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Source: Moments of Elegance

Wedding favors were not always part of the American wedding tradition. In fact, when talking to older generations about differences between weddings today and weddings “back in the day,” one of the comments I often hear is that wedding favors were not part of their tradition. Where did this trend come from and why is it expected now? I shared earlier about our wedding favor, which I loved. Many brides try to find a favor that represents the couple and other brides don’t think about the favors until last minute. However, one trend I’ve noticed this year is that there are no wedding favors at all. I assume it’s because of the economy and brides had to cut their budget. Favors just seems like a logical place to cut the wedding budget. I wonder though if this trend will continue as the economy bounces back. Is this the end of wedding favors….or at least the expectation of wedding favors? What do you think?

by Christine | posted in Favors | 3 Comments »

USB Drives as Our Wedding Favors

December 26th, 2009

Our USB Drive (aka jump drive or flash drive) Wedding Favors

In a previous post, I commented about the USB drive wedding favors from our wedding. Yes, very geeky but it represented us so well. It wasn’t cheap but it was something we really wanted to do. You’ll laugh because when we got married 4 years ago, the 64 MB drive was pretty awesome. These days, you can get 1 GB or 2 GB for the same price. We didn’t give these favors to everyone because we felt my parents generation may not appreciate the favor. So we had two favors and presented this one at the end of the night while everyone was on the dance floor. It was so well received and friends tell us they still use it today. I got our USB drives from Branders who sells promotional items that you can put your logo on. We put our names, wedding date, and the graphic that was used on our invitations. There are tons of vendors that are similar so you could shop around for price. Unfortunately we were pressed for time so we didn’t get to shop around too much before deciding on a vendor. The sales rep at Branders was helpful and even decided to do the same favor for his wedding!

If you’re looking for other favor ideas, check our categories to the right.

What was your wedding favor and where did you buy from?

by Christine | posted in Favors, Vendors | 3 Comments »

Question?

Reader Question:
How do I throw a bridal shower? Some basic guidelines would be nice. I’m clueless, thanks.

Source: www.1weddingsource.com

Source: www.1weddingsource.com

First off, unless you’re dead set on throwing a surprise shower, consult the bride before making any plans and plan early.  A bridal shower should be thrown approximately 2 months before the wedding and you should give guests around 4 weeks to respond to the invitation.  So work backwards on your timeline and talk to the bride about anything she had in mind about the shower.  Or maybe something small or just a spa trip with the bridesmaids?  Possibly just family and bridesmaids? I have also heard of some bridal showers inviting all of the female guests that are being invited to the wedding.  I would like to say this is up to the planner but ideally this shower should be what the bride wants.  Make sure to ask about any family consideration or traditions.  Most recently my friend discovered that there is a family tradition (on her groom’s side) that the groom attends the shower.   During this conversation make sure to find out where the bride and groom have registered.  Try to ensure they have registered for a wide variety of gifts ranging in price.

Source: www.blisstree.com

Source: www.blisstree.com

After you get the basic thoughts from the bride, get the bridesmaids together and make some decisions.  Who is going to pay for the shower? This can sometimes be split by the bridesmaids or in my case where my sister was my bridesmaid my mother and my sister picked up the tab although this is of course depending on the size of the shower.    Make sure to discuss location and venue as these can be important to determine the exact date.  Holding the shower in someone’s home and having the bridal power bring the food can be low cost option.  Also some places have a low cost brunch/lunch menu so sometimes looking at a caterer or restaurant can still be an option even if you have a tight budget.

Source: www.projectwedding.com

Source: www.projectwedding.com

Once the basics are determined, make a task list of who is bringing what, or doing what, along with a high level schedule of the event.  Also make sure to order favors for each guest.  These can be something that is related to a theme of the bridal shower (if you chose to do so) or something as small as a bag of candy.   Unlike the wedding favors, bridal shower favors can be fun items that only women will be enjoying!

Source: www.ehow.com

Source: www.ehow.com

Like any event bridal showers can be as formal or as relaxed as you decide.   Other nice to haves are place cards, centerpieces, pictures of the bride and groom, music (if desired).  After my bridal shower my friends and I decided to try some karaoke. It definitely made for a great after party!

by Joleen | posted in Engagement, Favors, Questions from Audience | No Comments »

Personalized Koozie Favors

September 23rd, 2009

One type of favor I noticed a few people having at weddings this summer is Koozies. If you’re not familiar with the term ‘koozie’ it is the foam sleeve that typically goes around a can or bottle. I think they’re a great idea for favors because in my opinion one can never have too many koozies, they’re something that could be used again in the future, and you can personalize them anyway you’d like!  At my friends’ wedding back in May, they had them in baskets on top of the different bar stations, so attendees could pick one up when getting a beer or water bottle from the bar. The groom designed them to include the state symbol where they lived as well as the college logo of where they both went to school. The colors also coordinated with the rest of the wedding.

Basket of Koozies

Basket of Koozies

Another one of my friends is considering having koozies at her wedding next Fall. She asked me the other day what my opinion was on which type to choose from. Below are the three types she’s considering.

I like the collapsible ones best, but the foam ones are normally a little bit cheaper.  Which type do you think would work best?

Souce: www.kustomkoozies.com

Souce: www.kustomkoozies.com

#1: This is the cheaper foam one

Source: www.kustomkoozies.com

Source: www.kustomkoozies.com

#2: This is the collapsible kind (it’s easy to fit in a pocket or purse)

www.kustomkoozies.com

Source: www.kustomkoozies.com

#3: This one fits over beer and water bottles best

by Caitlin | posted in Favors | 5 Comments »

Sentimental Favors

September 11th, 2009

I love attending weddings where the wedding favor means something to the bride and groom. Maybe it has to do with a hobby they both enjoy doing or relates to a fun experience that they had together. For one of my friends her favor was more than that.

My friend Kari’s father was diagnosed with cancer and is struggling hard to try and fight it. He is one of the most generous and amazing people I know and her family is so grateful that he could be there to celebrate. The wedding was very emotional for all and there was not a dry eye in the room during the father and daughter dance.

Instead of favors, Kari and her husband Brad, opted to donate the money to the American Cancer Society in honor of survivors, fighters, caregivers, those who have lost their battle, and those who have lost loved one to the disease. They had bracelets for each of us to wear with the word hope in big bold letters printed on them. Everyone at the reception had them on, and I know several of my friends and I continue to wear the bracelet in support of Kari’s father.

The note and bracelet

The note and bracelet

The donation was a great way to honor Kari’s father as well as everyone who is affected by cancer. I was so thankful to be included in something that held such significance, and appreciated that the favors were so meaningful to the family.

by Caitlin | posted in Charity, Favors | No Comments »

presents

Favors Por Favor? Wedding Favor Ideas for 2009 and Beyond

by Naomi Vail

Decisions decisions! Yep, there are a lot of them to make when planning a wedding and it’s often the smallest details that herald the greatest of indecision. Magnolias or Gardenias? Lanterns or candles? Sage or olive? Fondant or buttercream? It’s enough to drive a girl mad! Of all the deliberations I hear as a wedding planner, one of the most common is “what do I get for wedding favors?”
My only advice on this topic is, pick something that your guests will actually want. Too many times I’ve seen wasted favors left on reception tables at the end of the night because honestly, who wants a plastic bride & groom figurine that says “George & Sally’s Wedding.” A favor that someone really wants can fall in to 3 categories: 1) Edible Favors – candy, chocolates and other goodies are rarely turned down and are often consumed before the night is over. 2) Practical Favors – items that have a specific utility other than nostalgia. 3) Favors that are so gosh darn cute or unique, you’ll likely see them perched on the mantels or coffee tables of your guests long after the honeymoon is over.
As the 2009 wedding season peaks, I thought I’d share some fresh new items I’ve seen this year that might spark some ideas.
Edible Favors:
If the idea of jordan almonds in a gift box seems a little too “last year… and the year before,” I introduce to you sheer bakery bliss! These beautiful designer cookies offer an upscale twist on the traditional wedding confection, as they come in delicious flavors such as orange vanilla spice with fondant icing, dusted with a gold sugar luster. Some bakers will even design them to match your cake!
Practical Favors:
The fun thing about practical favors is you can cater them to your own specific theme, personality, occupation, interests or style. Bottle stoppers and bottle openers are perfect for a vineyard wedding. Do you and your fiancee love to cook? Give your guests heart-shaped measuring spoons. Monogram birdseed favors are perfect for, well… anyone. Vegas wedding? Why not give personalized playing cards? There are countless ways to thank your guests; don’t let them forget where they got it!
Wow Favors:
These incredibly life-like tarts have a mouth-watering, jaw-dropping effect. But don’t bite in! The meticulously hand-crafted, all-natural soaps are made with mango butter, shea butter, liquid goat’s milk and vegetable oils. While they might fall into the “practical favors” category, I’d be hard pressed to find someone who has washed their hands with these little works of art!
Whatever your tastes and budget are, there’s a favor out there for you. These wedding favors and more can all be found at Moments of Elegance.com
About Naomi:
Naomi has spent the past 11 years working in numerous aspects of the wedding industry including photography, videography, invitation design, wedding planning and most recently wedding blogging! She’s spent most of her career in beautiful Lake Tahoe with a short stint on California’s northern redwood coast. Naomi is currently engaged and is extremely excited to finally plan her own wedding with her fiance Tim.

Decisions decisions! Yep, there are a lot of them to make when planning a wedding and it’s often the smallest details that herald the greatest of indecision. Magnolias or Gardenias? Lanterns or candles? Sage or olive? Fondant or buttercream? It’s enough to drive a girl mad! Of all the deliberations I hear as a wedding planner, one of the most common is “what do I get for wedding favors?”

My only advice on this topic is, pick something that your guests will actually want. Too many times I’ve seen wasted favors left on reception tables at the end of the night because honestly, who wants a plastic bride & groom figurine that says “George & Sally’s Wedding.” A favor that someone really wants can fall in to 3 categories: 1) Edible Favors – candy, chocolates and other goodies are rarely turned down and are often consumed before the night is over. 2) Practical Favors – items that have a specific utility other than nostalgia. 3) Favors that are so gosh darn cute or unique, you’ll likely see them perched on the mantels or coffee tables of your guests long after the honeymoon is over.

As the 2009 wedding season peaks, I thought I’d share some fresh new items I’ve seen this year that might spark some ideas.

Edible Favors
If the idea of jordan almonds in a gift box seems a little too “last year… and the year before,” I introduce to you sheer bakery bliss! These beautiful designer cookies offer an upscale twist on the traditional wedding confection, as they come in delicious flavors such as orange vanilla spice with fondant icing, dusted with a gold sugar luster. Some bakers will even design them to match your cake!

Edible Favors

Edible Favors

Practical Favors
The fun thing about practical favors is you can cater them to your own specific theme, personality, occupation, interests or style. Bottle stoppers and bottle openers are perfect for a vineyard wedding. Do you and your fiancee love to cook? Give your guests heart-shaped measuring spoons. Monogram birdseed favors are perfect for, well… anyone. Vegas wedding? Why not give personalized playing cards? There are countless ways to thank your guests; don’t let them forget where they got it!

Practical Favors

Practical Favors

Wow Favors
These incredibly life-like tarts have a mouth-watering, jaw-dropping effect. But don’t bite in! The meticulously hand-crafted, all-natural soaps are made with mango butter, shea butter, liquid goat’s milk and vegetable oils. While they might fall into the “practical favors” category, I’d be hard pressed to find someone who has washed their hands with these little works of art!

Wow Favors

Wow Favors

Whatever your tastes and budget are, there’s a favor out there for you. These wedding favors and more can all be found at Moments of Elegance.com

About Our Guest Blogger
Naomi has spent the past 11 years working in numerous aspects of the wedding industry including photography, videography, invitation design, wedding planning and most recently wedding blogging! She’s spent most of her career in beautiful Lake Tahoe with a short stint on California’s northern redwood coast. Naomi is currently engaged and is extremely excited to finally plan her own wedding with her fiance Tim.

by Guest Blogger | posted in Favors | 8 Comments »

Back in May, my brother-in-law, Ka-Wah, got married to Jen.  Ka-Wah and Jen met in med school (both are now in their residencies), and started dating sometime after Ka-Wah asked one of his friends in Cantonese, “who’s that cute white girl?”. hehe :-) .  Although Jen spends most of her time in the ER, her real passion is music – she sings, plays piano, and plays this fairly unknown instrument called “hammered dulcimer” (which, incidentally, was the only instrument played during the wedding).   Her love of music was reflected in many aspects of their wedding day.

Jen and her mom did most of the planning for the wedding (seriously, her mom was such a work horse! I didn’t have the benefit of having my mom around to help with mine, but if you do, put her to work! While there are some mom’s who don’t want to help with the wedding, I’m pretty sure that the vast majority do – especially if you’re the only daughter!).

Since Jen’s family live in Lancaster, PA, they chose to have an outdoor wedding at Riverdale Manor in Lancaster.

So, to some highlights for the day:

Jen had both her parents walk her down the aisle. Its perfectly fine to break from tradition and have both your parents escort you or come down by yourself.

Jen had both her parents walk her down the aisle. It's perfectly fine to break from tradition and have both your parents escort you, or come down by yourself.

Rather than using an ordained minister of a church, there are a number of couples now who are asking their friends to marry them. Jen and Ka-Wahs friend Christina got ordained online.

Rather than using an ordained minister of a church, there are a number of couples now who are asking their friends to marry them. Jen and Ka-Wah's friend Christina got ordained online (clicking on the photo will take you to EHow.com with instructions on how to get ordained to marry).

When you have bridesmaids with different body types, skin colors, personalities, etc, its often better to pick out a color (or range of colors) and let each maid pick out her own dress. Each of Jens bridesmaids picked out the style of their choice from Alfred Angelo.

When you have bridesmaids with different body types, skin colors, personalities, etc, it's often better to pick out a color (or range of colors) and let each maid pick out her own dress. Each of Jen's bridesmaids picked out the style of their choice from Alfred Angelo. Rather than renting tuxes, the groomsmen all wore black suits, with Jen and Ka-Wah giving them their ties as gifts. Jen got her dress from David's Bridal and had the straps added.

Everyone received a candle as their wedding favor. Jen also had a candy station set up in one corner where guests could fill up chinese takeout containers with candies of their choice. Jens mom and aunts put the whole selection together, with all the candy either being from Pennsylvania, or homemade using cala-lili shaped chocolate molds.

Everyone received a candle as their wedding favor. Jen also had a candy station (awesome idea!) set up in one corner where guests could fill up Chinese takeout containers with candies of their choice. Jen's mom and friends put the whole selection together, with all the candy either being from Pennsylvania, or homemade using cala-lilly shaped chocolate molds.

To keep the budget down, Jen chose a simple but elegant cake. If you look closely, you can see Mario and Peach (from Mario Kart) as the cake topper! Jen told me this reflected both of their geeky sides!

To keep the budget down, Jen chose a simple but elegant cake. If you look closely, you can see Mario and Princess Toadstool as the cake topper! Jen told me this reflected both of their geeky sides!

And my favorite thing? Green Appletinis! Yum!!!

And my favorite thing? Green Appletini's! Yum!!!

Towards the end of the reception, Jen got changed into a cute green dress (also from Alfred Angelo). She also switched into some crazy high heels which shed found the day before for $30! (Jen is a shoe addict - last count was 75 pairs! she managed to wear just 3 of them on her wedding day)

Towards the end of the reception, Jen got changed into a cute green dress (also from Alfred Angelo). She also switched into some crazy high heels which she'd found the day before for $30! (Jen is a shoe addict - last count was 75 pairs! She managed to wear just 3 of them on her wedding day.)

I interviewed Jen about some of her favorite (and not so favorite) parts of the wedding and planning process.  Here’s what she said:

Favorite part of wedding planning: “Without a doubt, the dress shopping.  I loved trying on different styles and seeing how they all looked on me, smiling at the pretty ones and laughing my ass off at the hideous ones.  I still watch Say Yes to the Dress on TLC to get my wedding dress fix.”

Favorite part of wedding day: “Too many to name!  I loved that we did a first look prior to the ceremony; it was a truly special moment that we were able to capture in photos.  It was very cute when Ka-Wah took out a paper with his vows and said “I need Cliffs Notes!”  The food was really good, cake was both pretty and tasty.” (Nat: I also loved that the caterer put different food stations at each corner  of the reception hall – definitely helped to keep the lines short).

Any wedding day surprises? “Oh yes.  The Mother’s Day Truck Convoy, where all the trucks drive down one nearby stretch of road and honk their horns, and somehow this raises money for Make A Wish.  Luckily it started after our ceremony, but it could have been disastrous.  Our venue did not make the effort to warn us when we chose the date.”

Warnings/Tips for other brides: “I should have been more firm with the bridesmaids about not choosing thin/stiletto heels for an outdoor wedding.  I let them choose any kind shoe that they wanted.”  (Nat: Since the wedding was outdoors on soggy grass, the girls kept getting their shoes stuck in the ground!)

“Also, I learned very quickly that wind and wireless microphones do not mix.

“Finally, don’t go dress shopping with people who clearly have opposite senses of style to yours (i.e. me and my mom – should have stuck with friends only!).”

DIY Projects:

  • Jen made her invitations using a DIY kit from Wilton (available at any craft store).
  • She also DIY’d her programs by folding a Letter sized sheet of paper in half and printing it in a similar way to her invitations.
  • Jen’s also a bit of an origami fiend, so she made origami boxes for her bridesmaids gifts, and oragami cranes for decoration at the reception.
  • Jen’s mom made the centerpieces using candles from Wal-Mart and placemats from TJ Maxx.
  • Each of the tables were named after different classical music composers.  Jen printed a composer bio and photo on cardstock and placed each on a small table easel from IKEA.  The escort cards doubled as favors, and were CD’s with songs from that composer.

Jen and Ka-Wah used the following vendors:

Jen and Ka-Wah were able to stick to their budget, but still incorporate things that represented them as a couple and individually.  How will you be expressing yourself in your wedding?

by auschick | posted in Ceremony, Design Ideas, Favors, Reception, Wedding Watching | No Comments »

Martha Stewart has just added a new DIY Wedding section to their site! It’s complete with photos, downloadable templates, and instructions.  I’m lovin’ it! (Click the images to get the instructions)

Take Your Seat - what a cute escort card idea!

Take Your Seat - what a cute escort card idea!

Getting marred on the beach?

Getting marred on the beach?

As someone who has had to try and fit 200 escort cards onto a small table without getting them all jumbled up, this accordion idea is *awesome*.

As someone who has had to try and fit 200 escort cards onto a small table without getting them all jumbled up (3 times now), this accordion idea is *awesome*.

This envelope guest book is really easy and so cute!

This envelope guest book is really easy and so cute!

If youre into sewing, heres a guest book quilt!

If you're into sewing, here's a guest book quilt!

I love this! They cut the numbers out with a punch. If you have a Cricut (or have been wanting one) this could be your excuse to get one!

I love this! They cut the numbers out with a punch. If you have a Cricut (or have been wanting one) this could be your excuse to get one!

Postcard with itsy bitsy envelope

Postcard with itsy bitsy envelope

Ok, doilies do take me back to church bake sales and tea at my great grandmothers house, but these are gorgeous! Would look great with a black and white theme, or even with a bold pink or green card.

Ok, doilies do take me back to church bake sales and tea at my great grandmother's house, but these are gorgeous! I think these would look great with a black and white theme, or even with a bold pink or green card.

Rather than having ushers hand out programs, a program has been hung on each chair.

Rather than having ushers hand out programs, a program has been hung on each chair.

Cute favor boxes! If you have time, making these from scratch could save a lot of money!

Cute favor boxes! Unfortunately, they don't have a template for the boxes, but they do have one for the tags, and instructions on tying the rope.

And heres a template for sending out info to your bridesmaids

And here's a template for sending out info to your bridesmaids

What’s your favorite template/idea in the Martha Stewart Wedding DIY section? And has anyone found some templates for making small favor boxes?

by auschick | posted in Design Ideas, Favors | 1 Comment »

Since I’m Australian, and KT is Chinese-American, I wanted to give our guests wedding favors that meshed our two cultures together.  For a while, I was keen to do cute tins filled with tea, but I didn’t want my favors to cost more than $1 and I couldn’t come up with a way to DIY them so they would still be just as cute, but half the price (and unless I put my favorite tea in there, it wouldn’t be very “Australian”).  Speaking of tea tins, Style Me Pretty has a DIY tea tin project, but they still cost over $1 to make each one.

In the end, I chose to get Chinese take-out containers and fill them with Australian confectionery. Here’s how they looked:

Favors: The final product (photo credit: www.flickr.com/photos/smilehellokitty)

Favors: Australian goodies, including Vegemite ;-)

A few months before our wedding, I guesstimated that we’d have around 120 guests (we had 105), so to save time, I made these favors in September – about two months before my wedding.  We ended up with a few extra, but it’s chocolate, so I don’t mind ;-) .

I purchased the containers from PaperMart – they sell 1/2 pint containers for 9c each – you have to buy in packs of 50 and shipping is about $10 (including a $3 fee for “small items”).  Including shipping, I paid 16c per container.  I did have a number of leftovers, but I plan to use them for dinner parties/favors/gift boxes.

I also purchased green sredded wood for $18 + $1 extra shipping, but in retrospect I should have just used tissue paper or something – it would have been a lot cheaper, and now I have a lifetime supply of green shred.

On a trip back to Australia for my younger sister Amy’s wedding, two months before my wedding, I picked up $50 worth of some of my favorite Australian snacks from a wholesaler near my sister’s house.  These included Cadbury Freddo Frogs (from my home state), Vegemite, Fantales, and Minties.

I picked up the ribbon for 50c a spool (I think!) at Michaels.  I also used double sided tape to keep the green band in place at the bottom of the box.

There are many other really cute ways of dressing up Chinese Take Out boxes:

Love the graphic look of these boxes! (From www.swsmag.net)

These fabric covered boxes would be fun for a Bridal Shower (by www.JCarolineCreative.com)

If you like fidley things, www.kimberly-crawford.blogspot.com has a tutorial for making this box filled with paper fortune cookies!

Another JCaroline gift wrap idea - This one is so simple and would look wonderful as a favor box!

This beautiful one doubles as a place tag/escort card (http://www.flickr.com/photos/carinasuyin/)

Have you seen some other great ways of decorating Chinese take out boxes?  If you’re having a multi-cultural wedding, are you incorporating your mixed ethnicities into your favors? If so, how?

by auschick | posted in Design Ideas, Favors, Reception | 3 Comments »