Wedding favors originated with the Angelo's in Europe in the form of the grooms cake. Each guest would receive a piece of this special cake to take home as a thank you for attending the wedding. Later, the tradition migrated to the Mediterranean region where cake was replaced with sugar or candy coated jordan almonds. The coating was white to symbolize purity. The jordan almond represents the bitter and sweet of life and marriage. Traditionally, five almonds were given, denoting health, wealth, happiness, happiness longevity and fertility.
Today’s wedding favors are given to guests as an expression of gratitude and appreciation for their presence at this momentous event. They may incorpate your wedding theme or refect a hobby or intrest your share together.
FAVOR IDEAS:
Edible favors - Everyone loves to receive something edible.
Personalized candy bars
Chocolate candies in different shapes
Flavored suckers in different shapes
Fortune cookies
Personalized tea bags
Spice bottles with the note "a perfect blend", bride
and groom's names and date
Heart shaped cookies with bride and groom's names and date
Mini bottles of Champagne in miniature ice buckets
Miniature bottles of maple syrup for a fall theme
Personalized bottles of beer brewed especially for the bride and
groom
Homemade
jams or honey
Cookie cutters wrapped in tulle with an attached note "Cut
out for each other"
Candle favors
Candle favors are nice for an candle-lit wedding and reception.
They are easily adaptable to a theme wedding. Try one of these
candle favors:
Beeswax candles
Gel candles
Shell candle
Pear shaped candle with a card that reads "the perfect pear"
Apple shaped candle with a card that reads "apple of my eye"
Heart shaped candles
Candles with the saying "you've brightened our day and warmed
our hearts"
Soaps
Soaps are a nice item that anyone can use. They are also easy
to adapt to a theme by choosing the right shape.
Snowflake shaped soaps
Oriental soaps
Heart shaped soaps
Shell shaped soaps
Bath salts in shaped containers
Magnets
Everyone has uses for magnets. Because they are available in many
different styles and shapes, magnets are also good for specific
themes. One of the following might work for your favor:
Champagne bottle magnets
Personalized magnets
Butterfly magnets for a butterfly or spring theme
Leaf shaped magnets for a fall theme
Personalized Favors
Personalized items are a great way for your family and friends
to remember your special day:
Personalized champagne flutes
Personalized coffee mugs
Personalized post-it notes
Personalized playing cards
Personalized Swizzle sticks
Personalized chop sticks
Personalized bottle opener
Personalized CD of the bride and groom's favorite songs
Personalized Bookmarks
Unique Ideas
If you are looking for something more lasting, try one of these
ideas:
Chinese fans
Sewing kit favors
Shell roses
Seed packets for a garden theme
Seedling trees for a spring or Christmas theme
Christmas Tree ornaments
Picture frames
Crystal bells
Bottle stopper
Candle snuffer
Crystal bud vase
Potpourri bag
Old English Wedding Crackers
Soda can "huggers"
Golf tees
Lottery Tickets
Special Favors for the Kids. Pinwheels, Kazoos, Bubble necklaces, Friendship bracelets, Barrettes or hair clips, Neon light necklaces or Bride and groom coloring books with crayons.
Tea bag favors. Buy a whole bunch of different Lipton teas (peppermint, orange, apple cinnamon, etc.) then tie 4-5 bags (one of each flavor bought) in some tulle and tie it off with ribbon in one of your colors. Then use your desktop publishing program to print business cards with a little tea pot that read "Love is Brewing" and your name and wedding date.
Wildflower Seed Packets customized with a poem: "Our Gift to You - Take a packet of seeds to plant in a row. Just as our new life begins, They too will grow. They will see a lot of sun and just as many showers. And as our love blooms so will they flower. Thank you for sharing the joy of our day." Place seeds packets in a beautiful basket next to your guest book.
Chocolate cigars with the band imprinted with couples name and wedding date or use a real cigar with a miniature bottle of brandy tied together with a bow and a note that reads "enjoy life's little pleasures, like we found ours"
Write a single page newsletter for your guests entitled 'Our Wedding Times' Include a brief "editorial" thanking everyone for attending, a "news story" detailing your engagement story, include a "This Day in History" section which lists memorable events in history, music and sports which occur on the same day as your wedding, a "Horoscope" section, giving a romance horoscope for every sign and a "Feature" section giving odd bits of wedding trivia such as how certain traditions came to be. You can print them from your computer, roll them up scroll style and slip a dime-store wedding band around each one. Place at all the tables for the guests at the reception.
At the ceremony, give out mini corsages of fresh flowers tied with ribbon. Have the clergy describe the flowers as a symbol of your love and wedding promise.
Watering Cans ...Great for a garden theme wedding - take little watering cans with garden flower pictures on the sides, (buy at craft stores or Walmart for under a $1) wrap Hershey's hugs and kisses in tulle and tie them with ribbon. Attach little tags to the handle that say "Hugs and Kisses from the new Mr. and Mrs.".
Give your guests an extra treat at the end of the reception - present slices of cake in a personalized box, with your own special message inside.
Purchase nice restaurant quality champagne flutes (about $1.50 each), and paint your names and wedding date on the bottom and decorate the glass with flutes. The glasses will make a pretty addition to the table and since most people will go as couples, they'll walk away with a pretty pair of flutes!
Buy personalized post-it notes and send them out with your thank you cards after the wedding. The cards could have a drawing of a bride and groom in the upper right hand corner with the following inscription: Mary & Bob "Sticking together in love forever" Another good idea is to design a page with a similar inscription and taking it to a printing company so they can produce miniature note pads with your name and wedding date on them.
Fans - Purchase plain white paper fans with wood handles and a custom stamp with your name and wedding date. Stamp each fan (Use an embossing powder - available at any craft store - and a special heater - about $20 at any craft store - to raise the ink from the stamp on the fans to make the letters look embossed. Very easy once you get the hang of it.) Then, tie a length of tulle and ribbon thru the spokes at the bottom to decorate the handle. Have your ushers pass the fans, with a bottle of chilled water, out to guests as they are seated at the ceremony. Needless to say, the fans and ice water will be a huge hit on warm afternoons. Plus, the fans should only cost about $0.50 each!
Sugar cookies topped with your initials in colorful icing, wrapped in cellophane and tied with a ribbon.
Use a small picture frame to double as a table or place card, and wedding favor all in one. Write each guest's name in calligraphy on a small piece of paper, slide it into the frame and place these frames appropriately at each table. This doubles as a wedding favor that every guest can take home and enjoy. Going one step further, send the appropriate size wedding photo to fit in the frame with your thank you cards.
Made in Colorado. The perfect souvenir to send home with guests; Colorado wine, fresh Colorado peaches, honey, locally brewed beer, etc.
Rather than a floral arrangement for the centerpiece, make up the floral decor using small floral bouquets that every guest at the table can take home. Tie the bouquets with ribbons.
Ideas from local Brides:
I am getting married in Crested Butte in late September and we are making candy apples for favors. You can decorate the apples with chocolate, nuts, orange and chocolate sprinkles. We are attaching a little cut out saying life is sweet, thanks for coming. -Submitted by Crissy
Buy small hourglasses (with the sand) and attach the message "May these sands never stop flowing." -Submitted by Sofia
Small burlap feed bags with oats in them that read "FEED" with oats inside for guests to throw and to keep. - Submitted by Amber P.
We are getting married on a ranch in Hesperus and hired Thru The Lens Old West Photo company of Durango to come with costumes and set up a backdrop and take old west photos of our guests and give the photos as the favor in addition to some specially made cookies. - Submitted by: Noelle H.
I am using wagon wheels (chocolate with marshmallow centers) and covering them in the color foil of my wedding and printing labels with our name and wedding date on them. -Submitted by Sylvia
I am using tiny hay bails and putting them on the tables with our names and date of the wedding for favors to our guests. -Submitted by Debbie
We are coffee lovers - so we are putting chocolate covered coffee beans into small gold boxes tied with ribbon and a note that says: "The Perfect Blend - Mark & Susan 7/11/06" Submitted by Susan
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E E D B A C K
Share your favor ideas here.