Most useful wedding favor you ever received?! :)

LoveLee2014

What is the most useful wedding favor you have ever been gifted from a wedding you attended???

We want to give favors but If I am spending the money I want something people will keep around, any ideas?

One idea I had: I am a big recycle fan, and I have these reusable bags in fun patterns that I LOVE, literally use all the time: grocery store, food/snacks for on the go, wet swimsuit for pool/boat, trash can for wrappers in my car, when I travel I put my shampoo and stuff in it incase it leaks.....I use one about every day. If I could find these at cost, I think it would be a great wedding favor??? Sound weird? haha

 

Half the time, people forget the wedding favors on the table...unless its something super awesome/yummy!

chibiyui

The most useful favor was the one I ate.

tammym1001

I've never received a favor that was useful. Even a lot of the edible ones I don't really care for. We are giving out bottles of wine as favors. Alcohol is always to me, but even that won't appeal to everyone.

LarraO2530

I've never been to a wedding that hasn't given edible favors. I like the idea of a reusable, fun bag, I was trying to come up with a cost effective and practical favor also, and have a few ideas. FI and I are planning on a photobooth, and I have some other ideas such as flip-flop/palm tree shaped bottle openers, or wedding color specialty drink glasses, and things of that nature as many of our guests like beer/wine/cocktails. These would go far with our guests.

mysticl

I have never gotten a useful favor at a wedding.  

AddieCake

I agree with PPs. The only thing "useful" was that I could eat it. 

[Deleted User]

I prefer ones I can eat. But if you really want to do something that will get your guests to remember your wedding after the fact, what about something that made out of paper that has flower seeds in the paper & then they can plant the favor & when the flowers bloom they will think of you. Now if they live in an apartment, it might not work so well for that guest. I was going to go this route but with having a November wedding in Ohio, I figured by time the guests could plant the seeds the following spring, they would have forgotten they even have them.

LoveLee2014

Thank you for taking the time to post....looks like an yummy food favor?! 

I'm just really blanking out on original ideas.  I enjoy the flower idea, but my sister did that at her wedding already....and I never planted it! LOL I'm trying to not do everything she did. 

theartistformerlyknownas

The only favor I've ever kept is photobooth strips. Otherwise the only way something is useful to me is if I eat it.

cassgh

I went to a wedding where the favor was a mix CD of the couple's favorite songs - it was really nice being able to pop it in on the drive home!

atlastmrsg

Mini bottles of champagne.  Loved that!  I don't take those reusable shopping bags when I'm at a fair/festival/conference and they have them.  I have a ton stuffed under my kitchen sink.  I don't want more.  Not to mention, those are kind of big.  Might be hard to display nicely for guests to take with them, short of slinging them over each dinner chair, which would not look neat and tidy.

csuave

I have never gotten a favor that I considered useful (unless you count food/wine).

I have kept photos around from the photobooth.

I get what you are saying about wanting something practical; I am one of the most practical people you could meet.  But even practical me doesn't think going that route is a good idea for wedding favors for two reasons:

1. Practical gifts do not have a wide appeal.  What is useful to one person is not going to be useful to another.

2. In my marketing class we talked about the psychology of prizes.  People would much rather have a prize that was a tiny luxury than something practical.  It is an opportunity to splurge without guilt.  While a favor is not a prize I think the same concept applies.  It is something nice and extra that guests may not be expecting.  Even if someone likes a reusable bag if they are caught up in the fun of your wedding they will probably like something like an slightly indulgent chocolate covered oreo much better.

KPBM89

Favors from the last weddings I've been to:

-Shot glass with their names on it: yes, it reminds me of their day, but I would've preferred it say something else like "Lucky in Love" (they met at a casino) so at least I wouldn't have other people's names on something in my cabinet.

-Dinner mints in a tiny bucket: they were gone after I ate, but I kept the little bucket b/c I still use it and it reminds me of their day.

-Salt water taffy, swedish fish, fish candies (beachy wedding): I enjoyed that they were edible and fit their wedding theme.  They also had a photobooth so we have the strips from that.

-Coffee mug with their names on it: Again, I'm reminded of their day, but I don't really need Sandy and Bruce on my mug.  A more effective gift while still being coffee related?  Plain mug filled with candy.

-Mini jar of honey: we loved this favor because FI and I actually love honey.  We used both of our little jars within a month of their wedding.

I personally don't care if a gift is physical or edible, as I enjoy both and expect nothing at all.  We have tons of those reusable bags, and we use them all the time.  I would keep it if it were a favor.  We try to be as green as we can in our home, but I know a lot of people are not.

We're having a photobooth and candy bar, so people will have photo strips and candy.  We're also giving out candles that are shaped like a peach (unscented) and matches to represent us because we moved to Georgia together.  Our guests will be have edible (the candy bar) and physical (candle) favors.  I consider the candles to be useful and have a meaning tied to us as a couple, and I understand if anyone leaves theirs behind because they don't want another candle.

LoveLee2014

.....the shot glass was something I was considering but did not want it to say our names...LOL I also get things with other peoples names on it and think, "if it did not have the name i would actually use it!" 

We are also doing a photo booth, with the 'video' option that guest can record UP TO a 20 second video for us....HAHAHAH I kind of can't wait to see it already. I plan on my husband and I to make a few also...how sweet!  

All great comments, thank you. 

Grabows14

We are doing honey after much deliberation. I feel the same way as you do about the usefulness. Even the ones that I thought would be useful haven't been. And the last wedding I went to someone swiped our shot glasses lol. 

doshshirl

I received an exquisite wedding favor from my best friend. It's a charm with glow-in-the-dark vials which I can wear it on my charm bracelet. My husband received a keychain bead with the same rainbow vials. Heard that these items are handmade. Very practical and unique indeed.

ShellD13

Our wedding is very small (14 for reception including FI and myself) but many of our guests are traveling from out of town.  So instead of favors beign given out at dinner following our ceremony, we are distributing our favors at the welcome/rehearsal dinner - a half dozen doughnuts from our favorite local bakery.  The way I look at it is is a thank you for attending but it can also serve as breakfast for the folks staying in hotels the morning of or after the wedding. 

vh2014

I actually have some coasters I got from a wedding once that I use all the time.  But only because the person I went with didn't want theirs and gave them to me so I had a set. AND they didn't have the bride and grooms name on them, just a pretty pattern.  I also have a wine stopper that I like too.  Again, just a heart, nothing personalized. We got a deck of cards once with names on them.  I thought it was weird to have someone else's name on them but we actually used them and left them out of the box (names were only on the box) Not much of a candy person so those usually go to someone else. The only ones I actually remember are some chocolate seashells in a bucket of brown sugar "sand" because I thought it was cute... and a huge waste of brown sugar. 

As PP said what is useful and desirable to one person will be left behind by someone else. Don't do favors because you "have to"- you don't.  If it adds to the decor and your own personal fun and is in the budget without being at the expense of properly hosting your guests... go for it.  And regardless of what you choose, expect a good number of them to be left behind.

kmmssg

ShellD13 said:

Our wedding is very small (14 for reception including FI and myself) but many of our guests are traveling from out of town.  So instead of favors beign given out at dinner following our ceremony, we are distributing our favors at the welcome/rehearsal dinner - a half dozen doughnuts from our favorite local bakery.  The way I look at it is is a thank you for attending but it can also serve as breakfast for the folks staying in hotels the morning of or after the wedding. 

SCORE!!!  I would love that idea!  Also, keep in mind that it is perfectly fine to skip favors altogether.

I sucked into that 30.00 Groupon on M&Ms a couple of months ago and then they ran a one day 30% one day sale. I ended up with 7 pounds of M&Ms for DDs wedding in her colors.  Well, we really expected a high turnout but we will be at about 54%ish.  I hope they all REALLY like M&Ms (along with the homemade cookie bar to make your own favor).

You really can skip the whole thing though but I am in Heaven when I see truffles.

jenndeirdre

The only wedding favour I ever kept was they made CDs with songs they both liked with their picture on the cover.

[Deleted User]

anything chocolate

dcaviston

A mason jar "wine glass". It was a 6 oz mason jar hot glued to a glass candle stick. I got home got out the goo gone separated it back into its original pieces used the mason jar for canning and the candle stick for what its intended for.

Jen4948

No favor at all.

bucksgirl414

The photo booth has a video reply......THATS AWESOME!!

sarahs616

booze!

cmorino12

Small bottles of whiskey for the gentlemen & small bottles of champagne or wine for the ladies.