Wedding favours are one of the most fun and memorable aspects of every wedding. As a guest, it’s a lovely and appreciated little bonus and one that most will remember for years to come, and for the bride and groom, it can be great fun to plan the perfect favours to suit any wedding. But where does this quirky tradition come from?
16th century France
It’s thought that the modern tradition of wedding favours may come from the French aristocracy of the 16th century, who would offer guests ʻbonbonnièresʼ, which were elegant bejewelled gift boxes filled with sweets and sugared almonds. The sugared almonds themselves were particularly important when given at weddings because it was thought that the sweetness of the sugar and the bitterness of the nuts perfectly symbolised the bittersweet nature of marriage.
Party favours around the world
While the giving of bonbonnières is certainly very similar to modern-day wedding favour traditions, it’s impossible to say whether our custom is derived directly from France due to the fact that many similar gift-giving customs exist around the world. For example, in Greece, gifts of sugared almonds called ‘bom bom yara’ are also gifted at weddings, while in Spain small chocolates were often given to represent fulfilment and happiness. In England, historically, handmade ‘love-knots’ of ribbon and lace were gifted at weddings to express thanks to guests for attending.
Wedding favours today
Today, wedding favours have emerged from this tradition of gift-giving around the world as one of the most exciting aspects of wedding planning. Happy couples to be put great thought and consideration into planning their perfect unique favours, and guests look forward to this little treat on the day.
If you’re looking for wedding ideas and you’ve still not settled on your favours, why not consider seed favours? Our wedding seed favours can be personalised with unique messages and images on each packet and filled with the seeds of your choice. Seeds are something that everyone can appreciate, and will hopefully bring happiness to your wedding guests for months or even years to come – much like your marriage.