Bridal Registry Etiquette

Having chosen bridal registry in a good selection of stores does not finish the project. As a matter of fact there is still much to do – like how to tastefully let friends and family know about the wedding gift registry. Indeed, most friends and family love to shower the young couple with gifts that will help them establish their new home. This is where good etiquette comes in, enabling the engaged couple to conduct themselves with style and honor.

• Do not include bridal registry information in the invitations.
• Make the wedding gift registry information one of two ways (or both): 1) Verbally let the couple’s parents and wedding attendants know so that guests have contacts who know of the registries. 2) Include a registry navigation button on the main page of your wedding website. This allows guests to look and pursue, or not… anonymously, until they choose to give a gift.
• Remember, gifts are not an obligation of the guests. Receiving a gift is a privilege. There is no true formula regarding how much they should spend on the gift. It is their decision based on their private situation.
• Never ask for cash. If the couple’s individual situation demands mostly cash gifts, allow the bridal party to disseminate the information.
• When two well established individuals marry who do not need the gifts to get a new household started provide guests with the option of giving to one of several charities in lieu of gifts. This is also useful for those who choose to announce, “No gifts please.”
• Always respond with a handwritten thank you note within two weeks of receiving the gift – two weeks after returning from the honeymoon is acceptable as no one expects a new couple to spend their honeymoon writing thank you notes.
• A wise couple will refrain from using any gift, whether from a bridal shower or simply an early wedding gift until after the wedding. Why? Because, if the wedding is called off for any reason – any reason at all – good etiquette demands that all gifts be returned.
  

While good etiquette sometimes seems inconvenient, it is not. Good behavior is a reward in itself. It enables people to get along better. At the same time it also tends to have tangible rewards in that, people tend to be more generous and more open and receptive toward people with good etiquette. But don’t do it for selfish reasons. Those tend to find their way to the surface. Instead do it because following bridal registry etiquette will enable the couple to treat their guests with the honor and respect they deserve.

P.S. Help the groom in your life to get through the wedding planning process with style and grace by picking up a copy of, “The Groom’s Guide: A Gentleman’s Indispensable Wedding Planner.”