Must-have wedding registry gifts

Our most-loved gifts that we can’t live without

Building wish lists and registries seems to be a task that stumps a lot of people. For a wedding registry especially, you want to curate a list of items you want and need that won’t scare away your guests with the price tag. My husband and I almost didn’t make a wedding registry ourselves. We were already living together and had so much stuff between the two of us, that we felt like there wasn’t really anything we needed. I’m so glad we changed our minds and put together a registry. We were able to give our current household items a refresh, and wound up with some pieces we absolutely love!

If you’re working on your own wedding registry, or even a housewarming wish list, here are some of our favorite gifts that I’m sure you’ll love, too!

1. Cash

At the end of the day, cash is king! Our registry allowed us to create a personalized wedding fund that people could contribute to. All the funds went directly to us, which was nice since there are some sites that charge a small fee for virtual wedding funds. We also received actual cash from some of our guests. Receiving cash allowed us to shop for exactly what we wanted, so cash will always be a winner in my book. Don’t be afraid to ask guests for cash as a wedding gift. It’s usually more convenient, especially for people who are traveling to your wedding.

2. Cuisinart air fryer

This thing is amazing! It’s an air fryer and toaster oven that we use daily. We use it so much that we decided to get rid of our regular toaster since the air fryer does the job of so many appliances. I love using it alongside the oven when I’m making a dinner that requires me to bake foods at different temperatures. It’s also great for getting a quick dinner on the table on nights when I don’t really feel like cooking. Lastly, We love the design. A lot of air fryers are awkwardly shaped and don’t look the best on the counter. This one has the look of a true toaster oven and since it’s rectangular, it can fit just about anywhere. I promise, if you have this air fryer, it’ll become a kitchen staple.

3. Le Creuset pasta bowls

Oh. My. Gosh. I can’t rave enough about these pasta bowls. I’m genuinely obsessed with them. I got inspired to add them to our wedding registry when I saw a ton of videos about “blates”(bowl + plate hybrids) on TikTok. Knowing that Le Creuset has a reputation for quality goods, I chose their bowls over some other brands I saw. I can’t quite explain it, but these bowls are perfect for so many dishes outside of pasta.

I find that with regular dinner plates, we’re sometimes chasing food around to get everything on our forks. pasta bowls are shallow enough to fit a full dinner on them, and the curved sides make it easy to get the perfect bite. They also just look beautiful! Every meal we have in them looks like it was prepared by a professional chef. I think I’ve gushed over these bowls enough. Go ahead and add them to your registry!

4. Ninja Professional Plus blender

We love Ninja in this house! We have a Ninja coffee maker and even a Ninja bullet blender, but I wanted a full-size blender for larger cooking projects. This blender is a great option for a powerful blender that’s not crazy expensive. Johnathan loves his smoothies and we can blend them to perfection within seconds. The lid has a pour spout to minimize mess when pouring, and it locks in place while you’re blending. I’m excited to use it to blend up some sauces and soups this fall.

5. Bissell Spinwave hard floor spin mop

Okay, that’s a mouthful, but this is a great cleaning device. We’ve found that nothing beats an old-school mop and bucket when our floors need deep cleaning, but we love the Spinwave for those in between cleanings. I’ve had other electric mops in the past, but they were a little too cumbersome for my liking. The Spinwave is cordless, you just plug it in to charge it, which makes it easier to whip out whenever we need to. It’s also ready to use as soon as you turn it on—my previous one needed time to heat up. We find ourselves reaching for it after Maze eats because he loves throwing food on the floor to signal that he’s done. We’ll sweep first, then mop up the rest to keep our hardwood floors from getting sticky. Highly recommend it for easy cleaning.

6. Crate and Barrel Alma old fashioned glasses

These glasses are beautifully designed and have become our favorite for having cocktails. They have a textured pattern on the outside and have a nice weight to them. I also noticed that they don’t sweat much, even when they have ice in them—no water rings on the furniture. At first, Johnathan thought glassware was a waste for our wedding registry, but it is really nice to have beautiful glassware with a modern look.

7. De’Longhi espresso machine

If you know us, you know we love our coffee. I feel like an espresso machine is the quintessential wedding registry gift. Almost everyone has them on their list, and for good reason. An espresso maker is perfect for the days when you don’t feel like heading out to Starbucks for your latte—you can just make it at home. We wanted to make sure we got a machine that was affordable and beginner-friendly. Neither of us had prior experience with expresso machines and we didn’t want to get in over our heads. This machine is just that—sleek, easy to use, and it has a built-in milk steamer. We learned how to use it pretty quickly and now we can be our own baristas at home.

This concludes my list of our must-have wedding registry gifts. I hope listing out some of our favorite items helps you curate a list of items you’ll love for your home. I’ve linked all of the items for your convenience. Some of the links may help me earn a small commission if you or someone you know purchases the items.

As an added bonus, here are some photos from our August 2023 wedding. Enjoy!