Zoe of The Wedding Nest

When two friends are inspired to start a gift registry with a difference you know they are onto a winner. The Wedding Nest is a gift registry quite unlike any other. Whether just starting to create a home together or wanting to add more style to your existing home, there are items here that will inspire and delight you. The items are arranged within design styles to create a cohesive look – Contemporary, French, Beach and Eclectic. And within each style there is everything from crockery to art prints to furniture pieces. Decide on your style and choose items from within that range only, or mix it up a bit and choose things you love from all the ranges. Your biggest problem will be deciding what to leave off the registry!

What inspired you to start The Wedding Nest?

After organizing my own wedding I was disappointed that there was no registry that offered the gifts we wanted in our home. Jacqui, my business partner, and I were on maternity leave together which gave us some time to work on the idea and so we set about to create the registry we wish existed when we got married. It was crazy at first juggling young babies and a start up- especially when we both returned to our previous jobs- though with lots of late nights and busy weekends we eventually quit our jobs to follow our passion.

How would you describe The Wedding Nest?

We are a boutique gift registry offering beautiful homewares, striking artworks and statement furniture pieces collated by interior design style. We are the registry for people who don’t want vanilla.

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Hale Mercantile Flocca tablecoth

What makes The Wedding Nest unique?

We support boutique creative Australian brands such as Blacklist Studio art prints, MUD Australia ceramics and Hale Mercantile Co linen. And we believe your wedding is an opportunity to style your whole nest, so our gift ranges include not only the basics, but also statement furniture pieces, art and homewares, collated within interior design style and showcased to guests through a unique registry lookbook.

How do you choose which items are featured in your registry? 

Apart from making sure we choose gifts of high quality at an affordable price point we try to support small Australian creative business. If we find a new brand that we want every piece of their range then often it’s as simple as that!

Robert Gordon Kitchen Collection The Wedding Nest 1

Robert Gordon Kitchen Collection

On your website you divide the items into styles – such as Contemporary or French. Does this make it easier for couples to decide on their style?

Some couples know their style and are confident to cherry pick across our ranges. For those who find it harder to create a cohesive home we recommend to shop by style as then they can be confident that no matter what they choose, it will work well together. It’s also a nice way to browse as it’s across categories, so can encourage couples to think outside the boring ceramic/cutlery square!

Do style trends change regularly, and how do you plan for that within your gift registry?

Yes, we change our gift ranges seasonally to make sure we are always ahead of the trends and to enable our couples the ability to shop the latest must have item!

Are we best to keep our gift choices to a more neutral style that can evolve over time?

I always recommend for big ticket items – such as a sofa or table – go neutral so they can stand the test of time. Soft furnishings and artwork prints are where I recommend to bring in bright colours and individual personality to make a statement.

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The Wedding Nest

What are your top tips for styling your home? 

Artwork can completely transform a space, and we offer a huge range of affordable artwork that guests love to gift. We also encourage brides to add some fun soft furnishings – if you can’t afford a new sofa, some cool Bonnie & Neil cushions or a Kate & Kate blanket does wonders.

Do you offer a styling and advice service for those of us who are undecided about our style? 

Yes, we offer a free consultation – either at our showroom or over the phone to all brides. For an additional cost we also offer for a stylist to visit a couple’s home after they are delivered their gifts to help style their home.

Would you please describe your ‘Registry Lookbook’?

To inspire guests, registries are styled like a magazine, with dream home inspiration style photos integrated with selected gifts. This means that every bride’s ‘lookbook’ will be unique to their style. Guests won’t just feel like they are giving a gift but that they are helping the newly weds create their dream home.

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The Wedding Nest Scandi range

What are some other appealing features of your gift registry that we should know about?

We encourage our bridal couples to choose one statement gift that will really transform their home, and will cherish forever. To enable this, any gifts over $300 automatically become contribution items, to which guests can contribute any amount they choose.

Do you offer furniture as gift items?

Yes, as above!

Can you see furniture becoming more popular as wedding registry gifts?

Yes, couples are living together longer before getting married and so often have all the kitchen and bedding basics, but are still living with ikea furniture. By offering furniture, couples can be gifted a statement dining table, bed head or occasional chair that they would otherwise not be able to afford, and a piece they will love for years to come.

What other features have you introduced to make it easy to set up a registry?

We are completely online so couples can set up a registry and go live without even speaking to us if they prefer!

Blacklist studio prints at The Wedding Nest

Blacklist Studio Art prints

Are the gifts delivered to the couple (in one lot) after the wedding?

Yes, usually when they return from honeymoon. We may deliver in two lots if couples have listed made to order gifts – which obviously take longer to lovingly make.

How do you celebrate the end of the working week?

I’ve got small children so often our favourite Friday evening activity is to share a kilo of prawns and a glass of wine by the beach with friends – that’s about as crazy as I get these days!

Thank you Zoe for sharing your story. Don’t these images of The Wedding Nest’s homewares inspire you? To find out more about The Wedding Nest visit the website.

Headshot courtesy of Zoe at The Wedding Nest.