Unique Party Favor

What's Unique?

Unique does not necessarily mean one of a kind. It means something your guests have never seen before, something that will wow them, impress them, and make them feel welcomed by your generosity.

You don't have to spend a lot of money to get a unique party favor. Some of the best party favors are just something small that helps you tell the story of your party, highlights the theme or tells the guests something special about the person being honored.

Budget Unique Party Favors

Food items can be a wonderful unique party favor for a lot of parties. Perhaps your guest of honor is from a city or state with a famous snack (Charleston Chews, Hershey bars, even blueberry jam for someone from Maine) that you can share with other guests.

This special treat doesn't even have to be something you buy. Maybe your family is famous for a special dessert that you could make and package in individual servings (you can buy take-out boxes at most party supply stores) for guests to take home. Think also about ethnic treats your guests might not have tried before.

A fun idea for a milestone birthday or anniversary party is to go retro and have favors that will take the honoree back to younger days. Check out the retro gift packs at Candy Favorites for some ideas. You could always buy a pack and break it up into smaller amounts wrapped in cellophane bags for individual favors. This site also sells a variety of candy in bulk, so if your honoree can't get enough of, say, marshmallow Peeps, you can find them here.

If you're more of a do-it-yourself party planner, check out the Food Timeline for ideas on retro foods that are great inspiration for a theme party, no matter the occasion.

Pricey Party Favors

If you don't have budgetary constraints in your search for a unique party favor, the sky is really the limit. You could give your guests tote bags filled with some of your guest of honor's favorite things, or tailor your goody bag to the theme of your party, such as spa gifts for a pampering party or a selection of fine teas for an afternoon garden party.

Regardless of whether you are on a budget, the best unique party favor will in some way tie into the rest of the party. It is important to take some time to plan all the details of your party so that it fits together as a seamless whole.

If your party doesn't already have a theme, think about the person or people you are throwing the party for and the occasion. What are some things that person really loves? Some ideas for themes that can be incorporated into a unique party favor idea include:

• favorite food or style of cooking
• favorite country to travel to (or that they would like to visit)
• job or dream job
• childhood memories
• favorite color
• favorite flower
• hobby
• hometown
• the person's style (country, swanky, Zen, etc.)

Whatever you choose for your theme should pretty easily give you some ideas for party favors. A party centered around a favorite type of food would do well with a party favor of spices from that country. Likewise it would be fun at a martini party to give guests a little booklet with some martini recipes, or margarita mix for a Mexico-inspired party.

Tiny Eiffel Towers would be a fun favor for a Paris-themed party, while bags of M&Ms in your honoree's favorite color would be perfect for a party centered around a color. Flower seeds could be given for a floral or garden party.

These are just a few ideas to get you started. The thing that makes a unique party favor truly unique is the thought you put into it and the meaning behind it. Anyone can give candied almonds or silver key chains, but the favors at your party should truly reflect your party and let your guests know you really thought about every detail.