Tips To Safely Collect Wedding Gifts
Wedding planning already has you thinking about so many details, so it’s easy for some things to get overlooked. One important thing that is often overlooked, but shouldn’t be, is the process of collecting wedding gifts. Many of your guests will likely buy gifts from your registry. Some will choose to have them sent directly to you, and some will choose to bring gifts and cards to the wedding. For this reason, it is important to have a plan in place to collect wedding gifts at your wedding.
Don’t make the mistake of assuming your gifts are already safe just because they’re in a wedding venue. Unfortunately, weddings are not an exception to theft and loss. Be cautious about locations, and take precautionary steps to ensure your gifts are in a safe location.
Choose a Safe Collection Area
The first step to safely collect wedding gifts is to determine the safest place for the card and gift table. The most important thing is to keep the table away from the door. Setting up your gift table near a door makes it an easy target for theft. There will be many people coming in and out of the venue, whether that is your guests, vendors, or guests from other weddings in the venue. It is best not to take the chance of making it easy and tempting to walk away with any gifts or cards. It is also a good idea to keep the table somewhere that there will be eyes on it all night. Do not leave it in a separate room like a hallway or foyer area. It is best to keep the gift table in your actual reception space, somewhere that people will see it. Be sure your collection area is big enough for any large gifts some guests may bring. This ensures your gifts are all in one central location, and will help avoid chances of theft or loss.
Have a Marked Area
Have a clearly marked area to collect wedding gifts. Whether that is a box or a vase is up to you. Have something that is marked so guests are not confused on where to leave their gifts. Experts recommend having a relatively large box with a small opening. This makes it more difficult for anyone to walk away with the box, but also the cards will not be able to be removed easily. It is also a good idea to keep the gift collection in the same area throughout the night. You don’t want guests leaving gifts in an undesignated area, as this is just asking for a disaster.
Having a marked area for guests can also double as a decor element. Our wedding photographers love capturing all of the details of your wedding day, including the gift table! Personalize the details of the table, and your photographer will capture it all. Use this table to display some of your engagement photos or other details that describe you as a couple!
We’re Here For You
Have questions? Want to check out team members available for your wedding day?
We’re Here For You
Have questions? Want to check out team members available for your wedding day?
Have Someone In Charge
The best way to be sure gifts are safe? Have someone keep an eye on it! You don’t want to be worrying about this throughout the night. Designate a planner, event coordinator, or venue staff to keep an eye on the wedding gift collection area. This person can be in charge of making sure guests know where the table is located and make sure no one wanders off with any gifts. This person can also be responsible for emptying the box throughout your reception and placing items in a safe in the bridal suite. Having a designated person is also ideal if you will be having wedding festivities at various locations. For example, your event coordinator can be in charge of moving this collection area from the ceremony location to the reception location.
At Mike Staff Productions, we’ve built our whole business around reclaiming the fun in your wedding planning. Ready to start?
The Mike Staff Productions Guarantee
At Mike Staff Productions, we trust that you’ll choose the perfect person to work with because you know what you want on your wedding day! There’s no such thing as a one-size-fits-all wedding DJ, photographer or videographer – we get that, that’s why we invite you to be a part of the planning process.
Let’s bring your wedding vision to life!
Mike Staff is the founder and CEO of Mike Staff Productions, Metro Detroit’s most awarded wedding entertainment and media company. Since founding Mike Staff Productions in 1996, Mike has led a team that has served over 25,000 couples across Oakland, Macomb, Wayne, and Washtenaw counties — providing wedding DJ, photography, and videography services at hundreds of Metro Detroit venues. Under his leadership, Mike Staff Productions has earned recognition as one of the top wedding companies in the country, with consistent five-star ratings on The Knot, WeddingWire, and Google. Mike pioneered the Team Approach model — coordinating DJ, photo, and video under one contract — to eliminate the stress and coordination gaps couples face when booking vendors separately.
