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One of the earliest accounts of a wedding favour goes all the way back to 16th century England! The Bride and Groom would give each of their guests a 'love knot' which was tied from lace and ribbon, to symbolise the couples bond of love.
Another gift that from centuries ago was the bomboniere, given by European aristocrats to their guests at celebratory occasions such as birthdays and weddings. These bombonieres were elaborate trinket boxes made from crystal, precious stones, metal or porcelain and were filled with sugary confections, a symbol of wealth and royalty, as sugar was then a precious commodity. It seems it was from these gifts that the wedding favour as we know it today was derived.
Eventually sugar decreased in value over the centuries and became more accessible to the general public, meaning that a Bride and Groom of modest means could shower their guests with sugary goodness. A wedding was considered a lucky occasion back in the day, and the wedding favour was a way for the Bride and Groom to bestow some of their luck on the guests. As confectioners began making candied almonds by dipping them in sugar or some other sweet coating this became a popular option to give as a 'lucky gift'. Traditionally, five almonds were given to each guests, representing the five wedding wishes of fertility, wealth, health, happiness and longevity.
These days, the wedding favour has moved from candied almonds to almost any gift you could possibly imagine, and the question on most couples minds is whether or not they have to give a wedding favour and if so, what?You can be as creative as you want, from the traditional candied almonds, to tins of your favourite flavoured tea, home made jams, or engraved champagne glasses. There's so many choices!
But there are a number of things to consider when making this decision as well. Things like your budget, your style, what your guests might like, and whether or not you want to stick to tradition, but while you're trying to answer all those questions, here's a few original wedding favour ideas I've found in my journeys to help inspire you, as well as a few on line resources!
Unitl next time,
Bel
- Wedding Favours
- 50 handmade wedding favour ideas
- Pink Frosting - Australian #1 party and wedding shop
- Your Wedding Bomboniere
- Favour Perfect - Gifts to Treasure Forever
This was really interesting. I didn't know how favors had gotten started. The picture of those individual cupcakes with the rose is adorable! What a cute idea. Could be very expensive though =P
ReplyDeleteI actually went semi-traditional with my favors. I did 5 white coated almonds wrapped in tulle, but for my little touch, they were placed in a small glass slipper :D
Thanks Christi! I'm glad you liked the post and learnt a little something! I really loved the cupcakes idea too, especially as I'm a bit of a baker. If you had a family member who could make them for you it could quite a cost effective wedding favour, but I love what you did with the glass slippers!
Deletei love this! in my country (Nigeria), favours are referred to as "souvenirs", and they usually are useful things. when i saw the cute silver grater, all neatly wrapped up with its sliver bow, i could identify with it immediately as a "souvenir" Nigerians would give out at any event. lol! you'd be amazed what at items that are given out at Nigerian events.
ReplyDeleteHi jambudu,
DeleteThanks so much for your comment, and for the insight into Nigerian culture. It's very fascinating! I think giving a useful wedding favour (or souvenir) is a great idea! I might have to do some blog posts on the cultures in other countries. There's some very interesting things that they do!
Thanks again,
Bel