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5 Fantastic Gift Ideas Off the Wedding Registry

Thursday, 09 June 2011 14:07

Today’s article in the Wall Street Journal talks about wedding registries and how much they have changed. More and more, couples are registering for other things besides china and first-time home gifts. An article in the Smart Money Blog talks about beating “Wedding Gift Sticker-Shock.” So, we sat down to come up with a list of 5 things that you can buy a couple that aren’t on their registry, but that they will truly love. Here are our ideas. If you’ve thought of others, please share.

1. Wine or Cheese or Food of the Month Club membership – What better way to give a gift than one that comes every month? These days, the wine or cheese or food of the month clubs are becoming more and more popular. These are fantastic and fun and your friends can look forward to something coming every month. One of our new favorites is the Foodzie Tasting Box. This is a mixed collection of different foods to taste and try. A 6 month subscription costs $100 and every box comes with a mix of a lot of different things.

2. Gift Certificate to a Restaurant – This is one of our favorites. If you and the couple have gone to a favorite restaurant before or if you have a restaurant you love, why not get the couple a gift certificate to that restaurant? This way, the couple can have a good time and remember the time they spent together with you. Plus, this allows you to set the amount you want to give them instead of buying a particular item from the registry.

3. Payment for a specific activity – Find out where the couple is going on a honeymoon or find a local activity to sign the couple up for. Whether it’s sailing or golf or snorkeling or scuba diving, paying for an activity will create a memory to last a lifetime. Plus, sometimes couples would never think of this themselves so giving them an activity is a fun way for them to explore something new.

4. Tickets to a concert, museum membership, or amusement park membership – Know a couple that loves Disneyland or U2 or Black-Eyed Peas? Why not get them tickets to an upcoming concert or a one-year museum membership or 2 year-long passes to Disneyland? The couple may never splurge on this themselves, but if you get it for them, they will be able to enjoy that experience for a long time.

5. Finally, the most practical idea that we’ve seen is a 6 month or 3 month maid service. After the wedding, the couple will find themselves overwhelmed with Thank You cards, gifts, and cleaning up and moving in together. Why not get them maid service that will take the burden off of them? Having a fantastic cleaning service come and clean the house for them will take the stress off and give them more free time to spend with each other. As many couples saying, it all starts at home and arguments over the little things are the most stressful things a couple can experience, especially a newly married one.

Finally, we don't add this to the list, but if you know the bride, the final option is just to give her a new pair of wedding shoes or something else that only she likes. Why not buy her that dress she'd been eyeing or the shoes she's coveted for the last few months? We're sure her husband would be happy to not have to buy that item and your friend will be happy to receive something besides household goods.