Author: Kevin Stith
For many centuries wedding favors have been a part of traditional wedding ceremonies, across a wide range of cultures. Initially wedding favors were an extravagance at celebrations hosted by European upper classes, who had the wealth to provide elaborate gifts to guests. The early wedding favors began as small fancy boxes, known by their French name of bonboniere. A bonboniere was fashioned of crystal, porcelain or gold and often encrusted with precious stones. The delicate boxes were meant to hold bonbons or other confectionery delicacies, at a time when sugar was quite expensive. Sugar was also highly valued by all, as it was believed to have medicinal benefits.

The tradition of providing gifts to guests was adopted by individuals of modest means by selecting simple treats as gifts. Every culture across time has a approached marriage as a wonderful event, with the nuptials celebrated throughout the community. In many societies the bride and groom are associated with good luck, a common thought was that everything they touched would be charmed. By gifting members of the community, they would then pass those same blessings onto others. Many brides would choose to distribute this good luck by preparing a small gift of almonds, beautifully wrapped in an elegant fabric. The custom in the Middle East is for the bride to provide five almonds to represent fertility, longevity, wealth, health and happiness.

For more than a millennium, almonds were commonly given as wedding gifts to the couple, signifying the good wishes on their new life together. In the thirteenth century the practice of coating almonds in sugar became popular, the new confections were called “confetti”. Over time, confetti has transformed to Jordan almonds, now a staple of many wedding celebrations. The combination of the almond and candy signify the bitter sweetness of marriage. Today, Jordan almonds provide one of the most common and traditional wedding favors when they are wrapped in small bundles of delicate fabric or lace and tied with ribbon. Though the most traditional of wedding favors are still appreciated, a bride is only limited to her imagination when it comes to selecting the gifts that will demonstrate esteem from the blessed couple.

Since the sixteenth century, bridegroom couples have been giving gifts to wedding guests as a gesture of gratitude for sharing in the beginning of their new life together. Today, gifts to the guests are known as wedding favors and are commonplace in ceremonies worldwide. The small gifts may vary according to the culture, wealth and the interests of the couple, or theme of the wedding. When it comes to the decision for the right wedding favor, the options are unlimited. A beautifully decorated placecard at the reception table, can make a lovely and inexpensive memento. For couples with larger budgets, a vintage bottle of wine with a personalized label is an excellent way of commemorating the event. Frequently a bride may select wedding favors intended to complement the décor of the reception table.

Wedding party favors are special gifts provided to members of the wedding party. The heartfelt gifts may be distributed by the bridegroom couple at the time of the rehearsal dinner or before the wedding, in appreciation for assistance in creating the couples memorable day. Like the wedding favors given to all guests, there are unlimited possibilities for these special gifts. Typically they may be specialized items of a higher dollar value and may be engraved with the name or monogram of the individual in the party.

A common denominator among all modern brides, regardless of cultural background or budget, is for the bride to take pride in the giving and selecting the right wedding favor. The majority of wedding details are bound by tradition or cost, but the wedding favor provides the bride a chance to show her personality and really consider what will delight her guests. Many reusable favors from candles, to statuary can be purchased for as little as a dollar each. Edible favors can be purchased or created for as little as fifty cents a personFree Reprint Articles, while maintaining the European tradition of giving confectionery delights.

Author: Reggie Andersen
Some couples do not give enough consideration to their wedding favors and this is quite unfortunate because the wedding favor is the one part of the wedding which your guests will take home as a reminder of your wedding. If you are getting married, more than likely you know that one part of your wedding planning is going to be coming up with wedding favors. However, you may be wondering why you need to give out wedding favors and what the history is behind them. Do you really need to spend your money on sending your guests away with a gift? Believe it or not, there is a long history behind this tradition; and yes, it is generally a great idea to give your guests a nice memento to remember your day by.

History of Wedding Favors Wedding favors have been around for hundreds of years; in fact, centuries ago, aristocrats in Europe, especially those in Italy and France, would provide their wedding guests home with a small gift, which was called a bonbonniere. Basically this was a small box that was made out of metal, porcelain, precious stones, of even crystal. There were various confections made of sugar inside of the boxes that the guests could enjoy after they had gone home.

Since weddings used to be seen as a lucky time, couples felt that they were passing on good luck to the guests at their wedding when they presented them with a bonbonniere. Most of the time the small boxes actually would contain five candies or almonds, which were to stand for wealth, longevity, fertility, happiness, and fertility.

What Wedding Favors Mean Today Today it is still considered appropriate to send your guests home with a gift in the form of wedding favors. It is actually considered to be bad manners if you do not give your guests some kind of wedding favor. Wedding favors for guests are made to be small tokens of appreciation for attending the wedding and they also serve as souvenirs from the wedding as well. Most couples want to be sure that people remember their special day, so they give out favors that are meaningful as their expression of appreciation.

Choosing Your Wedding Favors When it comes to choosing wedding favors for your wedding, there are a variety of ways you can go. You may want to go with traditional favors, ethnic favors, homemade favors, or even themed favors. Here are a few tips that can help you make the right choice for your wedding.

- Traditional Favors – You can present pieces of the bridegroom’s cake in beautiful boxes, picture frames with pictures of the couple, or even baked goods in lovely ribbon tied boxes

- Ethnic Favors – Some great ethnic favors include small bottles of Japanese saki, fortune cookies, marzipan candies from Scandinavia, or even Swiss chocolates.

- Homemade Favors – Some brides choose to make their own favors including beautiful tulle sachets filled with potpourri, wreaths made of herbs, homemade candles tied with ribbon, and bird houses that you can decorate yourself.