A fun alternative to sending guests home with a traditional favor is to provide them with a Candy Buffet instead. By “fun,” I mean surprisingly fun: the guests aren’t expecting it, and as a result their reaction is like–well, oversized kids in a candy store. A polite sign on the table reading, “Grown-ups, please assist children at the Candy Buffet” apparently goes well-heeded, as we can report no problems with rambunctiously overeager children as we might have expected. With so many people having ruthlessly cut any treats whatsoever out of their diets in today’s calorie-conscious society, the Candy Buffet seems to points up the fact that your wedding is a special occasion, deserving of letting go and enjoying a few bites of sweet indulgence.
If you’re torn between the sentimentality of a take-home favor and the Candy Buffet, you can still add a wedding-favor touch to your dining tables with relatively inexpensive organza bags coordinating with your tabletop décor at each place setting, with a cardstock insert protruding far enough from the top (your computer will give you your choice of fonts and a color close enough to match) to visibly read, “Please “FAVOR” Jason and Jessica with a visit to our Candy Buffet.” The guests can enjoy a candy or three right then and there, then create their own “favor” to take home by selecting a few more for the little take-away bags.
The Ebay store “efavormart” sells (4” X 6”) organza bags in a variety of colors, 100 for 15.00. If you need 125, watch their listings and you may find a smaller batch from time to time, or bite the vullet and buy 200 and tuck the remainder away to make lavender or potpourri sachets for small gifts sometime in the future, or to use to separate jewelry pieces so chains don’t get tangled, etc., when you travel.
It would be misleading to say that a Candy Buffet is a money-saving alternative to favors, because it simply isn’t true: even mixing the varieties to include some less-expensive candies into the mix, candy simply costs a lot more than you’d expect. On the other hand, it’s a fresh idea that won’t likely cost any MORE than favors, and lends a high-end appeal to the celebration, in addition to giving guests one more thing to do and to talk about. For about 120 people, the candy will cost in the neighborhood of $200.
You will need 7 or 8 varieties for a good mix and to make the buffet visually interesting. Scout your local thrift shops for an interesting mix of glass serving pieces. It’s best if they are clear (not cut or etched) glass so that there is nothing to diminish the visual impact of all that candy. Functionally, it’s important to select pieces with wide openings, to prevent tipping/breaking while people are serving themselves, and to walk away from any piece that feels top-heavy. An apothecary jar that’s lost its lid; oversized vases; salad bowls; a monster brandy snifter; and at least one giant martini or margarita-shaped serving piece (available at craft stores if it doesn’t turn up at a thrift store–or, if you’re already renting some things from a party-rental store, you can probably rent one for a couple of dollars) to point up the festivity of the display. Don’t be in a rush to collect the containers–you’ll get a better variety of ones you really like if you check back every couple of weeks for something new until you’ve assembled a good collection. The containers will probably total around $35-40, used. (Craigslist is also a great place to find such pieces; occasionally you’ll even find somebody recycling their own candy buffet, who has already done the shopping for you. Click on “items for sale” and search for “candy buffet.” Check every few days, and don’t be disappointed if you don’t hit the jackpot right away. Also, if you have time, check for individual glass items; many people are selling lovely pieces that they received as wedding gifts but will never use. E-bay may have just the type of pieces you want, but glass is heavy and requires a lot of expensive packaging in addition to shipping charges, in order to arrive intact. And then, it may not arrive intact.)
Now back to the candy. It’s desirable to have 2-3 different choices in chocolate, such is the chocolate-mania rampant among your guests. Something in a metallic wrap gives a luxe glow. Almond Roca, wrapped in gold, gives you both chocolate AND gold! It also comes in sealed tins so you can buy it half-off after Valentine’s Day, store in a cool–not refrigerated–place, and it will be deliciously fresh for a wedding any time that year as long as the can’s seals aren’t broken. (Be careful NOT to buy the pink plastic tubs of Almond Roca–sometimes the contents are not foil-wrapped.) Hershey’s kisses will give you chocolate, SILVER, plus–they’re kisses). Texture-wise, and to add a taste of salty-and-sweet, it’s nice to have one of the chocolate choices be chocolate-covered pretzels. Costco has been carrying double-bags of Snyder pretzels covered with Hershey’s chocolate–pick up 2 pairs of bags. Mixed in with the chocolate and the shiny varieties might be a smaller container of white/ivory Jordan almonds (recommended because they’re such a traditional wedding candy, although not that many people actually like to eat them.) Butter mints are also popular, classic wedding candies, and with their ivory color will mix well into any color scheme.
For the remaining containers, it’s a fun challenge to find candies that echo your wedding colors. There are many bulk candy shops online, but try to find what you can locally. For one thing, the online shops are NOT particularly bargain-priced per pound, plus you have to pay for shipping. Often you can buy multiples of larger-sized boxes or bags of a particular candy (especially if you spot a sale) than you’d pay to buy it in bulk online. However, if you’re stumped for color-matches, the online stores usually have a “select by color” option on their menu, and you can turn there if you’ve run out of local ideas–or you may get ideas for a particular candy you’ve forgotten about and CAN get locally.
As far as setting up the Candy Buffet, ask a reliable friend or relative (who’s not in the wedding party) to take charge of it for you. She’ll probably be happy to be involved in the preparations in this way. The Candy Buffet will need a tablecloth, either white/ivory or a wedding color–or a beautiful piece of lace or ornate fabric gathered beneath it, as a pretty backdrop for the containers. A floral arrangement flanking each end is not necessary, but if it’s a possibility, it makes for a decadently-lovely presentation. A few small plastic scoops will be needed for smaller candies (a kitchen shop should have these)–avoid metal scoops as they can be heavy enough to chip the glass containers if dropped. Small tongs (as used for sugar cubes or ice buckets) are perfect for orange slices or other gummy candies. Wrapped candies need no servers. (A number of people are going to dive in with their hands anyway.) If your wedding is during the warmer months, be sure to shade the candy if it’s set up near a window, and don’t put it out any earlier than necessary.
The Candy Buffet can be open throughout the reception or, if you prefer, keep it lightly swathed under a cloud of bridal illusion until after the first dance. By then the cake will be being served, and this would be a good time to “unveil” the Candy Buffet and have the M.C. make an announcement that “Mr. and Mrs. Jones invite you to visit their Candy Buffet, now open.” Be aware that the sweets offered at a Candy Buffet will mean less takers on the wedding cake, and accordingly, cut down the amount of cake you order, and ask the cake-cutter to cut it and put it out slowly (the leftover cake will be much easier to pack up and will stay fresher or freeze better in a larger piece than in slices.) Perhaps a two-tiered cake instead of 3–if set on a hefty plateau-type cake stand with pillars between the tiers, it can still get most of the height you’ll want for cutting-the-cake pictures.
Yes, it’s true: a Candy Buffet would be “one more thing to plan.” But as long as you have someone willing to execute the plan, why not try something different, fun, and memorable?
01.02.09
