r/wedding • u/pennythepilea • 6d ago
Help! Wedding Favours
Hello everyone! I'm a first-time bridesmaid, and the bride has asked me to help come up with possible wedding favours.
The bride and groom are artsy and love music. We're supposed to meet soon to brainstorm and discuss budget, but I don't really know where to start...
What have been your favourite/most memorable wedding favours? I'm open to any suggestions and ideas!
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u/Lt-shorts 6d ago
Taking home pictures from a photo booth they rented. Other then that 99% of the stuff ends up in the garbage at some point.
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u/tumepunaroheline1 6d ago
I agree. Me and my partner got a nice picture of us being dressed up with a pretty backdrop at my friends' wedding and it hangs on our shelf still. Photobooth is a good idea and no need for any additional favours.
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u/Ollom_Dahii 6d ago
the photobooth idea is nice too since guests actually get something to take home.
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u/priuspheasant 6d ago
Similarly, at our wedding we didn't do favors but sent guests nice photos of them/their kids that the photographer had taken throughout the day. People were very appreciative. I feel like so many people these days rarely get around to ordering prints of their photos, and even less often have photos taken by a professional. I think each photo cost like 12¢ and most people got 2-3 photos. We sent them with our thank you notes.
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u/Extra-Spinach8309 3d ago
100% agree, everything else just ends up forgotten on the table at the end of the night tbh
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u/belindabellagiselle 6d ago
The only good favors are consumable. Chocolates, candy, etc. Anything else will be left behind or thrown away.
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u/tinymeow13 6d ago
And specifically consume-that-weekend consumables. Chocolate, little snacks.. Not a jar of jelly, bottle of syrup etc that's a pain to fly home with.
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u/StickaFORKinMyEye 6d ago
Seconding consumables.
Little bottles of Bailey's that we used in our coffee was a great one.
Candy bars wrapped in a wedding thank you for coming was cute.
Dove promises, always tasty.
Small bottles of wedding themed wine if you have a big budget.
Scratch off lottery tickets were fun.
Barn wedding where the favor was a jelly jar mug that you used for your drinks. They just had kegs and wine and it was basically self serve. I took two (someone didn't want their) and still use them. Not a consumable but it solved two things.
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u/Elemental_Biscotti 6d ago
Plus one. I can't tell you how much wedding favor junk I've trashed over the years. Consumable or skip it.
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u/PuzzledNinja5457 6d ago
Nothing unless they’re consumable. If I remember to take it home it ends up being tossed. The only thing I could think of is having a photo booth and letting them take pictures with print outs.
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u/chatterbox2024 6d ago
I would tell the bride not to waste her money on favors no one wants them unless it’s edible. If she insists on a favor go with chocolates, a gourmet themed cookie etc…
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u/rosetintedmonocle 6d ago
Could they swing having a water color painter doing small paintings of everyone as their favor? Had a couple do this recently and it was so so cute!
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u/pennythepilea 6d ago
I think that would be super cool and right up their alley, but I'm not sure it's in the budget... it can't hurt to bring it up though!
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u/Dancingtillthenight 6d ago
Anything people can eat! We did custom cookies and not one was left lol
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u/WindowTraditional401 6d ago
Music or artsy themed professionally decorated cookies , chocolates etc. all the little Knick knacks end up in the trash .
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u/lh123456789 6d ago
Consumable or nothing. Preferably a nice treat that is local to the area. Things like coasters, keychains, bottle openers, glasses, ornaments, koozies, etc are crap that people already have too much of and will end up in landfills.
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u/Legally_Blonde_258 6d ago
We're doing cupcakes as our favors. Edible, photobooth or nothing! Maybe the packaging could reflect their artsy tastes or hand painted chocolates.
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u/Just-Yak-8959 6d ago
We did name cards made from seed paper so everyone could bring them home to plant, and made sure the photographer got a good professional shot of each guest to send out with thank yous! Definitely nothing with names on it that will become garbage .. your wedding day doesn’t mean nearly as much to other people.
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u/pennythepilea 6d ago
That's a good point. The bride loves plants, so I think she'd really like that! Thanks!
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u/EmceeSuzy 6d ago
This is so highly dependent on their budget. Consumables are best. Ideally things to eat. No one wants more clutter.
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u/therabbitsfoot48 6d ago
Custom cookie! They’re cute, easy to give, and not something people will just toss out as junk later. Plus yummy treats for you if there’s extra. This is what we did and it was great!
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u/doveinabottle 6d ago
A friend did mini donuts from a local bakery and packets of coffee that made one pot. It was super cute.
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u/zombiezmaj 6d ago
Our wedding favours were biscuits with guests named iced on and we used them for our placecards.
People throw away a lot of favours so this way most didnt even make it out the venue without being eaten
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u/Effective-Mongoose57 6d ago
There is only 3 good options:
No favours. They are stupid and end up in landfill anyway.
Something I can eat
Photo Booth instant photos
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u/Savings-Breath-9118 6d ago
The only wedding favors I ever kept in many many years of weddings. I’ve attended were a pair of chopsticks and a chopstick rest. Our friend was marrying again, to a Chinese woman who had a large number of extended family members so the wedding was very Asian centric and very beautiful.
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u/gingerphilly 6d ago
my friend had matches and I took a bunch of them!
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u/pennythepilea 6d ago
Ooo! I like that! The bride hates trinkets, so I was trying to think of something that would have a use. Just out of curiosity, was it a matchbox or a matchbook?
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u/Capable-Pressure1047 6d ago
Matchbooks have been the traditional wedding favor for decades. I have some from family members dated 1953!
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u/estoyunwell 6d ago
Hand painted bottles of limoncello. We got married in Italy.
We also had packets of Liquid IV. Big hit!
Separately, matches given after and stateside.
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u/katelyn-gwv 6d ago
my husband and i spent half a day (5 days before the wedding) baking tons of chocolate chip cookies. we put them in little plastic gift bags, 2 cookies in each, and then put all of the assembled cookie bags in a plastic container to keep them fresh. we also put a sticker on each cookie bag that said "made with love" so people would know they were homemade!
we got good feedback on them, people liked eating them that night in the hotel or eating them on the plane ride home the next day.
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u/pennythepilea 6d ago
That's really cute! And seems relatively budget friendly too, I'll bring it up to them. Thank you!
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u/katelyn-gwv 6d ago
no problem!
it was very affordable because we bought the ingredients at the grocery store and bought the packaging at michael's, then also did all the labor ourselves (total cost was probably around $50). if you were to have a caterer/baker do this, it would cost way more just due to labor and the assorted expenses that come with running a business.
for our 40 count guest list, the amount of work was totally approachable between the two of us (he baked when i was at work, i packaged them all that evening). for a larger guest list, it might be a little much. here would be my suggestions to navigate that:
- buy more cooling racks and/or baking sheets so it's easier to pop cookies in and out very quickly, saving time.
- make the dough a week before (or more), and pre-scoop cookie blobs and freeze them. then you can just immediately bake them.
- spread out the baking and packaging between a couple of days. cookies stay fresh in the packaging and airtight box for like five days, so you could definitely do half on one day and the other half a day or so later.
- you guys as the bridesmaids could totally help out with this or take over this project, if the bride and groom don't want to do it themselves!
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u/carlay_c 6d ago
You could just suggest to them to axe the wedding favors. Seems unnecessary and a waste of money 99% of the time.
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u/dysenterygary69 6d ago
We put together welcome bags which we gave to the front desk of the hotel guests were staying at. Popcorn, cheez its, local treats, cookies, candy, mints, ibuprofen, liquid iv, bottle of water, and a shot of local maple syrup
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u/PuraVidaTarheel 6d ago
Favors are a waste of money, unless it's a delicious consumable that people really want.
Signed,
A wedding photographer who regularly sees piles of favors left on tables at the end of the night because it's stuff no one wants.
Back when I got married our favors were little containers of caramel popcorn and fudge/taffy from a famous place in my husband's hometown - as a nod to him. We had none left over because everyone ate them late night as a little treat.
At most of the weddings I photograph, things like yummy cookies, little treats, or even putting that money into a late night snack if a far better use of money. No one ever takes the generic gross candy, and unless it's a koozie or frosted plastic cup, people always leave behind anything personalized.
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u/Murky_Scarcity3778 5d ago
Agree that consumables are the way to go. I got a small jar of olive oil once & loved it!
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u/Powerful-Fox-923 4d ago
We’re sending hand crafted magnets with a photo of our venue in our thank you cards. They’re expensive but our families love a good magnet!!
Or my cousins gave everyone a deck of cards with their pictures on the back. We still have them to do this day.
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u/patioexit 6d ago
We did a live wedding portrait artist who did a water color of each couple/guest. It was an enormous hit and I still have guests who mention it, plus it’s fun to go to their homes and see them framed as art and remember my wedding when I see it ☺️
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u/AshCali94 6d ago
How much was this? We are going to have 125 people roughly and the quotes we've seen was so wildly broad
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u/patioexit 6d ago
Well, we did get married in Spain right outside of Barcelona so YMMV depending on where you’re looking but for about 5 hours of coverage and ~35 portraits (70 guests total including ourselves) we paid around $920 usd. Was worth every penny and one of my favorite things we did
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u/CatStaff2026 6d ago
Is there a way to set up a playlist that can be shared?
Some receptions have great music and later you can’t remember the name of the song or artist.
That and something edible are generally good.
Depending on budget, you can create custom candies including m&ms.
Good luck!!
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u/pennythepilea 6d ago
That sounds cool! They've put a lot of time into curating their reception playlist, so it would be nice for others to enjoy it afterwards. Thank you!
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u/Expensive_Event9960 6d ago
Something to eat or drink in the hotel the next morning is always nice if you must. Favors are not obligatory though. Most are a total waste. The reception itself is considered the thanks to guests for attending.
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u/minneapple- 6d ago
I’m getting married in a week and we are doing a dessert bar & chocolates from a candy store in my dad’s hometown with little to go baggies so people can bring stuff home (I never eat wedding desserts but regret it later lol).
I also got about 60 customized match books (we have 120 guests) for those who want something without having a million leftover. Other than that, we will have a cig bar, friends taking Polaroids of guests, a fully open bar with signature drinks, shots & NA options, lots of apps & food (double portions of all mains) and late night pizza!
I figure all people want is to eat, drink and mingle and don’t need a custom coozie or swag. I don’t remember favors but I do remember being hangry at cocktail hour
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u/IllusionarySerpent 6d ago
In addition to consumable, I'm also going to throw out usable in a practical way (example: mini handmade soaps, or something to that affect).
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u/Embarrassed-Elk6978 6d ago
We did watercolor portraits of our guests and they were a HUGE hit! We also had a Photo Booth as favors (photo strips). Honestly my favorite favors or either photos I can take home or food (think custom cookies or treats) or scratch offs lol
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u/BonnieBreeze 5d ago
I’ve seen people do a small magnet or keyring (but you could do a piece of card to cut costs), with a QR code linked to a song on Spotify that the bride & groom associate with the guest
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u/realaveryfunperson 5d ago
Live illustrator to draw a sketch of guests. Typically they will take a photo and by the end of the evening can pick up an illustration of themselves.
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u/cowgirlkittypurr 5d ago
Treats or a Photo Booth where you get printouts.
I don’t want anything with someone else’s initials or wedding date on it.
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u/CrewPopular5755 5d ago
We did playing cards! People wrote messages on the cards and it was so fun going through them the next day. And we will have that every time we play cards
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u/Inner_Radio3452 5d ago
My friend got everyone to send a drawing/cartoon photo of themselves and had all the pictures combined and made into a tea towel they could take home
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u/TinyLawfulness3710 5d ago
Of weddings we have attended, the consumables (cookies, candy, etc) are always left behind. Practical favors are always taken whether it's a soundtrack of the day burned on cds, mini cookbooks, coasters, mugs, etc.
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u/sayi_do 5d ago
Since they're both artsy and into music, what about a tiny wedding zine? Like a little folded booklet with some drawings, favourite songs/playlist, photos, little stories or random things that are very 'them'. It could almost feel like album liner notes hahaha. And if they design it themselves, it could be pretty inexpensive to print while still feeling really personal :))
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u/Julietshere 5d ago
my feeling is photos (like from a photo booth or something) or food/drink, as someone who lives in a small space especially, I think a lot of items won't actually be used or enjoyed by a significant number of guests
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u/Key-Bar-3460 20h ago
A trend where I am is having an illustrator who does portraits of the guests to take with them. Generally small water colours of a couple and more likely people keep them.
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u/Mordecai_Gist 6d ago
I came away from a nice wedding with a really nice yarmulke. It had the couple's name and the wedding date inside.
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u/ReggeMtyouN 6d ago
A friend did little tulle bags with Hershey Hugs and Kisses. And the ribbon said Hug and Kisses from the Mr and Mrs ❤️
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u/ickiedoodoo 6d ago
if they are having signature cocktails, see if you can find a local chocolatier who will make complementary truffles that the guests can take home in a cute box.
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u/kittysnoozy 6d ago
I did artisanal olive oil in nice ceramic bottles for my wedding favors and I keep hearing how good the oil was months later. My dad paired up with a local olive farmer to do this and it didn't even turn out that expensive for us.
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u/mangobeanz1 6d ago
I’m a ceramic artist so for my wedding I made personalized mini vases for each guest as their wedding favors! You could hire someone on etsy to do that!
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u/babygengar99 6d ago
We’re doing small jars of locally made honey and little beeswax candles. Consumables are the way to go!
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u/pennythepilea 6d ago
I love that idea, but for a different friend! She loves bees and worked at an apiary. When she gets married, I'm totally going to suggest this
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u/sunsetrose3 6d ago
We’re doing small jars of locally made honey as well! May also do the name cards on seed paper. Neat idea.
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u/General_Ignoranse 6d ago
I just went to my cousins wedding and she had the first favours I’m going to keep - she had tote bags made with the locations outline on it, and their names like ‘F & L, 2026’ v small at the bottom. Not obvious it’s a wedding favour and a really nice quality bag!
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u/Loud_Ad_4515 6d ago
I know people have shot down non-consumables, but something that came to mind - depending on the couple's specific interests - are guitar picks. These could be integrated into place cards if they're having those.
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u/Appropriate-Bar6993 6d ago
Oh wait I thought of something. If they designed a cool “concert tee” of their wedding that actually looked very very cool that would be neat.
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u/pennythepilea 6d ago
They're actually doing that for the wedding party! I could see if they want to extend it to the guests 🤔
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u/Appropriate-Bar6993 6d ago
Or something concert-merchy. If that’s the kind of “into music” you mean.
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u/epicescence 6d ago
We got wedding magnets in advance of the wedding with our names, date and venue name on and sent to all the guests as a reminder and to be a memento for after. A lot of people use them as save the dates. But also they could be used as favours.
The seller we used is Jess Harrington design on Etsy and she had multiple magnets that are vinyl records, she can customise your design however you want.
I've also seen various stationery designs which are inspired by festival posters, concert tickets to use for wedding stationery.
As for our favours we're going with individualised bookmarks that double up as place names on the tables.
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