Why You Should Put Gift Cards on Your Wedding Registry (don't miss these!)

I am at that point in life where a lot of my friends and family are getting married. Its such a wonderful time! So happy and exciting. I love browsing through all of their wedding registries and seeing what they think they need for their new lives and guessing what their new homes will look like.

When we got married, I didn't see the point of registering for gift cards. I thought that we had everything we would need on our list and why would we need gift cards. Well, I was wrong. Very wrong. Thank goodness some of our guests knew that I was wrong and got us gift cards anyway.

Due to the fact that we got a lot of unexpected items for our wedding, I have made a resolution to never give anyone anything that they didn't register for (this is true for baby showers too). There are some very tempting ideas on Pinterest and I would love to give people something homemade, but I know what its like to have items on your list that you really need and to get something that isn't your style instead.

**To be fair, I have and will continue to make a little something special and add it to an item off the registry. There is something about a homemade gift that is special and one can't be that turned off about getting something that was made with love.**

All that being said, I wish all my friends who are getting married would see the value in adding a few gift cards to their lists. When you are in the midst of wedding-planning craziness, its impossible to foresee what you will actually need in your new home, especially the piratical items. You never think of needing cleaning supplies, or picture hanging hooks, or spices. So, let me tell you the top three gift cards you should put on your wedding registry and why.

Grocery Store
One of the greatest gift we got for our wedding was from my parents. After we got home from our honeymoon and were settling in to our new place, my mom took me to the grocery store and had me pick out every food item I would need to set up my new kitchen. I got flour, oil, sugar, spices, peanut butter, cupcake liners, frozen veggies, paper towels, etc... It was such a blessing!

All of these things are essential and would have broken our very fragile newlywed budget if I had gotten them on my own. Its not bad having to buy a bag of flour here or a jar of chili powder there, but when you are outfitting a whole kitchen all at once you could very easily break the bank.

I suggest registering for around $100-$250 in grocery store gift cards. Then (after you get home from the honeymoon) Google "stocking a pantry," make your list, and get to the grocery store. You will be very grateful you did when you don't have to run out in the middle of making a sandwich because you realize you don't have any mustard. Consider stocking your bar too.

Hardware Store
A few gift cards to Home Depot or Lowes will help you with all your little household needs, even the ones you weren't expecting. Things like cleaning supplies, picture hanging kits, garden starting items, paint, a screw driver, batteries, power strips, extension cords, light bulbs, flash lights, laundry baskets, etc... all these things can rack up quite a bill, but if you have some gift cards on hand you won't even break a sweat getting your new place in shape. Its also a great idea to hang on to one or two of these gift cards, because inevitably after living somewhere for a few months, you will realize you really need a socket wrench.

Restaurants, Movies, and Other Date Night Places
I don't know about you, but when we got married we didn't really have money to go on dates. Our date nights ended up being a Redbox movie and a bowl of popcorn. Not that these kind of dates aren't wonderful and romantic, but sometimes a girl just wants to get dressed up and taken out.

Put some nice restaurant gift cards on your registry and then you won't feel guilty about going out to dinner and spending more than you would if it were your money. Also think about coffee shop gift cards, or some to a movie theater, a bowling alley, a B&B, etc...



These are the top three gift cards I wish I had had on my registry. Other places to think about are:


Electronics Store
Just in case you realize your Ethernet cord won't reach far enough to plug into the wireless router.

Home Goods Store
Keep on hand, you will get to the point of needing bathroom storage solutions, or a potato masher.

Pet Store
I don't have pets, but if I did...