Keeping track of gifts

You should definitely keep track.

You can set up a google docs spread sheet or just designate a notebook and write the gifts/ who gave them to you down as you get them. Then, as you send thank yous you can check them off so you know who you sent one to / who needs one.

After the wedding my husband and I sat down with all the envelopes. He opened them up and I had a notebook and wrote down who gave us what as he did so.

Nothing bad can come from keeping track of gifts, Jennifer. That way, if someone says they haven't received a thank you note, you can pull out your method of keeping track and say, 'Well, I sent it on this date, so maybe it's still in the mail." I like Kristen's idea about a Google doc. A column for their name, the gift, whether you wrote a thank you note, and when it went out in the mail.

I'm using my guest list on the Knot to keep track, but we've also gotten gifts/cards from people who aren't invited so for those I marked on the back of the card. So far we've been good about doing thank yous as gifts come so that helps too because I know I've sent all of them up to a certain point.

I know not everyone is an excel super fan but I am and this is shouting out for a spreadsheet lol. I think keeping track of the person that sent a gift, type of gift (if you want to mention it in the thank you) and if you’ve thanked them or not in a spreadsheet or doc sounds like a good idea.

You don't need to do anything fancy. Just get a piece of paper and a pen and as you open cards and gifts, write down the name and what gift they gave you so you can reference it in your thank you card. If you prefer to use a computer, you can set up an simple excel sheet. If you have an Alexa device, you can start a new list in the app and just tell Alexa, "add check for $200 from Jim and Susan to the _____ list.

View Quoted Comment I am also an excel fan! I bought a wedding binder but honestly 80% of my stuff is in my excel doc with multiple tabs. Just remember to back it up somewhere periodically!

I use excel every day for work. That will probably be the easiest way to go. Thanks!

For anyone else... excel has a template for a guest list with drop downs for everything, including gifts and thank you's.

Google docs Excel with multiple tabs or like the poster said plain pencil and paper. Excel was/is my best friend when it comes to lists.

I have a notebook and filing any cards or gift receipts I receive from people, and writing on them what I got.

We're using Excel too and have our file on a cloud drive. We have a list of households and we can just enter in the gift and when we sent the thank you card. Personally, if I did pen and paper I'd put it somewhere where I'd remember exactly where it is, and you know how that goes!

I downloaded a free Wedding Planning Excel suite (premade spreadsheets with the math already set up in the budget section and the columns labeled in guest lists and vendor contact lists etc). The guest list pages (wedding and showers) all have a column for gift received and thank you note sent. That way you will remember to send thank yous for attending not just for gifts. And you will be sure that you remembered all of them once they start coming in rapid fire closer to. I also prefer pen and paper so i made a blank guest list table in Word just for Thank You's. It includes a column for their addresses (will be prefilled when I finalize the guest list and print it) and one each for Shower and Wedding - double columns with a gift received and thank you sent column under each. I find that one easier to look at than the excel sheet because I split the excel in half for it (separate table document for invitations sent - same first 2 columns: names and addresses) and put all the households onto one line each - whereas with the excel I wanted it to keep count if each individual person to make sure we stay under our limit.

I'm also a planner and saver and figured that the printed "pretty" sheets will make good keepsakes in my binder so I can look back at it in 20 years and remember that the well loved KitchenAid was a gift from my aunt, etc.