Wedding Favours - why bother?

All too often forum messages can be seen stating that the Bride-to-Be is not going to have favours at her Wedding because at the last one she attended they were all left on the tables! Is this a valid reason for deciding against giving Wedding Favours? I’m not so sure.

We have to ask ourselves why the favours where left on the tables in the first place: if they are not worth taking home then, of course, they will be left behind. Now for a gift to be worth taking home it does not have to worth a lot of money – far from it. Favours are more of a gesture to your guests; a little ‘thank you for coming’ message, and if your Wedding guests can see that you have put some thought and energy into them they are not likely to abandon them on the tables.

Of course, if you can afford to give every guest a beautiful watch or unique gift item then that’s fantastic! But in reality most of us, by the time we get to the stage when we are thinking of Wedding Favours, are also thinking of how our Wedding budget has been stretched beyond its limit! Fear not – for just a small amount per guest, you can give a small token which will show your guests how much you appreciate their attendance.

The traditional favours or bombonieres are 5 white almonds, signifying health, wealth, happiness, fertility and long life. But how do you make something so small give the right impression? It’s all in the packaging: with a huge range of products available these days, you can choose anything from bags to boxes, from favour nets to almond holder ribbons. The most important thing is to set your budget, and if you are making them up yourself to know your creative limitations.

Take a look at one of the many Wedding Favours websites for inspiration – email them or call them for advice, and if possible ask for samples of products before you make your decision. If you have a specific colour to match try and send a swatch, or again, request a sample of the ribbon or flowers etc to make sure it’s just right. If you are giving something other than almonds, check the size of the item – make sure it will fit into whatever you are using as presentation. A little time doing this now will save lots of time and hassle later because you have to return something which is the wrong colour or size.

A nice gesture to make your favours more personal is to add a tag or label with a comment from you or your Groom – if you have time, hand write them and really make it special (these can also be printed, but of course this will add to the cost). In this way, your guests will see the thought and time which you have put into these Wedding Favours, and will appreciate it without a doubt.

Once you have decided what to order, make sure you buy a few spares – there are always favours which don’t go together quite as they should, and it’s best to have a few more than you need just in case. And of course if you’re using sweets then you need to allow a few extra for the taste testing....

Finally, try and have fun when it’s time to make up your Wedding Favours – even if you have 100 or more to make you will be surprised at how quickly these can be done once you get going, especially if you enlist the help of friends and family: adopt a ‘production line’ technique where each person has a specific task in the creation process (making up the box, adding the flowers etc) – this will help speed things along and also, practice makes perfect!

Such a small gift can say so much about you and your Wedding Day – put some time and effort into your favours and your guests will certainly make sure they DON’T leave them behind!