Saturday, January 12, 2008

5 Quick Suggestions for Cheap Wedding Favors

Many brides wonder if cheap wedding favors will look, well, cheap! But in reality, there are some really simple things you can do to either purchase, dress up, or make your own cheap wedding favors that will leave a lasting impression with your guests. Here are 5 quick and simple suggestions:

Small photo frames.

Go to any dollar store or discount store and do a little rummaging, and you're sure to find small photo frames that are actually quite lovely, and which will fit the theme of your wedding. For instance, if you're having an autumn wedding, opt for nice wooden frames. For more traditional weddings, there are probably silver or gold frames. Small photo frames are a great option as cheap wedding favors because virtually everyone can use them - on their desk at work, on a small corner of their nightstand, or on a bookshelf.

Wooden boxes.

Most craft stores carry small wooden boxes that are either hinged or have a matching lid. These make lovely and cheap wedding favors if you paint or stain them, or are still affordable if they're already finished. Most people have a use for small boxes as storage for their desk or drawers. If you really want to dress them up, print out a personal message in a lovely font and leave it inside. While wooden boxes may seem like cheap wedding favors, they're really very unique and quite practical, and some stores even carry heart-shaped ones for an added touch.

Boxes of chocolates.

Sure, you can spend hundreds and even thousands on designer chocolates or bonbons, but this isn't really necessary. More affordable brands such as Russell Stover, Whitman's, or Fannie Mae are still very tasty, and most have small sample boxes you can purchase for around a dollar each. Or, buy some plain boxes from the stationery or gift supply store and some chocolates from a local baker and assemble your own. These types of cheap wedding favors look better when they're dressed up with some nice wrapping paper and ribbon, which is also usually very affordable.

Bags of candy.

We're not talking about something you buy at the store but bags of chocolates, Jordan almonds, mints, or another candy that you put together yourself. Assembling these types of things are always great options for cheap wedding favors because you save so much money by doing it yourself. If there's a bulk food store near you, get some prices on a few pounds of candy, along with the type of bag you want. Tulle or netting is good, and can be tied with a silk ribbon or one made from crystal beads for an added touch; both can be found at a fabric store. You can use wax paper bags and seal them with a personalized label. When selecting this option for a cheap wedding favor, you might want to purchase just enough for one or two bags and then see how much candy goes into each bag - for example, if it's 4 ounces per bag, and there's 16 ounces in a pound, you know that a pound of candy will fill up four bags. If you have 150 guests, you will need about 40 pounds of candy (it's always a good idea to purchase a bit more than you need just to be sure). If the candy is $2 per pound, that's $80 for the candy alone.

Remember, even cheap wedding favors can start to add up, so do some comparison shopping and crunch some numbers before you actually make a decision.

Personalized candy bar wrappers.

If you choose the right personalized candy bar wrappers from the right company, you're sure to find ones that are perfect for the theme of your wedding and that can be kept in a scrapbook or album for years to come. They work even better as cheap wedding favors if you buy just the wrapper and assemble the bars yourself. They can also be used in place of a centerpiece if you arrange them in a circle in the middle of the table, or can dress up a table without a centerpiece, saving you even more money.

With a little bit of thought and imagination, you'll see that you can find just the right cheap wedding favors that will be appreciated and treasured by your guests.

By LINDA ELLISON
Source: http://www.amazines.com/Relationships/article_detail.cfm/397188?articleid=397188

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