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By Jason Hennessey
 There are wedding traditions that have survived for generations and are integral part of any wedding, and thus you can not afford to forego them on your big day. One of these long-held traditions is the giving of wedding favors. The tradition is borrowed from 16th century European elite, nobility and royalty. The bride would give gifts to the guests invited as a token of appreciation and gratitude for their coming to her big day. The tradition held and though there is a variation between the kinds of gifts given then and the ones given today, we still give favors.
But, what happens when the budget is a bit stretched and the material day is just around the corner? You do not have the financial muscle to splash lavish gifts on your guests as you would have liked. And probably the economy is in a tailspin like it is now. Not to worry because there are budget wedding favors that you can give without necessarily digging too deep in your pocket. But you have to make sure the budget favors are in a way
that will still touch the hearts of the recipients.
The most cost-effective of wedding favors are home-made gifts. This way you avoid having to spend on overpriced shop keepsakes while you can be able to make them yourself at minimal spending. Whats more, it is easier to personalize gifts that you have made yourself that those bought or ordered from a shop. You can add personal notes {preferably hand-written} with each gift and this is bound to convey a feeling of genuine appreciation in the person receiving it. Also if they are gifts that need to be wrapped, do the wrapping yourself as again it is way cheaper.
Get simple favors like wine stoppers packaged in a way that will excite your guests. If you have guests that have bridge playing as a hobby, a pack of cards tied up with tulle will do the trick for you. Coffee beans inside a coffee mug will invoke the tastes of wine lovers. Another way of cutting on favors spending is inviting just the necessary number of guests. Limit your guests to a number that is absolutely necessary as this will reduce the number of favors to give. Still, you can narrow that down further by getting favors for a family as a unit instead of for each member. But the gift has to be something that they can all relate to and the personalized touch should run through.
Another secret to cutting on budget is buying in bulk. If the kind of gifts you want to give to different people are related, there is no better way to cut on costs as in buying them in bulk instead of individually. The seller might sell you at a wholesale price and at a discount. But what should run through all your favors is that personal touch that will exude genuine and honest gratitude from you to your guests. Favors given with warmth from the heart will make the guests feel it was worth their time coming over to your wedding and/or reception.
Jason Hennessey is the President of 1weddingsource.com, todays leading wedding social networking planning site. He also founded an online store that host a collection of wedding favors and wedding gifts to make that Big Day an event to be cherished for a lifetime.
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