Wedding Invitations

Online wedding gift registries are superb in terms of convenience. Better yet, they help the (hopefully many) friends and relatives of the couple planning to get married avoid receiving duplicate gifts.

And what do you do with that duplicate gift? Returning it can be embarassing all around. In the wrong atmosphere, you can make the donors- who may have spent hundreds of dollars or even more- feel like doofusses for opting not to join up with an online bridal registry and check it often.

Not every retailer accepts returned gifts for their true value. If your gift came from an online store without a bricks-and-mortar presence in your area, there may not be a practical way to return your items. Do you really want to ask your donors for a receipt, and then spend a good part of a nice spring Saturday with boxes, bubblewrap, and then fighting for a parking spot at the shipping services store?

If you opt to sell your gift online, I have one word for this idea. T-A-C-K-Y. Plus, you’ll have to deal with the inconveniences, and perhaps the guilt as well. Plus, what happens the next time the donors of the gift you are packing off an returning drop by your home? You can’t really fess up and tell them you sold their gift on eBay, right?

There’s a better idea. When that duplicate gift comes, put it away and turn it into a backup- a backup serving set, for example. Reserve it for specific occasions, such as Sunday or holiday servings, plus for those times when the friends or relatives who gave that gift to you may be coming to town and are sure to drop by.

I’ve had friends who have adopted this approach. No embarrassments, no quibbling with online retailers, and good vibes to be had all around.