Hiiiii friends! Its been a little quiet on the blog lately huh? With school ending, us moving (we bought a house!) and everything that goes along with it, two weeks have gone by in a flash. Even with all that stuff going on though, I managed to shoot 5 weddings in that time (insert strong arm emoji here)! One of my brides was lamenting about the fact that her wedding favors weren't being taken (bags of candy) and while I, too, was in disbelief (because who passes up free candy???) I was also not surprised. The "candy bar" at a wedding is awesome, but not exactly innovative these days. So I got to thinking: what are some wedding favors I've seen over my career that were awesome? Different? Slightly weird? And I came up with this list. So here ya go friends:
Wedding handkerchiefs are darling, aren't they? They're also super popular right now and I can totally see why. They're not just some plastic tsotchke or shot glass (although I do love a good shot glass), they actually have a purpose, and a sweet one at that. They could even become heirloom if the bride and groom are family, or very close friends.
Snack bags to go are a huge crowd favorite. Edible favors are always a good idea (and some argue, the only type of favor anyone should ever do) and there are a thousand ways to fancy them up for a wedding. Right now I'm seeing a lot of goodie bags to go on the way out, which is genius really. After having a few drinks and dancing all night, you may want to refuel for the after party! Or just go home and eat cookies in bed. Both are a win!
Charity donation favors are my favorite and I so wish I would have thought about this when I was getting married. Popular donations are to the ASPCA, St Judes, and Susan G Komen but literally there are so many deserving organizations you have the difficult choice of choosing just one. Or maybe split it up? You make your own rules! This is a great idea for people with all budgets and big hearts.
Home made jams and jellies are another edible favor that people are really loving right now. Cute, cheap, and relatively easy to make and they work for any season and almost any style of wedding too. Put mom or grandma to work (they really want to help! Or maybe you need to just keep them busy....), ask grandad for his famous recipe or go swoop some up from the farmers market. You could even tie a little spreader on with twine if you want to be extra about it, which I always recommend. You only get married once!
in 2015, we gave out seed packets at our wedding. Now its 2017 and people are giving out full blown trees and I love it. Not only does it help the environment, but it is such a lovely reminder of the couple over the years. You can get all sorts of tree seedlings or just stick with one type native to the area. These are also available in bulk to order online!
Have yall been to any weddings recently and got an interesting or cool favor? Let me know in the comments section!