It is wedding season and I have been purchasing a lot of wedding gifts lately. I love looking at people's wedding registries. I don't know what it is but it is fun for me. I like to look at it and wonder "When will they ever use that?" or "Man I wish I had that!"
I love to cook so I have a pretty well stocked kitchen. Most of it is from our wedding and Christmas/ Hanukkah/ Birthday gifts over the years. I thought I would list my top 10 favorite wedding gifts that I regularly use and then a few things I registered for that we NEVER use!
1. Everyday Dishes
I love my Pottery Barn Emma dinnerware. I registered for 12 place setting (4 in each of the colors it came in) and then shortly after our wedding they came out with a blue color so I used gift cards to purchase 4 more place settings. I love having a lot of dishes. I can have a large dinner party without having to use plastic plates! Sometimes I do wish I had registered for only white because the other pastel colors are hard to match to other decor. I also don't like the coffee cups that came with the set. They are far too small for a mom sized cup of coffee and the handle isn't comfortable to hold.
I have been using the dishes daily since December of 2009 and they have very few chips.
I have been using the dishes daily since December of 2009 and they have very few chips.
Now only available in white
2. Mini Food Processor-
I use this all of the time for making salsa's, sauces, and even baby food. It is small, easy to clean, and much faster to grab than my large food processor.
3. Large Reidel Vase-
This was not something I registered for nor something I thought I would use often but I was wrong. In 2009, when we got married, Target carried a special collection of Reidel crystal and stemware. This vase is super heavy and looks beautiful filled with flowers. I love that it can hold a huge bouquet and doesn't tip over! I leave it out on our bookshelves even when it is empty because it is so pretty.
4. Calphalon Non-stick Pan Set
These are my go to pans for cooking. I rarely use my stainless pans. I am actually on my 3rd 10" pan but I don't think that is bad over 7 years. I use the small pan at least once a day. The set is a great deal at Bed Bath and Beyond especially when combined with a 20% off coupon. This is also one of my favorite wedding gifts to purchase because I know the couple will use it often!
5. Cuisinart Coffee Pot
I have been using this same coffee pot for the past 7 years. I set my coffee up the night before and have it programmed to turn on a little before I wake up. I have considered getting a Kuerig many times but always change my mind.
6. Le Creuset Dutch Oven
This was not on my registry either but it the gift one of my moms friends gives. It probably sat in my cabinet for the first two year until I knew how wonderful cooking in it could be. I have the 5.5 quart and it is the perfect size for my family of 4. It is so easy to clean and cooks everything from soups to pastas and casseroles or even a roast.
7. Bedding Essentials- Sheets, Duvet, Down Comforter, pillows
When we got married we lived in an apartment and had a queen sized bed. We were in the process of building our first house and planned to have a king sized bed once we moved. It was so nice to have all of the essential bedding items ready when we moved. I remember having everything washed and ready to go and as soon as the furniture was delivered at the new house I quickly made the bed. We registered for white sheets and a tan duvet with matching Euro shams to keep things easy to match down the road when we chose paint and accessories. Changing bed sizes can be be costly because bedding adds up fast! If you know you are going to be going from a queen to a king eventually go ahead and register for basic king bedding essentials!
8. Bath Sheets
We registered for plenty of bath towels, hand towels, and wash clothes but didn't register for bath sheets. A friend gave use Monogrammed bath sheets as a shower gift and they are the only wedding towels we still use. Recently I donated all of our smaller bath towels (that only seemed to shrink with time) and replaced them with bath sheets. Maybe it is something to do with age but the larger the towel the better!
9. KitchenAid Stand Mixer
I think this is on every wedding registry nowadays. I love mine and use it at least once a week. I don't have any attachments for it and have never really needed them. I was advised to register for an extra bowl. I actually got it as a gift but decided it wasn't necessary and returned it. In 7 years I have never had a need for an extra bowl. The bowl is really easy to clean so it isn't much trouble to quickly clean it to use again. I did have to buy a new whisk attachment as mine got bent! It's nice to be able to easily purchase replacement pieces.
My mother in law recently got her first stand mixer. I couldn't believe she had gone so long without it!
10. OXO mixing bowl set
These mixing bowls are great. They don't slide all over the counter and have a nice handle to hold while mixing or pouring. The sizes are perfect for all of your cooking needs. I don't like to use metal mixing bowls because of the metal to metal scratching sound so these are perfect for me!
And now for the things we NEVER use:
1. Martini Glass Set
I have a set of 8 martini glasses that I don't think we have ever used! Martini's were all the rage when we got married. Maybe it was a "Sex in the City" thing but I just had to have martini glasses. They just sit in the cabinet now, taking up a lot of space. I don't even drink liquor. I should have gotten a nicer set of wine glasses instead.
2. Cheap Heavy Wine Glasses
I registered for 8 all purpose wine glasses. They were pretty cheap and very heavy. We got all purpose because I am not a red wine drinker and Dan doesn't really drink wine so we didn't see the need for red glasses and white glasses.
They have joined the martini glasses in just taking up space in the bar cabinet. I much prefer a light weight stemless glass. We have some Riedel stemless glasses that are so much nicer to use. I think I will eventually just donate the old glasses and get a nice set to replace them.
3. Napkins and napkin rings
We have a set of cheap satiny feeling cream napkins and some swirly napkin rings. I may have used them 3 times in the past 7 years. It's not that I don't like cloth napkins, I just don't like the ones we have! A fun print or a classic cotton or linen napkin would have matched our taste much better. I'll add that to my wish list!
4. Nambe Candle Sticks and Salt and Pepper shaker
I think I might eventually use the candle sticks for Shabbat but for now we use a much cheaper set because who wants to clean wax off of expensive candle sticks? For now the Nambe set is just decorating the side table in the dining. Joining those never used candlesticks is the never used salt and pepper shaker. I did put salt and pepper in them and then my husband went into the kitchen and got the grocery store salt and pepper grinders and set them on the table. So now they sit as decoration as well.
What were your favorite wedding gifts?
Do you have anything you just had to have but never ended up really using?
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