Who says party favors have to be strictly for party guests?  Favors make wonderful little ‘inexpensive luxeries’ for yourself too. 

My daughters and I have hosted many bridal showers, baby showers, anniversary parties and receptions, so I’ve ordered a lot of favors for each occasion.  Every time I place my order, I find a few items that I’ve always wanted but wouldn’t order by themselves due to prohibitive shipping costs.  I’ve found that when I place my regular favor order, the shipping rarely, if ever, goes up by my  additions and I get treated to my own little gift.

I have elegant silver salt & pepper shakers that I use whenever we have guests over for dinner.  I display photo coasters every day and never cease to get great compliments on them.  I’ve decorated with unique candles, sweet-smelling soaps and beautiful little picture frames. 

So, the next time you put together a party of any kind, do yourself a ‘favor’ and give a little thank you gift just to you. 

Photo coasters are a unique gift idea that you can customize to fit any celebration.  In a previous blog, I discussed using photo coasters to create a beautiful anniversary gift by framing pictures of special times in a couples’ life together.  Using that same idea, we can incorporate the use of photo coasters for nearly any special event.

If you’re looking for a bridal shower gift, consider using photo coasters and framing pictures that detail the ‘getting-to-know-each-other’ stages of the bride and groom that let to their engagement.

You can give your special Sweet Sixteen this same gift, marking the special times in her young life.  A few ideas can be a baptism, first date, parties, concerts, etc.

Your mother-to-be will love a framed ultrasound picture.  You can also frame pictures of the special mommy, but leave several coasters empty so they can be filled later with pictures of the baby. 

The best part of giving photo coasters is that they make such a practical gift.  They can be used daily, or even put away as part of a trousseau. 

The most precious gift anyone can receive is the gift of pictures.  Memories captured on film have a magical way of enabling you to relive some of the best times of your life.  If you’ve been looking for the perfect anniversary gift for that special couple, consider giving this magical gift.  No matter how long a couple has been married, this is one gift that will always be appreciated.

The first thing you need to do is to find memorable pictures of your special couple.  Weddings, baby’s births, special vacations, or other important celebrations are just a few ideas of the kinds of pictures you’ll want to look for.  Ask close friends or relatives of the couple if you can look through any pictures they may have.  Get permission to make copies.  Be sure that the pictures are flattering to everyone in the picture, but especially to your anniversary couple. 

Depending on how many good pictures you find can help determine what you do with them.  If you have more pictures than you know what to do with, consider scrap-booking them, chronicling the couple’s life together.  A few dozen can fit nicely into a small decorative photo album.  Presentation becomes a little trickier if you can only find eight or so pictures.  Consider purchasing some beautiful photo coasters and placing the pictures inside.  This not only makes a lovely gift, but it also is a gift that will be used on a daily basis, making it even more special.

Several years ago my husband and I helped plan and host a 60th wedding anniversary party for our parents.  Being Italian, my mom chose the traditional favor of Jordan almonds wrapped in tulle as the thank you gift we would hand out to our guests.  Even though we made just enough for everyone in attendance, we had more than half of them leftover.  That’s when I realized that these hard candy favors are not as popular as they once were.  Instead of saving money by going with these inexpensive favors, we ended up wasting our money. 

Looking back on that day, I wish we would’ve done things differently.  We had 2 framed 8 X 10 pictures on the gift table that day.  One was a photo of their wedding day and one was a recent 60th anniversary photo.  Everyone raved about them and asked for copies.  What a wonderful favor a small framed wedding picture would have been!  The cost would have been minimal and there certainly wouldn’t have been any leftovers.  There also would’ve been an added benefit of being able to decorate the guests’ tables with the keepsake photo favors.

Memories are a big part of any celebration and a favor that can help to recall some of those memories is a very special gift.  These keepsake favors do not need to be expensive, but their value is priceless!

The wedding may be over, but those anniversaries come every year.  Wondering what to give that special couple?  Here’s a list of traditional anniversary gifts that may just come in handy.

YEAR                                   AMERICAN                                 MODERN                     

     1st                                        Paper                                             Clocks
     2nd                                       Cotton                                           Desk Items
     3rd                                        Leather                                         Leather
     4th                                        Linen, Silk                                    Clothing
     5th                                        Wood                                             Silverware
     6th                                         Iron                                              Wooden
     7th                                         Wool, Copper                               Wool, Copper
     8th                                         Bronze                                          Tourmaline
     9th                                         Pottery                                         China
    10th                                       Tin, Aluminum                              Diamond Jewelry   
    11th                                        Steel                                              Appliances
    12th                                        Silk                                                 Garnet
    13th                                        Lace                                               Lingerie
    14th                                        Ivory                                             Sculpture
    15th                                        Crystal                                           Crystal
    16th                                        Tungsten                                       Peridot   
    17th                                           —                                               Watches
    18th                                           —                                               Tanzanite
    19th                                           —                                                Aquamarine
    20th                                         China                                            Topaz, Diamond
    25th                                         Silver                                            Sterling Silver
    30th                                         Pearl                                             Amethyst
    35th                                         Coral, Jade                                   Jade, Agate
    40th                                         Ruby                                             Ruby
    45th                                         Sapphire                                       Sapphire
    50th                                        Gold                                               Gold
    55th                                        Emerald                                         Emerald
    60th                                        Diamond                                        Diamond
    70th                                       Platinum                                        Platinum
    75th                                        Diamond                                        Diamond 
    80th                                       Oak                                                Oak
    90th                                       Granite                                          Granite

When hosting an anniversary party, these gift ideas make for a great theme to plan around.  Be sure to include your decorations, anniversary favors, and color scheme within the same theme.