Wedding Blog

Favors were one of the very first things I considered when planning the wedding. I have a ginormous sweet tooth and couldn’t imagine giving anything away that wasn’t edible. Also, I didn’t want to give out a tchotchke that would just collect dust in someone’s attic.

So over the summer when BM Seattle was visiting, we tried to brainstorm some favor ideas with Mama Canary. We wanted something that was edible and/or useful, yet cute. I also want an Asian element, but not too overtly, since it will be a bi-cultural wedding.

We considered a lot of ideas featured on the knot, but we also had to really be tough on price considering we’ll have upwards of 350 guests.

Things we really liked:

Image from The Knot

Bamboo steamers with “sweetheart” or “wife” cakes. But the cakes would be perishable, and not everyone may like the taste. Plus, the bamboo steamers themselves run for about $3-4 each! It’s also very Chinese, which is great, but I want to do something more encompassing of both our cultures.

Image from The Knot

Little bamboo stalks are so adorable. I love that they’re plants and alive (so one less thing to waste) but that’s also a con too since people may not take care of them. They’re also really pricey! The lowest priced one I found was $8 each. $8 x 350 =

So the grand compromise:

Image from Martha Stewart Weddings

When I saw this photo in Martha Stewart Weddings, I knew this was the perfect favor! Everyone in my family loves tea and as does most of Mr. C’s family. It’s Asian/Chinese, but not exclusively. And who doesn’t love cookies? You can find the recipe for the Earl Grey Tea Cookies above on marthastewart.com. Considering that I’d have so many to make, I didn’t plan on baking them myself so I started researching various NYC cookie vendors.

I found One Girl Cookies based in Brooklyn who make the most beautiful packaged favors. They have a wide selection and specialize in creating custom favor packages for weddings and events. They even have a cookie bar option if you don’t want to go the packaged route. Check out the site for some of their packaging designs and options. The lady I spoke to on the phone was also really sweet and informative, providing a quote immediately. Unfortunately, their cookies were out of our budget since we’re also including tea with our favors.

Decorated Tea Cookies
Image from OneGirlCookies.comCellophane Sleeve Cookie Packages
Image from OneGirlCookies.com

So the search continued for the perfect cookie(s). After another search on Weddingbee (aren’t our archives so useful!) I discovered Dough Ray Me. I was drooling over every cookie favor listed on their site and gave Jon, the owner, a call. He was one of the friendliest people I’ve ever spoken to and you could tell he had such a passion for his work. Mr. Canary and I decided to meet with him to discuss our favor idea and have a cookie sampling. On a cold Saturday afternoon, we met Jon (and his wife and beautiful baby!) to talk cookies. We were in for such a treat! Jon brought a package of every flavor and discussed the nuances and how each one was created. We loved them all and it was going to be a tough decision. Mr. Canary and I brought them home to share with my parents and surprisingly, they chose completely different flavors from what we thought they’d like.From the extensive cookie menu, we chose our top two favorites, Summaiya and Jasmine.

Summaiya: Surprise! Soft and chewy oatmeal, raisin, sour cherry and potato chip
Image from DoughRayMe.com

I would say that Summaiya is my ultimate favorite. You don’t taste the potato chip, but adds such an amazing texture to the cookie. One little bite of pure, flavorful, chewy bliss.

Jasmine: Creamy Dreamy- White Chocolate Chip with Ground Hazelnuts
Image from DoughRayMe.com

Jasmine was our second favorite. We loved the milky taste and texture.We were excited to find the perfect cookies (and cookie baker!) The cookies are also the perfect size, about an inch across and would fit well in a small 3×3x3 box nestled next to a tin of tea. Jon sells the cookies in a variety of packages and also sells them by the pound if you want to package them yourself. We will probably end up buying them by the pound and supply the packaging to Jon’s team for assemblage, since the last thing I want to do two days before the wedding is pack 350 little boxes of tea and cookies.

Oh and of course, we can’t forget the tea! We’re going to order mini personalized tea tins form Adagio Teas (thanks, Mrs. Onion!) At our quantity, they will cost $1.60 each (and free shipping!) and they fit perfectly with the mini cookies. We ordered a few samplers over the holidays so that we could select our favorites. It also works great as a stand-alone favor. Every tin comes in a small organza bag (you can even select the color to match your scheme).

Image from Adagio.com

What did you do for favors? Do you prefer edible or non-edible favors?