Wedding favors are available in such a wide variety of styles & designs that it can be an overwhelming task trying to choose the right ones for your wedding. For many couples budget is always the deciding factor when it comes to buying those little gifts to say thank you to your guests. So how can you still have wonderful wedding favors without spending a fortune?
It is a sad, but probably very real fact that most wedding favors will end up either discarded or locked away in drawer somewhere to be forgotten for many years. The best way to avoid this happening is to give your guests an edible favor instead.
There is a growing trend in recent years for green or eco-friendly weddings & the wedding industry has responded with a growing range of green wedding favors. So if you are having a green wedding or simply like the idea of giving out eco-friendly favors, then ordering 200 plastic candle holders with your names printed on them doesn’t really fit the bill. If you don’t want your wedding favors to end up in the garbage bin at the end of the day, then give your guests something to put in their bellies instead!
How we grow, transport & package our food has become a global issue in recent times. The environmental impact from food production stretches from the growers themselves to the way we discard what is left over after preparing & cooking it. In recent there has been a growing trade in Fair Trade goods, that is commodities such as tea, coffee & chocolate are produced under conditions where the growers/farmers/workers are paid a fair living wage for the goods they produce. The idea is to produce sustainable working practices which will protect the environment in which they grown as well.
Don’t confuse Fair Trade with Free Trade. In fact Fair Trade came about as a result of the Free Trade market & the poverty in which food producers found themselves in. The idea was to ensure a fair market for all growers & a fair price for their produce & goods.
A package of Fair Trade goods given as a wedding favor not only creates an ethical gift, but a tasty one too! Here are some of your options for Fair Trade wedding favors.
Tea – Tea if a lovely gift at any time & a small packet of Fair Trade tea is no exception. Place sachets of tea leaves in a small box & tie a silver infuser to is with a thank tag. You could also buy the tea in a bulk box & scoop some in your own individual packets.
Coffee – Choose coffee that is not only Fair Trade but organic as well. Buy in either powder, bean of granule forms & package it up in your own little bags.
Chocolate – A perennial favorite for any kind of wedding favor & tubs of Fair Trade chocolates are cheap to buy.
Chocolate Covered Coffee – If you are giving your guests a packet of coffee why not included some Fair Trade chocolate covered coffee beans as well? Or instead of wrapping them as favors why not have little bowls put on your tables when the coffee is served after the meal. Your guests will no doubt enjoy the little buzz of energy they give before they get down to the dancing!
With the wealth of wedding favors available it is easy to be distracted, but a favor that is simple & sustainable will not be at the expense of other people & is certainly something that your guests will enjoy. Make sure that if you choose Fair Trade goods they are certified as being so & take comfort in the fact that your money will be helping someone less fortunate than you somewhere in the world.
