Unique Wedding Favors Ideas

Wedding favors often evoke a “been there, done that” response from wedding guests. Looking for something a little more memorable than a bag of Jordan almonds? Here are our top choices for a few inspiring guest thank-yous.
Unique Wedding Favors Ideas

Late night munchies
After dancing for hours, rolling out individual snacks like mini hamburgers with a fixings bar are a big hit

Photo shop
Rent a photo booth and let your guests take turns posing for the camera. Set up a DIY station with mini-frames so they can take home their favorite shots.

Escape the Elements
If you really want to impress, give your guests something sublimely stylish yet useful to kep them smiling through the elements: stylish sunglasses (to deflect glare), sleek umbrellas (in case of rain), or cashmere scarves (should a breeze pick up).

Personalized Thank-yous
Place small journals at each place setting, and write every guest a personal thank-you note on the front page.

Make some noise
Liven up the party, and hand out maracas, small horns, or even kazoos - a great idea for a relaxed affair or a particularly festive bunch.

Get even more ideas for unique wedding favors at Elegala.com

Tweet the Old Fashioned Way

Turn wedding favors into a thoughtful way to honor friends and loved ones with ceramic Bird Notes. Hand-crafted and painted in Peru by female artisans, the colorful birds are about the size of a grape and come with a small blank scroll rolled inside the belly, upon which you can write a short personal note to each guest. The tiny birds, which can also be purchased unpainted then decorated to match your wedding colors, will make a pretty picture when arranged on a favor table or even tied with ribbon to a tree at an outdoor wedding.

Learn more about these unique wedding favors at the Unveiled Wedding Blog...

Wedding Welcome Baskets - What to Put in Them

With the emergence of destination weddings and guests often spread all over the country, savvy couples are taking advantage of a golden opportunity to offer a warm welcome and set the tone for a fabulous series of events. Wedding guest baskets are a nice added touch, immediately comforting the travel-weary by making them feel right at home.

What to Put in Wedding Guest Baskets

Include some essentials that will make their stay more comfortable—such as bottled water, snack items, mints, tissues etc. Think about what items you often wish for when staying at a hotel. This is also a great place to include relevant information for your wedding guests - phone numbers for the families, other guests staying at the hotel, a wedding itinerary, nearby attractions and local maps.

Also consider including items that are reflective of your wedding location. Use your wedding welcome baskets as a creative way to tie everything together and introduce guests, many of them visiting for the first time, to the area. Getting married in Maine? Throw in some maple syrup! Or Texas - how about a miniature cowboy hat or a packet of spicy chili mix? You get the idea….Use this opportunity to be creative, and make your wedding a memorable event - from arrival to departure!

Get even more tips for your wedding welcome baskets at Elegala.com!

Wedding Favor Booklets Tell Guests Your Engagement and Proposal Story

Between your mother-in-law’s bridge club and your fiance’s college lacrosse team, chances are not everyone attending your wedding will know much about the chain of events resulting in their being “gathered here today.” Fill them in with professionally written and designed keepsake booklets that relay how you met, how he proposed, and other notable moments in your lives together.

Pause here for a moment to say, “ick,” at this seemingly cheesy idea, then think of it this way: The magazine-style brochure or booklet will bring home the emotion of your celebration while preventing you from having to explain how you met to one of his distant relatives when you’d rather be partying with friends. Another plus? These booklets can double as wedding favors for your guests.

Read more about wedding favor booklets at the Unveiled Wedding Blog

Wedding Bathroom Baskets - What to Put in Them?

Q: I have been asked to put "necessities" baskets in the mens and ladies restrooms. What is typically included in these wedding bathroom baskets?
-Diane-

A: Between sitting, dancing, talking, eating, and drinking for 5 or more hours, your guests might find themselves in need of some handy items they probably didn’t think to bring with them. How considerate of you to have thought ahead to provide these things for them!

You will need to create two bathroom baskets (one for the men, one for the ladies).

Here is a list of common items to include in each:
breath mints or breath strips
individually wrapped toothpicks
small Band-aids
tablet antacids like Tums
safety pins
individual packets of an OTC pain reliever like Advil or Excedrin
pocket-packs of tissues
a few matchbooks
travel bottle of hand sanitizer
Shout wipes or other stain-remover wipes
Spray deodorant
Pen
Nail clippers
Small sewing kit
Cough drops Hand Lotion

Additional Items for the Ladies Basket:
travel-sized hair spray
tampons and pads
bottle of clear nail polish
bobby pins
emery boards
a packet of replacement earring backs

When it comes to arranging your baskets, layer the larger items in the back, then tuck the smaller things on top and in the front. Especially if there is a unisex bathroom, you should try to be discreet with the ladies’ unmentionables by sticking them in the back. You can get as creative as you want (and have time for) with decorating your baskets to make them inviting or complement the rest of your wedding décor.
-Cori Russell - Style and Etiquette Editor

Find tons of Ideas for Wedding Favors

Often a stumper, details such as wedding favors often find themselves last minute on the wedding planning task list. Avoid the last minute panic, and browse through this convenient, interactive Wedding Favor search.

Here, you can sort by theme, style or price to view hundreds of favors that meet your criteria. Best of all - each wedding favor is linked to the online retailer where you can order them in time for your wedding.

Or if you're really unsure how to begin selecting your favors, visit this complete Wedding Favors planning guide - which includes budget tips, ideas and trends.

Wedding Favors - Great Favor Ideas for Brides on a Budget

When it comes to your wedding budget, wedding favors are often the first item to suffer deletion from your list. They're not mandatory, so why waste precious wedding dollars on these seemingly frivolous items? I had already decided I wouldn't be wasting money or effort on this wedding detail, but my mom reminded me that wedding favors are a great way to thank guests for sharing in your celebration. I conceded.

I soon found that wedding favors are also a fun little extra to tie in the style of the occasion. And If I know anything about today's weddings - it's that they're all about the details. No one wants a cookie cutter wedding, and wedding favors offer a relatively inexpensive outlet for you to demonstrate your creativity and set your wedding apart from the rest.

Just like everything else in the wedding planning process, if you would really like to give favors at your wedding, you can always find a way to make it fit within your budget.

What They'll Cost
Expect to spend around $1 per guest on the low end, and just like any other element of a wedding, costs can always creep up to suit your wildest imaginations

Budget-Friendly Favor Ideas

• Here's what I did for my wedding favors: For my Atlanta wedding, I gave guests cds featuring selections about Georgia or from Georgia artists. The discs costs virtually nothing; and I ordered customized decorative cd labels and holders for a minimal amount.

• Food and candy items are often inexpensive and always popular. Make yours stand out: give a regional favorite from your wedding location - peanuts in Georgia, Vermont maple syrup, or hot salsa in Texas.

• Round up your family or bridesmaids for a fun night of homemade favor-making. Test your culinary skills and make a homemade jam or spread for your guests. (package them in festive customized jars!)

• Even if you have your heart set on a high-end item, save by giving one gift per couple, placed between their dinner plates and tagged with the couple's names (of course, your single friends will each still receive one).

• Get two things for the price of one, and ask your florist to create centerpieces that can be split into tiny bouquets for your guests to take home.

For more tips on favors and accessories, visit my complete wedding favors and gifts guide at Elegala.com - Elegant Galas Made Simple.