Students Of Success

Planning a wedding of any size or budget can have numerous items
that may be quite costly. In addition to planning for the dress
and cake, a bride will want to spend thought considering the
wedding favors for her guests. These small tokens of
appreciation don’t have to be expensive. Frequently, the most
enjoyable part of planning a wedding, is the selection of the
wedding favor. Preparation for right the token at the least
possible cost adds to the fun, allowing the bride a chance to
tap into creative talents.

The practice of providing gifts to the guests of weddings began
with European aristocrats who would endow guests with a fancy
box called a bonboniere, named for the bonbons that it would
protect. A bonboniere was crafted of crystal, porcelain or gold
and could be encrusted with precious stones. Today these gifts
for the guests, are known as wedding favors and is a tradition
that has continued worldwide since the sixteenth century. A
common belief of many cultures worldwide was, that the wedding
couple was the focus of benevolent spirits who brought good
luck. They believed that the same auspicious luck could be
passed on to anything they touched. Betrothed couples would give
small items to others in the village to share same good luck,
that was expected to last a year.

For more than a thousand years, almonds were a common gift given
to the wedding couple, signifying the good wishes on their new
life together. Brides would choose to pass on those same good
wishes to others by preparing a small gift of the almonds,
beautifully wrapped in elegant fabric. The custom in the Middle
East is for the bride to make a gift of five almonds to
represent fertility, longevity, wealth, health and happiness. In
the thirteenth century the trend of coating almonds in sugar
became popular. Today the candy coated nuts are pastel adorned
treats, known as Jordan almonds and remain a staple of many
wedding celebrations. Jordan almonds provide one of the most
common and inexpensive wedding favors when wrapped by delicate
fabric to form small bundles tied with ribbon.

Wedding favors are typically presented to guests at the
reception table, but can be distributed at the end of an
informal gathering of coffee and cake. Brides have learned be
very creative when it comes to selecting wedding favors that
won’t go over budget, and still honor all of her guests. The
trends may vary each year, but the favors a bride selects are
never out of fashion. Recent favorites have included flower
seeds packaged in transparent, frosted envelopes with a small
sentimental card attached with a ribbon commemorating the event.
Decorative candles tied with a delicate ribbon are another great
item to show sentiment and many can be purchased for about one
dollar. Custom designed bookmarks with personalized sentiments
can be cherished by guests for a lifetime. Today’s desktop
publishing software and quality papers greatly reduce the cost
compared to the costs of using a professional printer.

The art of presenting wedding favors, provides unlimited
possibilities for a couple to express gratitude to guests for
being present at the event. Wedding favors serve a dual purpose
of allowing the bride to express herself emotionally or
creatively and can be chosen to provide décor to the reception
table. The selection of inexpensive favors doesn’t have to
compromise quality or elegance. Simple placecards in small
decorative frames or placecard holders will make a lasting gift
selection. Frames and placecard holders can be made with a
variety of materials from ceramic to stainless steel, for about
a dollar each. Decorative candles, soaps and cookies are easily
found in a variety of shapes from cupids to wedding cakes.
Stylish bottle stoppers and bottle openers are available in a
variety of shapes and crafted in frosted glass or stainless
steel.

If a bride is open minded to a wide range of gift items when
shopping, it’s possible to find excellent prices on bulk
purchases, or closeouts from retailers that specialize in
wedding paraphernalia. Avoid having gifts engraved or
personalized, as that will greatly drive the prices up. If it is
desired to personalize an item, consider custom designed labels
for chocolates, coffee or packages of tea assortments. Although
prices for private labeled chocolate bars can be about $2.00
each, a bride or her friends can design and print unique labels
with a home computer. Candy bars can be picked up at the local
grocery for as little as a quarter each or bought in bulk from a
club store.

The presentation of wedding favors is a time honored tradition
and provides the bridegroom couple with an excellent means to
share feelings with those they care about. Wedding favors
continue to be one element of the wedding, where presentation
and imagination have a greater value than the price of the item.