Favours

Favours, bombonierres, thank you gifts - whatever you want to call them. I don't think it matters a great deal if you don't even want to do them.  But, if you do, and you are after something that requires no effort but fits in with your theme once again etsy is a good place to start.   Here are some ideas that caught my eye:

Personlised forget-me-not seeds

Pocket mirror

Personalised box of foil wrapped chocolate hearts

Mini tubes of French green clay mud mask (wow!)

Teabag in it's own little envelope with a doily on the front - so cute!

BBQ spice rub

Wooden heart magnets

Mini soaps in your choice of colour

Customised magnets                              

Or Pink Frosting  and Wedding Favours Australia have a large range and you can search by colour and/or theme.  However, some of these ideas, although gorgeous, aren't cheap.  So if you are budget conscious you may want to go down the DIY road.

I decided to do something really simple that I hoped would add to the presentation of the table and be useful to my guests.  I used yellow and white striped bags from Paper Eskimo and filled them with mixed lollies, and called it a midnight snack.  So easy, no skill required and who doesn't need a bit of a sugar hit in the taxi on the way home after a few drinks?!  I bought round Avery sticker sheets  so I could print out a little thankyou message for the backs of the bags - these stickers are very easy to use, they come with access to online templates, but you will need a laser printer (they smudged on my inkjet one).
If it was my only DIY project, I really would have liked to fill them with something I had baked - biscuits or little cakes.  But I had enough to do already, and using lollies meant I could put them in zip lock bags and do them way in advance.  They also doubled as the seat numbers, with each one individually numbered as we had one long table.

(All photos by Lauren Waye)

There are SO many ideas online for DIY favours.  Some good sites to start would be "i do" it yourself , Intimate Weddings and Martha Stewart weddings (I know, but trust me). "i do" it yourself and Intimate Weddings are really good blogs that constantly round up other people's great ideas and put them all in  the one place for you .  I still can't believe how many clever people there are out there that share their skills for FREE.  Here's a few great ideas I've come across

Daisy lollipops How sweet, and I did't know you could eat daisies!

Seasonal fruit in bags

Come with a free printable label

Choc chip cookies in CD sleeves

Chocolate bars for these you just remove the original packaging and replace it with your own colour co-ordinated paper 

Potted succulents if you were very organised and had time on your side, these plants produce heaps of off shoots meaning you wouldn't have to buy a plant for each guest - divide and conquer!

Free CD template

Rosemary sea salt with customised labels

And that is such a small selection.  See what I mean about the generosity of some people??

You can also buy some of the Martha Stewart range from Spotlight stores in Australia, such as little boxes and wine/water bottle labels.

One other idea I would have loved to use is seed impregnated paper -that way the escort cards/name cards could double as favours, and such an ever lasting gift.  Paper go round sell sheets of paper impregnated with Lemon-scented bottlebrush seeds.  Scrub Australia have gone one step further and make love heart shaped tags that have your name and the date printed on them, and you can choose from alyssum, chamomile, oregano, lettuce, swan river daisy or thyme seeds.  Then all the guests have to do is take their name cards home, plant and water them.  Eco-friendly too!