St. Patrick's Lucky Penny Favors

Here's one you can pretty much whip up at the last minute. If your wedding is this weekend and you need a St Patty's Day theme favor, you can do this.

Lucky Penny via Pumpkin Petunia. Just click on over there and download the free template! So cute! I think we are gonna do this for school.

DIY Matchboxes

Are these great or what?! Loving the natural look of these diy matchboxes. If you click on over to Style Me Pretty you will find the full tutorial on how you too can make these.

DIY - Personalized Hand Sanitizer

Got a germ-a-phobe on your hands that you are hosting an event for? Like the scene in the Cat in the Hat where the new guy shakes the hand of the germ-a-phobic boss and gets fired. LOL!  If you ask my friends they would say that's me. Hee hee!

I just found the neatest blog called The Idea Room. What rock have I been hiding under to just have found it? Anyway there you will find tons of great ideas and I'm talking tons! I wanted to share this one with you, Personalized Hand Sanitizer & Soaps! What a great idea for a wedding or bridal shower favor? Click here to head on over to The Idea Room where you will find the tutorial and the download-able template. I really want to make these!

You probably want to pause the music at the bottom of our blog before playing this funny video.

Birds Nest Place card Holder as seen on Martha Stewart Weddings.com

This cute Birds nest is perfect for for place cards, egg-shaped chocolates, Jordan Almonds etc.... Color of nest may vary slightly. Made of twig. Available in 3 inch diameter from end-to-end. Almonds and banner not included. Measurements: 3" diameter. Click here to view ideas for this favor on the Martha Stewart Weddings website.

Diy - Cookies in a Jar

These are so beautiful! The ones pictured here would make a most wonderful favor for a baby girl shower. Or what an awesome way to spread the word about breast cancer awareness. October is breast cancer awareness month. Make up some of these and gift them to the amazing women in your life.

The neat thing about this gift is at the different holidays the m&m's come in holiday theme colors. Ooh wouldn't the Halloween colors be perfect for a fall wedding or event? All those rich dark colors! And you could always make up your own label to match any theme you decide to go with.

We found these over at the awesome Bakerella! Click on over there to find the recipe, the how to and some downloadable labels to make your gift complete. Be sure to tell them Favors With Love sent you! Oh and if you decide to make them feel free to send us one! (wink wink!)

DIY - Candy Bar Favors

These would make great favors for any event you may be having! Who doesn't like chocolate? The ones in the picture were used for teacher appreciation gifts but you could personalize them and customize the colors to fit your needs. Click on over to Stamping and Stuff for the tutorial and tell them Favors With Love sent you!

Fall Leaf Cookie Cutter in Autumn-Themed Gift Box

You know fall is right around the corner! Yay for fall! Anyhow check out this Fall Leaf Cookie Cutter. Sure to be a hit at your fall time event! We actually had these as party favors for my mom's fall birthday last year. They are very durable and so practical!

Every guest will leave with sweet memories and “fall” for this maple-leaf cookie cutter—guaranteed to rise to the occasion and roll out delicious memories of your event each time they use it. Delicately decorated with a sheer, burgundy organza ribbon and leaf-design “For You” tag, the clear-covered gift box perfectly echoes the crisp, cool, colorful season with burgundy, beige and gold leaves that give the 2.5” x 2.5” cookie cutter its timely shape. The seasonal box measures 3.5” x 2.25”.

Starting at only $1.60 each! WOW! Visit Favors With Love today!

Don't forget to enter our giveaway here if you haven't done so yet! Today is the last day to enter and only til noon pacific time.

DIY - Wedding Favor - Sand Dollar Magnet

Remember this photo below from this post? Well we decided to make wedding favors with the sand dollars we collected at the beach! And wanted to share how we did it!

1. Place all the sand dollars in a bucket and add water and bleach to get them nice and white. Use your judgement how much bleach to use. You will notice them start to whiten as you pour in the bleach. Let soak for about 1 hour. You can do more or less time as needed, just be careful not to let them soak too long or the bleach will start to deteriorate the sand dollar.

2. Rinse the bleach off of the sand dollars and then let dry. They will not all turn white so be sure to collect extra.

Materials:

Sand Dollars

Magnets

Industrial Strength Glue

Organza Bags (sold here)

Favor Tags (we made ours on our computer)

3. Place a small dab of glue on the magnet.

4. Place the magnet on the center of the back side of the sand dollar and apply a small about of pressure.

5. Will look like this once the magnet is secured.

6. Allow glue to dry and place the sand dollar in the organza bag. Add a favor tag and tie the bag closed.

You now have pretty beach theme favors that were a cinch to make! You can customize this favor by selecting the organza bags and favor tags in your wedding colors.

Here is our sand dollar magnet at work in our home. Holding our Jesus drawing to our fridge. So what do you think? Simple right?

Do you like getting favors?

I think the reason I like to give favors for any and all events I host is because I love getting them! They are either pretty or fun and always so exciting to get. Like a little present just for you! Through all the hard work and planning that went into such an event, the host/party giver remembers you the guest, with a memento from the special day!

Though favors are not mandatory, they are a nice way to add a special touch to your event!

Did you give favors? Will you give favors? Do you like getting favors? Please share your thoughts!

DIY - Green Favor Boxes

Oh I so heart these little boxes! They are green! And you can print them up right at home! How easy is that? Click on over to Style Me Pretty to download the template. And make them yourself!

Cherry Blossom Chopsticks - One of our favorites!

Not only are these Cherry Blossom Chopsticks beautiful but durable and very practical. They have a nice clear coating that keeps them in great shape. More useful than one might think! Of course there is the obvious, use them for eating, but I personally have used these in my hair (when my hair was longer)! They stay put every time. I have also used this chopstick to help me with a recent craft project of making fishie soap. (Will post the tutorial on that real soon.) What makes these even more attractive is the fact that they are so affordable. Click on the picture if you would like to purchase.

Originating in China during the Shang Dynasty, chopsticks have been elegant and sophisticated utensils for daily use all over the world. Decorate your wedding or special event with an eastern flair by adorning your place settings with our Cherry Blossom Chopsticks. Delicate cherry blossoms are printed atop these elegant wooden chopsticks. Try placing a pair at each place setting for guests to enjoy at home. Each pair of chopsticks comes packaged in a clear sleeve and tied with a white satin bow. Tags are not included. Size: 9"

DIY Wedding Favors - Wine Bottle Stoppers

At Favors With Love we like to share ideas that we think might be useful to others. One inexpensive and heartfelt way to add favors to your event is to actually put the blood, sweat and tears into them and make them yourself. I really like the antique/vintage look of this one!

Toast Often Wine Stoppers
from DIY Network's Creative Juice

Materials:

wine cork

decorative drawer pull

craft drill

screwdriver

decorative metal initial (found in the scrap booking section of craft stores)

thin wire-edged ribbon

card stock

hole punch

oval punch or scissors

Steps:

1. Drill a hole in the center top of the cork; make sure the hole is slightly larger than the stem of the drawer pull.

2. Use a screwdriver to insert the pull until secure.

3. Punch an oval of card stock or cut an oval by hand. Punch the oval with a hole punch at the center top.

4. Attach a metal initial backed by the card stock oval to the wine stopper with either a thin piece of wire ribbon or a scrapbook metal curlicue. Curl the wire-edged ribbon's ends.

(Emmy nominated Cathie Filian and Steve Piacenza cohost Creative Juice. For more information log on to http://www.cathiefilian.com/. Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service.)

DIY Wedding Favors - Birdseed Packets and Template

At Favors With Love we like to share ideas that we think might be useful to others. One inexpensive and heartfelt way to add favors to your event is to actually put the blood, sweat and tears into them and make them yourself.

Check out http://www.mintdesignblog.com/?p=1470 for full instructions and a downloadable template to make these Birdseed packets.

Favors With Love Giveaway - $25 Gift Certificate (CLOSED)

If this is your first visit to our blog, let us share a bit about ourselves. Favors With Love is an online boutique, where you will find a fantastic assortment favors and gifts. Perfect for the engaged couple searching for 'Thank You' gifts to be presented to guests at a wedding, also great for anyone who may be hosting an up coming baby shower or special occasion. We offer so many possibilities to make your event memorable. Specializing wedding favors, bridal accessories, baby shower favors and gifts. Let us make it easy while adding some personalization and elegance to your event.

We would like to offer one of our readers a $25 Gift Certificate to our store.

To Enter: Visit the Favors With Love website then come back here and leave a comment telling us which product you like best.

Additional Entries: Earn an additional entry for doing any or all of the following, leave a separate comment for each.

*Follow this Blog.

*Subscribe to the Favors With Love Newsletter through our website.

*Add the Favors With Love link to your site.

*Email 3 friends who may be interested in our products and ask them to check out Favors With Love.com. Please include a cc to us at info[at]favorswithlove[dot]com.

* Blog about this giveaway, with a link back to the Favors With Love website. Make sure you post the link in your comment so we can view it!

Non-Bloggers: Make sure you leave your email address in your comments. We will have to choose another winner if we have no way to contact you.

Contest will end April 23/2009. Winner will be contacted via email, and the winning name will be posted here on the Favors With Love BLOG. Winner will have 72 hrs to respond, or a new name will be drawn.

Good Luck!

Last Minute Easter Basket Favor

Here is a simple little Easter basket favor that we found on the Martha Stewart website.

By now all the cute store bought Easter items are gone over and sold out. This is a quick little project that really takes just a few minutes to make.

Check out our version of this basket! We used Easter theme paper sacks for ours and stuffed them full of Easter goodies!

Click here to see the full instructions from the Martha Stweart website.

A Spoonful of Kisses DIY Favor Instructions

"A spoonful of kisses from the Mr. and Mrs." is a very easy and inexpensive way to add favors to your wedding reception. You can use plastic spoons or you can pickup real spoons at thrift stores and yard sales. Create this simple favor for your guests. See the full instructions here.

The Wedding Singer

Favors With Love, LOVE, LOVE, LOVES the movie The Wedding Singer! So just for fun here is a clip from the movie. Enjoy! (You may want to pause the music playing on our blog.)

Heart & Shamrock Design Topiary

Make your guests feel like good luck grows on trees with these heart and shamrock design topiary candle favors. This unique topiary candle favor looks so realistic that your friends and family will think you’ve got a legendary green thumb. But these topiaries don’t need to be watered and they’ll last and last! Each wax candle measures 2 ¼" x 1" and brings together cheerful heart and shamrock shapes to form the upper topiary greenery "growing" out of a terra cotta colored flower pot shaped bottom. A perfect addition as favors for all occasions, each comes packed in a clear plastic box with a grass design insert base, tied with a green satin ribbon and an attached flower design "For You" tag.

Just for Fun!

This couple's dance is entertaining and fun to watch.

5 Tips for Top Notch Wedding Pictures

Once a wedding date has been set, one of the first tasks of the future married couple is to line up a photographer to take what they hope will be priceless and cherished pictures - ones that you and others will look at for many years.

If the saying "a picture is worth a thousand words" holds any truth, your wedding pictures will be especially important to you. Many couples mistakenly think of wedding pictures as the staged pictures of the bride, groom and the wedding party. Start thinking of your total set of wedding pictures as a memoribilia that tells a story of a bride and groom's special day - in preparation for, during and the final moments before the honeymoon.

Because your wedding will be in front of possibly hundreds of your closest family and friends, choosing a wedding photographer to visually document your special day should be taken very seriously. Forget about having your cousin's best friend who "takes great pictures". Your day must be put into the hands of a professional, perferably the best you can find for your budget.
Here are some questions and factors to consider before making the commitment to hiring the services of a wedding photographer.

1. What will the style of your wedding be? Will it be formal, informal, or semi-formal? The answer to this simple question will play a key role in hiring the best photographer. For example, if your wedding will be in a formal setting, hire a wedding photographer that is traditional in their photographic style. Traditional photographers tend to notice and consider details when it comes to photography, angles of shots they take, balance, etc.

2. Photographers can vary greatly in price. That is why it is important to set a budget and adhere to it as closely as you can. Often you can apply the saying "you get what you pay for" but not always. Expensive photographers generally are high in quality but you may be able to find one that is just starting out with his/her business. In this case they may take terrific pictures and their prices are still in line with what you can afford.

3. Before signing a contract with a wedding photographer, be sure you always read the fine print of the contract so you know the services that you will be getting. Never leave it to chance and assume a photographer is going to perform his/her photographic duties the way you think they will. If you have extra requests or needs, be sure they are written in the contract. Once your day goes by it is too late to quibble over what should have been photographed. Better to have no surprises and that means a solid contract agreed upon by both parties.

4. Choose a photographer that is open to what you as a couple would like as far as your photographer's duties. Some wedding photographers have been doing weddings a long time and can get somewhat immune to the wishes of the couple, the wedding party and guests. Select a photographer that is easy going and can take a little direction if needed. On the other hand, don't try to tell the wedding photographer how to do his/her job. A happy medium is desireable.

5. Finally, (and this is an important one) be sure to ask to see a complete portfolio of the wedding photographers work. Be certain that is the style you would like. Sometimes photographers will "farm out" weddings and send another photographer that acts as a subcontractor for the photo studio. Be sure you ask exactly who will be the photographer on site that day and ask to see their portfolios as well. Remember, the best wedding photos are the ones where there are no surprises on the part of the bride and groom.

Proper thought and research when choosing your wedding photographer will result in some of the most memorable pictures of your lifetime. Good luck!

About The Author: Rachel Urbanak is a wedding coordinator and wedding photographer in the northeastern United States. For more articles, resources, news and specials on unique wedding favors and gifts, visit http://www.weddingplanningsuccess.com.
Article Source: http://www.ArticleCity.com