Ideas for Travel Destination Favors and Wedding Gift Bags

You have finalized travel arrangements and booked hotels for your destination wedding. Now you are deciding what kind of travel destination favors to give your guests and how to present them. This article provides wedding favor ideas for your destination wedding guests.

You want your destination wedding to be a memorable and enjoyable occasion. One way to ensure your guests get the most out of their hotel stay for your wedding weekend is to give them a wedding gift bag or out-of-town bag, also called OOT bags, filled with goodies and neat treats upon their arrival at the hotel rooms.

Wedding Gift Bags can be filled with anything from bottled water and snacks to miniature bottles of champagne and a set of plastic toasting glasses with a few fine chocolates and a scented candle. A small travel sewing kit is a winner every time. You will not believe how many of your guests will thank you for this wonderful and practical gift. It is not uncommon for guests to comment on how their sewing kit saved the day when they used it to sew on a button that popped off from a suit or dress just before your wedding.

Another idea is to research the local customs and favorite cuisines around the area of your destination wedding. Local travel pamphlets about area attractions are free in most areas. Simply contact the chamber of commerce for the area where your wedding will take place. Your travel agent is also a great resource for finding small favors to add to your wedding gift bags.

An 8″ x 5″ x 10″ paper or poly gift bag is the most common size used as gift bags. Ask the hotel host or hostess to place one of these bags on the vanity or night stand of each hotel room, welcoming your guests to your city or an exotic island or location. You may also want to make arrangements for your gift bags to be handed out by the host or hostess as your guests check in to the hotel.

You will probably want to assemble your guest welcome bags and box them up before you leave for your destination. This will make it easy to transport and deliver to your hotel. In some cases, you may want to wait until you have arrived at your wedding location so you can purchase local goodies to add to your bags. Another option is to check with your hotel to see if they have staff available to set up the gift bags for you.

Your wedding guests will be delighted to find the treasures that await them when they check in to their hotel rooms. Add a personal message by having your wedding gift bags custom printed with a personal message from the bride and groom saying “Welcome to Our Wedding Weekend” or “Thank You for Joining Us” along with the bride and grooms names and wedding date.

No matter what you decide to give as destination wedding favors, your guests will appreciate this token of your gratitude for their participation on your most special day.

About the Author: Ray Miller is the founder and president of My Wedding Reception Ideas.com. My Wedding Reception Ideas specializes in premium personalized wedding favors, accessories, and wedding party gifts. For more information on choosing and ordering wedding gift bags for your reception or party, visit My Wedding Reception Ideas.com.

Fall in Love with Festive Fall Wedding Favors

When it comes to picking favors, seasonal products still give you limitless options. And fall wedding favors are no different! There are candle holders, bottle stoppers, bookmarks, champagne flutes, and so many more things that are designed specifically for autumn themed weddings.

Fall is the season of rich colors, warm lighting, and cozy, inviting spaces – all the things you want to emulate throughout your wedding day and reception. And it’s easy to carry on that theme with appropriately selected fall wedding favors – favors that evoke the spirit of the season and give your guests a beautiful reminder of your wedding day.

When choosing fall wedding favors, remember your theme or color set. Bright yellow sunflowers are always big for autumn themed weddings as are rich red, brown, yellow, and orange autumn leaves. However, fall wedding favors with bright, deep colors will help set the stage at each person’s plate setting. But today’s bride wants to give more than just mints or candy; she wants to offer her guests a little gift to thank them for coming – one that is not only functional but well worth the price.

Our Favorite Favors for Autumn Themed Weddings

Here are our favorite fall wedding favors that incorporate both the beauty of the season and show your guests how much you appreciate them coming!

1. Wildflower Seed Favors: Give your guests a way to look forward to warmer weather – as well as integrate more green initiatives into their routine – with wildflower or tree seed favors. The younger set will especially love this, and it will give them a chance to plant a beautiful garden with the help of their parents. Seed favors are ideal for environmentally-friendly brides and grooms who want to make a difference at their autumn themed weddings or simply serve as a way for couples to celebrate the birth of something new.

2. Glass Coaster Sets: Everyone loves coasters. They keep furniture free from water stains and can be customized with names, dates, or special pictures as well as pastoral fall scenes that are the perfect backdrop to autumn themed weddings. We suggest glass in particular because it fits with almost everyone’s design scheme and is a decidedly elegant option for fall wedding favors.

3. Wine Bottle Stoppers & Bottle Openers: Functionality is the name of the game for many brides who are shopping for autumn wedding favors. And guests love favors that they can use. Many wine bottle stoppers or bottle openers are painted in lovely, vibrant fall colors or are embellished with a beautiful sunflower or autumn leaf as the decoration.

4. Fall-themed Photo Albums: Many couples nowadays provide disposable cameras at each table so guests can snap away at events the bride and groom may have missed. If you and your loved one are more sentimental about the images your guests capture, why not provide everyone with a fall-themed photo album, so they can put their own pictures from the wedding in it? And whenever they browse through the album, they’ll remember your happy day and the role they played in it.

5. Cookie Cutters: With the holidays right around the corner, cookie cutters – either in autumnal shapes or other fun shapes you choose (hearts, doves, stars) – are an excellent gift to give guests at autumn themed weddings. After all, functionality plays a role – and your guests will admire your “good taste” when they find these lovely keepsake fall wedding favors at their plates.

6. Candles and/or Tea Light Holders: Flickering candle light is oh-so-romantic, so shouldn’t you share that essence of fall with your guests? Adorn your reception tables with pretty fall leaf shaped candle or tea light holder, and you’ll be hearing, “What a wonderful favor!” all night long. These fall wedding favors allow your guests to bring the memories of your special day as well as the warmth of fall into their home.

Autumn Themed Weddings Are Meant to Be Warm, Cozy Affairs

The mystery and beauty of the fall season creates the perfect setting for autumn themed weddings. Fall is the season of transformation – an ideal that likely carries over into your marriage vows. From invitations and decorations to the cake and gown, you have all of your ducks in a row so to speak. But choosing fall wedding favors doesn’t have to be complicated, and you certainly don’t have to match your theme exactly. Just don’t forget to spice up each table at the reception with thoughtfully chosen wedding favors that showcase the fall season – and your wedding’s style – appropriately!

About the Author: Cherie Johnson is the founder and owner of Creative Bride, a one-stop shop for personalized, unique baby and bridal shower, graduation, quinceañera, anniversary, and wedding favors, helping countless couples and families make their big events a success. Cherie’s wedding advice has appeared on several websites including Women Of, Wedding Lenox, and The Wedding Guide. Before she launched her company in 2006, Cherie worked as a professional wedding photographer, capturing the most special moments of the bride and groom’s big day. For more information on Creative Bride or to find a variety of colorful, customizable gifts and favors, please visit www.Creative-Bride.com.

Top Ten Unique and Personalized Wedding Favors

If coming up with creative wedding planning ideas has made you ready to pull your hair out, relax. From personalized wedding favors and decorations to the menu choices, there are many directions you can take your wedding. Your wedding favors especially, though a charming, memorable keepsake from your big day, shouldn’t trip you up when you’re this close to the finish line. If you haven’t quite decided which direction to take your favors, try drawing inspiration from your wedding planning ideas, including your theme, colors, or seasonal influences. If you’re hosting an autumn wedding, place delicate, golden leaf bookmarks by each guest’s place card. For a fun, festive Las Vegas wedding, embellish the table with poker chip key chains or a fresh pack of cards printed with a design of your choosing on the back.

Because wedding favors are a thoughtful way to help guests remember the loving couple long after the big day, choosing unique and/or personalized wedding favors that are usable or decorative guarantees that your friends and family will derive a longer shelf-life from them. Brides are getting much more creative, however, and are opting not to stick to the usual tried-and-true wedding planning ideas. Instead of hum-drum wedding favors, couples are giving guests items they can use again and again.

Customizable Mementos

There’s no doubt about it – people like items that they can make their own, and personalized wedding favors are always sure to be a big success. Nowadays, you can customize your wedding from top to bottom – from ribbons, boxes, and bows to signs, tags, and labels; in fact, just about any of your creative wedding planning ideas are possible. So, why not make your favors just as special?

1. Personality Boxes: One of the best wedding planning ideas in a bride’s arsenal! Wrapped with an elegant bow and often containing useful trinkets like bottle openers, coasters, demitasse spoons, letter openers, and measuring spoons, there’s always something for a guest to love! Customize your wedding even more by purchasing an assortment of these personalized wedding favors, letting guests choose which favor they’d like to take home. Personality boxes are a lovely, personalized way to say thank you for coming.

2. Photo Place Cards & Albums: In vibrant colors, patterns, and fabrics, photo place cards and photo albums are an attractive addition to any reception table. Whether you choose to customize these personalized wedding favors with photos of you and the intended or leave them blank for guests to supply their own memorable pictures, photo place cards and albums help guests remember your happy day.

3. Luggage Tags: What a great favor for couples always on the go! With unique shapes and colors, personalized luggage tags remind guests of the wanderlust couple in a fun way. These personalized wedding favors are also great for a destination event, thanking guests for traveling so far and helping them get home in style.

4. Sticky Notes & Pads: Customize your sticky notes and pads with your wedding colors and the names of the happy couple or a quote that sums up your feelings about the wedding day. Your guests will think of you each time they jot down a quick note on one of these personalized wedding favors.

Around the House

Usability is a key element for wedding favors. But wrapped up in sheer organza and elegant designs, ‘around the house’ objects become lovely complements to your wedding reception. With a range of new, unique, and/or personalized wedding favors on the market, such as pizza cutters, honey pots, timers, ice cream scoops, piggy banks, and olive oil dispensers, brides are finding creative ways to thank their guests.

5. Wine Bottle Stoppers: For wine lovers, there’s no better gift than wine bottle stoppers. With sophisticated designs, such as snowflakes, hearts, seashells, leaves, and stars, and durable, quality materials, such as crystal and sterling silver, wine bottle stoppers can be coordinated with all of your other wedding planning ideas to match your theme perfectly.

6. Coasters: From picture-ready slots to sweet sayings or elegantly etched images, coasters are not only useful but beautiful as well. In glass, ceramic, or cork, uniquely designed and/or personalized wedding favors like coasters capture your wedding day and let your guests reminisce.

7. Candles: Whether scented or not, candles have always been favorite wedding favors for guests and brides alike. Available in any conceivable color, design, or shape, candles will certainly be used and enjoyed by your guests.

8. Tea Light Holders: Along with candles, tea light holders get a lot of use. And best of all, you can choose the design you like when formulating your wedding planning ideas! For weddings at sea, silvery sailboats are an excellent choice; for tropical destination weddings, your guests will reminisce over your frosted glass palm trees. Small, elegant, and useful are the hallmarks of a tea light holder, a staple for unique and/or personalized wedding favors.

9. Bookmarks: Help them keep their stopping point in style with bookmark favors. Match the designs and materials to your wedding planning ideas and/or themes and colors for a stylish addition to your reception.

10. Soaps: Encased in satin or organza, your soap favors are a chic way to thank your guests for their attendance. With lovely designs, your guests may even be reluctant to use them.

About the Author

Cherie Johnson is the founder and owner of Creative Bride, a one-stop shop for a large selection of baby and bridal shower, graduation, quinceañera, anniversary, and wedding favors. Since starting the company in 2006, Cherie has helped countless couples and families make their big events a success. Prior to Creative Bride, she worked as a professional wedding photographer, capturing the most special moments of the bride and groom’s big day. To find favors and gifts for your upcoming event, please visit www.Creative-Bride.com

HELPFUL TIPS ON CHOOSING THE RIGHT WEDDING FAVORS FOR YOUR GUESTS

Since we were little girls, all of us dream of having a fairy tale wedding.  We used to imagine what kind of gown we would want to wear at our wedding, what kind of theme we would want to have and many other things. When the day is actually coming closer, there are so many details to take care of and it could sometimes become rather overwhelming.  Choosing where to hold the reception, shopping for the wedding gown, thinking about decorations and arranging food for the guests are just a few of many items that come along with this celebration of love. And of course, all of us want to make our wedding the most memorable wedding for ourselves, families, as well as for the rest of the guests.

Giving out wedding favors as a display of true appreciation is a long standing tradition.  Everything that is seen at the wedding: from the reception place to the menu, will be certainly enjoyed on this special day. However, it is the wedding favor that will make the wedding to be remembered for a long time. So picking out the right favor is extremely important.  But with a great number of options out there for these little tokens of love and appreciation, sometimes, it could cost a tremendous amount of time to decide which one to choose.

So, where do we start on deciding which wedding favors to choose?  Here are some pointers to help us decide the right favors for our guests.

By determining the theme and personality of the wedding beforehand, picking the appropriate wedding favors should be as easy as an ABC.

Flowers, Flowers, Flowers! What is something that is most remembered about the wedding besides the brides’ gown and the food?  Of course, flower arrangements – since they primarily define the theme of the wedding – Remember that different flowers represent various meanings of love. By choosing something like charming calla lily bouquet candles, calla lily photo frames or even calla lily design napkin holders as a favor can accent the symbols of beauty and exquisiteness of the wedding.  A traditional yet timeless long stem rose crystal can enhance the elegance and romance of the magnificent wedding. Or if we want to intensify passion and exoticism, orchids gel candles or scented orchid-shape soap will be one of the most appropriate favors to share this special moment of your life.

If we are one of the practical types, we may want to start our wedding favors selection by thinking about practical items such as key chains, coasters, CD cases and many more.  One good thing about choosing practical wedding favors is that the guests will be using them often, and thus, our wedding will be remembered every time they use the favors we handed out.  But some of us may think that practical items may not be as lovely as other decorative favors. We could, for sure, scratch that idea since there are so many items with sophistication and perfection. Who can deny a cute sandal shaped notepad that can go with a beach theme or even a chic jewelry pouch; not to mention a sweet pair of silver pear shaped salt and pepper shaker that could definitely leave our guests in awe.

But wait. There are more to come.  Some of us even want to go beyond the most common favors simply because we want to add more fun and attitude to the splendor of this ceremony.  For instance, those who have passion for western theme could choose a shooter charm that enriches a personal touch of entertainment. Or perhaps choosing a unique ethnic theme such as a coaster painted with the word “love” in Chinese or Spanish will make the favors more exclusive and meaningful.

In short, most of us may think that choosing a wedding favor can be time consuming.  But it does not have to be that much work once we have some tips on where to start. Always remember that it is the company of friends and family that make a wedding memorable. Rewarding those who come to share your special day with a thoughtful favor gift is a wonderful way to show your appreciation.

About the Author:

Blue Rainbow Design
Wedding Favors & Bridal Gift Ideas
www.BlueRainbowDesign.com

Info@BlueRainbowDesign.com