Wedding Favors – What Is The Tradition?
Posted By Connie on December 29, 2010
The wedding of a couple is a very special occasion for their family, friends as well as for themselves. The planning involves a lot of excitement with choosing the wedding outfits, transport, flowers and reception places that the bride usually needs some extra help from her friends and family to get everything done. You are sure to get people who are happy to help you.
There are various duties, both before and during the wedding, that the members of the bridal party need to attend to,. The bride and groom need their assistance to make sure everything is attended to and completed in time. the bride and groom need their help to get ready and they need to see that everything runns smoothly as well.
This tradition of having small gifts of appreciation for wedding attendants and guests actually dates from early European times when the wealthy people would give tokens of sweets in celebration of weddings. People called them bomboniere because this means ‘small box of sweets’. The original bomboniere were boxes made from gold or crystal with precious gems. These gifts were confined to the rich upper classes because of the intricacy of the box and the cost of sugar at this time in history.
During the 13th century, the tradition of giving sugar-coated almonds developed as sugar became more affordable. The number of five almonds represents the wish for health and wealth, happiness, longevity and fertility for the couple being married. The slightly bitter almond is covered by a sweet sugary coating to be representative of the bitter-sweet aspects of marriage.
This tradition gradually changed to the five almonds being prepared for the wedding guests, and the guests’ gifts to the bride and groom became more varied and expensive. In the past brides to be went lengthy distances simply to obtain wedding favors. The tradition of bomboniere still exists, but are sometimes called wedding favors or guest gifts. Several European countries still have the tradition of giving bomboniere that contai 5 almonds, in a little decorated box or lace bag tied with ribbons.
The tradition of the almonds is often over-looked these days and gifts to the guests are more elaborate. Popular amongst modern brides and grooms are champagne glasses, pens, scented candles or small picture frames with the couple’s photo. An old bride would be a fine person to request advice about bachelorette party invitations or bridal shower gifts. Personalize them with the names of the bride and groom, and even the date of the wedding, if you like. These gifts are given as a reminder of the special day as well as a thank you gift for the person’s attendance and gifts.
You can find many different ideas for your wedding favors that don’t necessarily have to be expensive. There are many website that specialize in wedding favors, bomboniere and all things associated with weddings. You will possibly get some great ideas from these website, even if you don’t end up buying from them.
Some brides also make their own wedding favors. Wedding stationers often also stock co-ordinating boxes for bomboniere. Before putting some chocolates into the box, you might want to decorate the outside, using your wedding theme for inspiration. You finish the gift by tying with colored ribbons that match your theme, attach a gift card with the guest name and you have a beautiful wedding favor that is certain to be appreciated. You can even make the chocolates at home, or get a friend to do this for you.
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