Your Top 10 Tips For Choosing The Perfect Wedding Favours

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The World of Wedding Favours Team

 

If you're stuck for ideas and not quite sure which type of wedding favour you should give to your guests, then don't worry, because the World of Wedding Favours team are here to help and we've put together 10 great tips that will help you to make that all important decision when selecting the right wedding favours for your special day!

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Top Tip #1 - Deciding on the theme of your wedding!
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Before you jump in feet first and choose your wedding favours, you need to know one very important aspect of your wedding - and that's the THEME.

If you have your wedding theme all in place, then that's great, you're good to go, but if you haven't, then before you select your wedding favours you need to know a few important details like:

- What type of venue your wedding is being held?

Is it booked in a magnificent castle, in a manor house or are you going abroad and having your wedding on the beach?

- What time of year is your wedding booked?

Are you having a summer wedding so you can take advantage of the hot weather or are you planning a winter wedding and hoping that it snows so it's like a fairy tale?

You also need to take into account the style of your bridal gown, the colours of the bridesmaids and the floral arrangements.

For example, if you've booked your wedding for the autumn, then you will need to choose suitable colours for that time of year, which could be colours like burnt oranges, golds, yellows and reds.

If you have decided to opt for the more traditional wedding, then traditional bomboniere may work best for you and your big day.

Traditional Italian bomboniere come in a vast range of net styles, such as crystal, zigzag edge and shadow edge. You can then fill your nets with traditional almonds, dragees or chocolate hearts.

Alternatively, a simple favour box or pretty organza bag can complete your perfect wedding look. If you are a more modern bride, inedible favours may be more appropriate for you - why not thank your guests with a beautiful candle favour?

There are so many options for you to choose from, but first of all sit down with your favourite beverage and decide upon your perfect wedding theme.

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Top Tip #2 - Small detail can make a BIG difference!
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Believe it or not, many guests do focus on the smaller details of a wedding, whether this be the beading on the bride's dress, the colour of the groom's socks or the decoration of the venue itself.

We attended the wedding of a good friend recently and everything about the day was completely individual and unique.

You could see that they had spent a lot of time and effort on the finer detail as well as the more obvious detail. Everything about the theme and design worked and the smaller detail made it feel and look even more special and unique which encouraged a lot of exciting comments throughout the whole evening from the guests.

This goes to prove that if you concentrate on the smaller detail it WILL make a big difference to a guest's opinion and you will find that your guests will approach you to commend you on such a lovely and enjoyable day.

Remember, this is your big day and you want to make it as special and as memorable as you possibly can for everybody.

So we recommend, that you take into account the smaller detail when planning your ceremony, buying your wedding dress, your bridesmaids dresses, the reception venue and your wedding favours to give to your guests.

All of this will build up a magnificent picture and will be absorbed and enjoyed more thoroughly by eveyone who attends your special day.

If you have decided to have a traditional wedding theme and would like the more traditional wedding favour, then it is worth bearing in mind the importance of the finishing touches to your nets or pouches, whether these be beads, flowers or ribbons.

At World of Wedding Favours we offer everything from traditional bomboniere and organza bags, to personalised ribbon and fabric flowers that will complete your stylish wedding favour box, bag or net.

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Top Tip #3 - Buy plenty!
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This may seem like common-sense, but make sure you order enough favours to give to ALL you wedding guests.

You'll be surprised at how many brides under-order when it comes to supplying wedding favours to their guests.

Once you have confirmed numbers and you know exactly how many guests will be attending your big day, only then will you know how many favours you need to order to cater for everyone who attends.

Our recommendation is to buy plenty!

Remember... not everyone will reply to your wedding invitation, some will just turn up without confirming and others may change their minds at the last minute. Make sure you're prepared for that to happen, just in case it does.

It is always a good idea to buy a few more than you think you'll need because you don't want last minute guests to feel excluded if you don't have a beautiful favour to offer them.

Also, if you're planning on giving edible wedding favours, then make sure you order some for yourselves - you'll be sorry when your guests are munching yummy favours and you're not!

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Top Tip #4 - Different favours for different guests!
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When it comes to supplying your guests with wedding favours, you have to realise that not everybody has the same tastes.

You will also have to take into account that your guests will more than likely comprise of different generations - male and female.

So our advice to you is to consider different favours for different guests.

If you want to keep it simple and give everybody the same favour, that's fine and I'm sure your guests will be delighted with whatever type of favour you give to them.

But if you want to go the extra mile and make it even more special, then remember to take into account top tip #2 - "Small detail can make a BIG difference!"

For example, traditional bomboniere may be well received by your older guests, whereas younger guests may prefer a more modern and unique favour, such as a "Long Stemmed Rose Soap".

Equally, you may need to offer something completely different for the children such as a Cartoon Clown or Donald Duck on a Walt Disney favour box.

There are so many variations of wedding favour to suit all types of guests. It's your job to decide to keep it simple or go into fine detail and offer various favours to suit the type of guest.

Although favours are often given to female guests, male guests can now be catered for also - why not try a top hat or morning suit wedding favour box for all the guys?

It's sure to put a smile on their faces and will give them a little keepsake to take away and remember your special day.

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Top Tip #5 - Be unique!
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Let me ask you a question...

"If you sat at the table for your evening meal and had a plate of french fries everyday, by the end of the week you would become sick and tired of it and it would become boring!"

Within a couple of days you would be begging for something different to eat - agree?

It can be the same when choosing your wedding favours. Life would become so boring if ALL weddings were the same, and providing guests with unusual favours can become a real talking point.

So our advice in this tip, is to be "original and different" if you want to make an impact on your guests.

Rather than going for something predictable, why not surprise guests with a gift that they're not expecting.

This could be a mini gift bag filled with mouth-watering chocolate hearts - yum!

You could even personalise the ribbon around the bag with your names and the wedding date to make the gifts really unique, and by giving your wedding favours the personal touch, makes it that much more special for everybody involved.

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Top Tip #6 - DIY or ready made?
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When it comes to wedding favours, some brides prefer to buy their wedding favours ready made, whereas other brides get excited about the task of making their own.

It's entirely up to you if you want to buy your wedding favours already made and ready to go, or if you want to take the time and make them up yourself using the materials that are available.

DIY wedding favours are a great option, if you have the time to make your own and if you are the creative kind of bride.

Traditionally, brides were expected to make their own favours for their guests, and as a lot of brides still stand by this tradition, many now prefer to buy their favours already made, due to the fact that they are short of time and have many other wedding planning jobs on their to-do list.

If you wish to go down the DIY road, it is fairly straight-forward and pretty easy to do now-a-days.

World of Wedding Favours stock everything you could possibly need when creating your own favours.

We can supply you with traditional bomboniere or top-class organza bags with the favour bases and inserts.

You could use paper flowers, butterflies, feathers, etc to use on your nets and finish them off with a lovely satin ribbon - even personalised, if you wish, with your names and wedding date to make it even more special.

We also stock a large range of confectionery, suitable for all types of nets and pouches.

It's your choice whichever road you take and the World of Wedding Favours team are here to assist you every step of the way.

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Top Tip #7 - Perfect timing?
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Time seems to go by so fast without even noticing it. And talking about time, that brings us onto the subject of what we would like to talk about in top tip #7.

When selecting your wedding favours, you need to make sure that you place your order in plenty of time before the big day. Don't leave it to the last minute or you could be in for a real disappointment. To ensure your perfect favours are available for your big day, order them at least 4 months in advance. Many brides order 6 months in advance!

If you've booked your wedding day around another important occasion, like Christmas, then these type of wedding favours can become very popular and some places can run out of stock.

If you leave it too late and the item you really want is out of stock, then it's hard luck. Unless you can find the same item at another store, you'll have to choose something else.

This is also important if you are ordering personalised wedding favours. Sometimes these can take up to 15 working days to complete and then they have to be shipped out to you, so it could take near to a month to receive your personalised wedding favours.

You also want to make sure that you don't order too early. Especially if you've decided to go for edible favours, like chocolate wedding favours. Although most of these do have a shelf life of at least 6 months.

You may also change your mind with regards to the theme and colour of your wedding if you order your favours too soon, so don't make any hasty decisions.

Our advice is to find the perfect balance. Make sure that you are 100% certain of the colours and theme of your wedding and then order your favours within reasonable time before the big day arrives.

If you're making your own favours, then you'll need to give yourself some extra time to make them up without going into overdrive.

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Top Tip #8 - Keep down the cost!
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Fastly becoming a major wedding trend for many couples is the combination of cake and favours.

Of course, many brides are looking for ways to keep down their wedding costs without cutting corners and this is a perfect solution. Why not display your favours in tiers so the overall effect is that of a wedding cake?

Your guests can then enjoy a favour box as a dessert or with a coffee rather than a slice of cake.

So many guests these days are not particularly enamoured with wedding cake; most find sponges too sweet and traditional fruit cakes too rich and heavy. So, why spend all that money on an expensive cake that's lavishly decorated and crafted when trays of favours will look just as sensational?

In fact, the overall effect would add a modern and stylish twist to your day - not to mention a real talking point. And, when it comes to handing boxes out, no one needs to fuss about with napkins or cake cutting!

Whilst on that note though, you and your groom can still pose with a knife slicing in between boxes so that you don't miss out on that ever popular cake cutting moment!

Of course, if it's cake you are after, then why not fill co-ordinating cake boxes with ready cut cake?

Many large supermarkets and stores sell delicious iced fruit cakes that can be prepared in advance inside the boxes - which will save someone a job on the big day.

These can still be displayed in tiered arrangements and given out to guests without the cutting and crumbs palaver.

Whichever way you choose to do it, it's much less hassle, much cheaper and is guaranteed to make a beautiful centrepiece for any top table.

There are many cake boxes available in our collections [just browse through our online store], as well as favour boxes that slot nicely next to each other, such as the cone shaped box.

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Top Tip #9 - Create a lasting impression!
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Wedding favours are one of the aspects of wedding planning that need to be thought about very carefully. They have a clever way of linking together all your themes and ideas and blending them all into one.

It is, therefore, imperative that you take your time when choosing your wedding favours as they need to compliment your whole wedding day, not go against it.

As an organised bride, you must consider all of the following before choosing your wedding favours:-

• The style of your dress - is it traditional? Is it modern? Is it white, ivory, pink? Is it straight? Is it floaty? What material is it - Silk? Organza? Crepe?
• The colour of your bridesmaids' dresses. If they are in navy blue, then usually the ribbons on your favour boxes, bags or bomboniere also need to be navy blue!
• The flower type and colours that you want in your bouquet, on your reception tables and in the church. If you're having red roses, then finish your favour boxes with large open red paper roses!

So, what type of theme will your big day follow? If your wedding theme is girlie and modern, then traditional ivory boxes with navy ribbon will look out of place. Instead, you should go with baby pink silk square boxes filled with delectable silver sugared almonds and trimmed with silver ribbons. These then need to tie in with floral arrangements and bridesmaid dresses.

Perhaps you have ordered your meringue strapless dress with yards of organza and sparkle? If so, then your favours need to reflect this traditional princess feel. Why not make up pink and fuchsia bomboniere nets with co-ordinating pink ribbon? These will add to the soft, traditional theme of the day.

If you are a totally hip, modern, fuss-free modern bride then why not WOW! your guests with something entirely different? Be the talk of the town with spotted square boxes tied with an array of different coloured ribbons! Fill them with multi-coloured fruitini or assorted mini chocolate heart dragees and dare to be different.

So, in conclusion, agree upon the theme of your wedding first. Make sure that the favours you choose to buy, relate to your wedding theme and match in colour to give that all important look and feel.

And lastly, remember to create a lasting impression. Favours are what guests take away with them, as well as their memories.

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Top Tip #10 - Enjoy!
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Let's face it, some brides go the whole hog with wedding tradition and obey every rule in the book.

If you're having a traditional wedding, you don't have to stick to every traditonal rule there is, otherwise you'll end up with a massive headache planning your wedding and it will take away all the fun - and this is supposed to be a fun time!

It will become a chore rather than one of the most exciting and fun times you'll have in your whole life.

The same goes for selecting wedding favours. You should enjoy choosing your wedding favours and giving them to your guests. They are supposed to be a light-hearted fun gift to thank your guests for attending your special day. As long as they match your theme and look great, your guests will absolutely love them!

Remember... you can bend the rules a little if you wish, whilst remaining tasteful and staying within your theme. Nothing has to be strict if you don't want it to be.

At the end of the day, it's your wedding and you can have whatever you want that makes you happy.

It's your special day... so enjoy it! That's probably the most important tip we can give you!

We sincerely hope you've enjoyed reading "Your Top 10 Tips For Choosing The Perfect Wedding Favours!" and that they have been of great help and use.

Remember - if you need any help or advice about selecting or ordering your wedding favours from the World of Wedding Favours web site, then please get in touch and we will do our very best to help you in any way we can.

~ The WOWF Team