It’s traditional for the bride and groom to get presents on their wedding day, and it is expected that they give a little something back. Just like a kid’s birthday party where party favors are given out to everyone who attends, weddings guests should get a little favor bag to help remember your special day too.

Sometimes it can be hard to decide what your gift bag should be, usually because there are so many different types of people from all aspects of your life coming. You’ll have your family, your many groups of friends, possibly some coworkers, and of course your other half’s invitees. How do you find something that would appeal to everyone?

Before you get into the favors, start with the design of the bag. If you have a theme, the bag should match the theme. Otherwise a pretty white bag usually works out well. Any bag you have should have some way of tying it such as string or ribbon. Also try to find a type of bag that is durable so the favors don’t fall out. Cloth bags or totes are amazing gift bags because your guests can reuse them rather than throw them out. If you want to have separate favors for the men and women attending, have the bags be different colors such as the traditional pastel blue and pink.

Having different favors for men and women can be a good way to go if you can’t decide on something that is universal for both sexes. For women, you can use things such as special beauty product samples, small bottles of nail polish, or even nice lotion. Men would probably prefer to have something that has the name of the bride and groom on it, so custom made favors would be ideal. Of course there are many unisex favors you can have, such as candles, candies, and bubbles for blowing during the special occasion.

If you are going with a themed wedding, than that should be a strong factor in deciding what you will give your guests as favors. Silly gifts are perfectly acceptable as long as they match theme. As an example, if you are having a tropical themed wedding and reception, leis make great gifts. You could also include dancing hula girls, coconut lotion, and tropical flowers for your guests to take home.

Alternatively, if there isn’t a theme and you are still having trouble deciding, you can take the season that your wedding is occurring into account. If you are having a summer wedding, gifts such as sunglasses and sunscreen can be fun and useful presents, especially if any part of the occasion takes place outdoors. For a winter wedding, scarf and glove sets make excellent gifts that will get a lot of use.

The most important thing about your wedding gift bags is that you are happy with them. While you want to please your guests, they all know that it is your special day and will be thankful that you thought of them, so choose whatever favors work for you.