Wedding Favours have always been a big tradition in English weddings. It is there as a gesture of thanks from the bride and groom, for celebrating their special day. The original wedding favour was called a bonbonniere, which was a small ornate box, which contained a sugar cube or some other confectionery, and then moved onto sugared almonds. In today's society, wedding favours are looked at to be something novel, that fits in with the theme of the wedding, and should always be given.
That said, there is an argument for the point of wedding favours. Brides and grooms already pay out an extortionate amount of money per guest to pay for their meal, and to give a wedding favour, is just another outlay, and when wedding favours normally cost upwards of £2 each (once taking into consideration the box/envelope it comes in, etc), the betrothed often feel they don't need the extra hassle of a wedding favour.
However, you can absolutely do this on a budget, regardless of your theme! And here is how!
Firstly, the box or bag it comes in needs to be considered. There are some beautiful lasercut boxes on Amazon or eBay. You can buy a bulk of 50 of them for as little as £2.99, working out as 17p per box. When they arrive they will be flat packed, so get your bridal party or your hens around to give you a hand making them up! They all come in different colours and designs to suit your theme.
So, what to put in them? Well... a lot of people are going off the idea of sweets, due to the novel sweet cart ideas. But if you do think something edible is good, then some homemade cookies or fudge is very easy to make, and will look lovely. For example, I made these lovely Christmas Favours, sealed with a sticker. The bags, ingredients and stickers cost me less then £10, and I made 50 bags worth! That's only 50p per favour!
But, if sweets aren't your thing, then there are plenty of other options from jams, to wildflower seed packets, and so much more! Drop me a message or comment with your theme, and I'll be sure to find you a wedding favour that you can make yourself, keeping costs low and make your guests feel welcomed and appreciated.
For now, here is a recipe for some lovely simple vanilla biscuits to make as your favours! Make sure you make a few extra, you will deserve them!
Vanilla Biscuits
Ingredients - to make 200 biscuits (2 per bag)
4 teaspoons Vanilla Essence
2.8kg Plain Flour
800g Self-Raising Flour
1kg Granulated Sugar
1kg Salted Butter, diced
1kg Golden Syrup
8 large eggs, lightly beaten
Recipe
1. Preheat the oven to 170C/Gas Mark 4.
2. Sift the flours together into a mixing bowl. Add the sugar and mix well.
3. Add the butter. Using just the tips of your fingers, rub the ingredients together until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
4. In a separate bowl, mix the golden syrup and egg together.
5. Make a well in the centre of the dry mixture, and pour in the syrup and egg mixture.
6. Gently fold the mixtures into each other, until it begins to form a dough. You will need to use your hands to fully form the dough.
7. Place the dough onto your clean, floured working surface. Taking only an amount that will fit onto your working surface, roll out to an even thickness of about 1/2 cm.
8. Using cutters of your choice, cut the biscuits out, and place onto a greaseproof tray, with about 1cm gap between each of them.
9. Place in the oven for 14-18 minutes. Once the biscuits are cooked and beginning to turn a gentle golden colour, remove the trays from the oven and transfer the whole sheet to a cooling rack. Do this carefully as the biscuits are fragile an hot.
10. Once totally cool, store them into tins before transferring them into their packs.
Biscuits will keep in an airtight tin for up to a week. I recommend putting them in Wedding Favour bags a day before the wedding, and seal them where possible.
Feeling adventurous? Cut out into bride and groom templates, and ice them!
Love the idea, but don't have the time? Drop us a message and we can make these for you, personalised to your day.
