Whats necessary?

You definitely do not have to do favours.. but if you end up doing them, there are some great inexpensive ideas (which some people have mentioned already) like candy from the dessert table, things that double as centerpieces, etc.

I'm doing book marks. SO cheap to print and our center pieces are vintage books so I think it will tie in nice. They'll be our wedding colours, have a nice little quote on them and will also have a heart on them that can be popped off and planted as its a wild flower packet!

We did away with cake too. My mum was mortified at first, but has backed off when I pointed out our venue supplies not one, but two desserts after a 4 course meal and apps and a late night food bar so no one will WANT to eat anything more.

We did not pay for our bridal party's outfits. It's too much money. We did however, try and pick outfits that could be reworn.. so the guys bought (or rented.. up to them) a charcoal grey suit and the girls are in a silvery grey dress.. they picked out the brand and I picked the colour. They're all in whatever dress from that brand they picked.

We're covering the groomsmen's tie and pocket squares and I am trying to cover the cost of make up for my girls.

I’m not sure what the best solution is but between the both of you, you will figure it out. Lots of great feed back and advise given by many here to consider.
I was thinking about all your questions and then started to think 🤔 what will I pay for. Because we are having our children as our wedding party I almost feel we have to pay for the dresses and the tuxedos. Plus the hair and make up.
Dont get me even talking about party favors. So much to think about. Wow

We are not paying for our wedding party as that would be so much! idk how some people do it.

We are doing chocolate wedding favours. Go to a chocolate shop and you can order something pretty in bulk and then put them in pretty bags.

We are doing a cookie bar and a popcorn machine rather than a cake as we dont like it either!

You can try to do cupcakes instead of cake(that is what we are doing) and for thank you favors we are doing little kiss chocolates in a mini bag.

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I agree with everything you just said! We plan to do some sort of dessert as the favour to-go and something else offbeat for our late-night dessert.

We are doing "hugs & Kisses" from the Mr & Mrs.

And we didn't pay for the wedding attire. The men are renting. i think my FH Is paying for deposit that will stay on the account for the guys so that it costs them less. they will pay for the remaining balance when they get the suits. and they will get engraved flasks with a bottle of alcohol as their gift. Im paying for the Hair for the girls and getting them a personalized hanger, and a nice jewelery for the wedding. (a bracelet for the girls and a necklace for the Matron of Honour)

As for no cake, you can always do your favorite dessert and get lots so others can share in your treat.

On the fence about favors, if we do them we are thinking of getting bubbles then during our 1st dance they can be blown and make awesome pictures as well. That way they are used during the event and won't go to waste hopefully.... saw packs of 50 for like $22 at Micheal's.

In regards for the wedding party, my FH is getting his guys to pay for their own tuxes whether they choose to purchase or rent is up to them.

For myself I told my girls I would be willing to cover a portion of their dresses or cover their hair and makeup (if they chose to want them don professionally) but I CANNOT do both, it would be up to them what they decided to do. They chose to have me cover a portion of their dresses instead which works out better for me (cheaper haha)

We aren't doing a cake either, our 4 course menu has creme brulee for dessert so we will be eating that instead and we are doing a midnight snack.

We’re skipping the favours and doing a midnight snack instead.
Our bridal party will be purchasing their own dresses and tux’s but I think i’m Going to buy my girls their jewelry as part of their gift.

I should have added in my repsonse that the wedding party paid for their outfits. The other 2 things we paid for ourselves.

We didn't pay for the wedding party's attire.

I did pay for the girls hair/makeup.

We ordered wedding themed M&Ms and put them in little boxes we ordered from Amazon (great price!) as our table favours since I knew they would be eaten!

We did have a traditional wedding cake since I knew guests would eat it. You could do cupcakes or a pasty table?

I went to a wedding where the cupcakes were served right after dinner and they hardly got eaten, I think they are more popular when served during the dancing portion (maybe 10pm) because guests have been dancing/drinking and going to get a sweet treat is a nice break!

Instead of favors we are doing a candy and chocolate table, including mini burlap bags that say "love is sweet" so people to take some with them. Is there another dessert you prefer that you could serve? We are doing cake and the hall serves pies too but my FH likes cookies, so cookies and milk was an idea, or a donut table.

Our favours were crystal tealight votive holder.
Wedding cake abd assorted pastries were served.

We did not pay for the wedding party's attire though we did buy the ties and pocket squares for the groomsmen as we wanted something specific.

I agree with many here that favours aren't necessary anymore. We did a spice rub mix for our favour. Got all the ingredients at Bulk Barn and then bought small bottles at the Dollar Store. It was easy and relatively inexpensive and people loved them!

I also don't like cake so we did a bunch of mixed desserts and just put those out on a table.

We didn't pay for any of the family attire or MODs oufits either. We focused on ours since had to get 4 altogether.

For ideas of favours and cake substitutions, i have boards filled with tons of ideas on pinterest under Vinod Balani.

Keep in mind that you can’t please everyone and this is you and your FH’s day. You don’t have to do any of those things if you don’t want to! Sure, it might ruffle a few feathers, but if you communicate things right, there shouldn’t be a problem!!
- I was a bridesmaid in a friend’s wedding and she paid for half of our dresses. I’ve been in another where each maid had to foot the bill. You do what’s best for you and your budget!
- I’ve been to multiple weddings and I can’t remember any of the favors. So we decided to forgo them all together. Instead, we might offer 1 drink ticket after the ceremony.
- You could do a candy bar instead, or a donut bar or a cupcake one. You could even ask family members to bake some pies if you wanted to! I think we’ll be doing donuts and I can’t wait!!!

In no way should you have to pay for your bridal party, you're paying for the wedding so I think that's enough. We aren't paying for ours and no one has an issue with it. And we are also skipping the favors, doesn't seem necessary. My fiance loves cake but me, not so much. We have a family member who is going to do our cake for us as a gift so that's covered but since I won't eat any I was thinking of just having a variety of other desserts.

It is fine to skip favors entirely, these are not necessary, but if you want to keep it small and inexpensive some ideas are cookies, candies, chocolates, or other food items.

As for cake, I don't like it either, and we did pies and donuts. It was fun and affordable and we could get a variety of flavors.

View quoted message This is all so helpful!! Thank you so much

We are not paying for the bridal party attire. We did explain to them when we asked them to be in the wedding that we cannot pay for them, so they knew before saying yes that they would have that expense. For the ladies, I chose the colour and they are choosing the style, so I think it's fine that they pay for it since they can individualize it.

Our thank you favours are doubling as our centrepieces. We are doing potted plants (one per couple). The pots will first be down the aisle, then they will be moved to the tables, then people can take them home. Another option is some type of food, because that always (or almost always!) gets eaten.

As for cake, we aren't doing that either. We are just having the dessert table provided with the supper, and then the late night snack (also provided by the caterer). Honestly, most weddings I've been to, most of the cake is left over. My friend did ice cream sundaes instead of cake.