Consumerism and the Wedding Registry

So cool. This was soo much better than sky diving.

Of the many struggles one encounters in wedding land, one of the toughest for me has been our wedding registry. By now you may have gathered that I have some issues with consumerism (if you haven’t been a reader all that long, see this post, and that post, and this one too).

Among the many pressures a couple faces during the planning process, it turns out, there's a whole other set of expectations for wedding registries too. Monogrammed china, five million thread count organic cotton hand towels imported from Borneo, silver china that will gather dust in the attic for like...ever, and all the expensive kitchen appliances that you'll use once and then retire as counter top decorations. No thanks. Like many wedding options Fiance and I are choosing, we’re not going a traditional route with our registry either.

Fiance and I have lived together for nearly three years, so we have what we need for the most part. I've also been a pretty mindful shopper after I got myself into a bit of a financial pickle from which I just crawled out.

For these reasons, we are not doing a traditional housewares registry. Sure, it’d be nice to upgrade all our towels, but I can’t shake the angel on my shoulder who keeps screaming about how wasteful it is. What happens to our perfectly good old towels? I don’t have space for everything, and I’ll be damned if I throw perfectly good items in a dumpster. Okay – maybe, another pair of sheets would be handy for our king bed and perhaps we could put a new pair of kitchen tongs to use. Aside from that, I am drawing a blank. The aforementioned items would make a pitiful registry, and they’re simple enough for us to buy on our own.

This article on apartment therapy (which is quickly becoming a fave blog of mine) expresses my struggle with the want/need aspect of a wedding registry to a T.

What our generation wants are experiences. I want to see the world. This NPR article explains so much about my values and what I want for my life, and I don’t think I’m out of line for expecting my registry to reflect that.

So, Fiance and I are opting for a honeymoon registry. Experiences are the best gifts and you always have a fond memory to look back on. For those that prefer to purchase a non-experience gift, we have a gift card registry. That way, we can save the gift card for when we actually need something, or for when we buy a house. No wasteful spending here!

But more than that, we’re not getting married to get gifts. I’m getting married because my fiance is the love of my life and I want to hang out with him until one of us dies (to put it frankly). If you’re invited, it’s because we want you to celebrate with us (and feed you and make you drink beer so somebody’s out there dancing with us).

However tacky or non-traditional you deem it, just know that every wedding is unique to the couple getting married. At the end of the day, what matters is that they are kicking off their marriage as happy as they can be. And history has proven that you don't need a Keurig to do it.

Sticks and stones may break your bones, but I’d rather go swim with some mother effing dolphins than stay at home watching my Kitchen Aid attachment make ground beef.