure fine china is a nice thing to have, but unless you host lots of dinner parties - or plan on using it everyday it sure takes up a lot of space! I see how often my grandma uses hers… and how much room all her “fancy” stuff takes up. We said no thanks!
I say go for it! I’m not at that decision-making stage yet but know I will choose china when I am. All of your picks are elegant and timeless, too - lovely!
Go for it!!! We registered for china and even if our tastes change we can always use it and think back to our special day even if it looks awful and our kids make fun us!
Wow, the grosgrain is popular!! We registered for it too I also felt a little weird registering for it since we are so tight on space. It would be nice to own a house before buying it, but hey, we’re getting married in June, and there’s just no way that we would go out and buy all this china on our own.
As for your taste changing, I am the queen of changing my mind on things. But I have very consistently liked the grosgrain, and I think that it has a nice blend between being a little modern and unique, but classic enough that it will always look good.
We registered for Pickard’s “Washington”. We really enjoyed picking it out together and matching the chargers and crystal. I doubt that we will get a full set, but we can always fill it in over time. I actually like the china pattern so much, that my invitation designer used it as inspiration for our invitations.
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Mrs. Gloss, Boston/Maine
Age and Occupation: 24, Designer/soon-to-be Architect
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Systems Engineer
Engagement Date: May 23, 2008
Wedding Date: August 2009
Venue: SS Katahdin/Lakeside Tent
About Me: I don't like nickels or the skin that forms on pudding when it's in the fridge for too long. I couldn't live without Pantone markers, fountain soda (3/4 diet, ¼ regular Coke), run-on sentences, or ridiculously oversized sunglasses. I will try to DIY almost anything and am just OCD enough to make most of it work. I am truly excited about having all my family and friends together, becoming Mrs. Gloss, and having amazing photos to prove it!
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