Do Your Wedding Guests a Favor...And Ditch the Tchotchke Favors
By Kellee Khalil, Founder and CEO Lover.ly
As a couple, you've got a captive crowd at your wedding---it's a chance for you to show off your style, taste, and even...the causes you love. At Lover.ly, we're seeing incredible new wedding ideas daily, as couples add wedding-day details that are earth-friendly and cause-worthy. Here are our three favorite "feel good" wedding gifting trends that give a little bit back: to the wedding party, to the guests, and even to the world.
Photo by: Kaylan Buteyn Photography on The Brides Cafe via Lover.ly
1. Shoes for your wedding party; shoes for children in need
Topping the list as our favorite wedding gifting trend, couples are choosing bridal party gifts that give back; adorning their wedding parties with TOMs shoes. Aside from being the perfect neutral wedding day slip-on, with every purchase of a pair, brides and grooms are helping donate the same number of pairs to children in need. That kind of giving back is a shoe-in for wedding day smiles.
RELATED: Awesome weddings that ROCKED TOMs shoes; Get TOMs wedding shoes here
Photo by: Amelia Johnson Photography on The Brides Cafe via Lover.ly
2. Living place cards
One of the hottest practices in weddings right now is the use of plants and potted flowers as name cards for seating at wedding receptions. Escort cards then double as take-home gifts for each of your guests. TIP: if you're going this route, choose plants that are easy to care for and will survive the trip home: succulents, cacti, and air plants are among our favorites.
RELATED: Super-creative wedding favor ideas
Photo by: Mrs. Taffy via Weddingbee
3. Donations in their name
Treat your guests to the ultimate feel-good gift and give them the opportunity to participate in a greater cause by just showing up to your wedding. Lots of couples these days are opting out of material favors and choosing donations on their guests' behalf. Not sure if your guests will be comfortable with your cause? Choose three charities dear to you, and let your guests choose which they'd like to donate to by offering wooden tokens for them to drop into jars labeled with your causes of choice. Take it one step further and ask that in lieu of gifts, guests donate to your chosen charity. The significance of your nuptials impact a greater good and give that warm and fuzzy feeling that all weddings should.
RELATED: Eco-Friendly Wedding Ideas
Weddings are the happiest events---commemorating love, sharing laughs with friends, uniting groups of people. The gifts a wedding brings are neverending. Find brilliant gift inspiration and tons of feel-good moments all captured on Lover.ly. And share your ideas in the comments for creative ways to better the world as you better your love on your wedding day.
About the Author: Kellee is the founder and CEO of Lover.ly, a highly visual inspiration engine designed to help brides discover ideas, people to hire, and things to buy. Lover.ly mages are powered by the best wedding publishers and wedding shopping partners on the web: we're the heart of weddings. See my wedding favorites here.
