It’s fun to hand out wedding souvenirs to guests, but let’s face it; many of the options are pricey, especially when you multiply the number of items by the invitees. Luckily, there are many ways to create unique budget-friendly favors to commemorate your wedding day.
Homemade Snacks and Party Favors
Food is always popular, and you can prepare some tasty homemade trail mixes or granolas that will delight your wedding guests. Chances are, your friends and family members will consume these edible wedding gifts and party favors on their drives home. You can make a variety of snacks and let your guests choose, or stick to one kind and label the jars with:
* Wedding date
* Your new married names as Mr. and Mrs.
* A quote about love
* Description of contents, such as Granola or Trail Mix
Tiny Plants
Plants make eco-friendly souvenirs and party favors. You can opt for small succulents or flowers in tiny boxes or terra cotta pots that your guests can replant at home. Print each guest’s name on a label, affix the decal to one of the planters, and give this earth-friendly wedding souvenir. Plant tiny:
* Marigolds
* Aloe Vera
* Cactus
Regional Goodies
If your guests are traveling from far and near to attend your wedding, give them a taste-treat that’s native to your region. You can box or wrap up:
* Pralines for a Louisiana wedding
* Hot sauce for an Arizona ceremony
* BBQ sauce for a Texas event
* Coconut candies for a Hawaiian knot-tying ceremony
You can adorn these treat-packages with map cutouts or regional flags or labels.
Donations to Charity
If you want to donate to your favorite charity instead of buying trinkets for your guests, tag a functional item, such as a tape measure, with a note that says:
* “We gave to the Humane Society in your name!”
* “We donated in your honor to Meals on Wheels!”
Fun and Games
There are multiple ideas for wedding favors that could provide your guests with some fun and games in honor of your ceremony. For example, give them:
* A bottle of bubbles labeled with your wedding date and name
* A deck of personalized playing cards
* Paper glider-planes that say, “Love is all you need” on them
Housewares
One last category to consider when looking for memorable but fairly inexpensive wedding-guest gifts is housewares. There are several items to consider including personalized:
* Glasses
* Coaster
* Refrigerator magnets
* Wine bottle stopper/cork
* Bottle opener
When you plan your wedding and reception, your budget totals will add up quickly, including the cost of guest souvenirs. With some creativity, however, you can give fun and memorable items that won’t crash your event budget, but will still give your guests pleasure when they receive the gifts.
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These are all good idea and I never thought to make the paper glider planes or personalized playing cards. One could get the men involved in making these to help out. Other local ideas would be reusable personalized jars of different types of honey or maple syrup.
Any idea that reduces the costs of weddings is a great idea. I really don’t know when people decided weddings needed to be so grand, lol. Why does everyone need to take home a souvenir?
At the last wedding I attended they had tiny plants to take home which I thought was a super nice idea. I like the other ideas on the list but I too think the donations one is a good idea.
There are lots of very good ideas here. Weddings can be very expensive and always good to stay within the budget
Love the idea of putting the trail mix or treat in jars or bags that are personalized. That would be cheaper than trying to buy personalized candy and cakes for them. Plus, giving treats that are for your native area or special to you as a couple really makes it special too.
It seems like the wedding expenses never seem to end. I love the donation idea that you listed above. I also love the housewares ideas that you shared. I have spent so much money on other people’s weddings which are all divorced now. I just don’t get that excited anymore and now I never want to be involved.