parisian party

An ancient French wedding custom was for the newlyweds to give 5 dragées- candy coated almonds, to each guest at their wedding. The five candies symbolized Health, Wealth, Happiness, Longevity, and Fertility. Dragées are still given at modern French weddings, but luckily, you tend to get more than 5. They come in tons of different colors- like rose, saffron, coral or mauve (if you’ve chosen to have a color scheme for your wedding, there’s sure to be a dragée to compliment it). They’re also available in a varying range of quality- I, personally, like Medici dragées, but whenever possible, I suggest you try before you buy. There are also countless ways available to personalize your dragées- running the gamut from classic minimalist to, um…. the opposite of that

Now, I love a good dragée just as much as the next girl, but quite frankly, after my umpteenth dragée in a little pink organza bag, I have to admit I’m getting a little weary of them. Even though they are the “quintessential French

gingko tea scoop

favor”, for my events, I like to direct my brides towards something a little different- something equally as pretty and memorable as dragees…but different! For instance, for about 10€ each, you can have a box of mini macaroons from Laduree waiting at each guests place-setting. They are easy to personalize with ribbon or a note card, or just leave them as they are (everyone will know where they got them anyway!)

Another yummy treat is a small box of champagne truffles from La Maison du Chocolat. They come in a chic, leather-look box with a brown and white ribbon. Gorgeous! For around 10€ each, you can have one of Mariage Frères famous black tins of specialty tea- I like to pair these with a sweet little ginkgo-shaped tea scoop, also available from Mariage Frères.

For keepsake favors, I’ve used frames that I found at the Metro gift-shop, which are tiny replicas of Hector Guimards‘ original Art Nouveau Metro entrances. The smaller frames can be used to mark individual place settings, or you can use a larger one as a part of your centerpiece, along with a photo of your favorite Paris monument, to designate each table.

mini candles, diptyque paris

A lot of specialty home stores sell sets of candles or soaps that you can break up and re-wrap for a customized favor. A candle from Diptyque is one of the most coveted souvenir de Paris items around, but at around 40€ each, they’re a bit pricey for the average wedding favor. But a box of 3 smaller candles costs only around 60€- perfect for an intimate wedding with only a few guests. For larger guest lists, L’Occitane en Provence sells yummy, honey-scented bee-shaped soaps individually and in sets starting at around 6€ per bar.

One of my favorite favors are mini bottles of champagne- Baby Piper and POP de Pommery are the two most well-known (and easiest to find). They may not be a lasting reminder of your wedding, but it sure beats another personalized box of mints!