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Bridal Shower Gift...?
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Anonymous
| I think it depends on the person. That said, I've for showers I've almost always bought something from the registry - and so have my friends, unless the shower was a specific kind of shower (garden, lingerie, etc). Also, I would prefer something from my registry - but I tend to be more practical. What kind of person is the bride? |
Anonymous
I've probably been to 15 bridal showers over the past 10 years and at every single one, I would say 80-90% of the gifts were from the registry. When I got married I loved registering and found it to be a huge treat to get the EXACT things I picked out. And let's face it, in most marriages it's the bride who really cares about the adorable towels or fantastic baking pans anyway. Does anyone really need another pair of PJs or fancy bath soap? One way you can probably tell what the bride is expecting is to take a look at what she has registered for. If she's got small stuff like measuring cups, mixing spoons, or other little gadgety things on there, she is probably hoping to get them as shower gifts because most people don't give that kind of stuff as wedding gifts. If the whole registry is bigger-ticket items, she probably would not expect you to get that for the shower. |
Anonymous
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Depends on the bride, and also whether there is a theme. When I was getting married a lot of the showers given for us and that we attended for other people had themes - stock the bar, pasta and baking, etc. For the ones that did not, the gifts tended to be something unique - an antique deviled egg plate (yes, I got married in the South!), a pretty painted birdhouse, wind chimes, etc. It depends on the bride, but I still have my wind chimes and have added more to my collection. Another amazing gift I received? A book where you record all your family Christmas memories. There's a space to write where you celebrated it, the card you sent out that year, and your memories of the year. I really like looking back at all that and still fill it out every year. With a baby on the way, the bride herself could probably use a little pampering, too, but I'm not a fan of giving bath stuff unless you happen to know exactly what she likes.
If you are still stumped, I would go with the registry. |
Anonymous
| OP, you're overthinking it! Buy from the registry if you want or buy something else if you want. It's a bridal shower. Nobody is going to reprimand you for your gift. I've been to 1 million showers (seriously) and I've never heard this debate of buying from the registry or not buying from the registry. Just please, PLEASE don't buy the body paint someone else was suggesting. That is indeed for the bachlorette party. |
Anonymous
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I agree with most of the posters. I had three showers (I know ridiculous) and 90% was bought off my registry. Items such as kitchen gadgets, towels, every day dishes and silverware. For the wedding most people gave formal china, crystal and cash.
I was given a few pieces of lingere but they were very classy pieces. I personally would not have been thrilled having to open up edible undies, crotchless panties or chocolate body paint in front of my future MIL and mother. |
Anonymous
| I had one very large shower. One person bought lingerie. Everyone else bought off the registry and/or bought something householdish. My mother in law was furious about the lingerie and still talks about how trashy she thinks the person was who gave it to me (who she didn't know -- it was someone from my family)... I'd avoid buying lingerie. People differ on this, but really, it's more appropriate to a bachelorette party. I've been to a fair number of bridal showers and only 1-2 where the bride got lingerie. |
Anonymous
My MIL bought me lingerie for my bridal shower. My goodness did my face turn red when I opened that! |
Anonymous
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maybe previous posters are from more "elite" circles, or maybe white people just do things differently... but among all the people i know (immigrant background but i was born here) lingerie and non-registry gifts were the norm for bridal showers. a lot of people i know also tended to combine bridal showers followed by the bachelorette so there was no real distinction.
since we're all basing our rules on "everything i've ever done, and everything everyone i know has ever done" i thought i would throw that out there. i think buying shower gifts off the registry is boring. |
Anonymous
I don't come from an "elite circle." The gifts I received for my bridal shower were mostly from the registry but not extravagant--some were as simple as a few towels or a placesetting of my everyday flatware. Thanks to my friends and family I have full matching sets of lovely things that I enjoy every day. Nobody in my circle could have afforded a whole set of something and I can't either, which is why it is all the more special to have things that I love and will keep forever. Not boring at all! When you give a gift, you should consider what the recipient wants, not what you would want or what you think she should want, or what's going to make a big splash when she opens it. The beauty of a registry is that they have taken the guesswork out of the equation. Non-registry gifts are nice if you know the couple particularly well and have an idea for something special that they need or would especially like, but a generic nightie or bath set does not fit that bill. Do people really wear that much lingerie anyway? My husband is actually not that into it and neither am I. I pull it out maybe once or twice a year for variety, but if I'd received a whole shower's worth of it there would certainly have been a lot that went to waste. If the bride thinks registry gifts are boring, she wouldn't have registered. |
Anonymous
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OP HERE.
Sorry to bring this thread up again with all the other wedding posts that have popped up, but I wanted to give someone of an update/thank you on the advice. I went to the bridal shower, and bought two gifts. One gift was very "Bride Personal" so to speak, and the other was something cute off the registry. Sssooooo, I was the only person who bought off the registry! There was SO MUCH lingerie / things that said "Bride", it was crazy. The party was mostly friends and young family members and itty bitty kids. What was weird to me again was when she opened my present, it was again the "Oh, you didn't have to get something off the registry, this is just a bridal shower" (not from her). The only thing I was a little shocked at was when she opened a kitchen set or something, and the hostess commented to someone else that the gift wasn't "bridal shower friendly". hmm. So, okay, but what I got was nice and I was happy about it and she liked it. Now we have to buy (I don't mean we HAVE to, I mean we are going to) them a wedding present, off the registry. So there you have it! I had fun! They are very very close friends of ours and I was just worried about what to get since I have never really been to a bridal shower and I didn't have one, so I had no idea what type of gifts were given. Thakn you everyone for all the replies! |
Anonymous
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"scrapbooking materials"
Tee hee. |