Your Wedding Gift List

Gift lists are one of the fun parts of planning a wedding - after all, there's no better way to take a break from devising the seating plan or posting 200 invitations than to compile a list of pressies for yourself.

They're practical too - an excellent way of making sure you get the presents you really want and need, rather than five identical toasters and lots of dodgy ornaments that will go straight to your mum's next car boot sale

Making your gift list

Most guests welcome advice on what to buy, so make your list as comprehensive and wide-ranging as possible to cover a price range for all pockets.

When drawing up the list, be specific about what make, model and colour of item you want. Try to list many more items than you have guests, so that no one is left having to buy the Mickey Mouse salt cellar at the end. Make sure you state how many of each item you want: matching towels don't match if you only have one!

Try to arrange your wedding list well ahead of time. Bearing in mind that it is normal to send out details of your wedding list along with your invitations, you should plan the list at least 4 to 5 months in advance. One of the key benefits of using a wedding list provider advertising here is that all you need to do is place an item or 2 on the list in the first instance and then you can add to it as time goes on. The wedding list provider will then (normally) supply you with small cards that you send to your guests giving them details of where the list is being held along with a reference for your particular list. The guest can then contact the company directly and purchase a suitable gift.