Etiquette 101: Shipping Gifts

Jenna [intlink id=”2311″ type=”post”]asks[/intlink]:

I’ll be living in Washington for two months before the wedding, but FI and I will be living in Dallas for the next few years. I know that all of these ladies want to give me fun gifts to open at the bridal shower and the wedding, but really, they are an incredible burden to ship. We are registering online, but I know that many women want to physically see my face when I open it. Can I just tell him I will videotape myself opening every present in Dallas and send them a copy of the video How can I encourage guests to ship them to me and ease any financial burden they might be causing by making us figure out how to get it done?

Hey there Jenna!  For the shower, unfortunately, the whole point is to see you open fun things!  So you’re not going to get around having bags of awesome presents to take home.  :)  The best thing that I can recommend to you is to have a “themed” shower – perhaps a linen shower, or a lingerie shower, or some other theme that will guarantee you some small gifts that you can pack into your suitcase for the trip home.   

For the wedding, you can absolutely use word of mouth to let your guests know that you would rather have your items shipped.  In the internet age, this is becoming more and more common, so that works to your advantage.  Make sure that the address on file with your registries is your preferred shipping address.  Also, if you expect bricks-and-mortar purchases, ask each store if they are able to ship to you from point of purchase, rather than making the guests head to the post office.  They may be able to note your account so that the sales people or the registry print-out shows the preferred shipping address.

Hope this helps!
E.