We know planning a wedding can be stressful and expensive, and at the moment, while things remain so uncertain, there’s even more to think about. Most couples who use Patchwork choose to invite their friends and family to contribute towards an amazing honeymoon – and because we are THE flexible wedding registry – and all gift money is yours to spend how you wish – anything you plan with Patchwork is 100% safe and secure! However if the honeymoon is taken care of, you have all the household “stuff” you need and are looking for alternative gift options – why not think about asking guests to contribute towards your wedding photography?
Why fund your Wedding Photography?
We asked wedding photographer Andrew Heeley what he thought of the idea: “Photography is one of the few elements from your wedding that you will return to year-after-year, not only that, but you’ll hand down your wedding photos to future generations – I have my parents and grandparents wedding albums and my children love the chance to have a peak back in time when we get them out. Good fine art albums and photo books are quality, hand-made products designed to last multiple lifetimes, but the cost can be a little daunting. Patchwork is an amazing way to get your family and friends to help with those additional costs, and they can get the joy of seeing the physical memory of your wedding too!”
Your wedding photos are the gift you’ll treasure forever.
Rowan at Parrot and Pineapple agrees: “Including your wedding photography as part of an alternative gift registry is a fantastic idea. So many of my couples have said that they love their wedding photos so much because it’s pretty much the only thing you get to keep after your wedding. All your planning and hard work gets captured by your wedding photos, along with the emotions and sentiment of your guests enjoying your wedding. There’s literally no better present to treasure than photographs! And while I might be a bit biased given my job, I do truly believe that. I have my grandparents wedding album from when they married in 1945, and my great grandparents wedding portrait from when they married in 1920. If my house was burning down, it would be those items that I rescued first (along with my dog!)”
A gift that your guests will love giving.
Whatever your wedding plans are, you’ll want great photos to remember your special day. Plus, asking guests to “gift” this service is a really nice way for friends and family to be a part of your day even if they can’t attend on the day. Guests get that lovely feeling of knowing they are helping you to create amazing memories by contributing towards the cost of your wedding photography instead of physical gifts. They can be involved in your celebrations in a way that’s meaningful to you, and they get to see the gorgeous photos afterwards too! We asked wedding planner Cherelle Joseph Founder of Perfectly Planned 4 You for her thoughts. As a fellow wedding supplier who loves exploring concepts outside of convention, and making dreams a reality she says: “With many couples already living together, today’s lists are less about traditional, wedding gifts made up of items for a couple’s first home, and more about guests celebrating your marriage with a gift that you can keep forever. The best way to make sure your wedding memories are captured and recorded for a lifetime is through the photos that you take on the big day. Using Patchwork gift registry is a brilliant, stylish, and simple way to ask your guests to help you do this.”
So how does Patchwork Gift Registry work?
With a Patchwork Gift Registry you show your friends and family via a ‘Pinterest’ style page, the things you’re dreaming of and they help to fund them – with cash direct to you. Everyone can contribute as much or as little as they like, and feel connected to you and involved in your plans.
You collect all gift money in to your PayPal or bank account. You can keep track of all cash contributions in your Patchwork account, read gift messages, send event updates and then afterwards send thanks to everyone who helped make it happen!
Setting up Your Wedding Photography Gift Registry
It’s super simple to set up a Wedding Photography Gift Registry and you don’t need to be techy or spend lots of time to create a really professional, fun and engaging page. Use our gorgeous readymade template and personalise it to suit your celebration. You can add your own event details, edit images and set gift amounts, letting everyone know the things they can choose to fund, make or do. For example, you could include a patch for people to pay for a shot of the two of you for £200, chip in towards a hand-made album for £100, or a shot of the cake for £50. If you don’t want to just ask for money, you can add make and do patches too if you wish – maybe you know someone creative who can turn a favourite wedding photo in to a work of art?
How easy is it for guests to use?
When you publish your patchwork you’ll get a unique website address (URL) which you can then share with your guests on invites, your wedding website or via email. Everyone can then view your patchwork and choose how they’d like to contribute, and leave you a lovely congratulations message too. Payment is secure and simple, with a choice of PayPal, debit card or credit card. And because all gift money goes direct to you, you can start to book your photographer and put down deposits straight away!
It’s super easy to keep track of gifts and messages from guests. So after the wedding, you can upload photos to your account to send along with a thank you message to the friends who funded specific parts of your patchwork. Plus, you can also send printed thank you cards using our 30% discount with our friends at Moo.
All the need to knows…
It’s easy to sign up to Patchwork and you’ll be supporting vital work on climate action too. We offer a choice of a one-off fee of £50 or a monthly subscription of £6 to use Patchwork. With both options, 50% of the sign up fee goes direct to one of our three environmental charity partners: Friends of the Earth, Survival International or ClientEarth. Patchwork is not tied to any suppliers and we don’t hold your funds. Instead all gift money goes directly into your PayPal or bank account via Stripe so you can spend it when, where and how you like. We’re proud of the amazing feedback we receive every day from our couples, and hope you’ll join them. But don’t take our word for it! Read more from happy couples who’ve used Patchwork.
Ready to give it a try? Let’s go!
Our gorgeous readymade Wedding Photography template is easy to personalise so you can have a stylish and personal gift registry set up in a few minutes. If you enjoy being creative you can start your own page from scratch and upload your own images and write your own descriptions.
Photography credits:
Laura Babb at Babb Photo
Rowan at Parrot & Pineapple