Look up unique wedding favors and what you get is mostly lists. Honey jars, matchbooks, seed packets, something with your initials on it. By the third list you’re looking at the same ideas again. Wanting yours to stand out is fair, but it’s hard to tell from a list which idea will.
Being different only gets a favor one look. It’s remembered when a guest can say why the two of you picked it.
Give the favor a reason
Picture a guest holding your favor and turning to the person beside them. If it’s only different, about all they can say is “I haven’t seen one of these before.” The other person agrees, and then they’re talking about the band.
Now say it’s a matchbook from the bar where the two of you met. A guest who knows the story says, “That’s where they met.” It’s still just a matchbook, but that sentence is about you.
The same favor goes to everyone you invited — your college roommate, your boss, your grandmother’s neighbor. Nothing much suits all three. What they’ve got in common is you, so make it about the two of you. Your names and the date on a label are about you too, but the invitation already told your guests that much.
What to check on any favor
- A reason — you can say why you picked it, and “nobody else has one” doesn’t count
- About you — it’s true of you two and wouldn’t fit just any couple
- One sentence — short enough that a guest could repeat it after hearing it once
Plenty of ordinary things pass. A jar of honey does if it’s from your dad’s hives, and doesn’t if you chose it for its looks.
That’s good news if you came looking for unique wedding favors. The lists are still where you’ll find the jar. Another couple can buy the same one, and your reason won’t come with it.
Where a potted herb fits
Plants are on those lists already, so a potted herb is nothing new. But it’s got a card tied to the terracotta pot with twine, and the card has the herb’s name, a drawing, and one word.
There are twelve herbs and twelve words. They’re old meanings, read into these plants for centuries. But one of them is only your reason if you mean it.
Use a word that’s true of you
Choose the word your friends would use about you anyway, and a guest can read the card and say, “That’s them.” Our Herbs shows every pot with its card, and here are four to start with.
- Marjoram — Harmony, if you two are easy to be around. Bride and groom both wore it in their crowns in Greece and Rome
- Parsley — Festivity, if your place is where the party ends up. Bringing it to a gathering once meant the day mattered
- Thyme — Courage, if getting here took some nerve. Roman soldiers bathed in it before a campaign
- Basil — Love, if you add a reason of your own. In parts of Italy, basil in the window once meant a suitor could come by
Love needs that second reason because it’s true of every couple. If basil goes into most of what you two cook, that’ll do. If one word isn’t enough, a Little Note is a note card you can have personalized.
Know what you’re giving, too. Marjoram is tender in cold winters, so it comes inside before the first frost. Basil wants warmth and evenly moist soil. Parsley is a biennial, so it stops in its second year.
If none of the twelve fits
Then skip the herbs. With a word you don’t mean, a potted herb is a nice plant and that’s all. Go with whatever has your reason in it, even if it’s on every list.
Whatever you’re leaning toward, write the guest’s sentence down before you buy anything. If you can’t, cross that idea off and try the next one.
