ARE WEDDING FAVOURS NECESSARY?
One of the questions I see regularly on wedding forums is, do I have to give my guests favours? And the simple answer to that is basically, no! You don’t have to give all your guests a favour for attending your wedding but, that being said, many couples do like to give their guests something to say thank you for being there. So if you are looking for favour ideas, let’s dive in and have a look.
A BIT OF BACK STORY
When I first got married, a very, very long time ago (!), favours weren’t really a thing. There were sugared almonds, but these seemed to be reserved for large, more opulent weddings, not for the couples who lived a more modest life like me and my hubby. By my second wedding in 2007, favours were definitely in. I remember ordering lots of tiny glass jars and filling them with honey a couple of days before our big day, then travelling from our home in Cumbria to Kent with said jars and three cranky dogs in the raging heat.
I don’t know if everyone took their jars of honey home because the hotel cleared up after the guests had gone home (they also fed me a midnight snack because I hadn’t eaten all day, but that’s another story!), but this is one of the main problems with favours, they are often left behind. For something that can add up to a lot of money, it’s a waste, not to mention the environmental impact of throwing favours away! So what should you do?
SOME IDEAS
If you are definitely sold on giving favours to your guests, how about a thank you note? You can write a very simple thank you and pop it into an envelope with the name of the guest on it. This way they double up as a place card! Another idea is seed paper. You can buy these very cheaply in different shapes, along with small envelopes and, again, put the name of the guest on each one. There are also seed ‘bombs’ and wildflower seeds for a bit of variety. Some couples have gifted small trees to their guests, although smaller plants such as succulents or herbs would work better for those guests that don’t have garden!
Eco candles and soap are very popular at the moment and come in vegan varieties to suit all guests. There are also bees wax food wraps, but be aware that these are not considered vegan friendly. All of these ideas are great if you are concerned with the environmental impact of your favours, as long as you make sure that any paper used is easily recyclable, but they don’t solve the problem of guests leaving favours behind. One way to overcome would be to provide an eco bag for each guest so they can pop the favour in the bag and take it home or you could give a charity donation, made in the name of the guests and write about the donation on a display board for everyone to see.
WHERE I COME IN!
Of course, being a live wedding illustrator I have to mention my service :) Live illustration is often classed as a form of entertainment for your wedding guests, which it is, but did you know that these little portraits also double as wedding favours?
I have not known a guest refuse to take home their portrait, in fact I have been asked to draw copies of a portrait so they can be given to friends and family who couldn’t make it to the wedding! In addition, all of my guest illustrations are displayed throughout the day, creating a kind of pop-up gallery, which guests LOVE, and at the end of the day, each portrait is popped into a gift bag, which I supply, ready to take home. I hope this has given you some favour ideas but, I really want to know, are you giving favours and if you are, what are they going to be?
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