Article: How to Build a Luxury Wedding Registry Your Guests Can Actually Shop
How to Build a Luxury Wedding Registry Your Guests Can Actually Shop
A luxury registry has one problem every guide skips: most guests spend a few hundred dollars at most, and a single crystal wine glass can cost more than that. Register the wrong way and half your list goes unbought. We've been selling Baccarat, Christofle and Juliska from our Brooklyn shop since 2006, and the most common mistake we see is couples registering for dinnerware and one big statement piece, then leaving the barware and flatware thin. Those are what guests buy first. Below is how to build a registry that actually fills.
Jump to: When to start · Register in pairs · Price ladder · Place settings · Dinnerware · Linens · Shipping · After the wedding · FAQ
When to start, and how many gifts
Start four to six months before the wedding, and before any shower invitations go out. Register for about two to three items per guest. That sounds like a lot, but most guests buy in the first few weeks and the list thins fast. You want the last guest to still find something at their budget.
Register in pairs, not twelves
Baccarat and Saint Louis sell their glasses in sets of 2. Register for six sets of 2 rather than twelve single glasses. Each guest gives one complete, boxed gift, and you end up with twelve. The same goes for flutes, tumblers and napkin rings.
From the shop: Barware is usually the first thing to go off a registry. Rocks glasses, flutes and a decanter get bought early, so register more of them than you think you need.
Build a price ladder
A registry with nothing under $200 doesn't look more luxurious. It sends guests to shop somewhere else. Split the list roughly in thirds:
From the shop: Flatware is the other early seller. It fits every rung: a guest can give one place setting or a whole set, so the pattern fills from both ends.
Real pieces from great houses that fit the first third:
Pick patterns that will still be made in 20 years
You'll be adding to these sets for anniversaries and holidays for decades. Stay with core patterns from houses with long histories: Baccarat has made crystal since 1764, Saint Louis traces its glassmaking roots to 1586, and Christofle has made silver since 1830. Patterns like Baccarat Harmonie and Château and Christofle Mood and Vertigo have been made for years. A seasonal color or limited edition can disappear before your tenth anniversary. If you're not sure which is which, ask us.
Everyday crystal and formal crystal are two different lists
Register glasses you'll use every night, and lead crystal for the holiday table and the bar. Lead crystal is hand-wash only. Our guide to what crystal is and why it costs more explains the difference.
What's in a place setting, and how many you need
A place setting is everything one person needs at the table. Register 8 to 12, or 4 to 6 if storage is tight. According to The Knot's registry study, 61% of couples register for everyday dinnerware and only 13% for formal china. If you register only one set, make it the one you'll use every night.
Count in place settings, then add the sets each pattern sells in. Baccarat Arcadia comes in sets of 2, Juliska in 16-piece sets that make four place settings, and MATCH and Q Squared in sets of 4.
Dinnerware: one formal, one everyday
Porcelain you'll bring out for holidays, and a dishwasher-safe set for every night. Then layer: one dinner plate pattern as the base, a charger underneath and accent dessert plates on top. It's how a collected table looks, and it gives guests more ways to give.
From the shop: Almost every couple who registers with us adds dinnerware of some kind, and most add one Baccarat statement piece alongside it, a vase or a centerpiece that anchors the list.
Formal: Baccarat Arcadia
Everyday: Juliska
Heirloom: MATCH Pewter
Outdoor and every day with kids: Q Squared
Mix houses on purpose
Baccarat stemware, Christofle flatware and Juliska plates on the same table is how a collected home looks. You don't need one brand for everything. You need one pattern per category, so every piece you add later matches.
Linens and the details
Napkins, placemats and a throw are the easiest gifts on a registry, and the ones guests enjoy choosing. They also fill the bottom rung of the price ladder without anyone giving something disposable.
Flatware, serveware and the bar
- Flatware: a 24-piece set, which serves six, or place settings one at a time.
- Serveware: a platter, a serving bowl and a cake stand you'll use for every holiday.
- For the bar: rocks glasses, a decanter, an ice bucket and bar tools.
And the pieces for parents, grandparents and groups of friends to give together:
Where gifts ship
With a Parci Parla Home registry, each guest chooses where their gift ships: to you, or to themselves if they'd rather hand it over in person. Most ship straight to the couple. Pieces in stock at our Brooklyn store go out quickly. Pieces shipped from the maker take a little longer, so guests buying close to the date should order early.
From the shop: Everything we send goes out packed safely and snugly, crystal included. It arrives the way it left the shop.
What to do with what's left
Every registry ends with some of it unbought. For 90 days after your event, you get 10% off anything still on your list. Treat the unbought half as your shopping list for the first year: finish the place settings, add the glasses you'll miss at your first dinner party.
Register with us
A Parci Parla Home registry takes about two minutes to set up, and you share one link with guests. You can book a call with Paulina, our personal shopper, to plan your list. Registry gifts can be exchanged. It works for weddings, housewarmings, anniversaries and milestone birthdays.
Wedding registry FAQ
How far in advance should you make a wedding registry?
Four to six months before the wedding, and before any shower invitations go out. Keep adding to it as gifts are bought.
How many items should be on a wedding registry?
About two to three items per guest, with roughly a third of them under $200 so every guest finds something at their budget.
How many place settings should you register for?
Eight to twelve. Four to six if you're short on storage. Register one everyday pattern and, if you entertain, one formal pattern.
What is a 5-piece place setting?
A dinner plate, a salad or dessert plate, a bowl, a cup or mug, and a saucer or bread plate. A 4-piece setting leaves out the saucer or bread plate.
What sells first on a luxury registry?
In our experience, barware and flatware. Register more of both than you think you need.
Is it rude to register for expensive items?
No, as long as the registry also has plenty of gifts at lower prices. Expensive pieces give parents, grandparents and groups of friends something to give together.
How do you build a registry for a second wedding?
Skip the starter basics you already own and register for upgrades: a decanter, a silver tray, a centerpiece, or crystal to replace everyday glasses.
Shopping for a bridal shower instead? See our luxury bridal shower gifts.
Sources: The Knot, Wedding Registry China 101 (registry study figures and place-setting guidance from Wedgwood).
