20 Elegant and Affordable Wedding Favor Ideas
Tackiness is not necessarily a function of frugality; it’s more a matter of taste. Since guests take your favors home, you want to ensure that their parting gift is of the same quality as the experience they enjoyed with you on your wedding day. Wedding favors can also double as table-setting decorations, and add that extra touch of flair to your reception table.
Cost-cutting Ideas
If you plan a few months ahead, you will find wedding favors to fit almost any budget except a non-existent budget. If you want one favor per wedding guest, keep in mind that statistically, approximately 20% of your invited wedding guests will not attend the wedding. If your budget doesn’t comfortably stretch to cover wedding favors for each guest, or if you can’t find anything within your budget that adds to the elegance of the day, you may not have to eliminate wedding favors altogether. Consider giving one favor per couple or one favor per family. You can present higher-quality favors to your guests without breaking the bank.
Assembled wedding favors cost more than the sum of the parts. Why not gather the parts yourself and assemble them a few weeks ahead of the wedding? Invite family and close friends to a wedding favor party, and serve refreshments while you assemble the favors. You’ll find most of the items you need at a crafts store such as Michael’s. As you read the suggestions below, think about how you can assemble the components of each favor on your own.
Order Wedding Favors Locally or Online
The Internet should be your first stop to view every available line of wedding favors. Unless you live in a large, metropolitan area, local store owners will probably order your wedding favors from out of town. It’s unlikely that they would stock large quantities of any one wedding favor. If you want personalized wedding favors, allow even more time from purchase to delivery. The key to ordering wedding favors locally is to start as early as possible.
Even if you want to shop locally, search the Internet to narrow your choices and then to compare cost among the dealers and wholesalers. When you’ve researched your choices, you can negotiate price on quantity orders of wedding favors if you want to purchase them locally.
20 Wedding Favor Ideas:
Photo magnets – Gold, silver, ceramic, composite and plastic are among the materials available for photo magnets. You’ll find many designs. Add your engagement photograph or a special photograph taken before the wedding to the photo magnet.
Votive candles – Available in every conceivable color, it’s the packaging that really matters when presenting votives as a favor. You can select a votive holder in many materials, and you can present them in a box or in mesh or other fabric, tied with a pretty bow.
Wedding mint tins – You’ll find small and large tins, rectangular and round tins. Personalize the tins with a selected image and your own text. Include a mint of your choice.
Miniature frames – No one ever has enough frames. Select from among many materials, including embellishments such as jewels, sparkles, etc. Include a photograph of you and your groom.
Heart soaps – Just like frames, everyone can use guest soaps for the guest bathroom. Pastel heart-shaped soaps, presented in a mesh, drawstring bag make a attractive favor.
Petite handbags – Use a petite handbag as the wrapping, and fill them with soaps, candy or other small gift. These are perfect for traditional candied wedding almonds.
Cardholders – Cardholders are a popular wedding favor. They’re available in every conceivable material and design, but wine goblet and champagne glasses are especially suited for wedding favors.
Sugar stars – This is another favor where the packaging makes the difference in the presentation. Present them in a mesh drawstring bag or similar container. Sugar stars add a finishing touch when serving coffee or tea to guests, and your wedding guests will love them. You might also include a printed card that explains how to use them.
Wedding ornaments – Christmas tree ornaments no longer strictly adhere to the Christmas theme. This is the perfect favor when you want to give each family one favor. Let them commemorate your special day with a Christmas ornament.
Sachets – Potpourri sachets come in a wide variety of scents, and packaged in different shapes and materials from fabric to wire and mesh holders. They’re priced to fit every budget.
Garden wedding favors – Seeds and small trees are a new trend in wedding favors. Their allure is their permanence in remembrance of your special day. Seeds are inexpensive, and you can customize the package. Trees are available in ready-to-plant containers, and you can customize the labels for trees as well. You can get a variety of different seeds and trees, one per family, and they’re great conversation starters for strangers seated at the same wedding reception table.
Beach wedding favors – You can fill medium-sized sterilized seashells with candy or sugar stars. You can also find pretty packaging to hold an unusual seashell.
Winery favors – You only need one per family if you give a wine stopper or wine pourer. Engrave a wine pourer with your wedding details or engrave each family’s name along with the date of your wedding for a unique wedding favor.
Coffee favors – You can find custom-made individual packages of coffee to give as a favor. This is another favor where packaging makes the difference. You’ll want to select an elegant package with a wedding them and customize with your wedding particulars. One coffee per family is sufficient.
Miniature silver bells – You can engrave these with your names and the date of your wedding. These are wonderful to use when a family member is sick in bed and needs assistance. You’ll only need one per family.
Pine cones with sprigs of pine needles – This favor works well for a holiday or winter wedding. Packaged with needles and a bow, they add a decorative touch to your guests’ homes.
Bookmarks – These favors come in a variety of flavors-cardboard, metal, fabric, and each one offers a variety of embellishments. Prices range from inexpensive to moderate. You’ll want to give one bookmark per guest.
Honey and jam – These miniature honey and jam pots will please each of your guests. Print labels on your computer and color printer to minimize cost.
Heart-shaped cookie cutters – Your guests will use these each Valentine’s Day to make homemade cookies.
Demitasse cups and saucers – These make a beautiful addition to a demitasse collection. Your guests can display them with an existing collection or they can display one demitasse cup and saucer alone.
There are far too many wedding favors available to list each one, but the list above should give you some idea of the range of favors you’ll find locally or that you can assemble with components that you find locally. Many of the suggestions above are inexpensive enough to fit even a tight wedding budget. Use the suggestions as a starting point, and brainstorm your own unique wedding favor.
