Luminations of a New Wife

How To Register and Where To Do It

Registering can be a very enjoyable part of the wedding process, or a complete anxiety-producing headache. First, register yourself on www.weddingchannel.com as this is the best and easiest and most popular way for your guests to view your registry list. Take a look at the stores that wedding channel affiliates yourself with, and choose three different types of stores to register.

Most of your guests will use the wedding channel to locate a gift they want to purchase for you, but others will enjoy going into a store and hand selecting a special gift for you. Make sure to choose a store that is not just in New York City for your out-of-town guests. We choose to register at Bloomingdales, www.bloomingdales.com, for pretty much everything except our kitchenware and fine china and silver. We selected Michael C. Fina to register for our china, www.michaelcfina.com, because Fina not only has a great selection, but has a wonderful holding program in which the store holds all your gifts till after your wedding. We saved so much time and energy this way without having to schlep back and forth to the store with all of our returns. Fina also gives you such individualized attention that selecting your china with them is a breeze. They'll even set a table for you so you can see how your china collaborates with your glasses and silver. Finally, we choose Williams Sonoma, www.williamsonoma.com, for our kitchenware.

Initially I went with my mom to register and selected things with her I knew I would not be able to do on my own, or with Steve. Afterwards, I took Steve with me back to the stores so he could see what I registered for. In my experience, guys might have more of an opinion about the bar-related products, such as decanters and wine glasses than your china selection. When I saw Steve's interest start waning once this was finished, I completed the registry on my own (MUCH easier in the end!) Plus, nowadays it's so easy to register at home online where you can easily change or add gifts to your list.

Other stores for some good ideas:

Bed Bath & Beyond
620 Sixth Ave., at 18th St.; 212-255-3550; 410 E. 61st St., at First Ave.; 646-215-4702; 1932 Broadway, at 65th St.; 917-441-9391; bedbathandbeyond.com
You'll want to register here for kitchen things, tableware, and a good selection of towels and everyday linens. 

Fortunoff
681 Fifth Ave., nr. 54th St.; 212-758-6660; fortunoff.com
The third floor of this large, unpretentious store has tableware for every taste—there are more than 150 dinnerware patterns. Register and you get a 10 percent discount on the store’s wedding bands.

Gracious Home
1992 Broadway, at 67th St.; 212-231-7800; 1220 Third Ave., at 70th St.;212-517-6300
gracioushome.com
Gracious Home specializes in European goods that will stand out from your neighbors’ wall-to-wall Pottery Barn wares.

The Jewish Museum gift Shops
1 E. 92nd St., at Fifth Ave.; 212-423-3260
1109 Fifth Ave., at 92nd St.;212-423-3211
334 Amsterdam Ave., at 76th St.;646-505-5730; thejewishmuseum.org
The Jewish Museum's gift shop sells Judaica inspired by its collections, including plenty of Seder plates ($10–$3,000), menorahs ($15–$3,000), and ketubot ($40–$400). If I knew about this option then, I would definitely of registered here!

Pottery Barn
600 Broadway, at Houston St.; 212-219-2420
1965 Broadway, at 67th St.;212-579-8477
127 E. 59th St., at Lexington Ave.; 917-369-0050; potterybarn.com
The originator of chic, affordable housewares, Pottery Barn is still a good bet for oversize, inexpensive dinner-plate settings. Most couples opt to roam the store on their own and then use its online registry service.

Restoration Hardware
935 Broadway, at 22nd St.; 212-260-9479; restorationhardware.com
You’ll want to cherry-pick from classic Paradigm bath sheets, 600-thread-count bedding, and a supremely refined eleven-drawer maple dresser. One of my favorite stores in the city! You can't go wrong with registering here. 

Simon Pearce
120 Wooster St., nr. Prince St.; 212-334-2393
500 Park Ave., at 59th St.; 212-421-8801; simonpearce.com
Couples can come in or register online for chic, timeless handmade stoneware and glassware, a favorite among stylish brides no matter their Zip Code.

Tiffany & Co.
727 Fifth Ave., at 57th St.; 212-755-8000; tiffany.com
One of the city’s most popular places to register, the fourth floor brims with silver, fine china, and crystal.

What to get the couple for their wedding?

Like I've said before one of my most fun (read: stress-free) activities on my bride-to-be to do list was to create my registry. Creating wishlists of beautiful gifts that Steve and I would not otherwise get on our own was too enjoyable. My mom and I spent endless hours browsing stores and adding precious items to my registry.  Doing so, I fell in love with a Swedish hand-crafted glassmaking brand called Kosta Boda, who makes these gorgeous vases. So many of our gifts came from there! One of my favorite designs are these "Fidji" vases which retail at Bloomingdales for $185. So here's the catch - get them for at least 20% less at Dishes, Decor & More. I love a deal just as much as the next person - shop here and save so much when you select that special gift. (The best part is shipping is free for gifts over $200!) You'll find the same brands here at Bloomingdales just for so much less.  Browse their Le Creuset, Orrefors, Vera Wang, Waterford, & Wedgewood collections - then check their prices against Bloomies, and don't forget to write me and tell me how much you've saved! It'll be our little secret...