Unless you have been nicely nestled and living under a rock, it won’t have escaped your notice that there is a rather special event taking place next week Saturday (and no, I’m not talking about the FA Cup, although, with the rather delectable Olivier Giroud playing for Chelsea, that will be pretty unmissable too.). No, I am, of course, talking about the royal wedding, with the lovely Meghan Markle about to make an honest woman of everyone’s favourite Prince, Harry. As with all royal nuptials, the upcoming wedding is increasing interest in anything to do with weddings, from the dress and flowers, to everything else in between.

One thing that has grown in popularity in recent years has been wedding favours, the little gifts that are given to guests by the bride and groom. These can be presented as part of the table setting if their is a sit down meal, or can be handed out by the bridesmaids, or placed on a dedicated table where guests can collect one. Wedding favours are one of the finishing touches that add another dimension of style to your classic wedding, something that can reflect the style and personality of the bride and groom.

Favours in the Past

Wedding favours are not a new thing, believing to date back to the 16th century when they took the form of a love knot and were considered to bring good luck to the happy couple. As a child I seemed to be attending a wedding every week and clearly remember favours in the form of a book of matches, tastefully packaged in a card that matched the wedding invites, and with the date of the wedding embossed on the back. With smoking now frowned upon in most places, and with the rise of vaping, matches have fallen out of favour as a wedding favour.

Bonboniere

One form of favour that has a long history, but still works well in modern times is bonboniere. My husband is Italian, so I first become familiar with this form of cheap wedding favours through my mother-in-law, who would create these favours for family weddings. Her form of bonboniere was made using organza and net, cut into shape using pinking shears. Pretty coloured sugared almonds were placed inside the bag, which was then secure with silk ribbon to create a pretty bag effect.

Bonboniere are great handmade wedding favours as they can be made to match your wedding colour scheme and look great as part of your table arrangements, and are relatively inexpensive. The sugared almonds can be replaced with a wrapped chocolate if you are giving them to children too.

If you don’t want to make your own favours, then the chocolate or almonds could also be placed in a small box that could then be displayed on the side plate. Many companies will sell small keepsake boxes in bulk, and again these can be personalised with the name of the bride and groom, and the date of the wedding.

Candles

Another wedding favour that I received at a wedding and thought was a very stylish idea was a small, scented candle. These were given to just female guests and again made use of organza, this time a small drawstring bag.

The fragrance of the candle was one of the bride’s favourites, and a little note was attached saying we hope you enjoy burning the candle and remember sharing our lovely day. I thought this was a lovely touch, and by giving them just to female guests, you would be able to keep the cost down.

Rustic Style Wedding Favours

Jam Jars and Mason Jars are becoming quite a trend for those who have planned a more rustic style wedding. These can be used in many different ways, to holding candles on the tables (I know a friend who spent months covering the jars with glitter for just this purpose.) A recent wedding I went to used pretty looking jam jars as sweetie jars as a form of wedding favour. They had a table covered in old style sweets and chocolates, and jam jars for each guest, complete with names on old style luggage tags.  Guests were then invited to go to the sweet table and fill their jars with their favourites.

I loved this idea as it worked for all guests, adults and children alike, and it was just so charming and lovely.

If sweets are not your thing, popcorn in a personalised box could be a tasty alternative.

Did you have any wedding favours at your wedding? What did you have?