Is it ok to forgo wedding favors?

What are you thinking of giving out?

I am not going to have them and my mom want me to lol. I just think it is waste of money and not many guests will take it home. It is not a huge deal.

It's more and more common that brides skip them. I had them, but noting super fancy. I just had chocolates.

I don't think that they are necessary. I don't see why we should have to give people gifts for coming to our wedding. An invitation for them to be invited seems like gift enough to be included in our big day. We will not have favors.

They are totally unnecessary. We did mix CDs because we like to do mix CDs, but those were both cheap and personal (without being so wedding specific that no one would ever use them). It's totally fine not to have them.

Some people do also think of candy buffets as a favor, and those have the advantage of being only as expensive as you want them to be, and also getting used on site. But again: totally fine not to have them at all.

Totally OK to skip...I am not doing favors at all..

This is what Miss Manners has to say about favors

"Who told you that you had to give out wedding favors? Etiquette has never thought of weddings as comparable to children's birthday parties, where the guests might need consolation for not being the center of attention. Donating money for medical research is a fine idea if you can manage it, and Miss Manners commends you. But it has nothing to do with your wedding guests. It cannot be construed as any sort of favor to them. You owe them only the hospitality of the occasion. Drawing attention to your having considered, and then deciding against, giving them little presents will not strike them as charming."

Sooo, that pretty much sums it up. Half the people leave them on the table anyway.

Im not doing favors, either. I consider a HUGE favor for my guests is the awesome food and alcohol!

Wow everyone thank you for the super quick responses! @August Bride: I was thinking of a candy buffet, in candy of our colors...it would be inexpensive but a little informal for what we're doing.

@mellojean: Chocolates were a consideration too but ours is outdoors, end of July...

@Cabell: Love the mix cd idea--that is cute!

@kk: I love the Miss Manners excerpt...so I feel like no favors might be acceptable. You're right, I definitely leave favors behind usually.

I think if you are going to do wedding favors, don't go overboard. That's where brides trip up. Think about what YOU would want: some knick-knacky thing, that doesn't fit anywhere with the name/wedding date of some one? Unless you collect wedding favors for a hobby, exactly WHY would you want it?

Wedding favors are token "gifts," used liberally here, to express thanks to your guests for coming to your party and helping you to celebrate. If your favors break the bank, you did it wrong. Anything edible is usually a good idea. CD mixes (ala Cabell) can be fun and interesting. Your guests don't have to be blow out of their chairs by your favors. Remember: it's bascially a "thank you." Something simple is fine. It doesn't have to be totally unique or different. It just has to be from you and your FH.

Or, you don't have to do them at all.

Kk: I was totally thinking of that, just couldn't find it to quote!

Just by reading the comments around this website I think more and more people are NOT doing them especially if their budget is tight that is one of the first places to cut back on. I think it is okay, I've heard that many favors are left on the aisles/chairs/tables and aren't even taken (spoken by former brides) so I think it would be okay to skip them if you really don't want them.

I am donating money to Breast Cancer instead...favors are huge in my culture but I dont care.

We decided, in lieu of favors, that we would give a donation to "Susan G. Komen for the Cure" in honor of those that have lost their battle to breast cancer, those that have won against it, and those that are still fighting. My mom is a 2 time breast cancer survivor, so we're doing this in her honor. (She doesn't know about it yet. It's going to be a surprise)

Cabell- I googled "miss manners on favors" and a WW post came up!

Bridget- I love your name I always said I wanted to name my daughter (when I have one) Bridget! ha ha Anyway As far as the candy buffet, there are different kinds of buffets that you could do to make it formal. Like a s'mores or chocolate buffet. There are also formal ways to do a candy buffett too! I'll attach pics

We considered everything that has been mentioned above but we decided to give away custom made soaps made.

You might consider giving a $200 donation to the local salvation army instead, or some other organization and give cards stating that a donation has been made instead.

I'm just gonna do a small candy buffet, with bags people can put the candy in..Our local candy store is quite cheap, so it all works out.

We're donating to a charity that's important to us in honor of our guests. So, on our "favor table" we'll probably have something framed explaining what we decided and why.

Honestly, I ended up chucking 99.9% of all the wedding favors I've picked up from weddings, anyway. Bubbles with your name on it? A christmas ornament with your name on it? No one really uses that stuff. Save your money. I don't see what the big deal is.

We also agree that favors are a waste... so in luie of traditional favors we are making a donation to the cancer society in the name of our family members that have lost their lives to cancer and going to have a poem or something on the tables explaining