Yellowknife (Feb 19/03) - Faced with the prospect of the wedding gift, one turns to the safe items -- towels, tea cups, a wine rack, a wad of cash stuffed into a beige envelope. Hardly exciting and frivolous.

But it's tough enough shopping for couples -- throw in the isolation of Yellowknife and gift buying becomes even more of a burden. Registering is a safe and conventional option. Rather than risk getting duplicates and hideous trinkets, registered couples can direct wary friends to exactly what they want right down to colour, texture and quantity.

For their wedding last summer, Leslie and Randy Caines decided to stay put up North and invite their families all the way in from Halifax and Ottawa.

So friends and relatives wouldn't have to lug gifts up all the way from their respective homes, the couple registered at a few places in town -- Linko's pottery, Sears, and a gift certificate option at Quality Furniture.

They also registered at the Bay since there's an outlet in most every major city.

"It was hard because people were literally coming from one end of the country to the other," says Leslie Caines. "But we wanted practical gifts for the house."

Money works

Of course for some, registering is unnecessary.

What about the couple with walls already dressed in Northern hangings and cupboards stocked with china and glassware?

Joanna Tiemessen and Sean MacGillivray, collectively on their third home, have already accumulated tools and towels and all that home stuff. So for their wedding this spring, they've "...registered with the Royal Bank," jokes Tiemessen -- meaning they'd like cash instead.

"We'll use the money to build a guest cabin and put everyone's name on a log. That way when people visit, they'll have a place to stay," she says.

"People accumulate so much junk, and there's only so many candleholders you can have."

But Tiemessen acknowledges registering is great for some of your more long-lost acquaintances.

"Registering is good if people don't really know you or have zero clue about what you want.

But in the end, what you get on your wedding day doesn't really matter. Even if it's hideous, a gift will always remind you of the big day, your aunt Margaret or old college buddy.

"Besides, gifts aren't the reason you're getting married anyway," says Tiemessen.