Should I Give My Guests Quinceanera Favors?

By: Samantha Snowden

Your Quinceanera celebration demands a lot of preparation. There's probably a thousand little details for you, your parents, and your friends to figure out. Planning and detailing the Mass and celebration afterwards can sometimes take up to a year in advance! It's no wonder some details get lost in the mix.

As you go through the maze of details, little ideas and plans that combine to make your Quinceanera special, take a moment to consider your guests. They're typically all your family and friends, and your parents and brothers and sisters - everyone you want to show that you're quickly becoming a young woman. Some of the guests might travel a long distance to join you in the celebration, while others might take the day or night off from work in order to attend. They're probably bringing you gifts, too - if not the traditional kind, then at least something that shows they're happy and proud of you.

Given their sacrifice of time and money, you should consider giving your guests a little gift of their own. This can be something simple - really just a token of your appreciation. Like wedding favors, Quinceanera favors can communicate a great amount of gratitude without costing a lot. Also, they can be ordered in bulk to save money.

Favors make a great accent at your guest tables, too. A favor often creates a lovely centerpiece for each place setting. As your guests sit down, they'll be welcomed by a gift that shows you've thought of them and want to convey your best feelings. A well-chosen and tasteful obsequio says that even though you're the guest of honor and the night is yours, you haven't forgotten them, either.

There are many different types of favors to give. Some are even personalized with your name and Quinceanera celebration date (or your birthday.) A few of the more popular favors to give your guests include:

Candles:
Lighting a candle can show any one of dozens of emotions. It can show remembrance or joy, reflection or nostalgia. The gift of a candle makes for a beautiful keepsake of your celebration, because it allows guests the opportunity to choose when they use it. The memory of your celebration can return to them at any time in the future!

There are many kinds of candles available, enough that you can easily coordinate with your own color and design scheme. The candles themselves are also reasonably inexpensive.

Candy and Mints:
Give your guests something dulce they'll love to enjoy, either at the celebration or afterwards! Candy makes a great treat, as guests can use it to cleanse their palette or simply to take a little snack while on a break from the dance floor. Mints are lovely favors, too, because guests can enjoy them after their meal or anytime afterwards. Many modern favor retailers now offer personalization on their mint tins, so that you can create a permanent and unique keepsake of your Quinceanera celebration.

Candy needs time to prepare, though, especially if it's made-to-order. Check with the retailer to see how soon in advance the candy should be ordered, and if they will deliver it directly to your event.

Placecard Holders:
These are usually small sculptures made from resin, metal, or plastic, and include a wire-frame hanger or clip that holds a placecard. They welcome each guest to their place setting, and the guests can keep them afterwards. The wire frame clip can be used to hold a photograph or important notes, while the base will always be a reminder of your celebration. Placecard holders can coordinate with your celebration, help to set your celebration's mood - or simply express your idea of a good time. Many are also designed to complement a particular theme.

Gift Bags & Pouches:
These kinds of favors are especially ideal for the do-it-yourself Quince girl, or the girl who knows that her favor should make a bold expression of her own personality. Gift bags and pouches can be filled with any one or more of dozens of items, from candy to mints to fragrances to souvenir favors such as candles or drink glasses. The gift bags are sometimes available personalized, too, so your guests can keep them as a lasting souvenir of your special celebration. It might help you to remember that the bags and pouches themselves are more than just gift-wrapping for your Quinceanera favors - they go a long way towards making a handsome presentation all by themselves.

Souvenir Glasses:
Just like at a prom or homecoming dance, guests at your Quinceanera celebration can carry home a souvenir champagne flute engraved with your name and personalized inscription! These may be slightly more expensive, so you might have to make a choice on spending for them. Still, they're available in volume, and make a distinctive keepsake favor your guests can use for years to come. As your Quinceanero announces to the world that you're becoming a lovely young lady, a toasting flute makes a lovely way for your guests to commemorate your new grace and stature.

Themed Favors:
You've probably learned in school how a theme is a central idea that appears many times throughout a story. A themed celebration means that all the decorations and finery you choose follows one idea or design scheme. Like the dances your school holds each year, a theme can be anything you have in mind - a fairy tale, a day at the beach, an old-fashioned garden party, a night under the stars - the choice is ultimately yours.

Favors help to display your theme at every guest place setting. They also help your guests remember your special event long after it has ended. You can even mix and match themed favors and decorations to create something new and unique. For example, your theme might be a nighttime beach party, or a fairy tale spring garden.

Remember that the ideas suggested above are just that - they're suggestions. Above all else, the Quinceanero is a celebration of your new life, and how you appear as a woman before your friends and family. The favors you choose are meant to share its happiness with your guests on a permanent basis. They're really souvenirs of the good time you had together.