DIY, Event Planning Tips, Wedding Planning Tips

Fun Summer Wedding & Party Favors

Choosing and preparing party favors can be just as fun for you as it is for your guests to receive them. Favors can be DIY, personalized, or designed to match your theme and color scheme. Particularly for summer events when people can enjoy the sun and being outdoors, the options for fun party favors are practically endless!

Party favors are small, simple tokens of your appreciation. They are designed to thank your guests for coming and being a part of something special with you. They’re not big or elaborate and they shouldn’t be very expensive, but putting thought and care into your favors will pay off when you see how much your guests enjoy your creativity! Here are ten fun favor ideas for any summer event.

Lemonade and iced tea packs

Nothing feels better on a hot summer day than a cool, fresh drink. At a party, however, people might want something a little more exciting than water. At the same time, not everyone wants an alcoholic cocktail. Giving your guests flavored lemonade or iced tea packs will give them the choice between enjoying a nice drink now and saving it for another time.

You can order drink mixes with packages that are custom for your event or personalized for each of your guests. Give them a few flavors to try, or give everyone a different pack and let them swap flavors like trading cards. Keep a few packs of the most popular flavors aside in case people want another. These favors are great for guests of any age.

Mini S’more making kits

In little baggies, wrap several graham crackers, a few squares of chocolate, and some marshmallows. Tie the top of each bag with a ribbon and attach a custom or DIY tag with each guest’s name. S’mores are an absolute summertime favorite and these favors will leave your guests looking forward to a delicious bonfire later. Once again, both kids and adults will love this favor idea no matter the occasion.

Water bottles

Water is an absolute essential at any summertime event. Believe it or not, it can also make a fun and useful party favor. Order mini bottles of water with novelty labels customized to your event and leave several at each table. Guests can help themselves throughout the day and keep the label or the bottle as a keepsake.

If your guest list is smaller, consider personalized or custom ordered reusable bottles that guests can take home. Design them to match your color scheme and theme or, if you’re feeling fancy, personalize them with your event’s location and date or your guests’ names. Reusable water bottles are one of the most useful party favors around, especially in hot weather!

Sunglasses

Everyone loves a flashy pair of shades no matter the season! In the summer, sunglasses make the perfect party favor. Customize mock Ray Bans with the date of your event on one arm and place them at each person’s seat, or set up a table with different colors and styles that guests can swap and try on. The sunglasses don’t have to be expensive, but they’ll certainly be useful if your event is outside on a sunny day. Kids and adults will use them and think of how much fun they had at your event when they wear them.

Mini Plants

Summer is a time for colorful flowers and lush green plants. You can help your guests enjoy the fresh outdoors even more by giving them a small, low maintenance plant as a party favor. Choose something that is hardy but decorative, like a succulent or a hoya plant, or give each guest a different herb they can use to garnish food and drinks.

Stick to plants that are pretty but simple to care for. You can make these favors even more interesting by getting creative with how they’re potted. Try painting small colorful pots, making DIY labels so the plants double as a place holder, or even repotting each one into old tea cups that you found in garage sales.

Mojito Kits

For many people, there’s nothing like a refreshing summer cocktail. Help your guests keep celebrating even after your party is over by giving them a kit of delicious mojito ingredients. Leave out the alcohol so the favor is appropriate for everyone, but include mint, blueberries, limes, and sugar so they can mix the delicious drink how they please. Place each ingredient in its own little jar and build the kit in a small bucket or unique box that matches your color scheme. Print an ingredients list and mixing instructions for each person, just in case!

Flip flops

Like sunglasses, flip flop sandals are a summertime staple. They’re also very useful! Find out each guest’s shoe size and give everyone a colorful or customized pair. Consider writing the date and location of the event on the sole and getting colors that compliment your décor. Guests can take the flip flops home to use again and again or even put them on right away so they can really get down on the dance floor!

Novelty sunscreen

Giving your guests sunscreen as a party favor can be both fun and practical, especially for outdoor events. Everyone can use sunscreen in the summer, and they’ll appreciate having a travel-sized bottle on hand, especially on a very hot day. Order small bottles with fun labels that are custom to your event. Adults and kids will enjoy the outdoor portions of your event much more if they can avoid the sting of a sun burn!

Tote bags

In the category of useful, reusable, and environmentally friendly gifts, tote bags take the cake. Everyone can use a tote bag, and guests will love them as a party favor if they’re stylish, fun, and customized. Have the bags printed with a drawing, picture, or design that goes with your event theme and fill them with small novelty gifts or party essentials.

Is your event a summer wedding? Give your guests a custom tote bag containing a wedding program, a thank you card, a pack of tissues, a mini water bottle, and perhaps a treat or two. Guests will love looking through their goodie bags and might even use the tote to hold their things while they socialize. After the party, your tote will make the perfect beach bag.

Sparklers

If your guests have never lit sparklers on a warm, dark summer’s night then they’re in for a real treat. Younger guests will need adult supervision, but sparklers are fun no matter your age. You can customize the package to suit your event or get novelty heart-shaped sparklers for guests to light at the end of your wedding reception. Before everyone goes home for the night, they can enjoy the fun, magical feeling of watching pretty sparks fly and writing their name in the air.

Getting creative with your party favors can really pay off. Guests will appreciate the effort you put in, and will feel appreciated by you in return. Favors give each person something to take home, remember the night by, or even have fun with at the party. Favors don’t have to be big or expensive, but they’re an extra touch that will help make your party the best event of the summer.

Do you have other ideas for summer party favors? Let us know in a comment!

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