Candy Buffet Questions

Beth0882

I am planning a candy buffet for approx. 150 guests, and thought I'd get some input from you ladies who have either already had a candy buffet, or who are planning one and are ahead of me in planning!

(1)  How much candy did you have per guest?  Was it enough?

(2) Where did you get your candy? 

(3) What type of bags or boxes did you use (for the guests to take the candy) and where did you get them?


**Also, if you don't mind sharing costs, that would be great, either in response or a PM, that would be awesome!

Thanks in advance!

FutureMrsFraser

I'm getting our candy from a southern season in chapel hill and from BJ's. It's so much cheaper at BJ's. I had planned on getting all matchy matchy candy in our colors, but in the end, we wouldn't have alot of candy we really liked, so I tossed that idea.

I just bought some clear treat bags from Michaels.

I haven't figured out how much to buy yet though, still working on that.

pirategal03

Wouldn't how much you need depend on how large your container is?  If you have a 6oz container and 150 guests, you'd need enough candy to fill 150 6oz containers plus a little extra so there's some variety, right?

Beth0882

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_north-carolina_candy-buffet-questions?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:115Discussion:f6b915a2-4c75-4491-8365-fdb4bd179a08Post:2027bce5-1833-442a-ac54-2b951afa83ca">Re: Candy Buffet Questions</a>:
[QUOTE]Wouldn't how much you need depend on how large your container is?  If you have a 6oz container and 150 guests, you'd need enough candy to fill 150 6oz containers plus a little extra so there's some variety, right?
Posted by pirategal03[/QUOTE]

Maybe -- I've read different things, like x pounds per guest, or just go based on size of container. So if container size is the way to figure it, I guess another question would be how small is too small for a container?

Beth0882

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_north-carolina_candy-buffet-questions?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:115Discussion:f6b915a2-4c75-4491-8365-fdb4bd179a08Post:943602de-6fe2-4d50-a04e-66bc7a2c9aec">Re: Candy Buffet Questions</a>:
[QUOTE]It's so much cheaper at BJ's. IPosted by FutureMrsFraser[/QUOTE]

What/Where is BJs? 

FutureMrsFraser

BJ's is like Sam's or Costco. We have one in Brier Creek (in Raleigh)

wlfpkbride

There's also a BJ's at Crossroads in Cary near Petsmart. When I still lived in the area I used to get free day passes/60 day passes in the mail or newspapers all the time. 

elizabethb3511

I'm using All You Can Treat (Charlotte).  I have about the same in regards to guests and they are are doing between 7 and 10 containers but I don't know how many pounds. 

Pinky09

(1)  How much candy did you have per guest?  Was it enough?
I just bought 3 big jars, 3 small jars full of candy for a 75 person wedding. I didn't have a set amount for each person, I just wanted a nice set up.
(2) Where did you get your candy? 
Walmart, some candy store at Crabtree Mall (near the food court) and Lindor Truffle store at Crabtree too!
(3) What type of bags or boxes did you use (for the guests to take the candy) and where did you get them? I just bought clear baggies from Target, with some ribbon.

The candy bar wasn't as big of a hit as I thought it would be. We had about 1 big jar of candy left, so I wouldn't go over board with the candy amount. I would just have a nice selection of things. 

Total amount for Everything = $120ish

ChickenOnSunday

Have you  looked at Fresh Market?? They sell candy in bulk. Might be able to do a special order for you. I think it is $4.99 a pound and a pretty good variety. I made myself a little goodie bag after placing my bulk flower order. It was well worth it!

brokenhallelujah

I didn't have an exact measurement of candy to buy per person, but for my 50 person wedding I had a LOT of candy and I have a lot left over. I would decide what your take-home container will be & then decide from there how much to buy based on how much candy it'll hold. I ended up using those cone shaped treat bags & then placed out ribbon that said 'From the Mr. & Mrs.' for people to tie their bag with. I also placed out a sample bag for people to get an idea of what to do.

Overall I had about 10 or 11 different types of candy (counting the lollipops which I only had a few of b/c they were mostly for decor). I got most if locally buying candy when I saw it on sale or at Big Lots/Dollar Tree & then just freezing it or placing it in airtight containers to keep it fresh. I also made those pretzels and was planning on having homemade fudge as well, but it didn't come out.

I was mostly going for a fun variety and the look of the candy bar more than anything. But it definitely did it's job & people to ok lots of candy home with them & loved it. I would buy bigger bags if I were to do it over again so people can end up taking more home with them.

Here's a picture of just part of my candy buffet:

tarheelbabs

Also, it looks like some of you are getting married close to Halloween.  If you can find some wrapped candies you like, you can give the leftovers away to trick or treaters.

Beth0882

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_north-carolina_candy-buffet-questions?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:115Discussion:f6b915a2-4c75-4491-8365-fdb4bd179a08Post:5acd8fad-e365-4de0-a94c-8e90d2932657">Re: Candy Buffet Questions</a>:
[QUOTE]Also, it looks like some of you are getting married close to Halloween.  If you can find some wrapped candies you like, you can give the leftovers away to trick or treaters.
Posted by tarheelbabs[/QUOTE]

Ooo good idea.  We will be on our HM over Halloween still but at least we could give the candy out to our parents and in-town friends and not feel wasteful!  (and not risk gaining 25 pounds immediately post-wedding due to all the candy sitting around!)

brokenhallelujah

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_north-carolina_candy-buffet-questions?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:115Discussion:f6b915a2-4c75-4491-8365-fdb4bd179a08Post:fa065a1a-9c72-486d-836a-040a01b37b35">Re: Candy Buffet Questions</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: Candy Buffet Questions : Ooo good idea.  We will be on our HM over Halloween still but at least we could give the candy out to our parents and in-town friends and not feel wasteful!  (and not risk gaining 25 pounds immediately post-wedding due to all the candy sitting around!)
Posted by Beth0882[/QUOTE]

I brought tons of left overs to work so that if I get fat, everyone around me will get fat, too. ;) Have fun planning the candy buffet. It was one of my favorite things at the wedding because I was so proud of it.

keserzan

1)  How much candy did you have per guest?  Was it enough?
I figured about 1/4 to 1/2 lb of candy per guest, but ordered based on a guestimate of 200 guests. In the end, we had 178 guests, and overall we had enough. We had some left over, but it was dependent on the type of candy. M&Ms were a hit and were gone, as were the gummi rings, malted milk balls, jelly beans and several others. We had chocolate covered sunflower seeds, taffy, and tootsie rolls left over. Here is a picture of ours.





(2) Where did you get your candy? 
I ordered my candy through Candy Warehouse (www.candywarehouse.com). It comes in large quantities which worked well for us, and then we used a coupon code because of our "bulk" order, and saved even more.

(3) What type of bags or boxes did you use (for the guests to take the candy) and where did you get them?
I ordered tin tie bags (bakers bags) from Nashville Wraps (www.nashvillewraps.com) and printed my own stickers for the front of the bags. I think they turned out really cute. I got the stickers from Labels by the Sheet online.

Our cost of the candy was about $2.50 per guest - not counting the cost of the glassware or the bags. I went elaborate on the glassware though because I knew we just bought a new house, and I wanted to use the pieces to decorate - which I'm glad I did.

alliegator8

I know Oriental Trading company sells all kinds of candy.  I'm not doing a candy buffet, but I just ordered some decorations from them and all the candy looked good on the website.

swimher14

1)  How much candy did you have per guest?  Was it enough?
I figured about 1/3 lb per person. I had read 1/4lb and 1/2lb so I just went in the middle. I estimated mine on 150 guests and we had about 130 there. We didn't have much left over, people attacked ours. I think it depends on the guests and the types of candies. We had a lot of candy corn and jelly beans left but all the chocolate candy was gone. We had 12 different types, and at the end I had some of 4 of the types left, but definitely not a ton left over.

(2) Where did you get your candy? 
I got most of it at http://www.bulkfoods.com/ It was cheaper and shipped really quick. I got a few things at target, etc that we wanted and weren't available on that site.

(3) What type of bags or boxes did you use (for the guests to take the candy) and where did you get them?
I ordered chinese take out containers and for the life of my I can't remember the name of the site. They were the smaller containers and I had a sticker of our monogram that I put on the boxes.

After the wedding, I sold all my glassware and scoops on craigslist so I got a lot of that money back. I got the glasses at TJMaxx and Marshalls so I didn't pay a lot for them to being with. The cost for the candy was just under $2 a person.

korinneseel

Hi Beth! I know  a candy buffet can be a daunting and expensive project.  I am not sure where you live, but I am in the Raleigh area and have a dessert table business called Swank Sweets www.swanksweets.com.  Sometimes it is less costly to hire someone when you consider buying all the serving pieces as well.  Would love to help you! Good luck to you and your future husband! Korinne Seel

FutureMrsFraser

Brandee, your candy buffet looked gorgeous! I bought the same kind of lollipops, and I was wondering how to display them, did you just stick them in a bowl with another kind of candy? I can't tell from the picture.

Thanks!

brokenhallelujah

Holly,

It actually took me awhile to figure out how to do it, as well. I thought you could just stand them up in a bowl of candy - nope. The top is way too heavy to stand up. I was going for the green lolly in a bowl of purple gumballs. What we ended up doing to make it work was buying the floral foam (which I had a lot of b/c my mom made a lot of my floral arrangements). We cut off a big chunk & used the floral clay to stick it to the bottom of the bowl. Because the foam is really granular my mom didn't thing double stick tape would work & I didn't want to use glue because I wanted to be able to use the bowl again. Then we just punched the lolly pop sticks into the foam in the arrangement we wanted & covered it all with the gumballs so you couldn't tell (until people scooped up enough gumballs when making their bags).

Other smaller lollypops I stood up in milkglass vases with those glass stones holding them up like little bouquets. I hope that helps.

FutureMrsFraser

Thank you! That definitely helps!