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I am a big believer in quality and it just so happens that the "name brand", high quality cookware is expensive.
Personally I think you're fine but it might depend on what your guests are like- i.e., have you been to weddings of a cousin or something and seen guests buy expensive items off their registries? All families are different and I know personally both mine and my FI's are very into cooking and entertaining. I am hoping they will understand the importance of quality pots and pans, china, etc! My mom has had the same Calphalon pots and pans for as long as I can remember, and she swears by them. I think it's important to go with quality for cookware- if you cook, that is. I cook a ton, so I'm also doing Calphalon, Le Creuset, and All-Clad (a variety of each) and pieces range from $50-$250, and my 7 piece set of All-Clad is about $400. I think often FIL's or parents buy those types of items, or family members go in on them together.
If it nears your wedding and you don't see your items purchased, you could always change your cookware to more inexpensive items from Bed Bath and Beyond, right?
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PS- Yes, I think it's important that you choose less expensive items as well, for other things. I've been careful to only choose the "best" for things that I really care about. For day to day things I'm choosing items/brands that I would personally be able to afford if I was just out shopping and needed an item (i.e., ironing board, every day dishes, picture frames, etc).
Our pots are Calphalon One and range from $50-$200 apiece. That being said, they're the only items other than our knife block over $150 on our list, so we hope we get them.
If you really care about cooking, then the higher priced pans are absolutely worth it. We have a variety of All-Clad + Le Creuset on ours and our families aren't upper class by any means. But I'm super serious about cooking and it's important to me that I get the higher end stuff. We can go out and buy the lower end stuff ourselves and in a lot of cases, already have done so. I also have Shun knives on the registry, which are not cheap either. I don't expect to get everything on the registry by any means, but we will most likely go out and buy what doesn't get filled with registry completion items.
I have, however, heard a number of stories from people who registered for high end cookware (the KitchenAid, All-Clad, etc) and they rarely use them. They registered for it because it was the "thing to do" when you're getting married. If you or your future husband don't spend a lot of time in the kitchen or when you do, it's to make a box of cheese, you don't need a $300 pan to do it :P I personally know someone who has a lovely bright red stand mixer that serves as nothing more than a decoration. In their case, they probably should have registered for really nice decor items since that's their thing. Cooking is not. Think of what your values and interests are and register according to those.
Even if none of your guests decide to purchase your prized pots (you have some good choices!) at least you'll get a discount on the unpurchased items after your big day. I say register for what you want, then add gift cards!
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A year ago (January 2008) Consumer Reports rated a variety of cookware. The Kirkland Signature brand (sold only at Costco) came out as the #1 cookware, well ahead of the "brand names". I have never used it or All-Clad, but it might be worth checking out. The magazine says it's $200 for a 14-piece set.
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MissBK - I don't know if I'll be as much help, but I'm having the same dilemma as you are. I registered for AllClad pans at Macy's and am concerned about them being too expensive, but I feel like this is the ONE time we will invest in good cookware. I've tried to mix it up a lot and created a Crate and Barrel registry where we have lots of cheaper items, so I'm hoping they will balance each other out. Good luck!
What a timely post - I've been discussing pots and pans for the last five days. I added the All Clad 10 piece set from BBB its $629. And my sister (MOH) flipped out that 'it was so expensive and I might want to put something cheaper on there if I want to get it'. I expected that reaction from her, but luckily everyone else seems to understand that I am a serious cook and would like a good set of pots and pans. I mean, I've never bought pots and pans for myself---they are all hand me downs! The irony is that my sister can actually afford to get me those pans herself, but she just doesn't cook the way I do so I don't think she understands. The bottom line is that people will buy you what they can afford and a registry is a 'wish list' and you won't get everyone on it....
thanks for letting me vent!
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I did a lot of research and ultimately ended up choosing the Calphalon Tri-Ply Stainless Steel line. They are almost as good as All-Clad, but 30% less. I added each pot and pan separately and hopefully if enough people buy them, I can trade in the individual items for the 10 or 13 piece set.
When I was in grad school and had almost no disposable income, I actually skipped a friend's wedding because I couldn't afford anything on their registry-- I felt like I wasn't welcome if I couldn't shell out $100 for a gift. In retrospect, I probably should have just gone off-registry and picked a nice $25 picture frame, the friend wouldn't have cared. In any case, for that reason, I'm trying to be careful about not going overboard with too much expensive stuff. That said, I bought a $150 saute pan off of a friend's registry last year as the one and only wedding present from me and my boyfriend. (I hope they didn't think we were super-cheap; I did get her a separate shower gift as well.) I feel kind of guilty about putting such expensive items on my registry, but I will use these for a lifetime compared to cheap-o cookware that I will have to replace in a few years.
Registering is soooo stressful and brings up a lot of class issues. Will people think I'm a snob because I put a $200 pot? Will they look down on me because I don't have any crystal vases or fine china? Good luck!
We registered for a $569 set of All Clad pots and pans, and some open stock All Clad pieces.
We need the aluminum bottom All-Clad to go with our new kitchen (and Electrolux induction cooktop)!
If cost is an issue you might want to consider the Calphalon Tri-Ply stainless, which we got as wedding gifts. I am a frequent cook and we love, love, LOVE our pots and pans. We cook several times a week and have made foods from all around the world as well as some very complicated recipes, and never once had a problem with our pots and pans. They brown well and food doesn't stick as long as you heat the pan well, put some oil in, and then add the food when the pan is hot.
Thanks for all the responses - I'm glad to hear that many are choosing similar items for their registry. But it is a good point that many families are different and can afford different price ranges. I am thinking of switching the pots to Calphalon Tri-ply to give a bit more of an affordable option- thank you snmcdowell. I cannot wait to have some good sturdy cookware and get rid of the hand me down farberware that I used through college, grad school, and beyond. I'm very excited for a le creuset dutch oven!
I certainly padded the list with many more affordable options and less expensive items that I could see people giving in a bridal shower - the below $75 range.
My bottom line is to make sure we don't over register for things we just don't need or will never use. Such a hard thing to determine when we each live in separate tiny apartments, never entertain, and cook for at most two. Maybe a good topic for another post - alternative registries...
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I was a little worried about the cost as well but you never know. One family bought the entire All-Clad collection for me as the bridal shower/part wedding gift! If you want good cookware, put it on there. No one's forcing people to buy that particular item if it's out of their budget.
We put calphalon (about $500 worth) on our registry as well. We entertain frequently. While it may be steep for one person, groups may buy it or if no one buys it at least we will get the discount later.
I say register for what you want just make sure you have a good price range on your items.
Good Luck!
The one thing I would add to this is that you should also be prepared to not get the nice pots and pans you want if they're on the more expensive side.
We registered for several All-Clad pots and pans (as well as Henkel knives) because we're both big time cooks and didn't get any of them. In the end, I'm still glad we registered for what we wanted rather than settling for something less because the price was right because items that were of a lower quality were not what we wanted for our purposes. It just means that it's up to us to get those things on our own now if we decide we really want them.
A Williams Sonoma sale associate gave me some good advice -- register for a set of cookware (e.g. the All-Clad 10 piece set) and also register for each piece individually. One person may not buy the entire set, but if people buy the individual pieces it will add up to more than the set and you can trade in the individual pieces for the set and still have a store credit.
We are in love with All-Clad! We have bought a few pieces already, here and there. We both really enjoy cooking and this set is what a lot of the professionals use. The quality is outstanding and the warranty is for a lifetime. We are registering at Crate & Barrel or Williams Sonoma and Macys. I am in the same boat about feeling bad about registering if the pots are too much. We have decided to register for a lot of items that are very well priced as well as the pots because our families have told us they want to buy us them.
Another tip: Crate & Barrel gives the registered couple 10% off anything that is left on your registry! So we are going to verify that it includes the All-Clad set. =)
I felt really concerned about how expensive all clad is as well, so I went for Pro-Clad, which is made by All-Clad, but is Emeril's line of pots and pans. It still has the tri-ply technology but is a lot cheaper. I still put one all-clad stock pot on...we'll see what happens I guess. 
I ended up registering for two sets of cookware: a $360 set of All-Clad and a $180 set of Calphalon. When people ask me which I prefer I refuse to answer and say that either would be absolutely lovely (and I do mean that- each has its advantages). I don't think you registered for anything unreasonable.
Our set is about $450 but we added some pieces that were about $150 each. They were Calphalon.
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Hello hive,
I am putting together my registry. I decided to register at Williams-Sonoma for pots and pans and Bed Bath and Beyond for smaller kitchen items (strainer, grater, etc) and bed & bath stuff. I showed my mom the registries when we were finished and she was astonished that I chose such expensive cookware. She says people won't spend that much on just one pot for a bridal shower.
I chose the following: A couple All-Clad sauce pans, Calphalon non-stick fry pan, le crueset dutch oven, All-Clad non-stick roaster, All-Clad braiser. Costs are $140 to $240 per piece. I'd like to hear what other people are spending on pots and pans to see the comparisons. Are you registering for "name brand" cookware? Am I being over the top?
Just as a disclaimer - once I choose bedding and bath stuff, we will have a variety of less expensive items ranging from $2 - $150 on the registry to supplement.