Greek Favour Ideas for Weddings Abroad in Greece

Today's post is a little different from the theme of posting weddings that SP Weddings has organised over the past in Greece. I thought I would showcase some ideas of how to use local products as favours. I have found that guests love receiving a small gift from the country that they have travelled to and if you use locally produced items, the favour becomes even more authentic and memorable to your guests

Small (or large) bottles of your favourite Greek wine, perhaps the one that you have chosen to serve at your wedding reception is a lovely keepsake for your guests to take away with them.

Consider customising the label with your names, the wedding date and location of the wedding for a more personal touch.

Greek coffee, this is the perfect favour for those that love coffee, easy to transport back home and a product that you will use again and again!

Consider providing personalised instructions on how to make the "perfect" cup of Greek coffee!

www.loumidisfoods.com 

Olive oil is of course associated with Greece and a very useful favour that all your guests will appreciate receiving and certainly use when they return home!

You could include a personalised note on where and how the specific oil has been made or a couple of Greek recipes that feature olive oil quite prominently.

Mastiha is a product you may or may not have heard of, grown only on the island of Chios, this is basically a delicious tree sap that has been made into many products, you can find beauty products as well as edible items. Mastiha in it's best known form is like a chewy, very sweet paste that you take a spoon of and dip in ice cold water, you then slowly consume the paste with the water!! Sounds strange but is actually very enjoyable!Of course I would recommend adding a note explaining how to consume this product!

www.mastihashop.gr

Finally most people are aware of the cool cosmetics company called "Korres", started by a Greek this is one of the most successful companies to emerge in the last few years and can be found around the world with high street stores in New York.

The products are made with natural Greek products and smell and feel amazing!

Consider giving after sun lotion to your guests or perhaps some body lotion with a smell that you love. If you are using herbs or olive leaves in your wedding flowers you can perhaps link this with the product that you choose as the favour for your guests!

www.korres.com

SP

An Array of Lambades

Today I thought that some beautiful lambades images were in order.  It has been a while since we showed you some inspiring images of these important details to a Greek wedding.   You can have the large freestanding candles or opt for the smaller candle, that will sit in candle sticks on the alter.  I have sourced an array of lambades images from florists in Athens that are of the former variety, large and freestanding.

Image from studio-ionnidis.gr

Image from valentineflowers.gr

Image from valentineflowers.gr

Image from mariabogri.gr

Image from valentineflowers.gr

For a little background on the tradition of lambades......

“The traditional lambades adorn each side of the table with the crown tray. The candles are symbolic of the couples’ belief that Jesus is ”the light of the world and whoever believes in him shall never walk in darkness but have eternal life” (Gestathi).

You can opt for the candles to be adorned with big bows also, personally this does not interest me at all but as they say 'each to their own'.  For more images click on the links below the images.  Maria Bogri has some more gorgeous designs on her website as does Valentine Flowers.

NY

Perfect Print Gifts

Two of our great friends gave Jubbs and I one of these prints for our birthday.  I have since payed the pleasure forward to another friend of mine.  I think they would make a great gift for older bridesmaids or groomsmen.  It is a unique gift and a nice change from what people normally give for the thank you gifts.

They have an array of colours and also different types of maps, from the UK to the USA, to Australia.  This can then be a cool personal touch if adapted to the country that your bridesmaids or groomsmen come from.  I gave my friend one of Australia as she is married to an Aussi and has lived there for a number of years.  They both loved it and I must admit, I am pretty proud of myself! 

All images from boldandnoble.com

They are all priced at £43 unframed but are made to fit off the shelf frames.  Visit the website to see a larger range of their designs www.boldandnoble.com

I am a huge fan!

NY

Throwing the Bouquet with a Twist!

I was watching a wedding programme last night (to Jubb's disdain!) and although the majority of it was a mixture of entertaining and painful, one part of it struck me as terribly sweet.

Image from Images.com

The bride invited all the married guests onto the dance floor after their first dance and instead of throwing her bouquet, awarded it to the couple who had been married the longest.  Who lovely is that? It makes such great change to the normal tradition and I love the sense of achievement it would have given that couple. A beautiful touch.

NY

Adding a Dash fo Colour and Texture

When planning the look of the tables you may want to add a dash of colour to either all or just a few tables.  Greece is famous for its embroidered table cloths and napkins so why not incorporate this into your theme. On any Island or the mainland you will find little shops showcasing an array of embroidered goods, some are eyesores and some are beautiful.  You will also be able to find a vendor that will make to order what you want, so you can design your own.

Images from
thebuzz.dianejameshome.com,
& wisteria.com

Images from
kaylovescandy.blogspot.com,
& theknot.com

I like the idea of having maybe half of the tables with the coloured napkins/runners on them and the rest having the same pattern but in white.  Not only would it provide accents of colour to the dining area but also just having the alternating plain embroidery will give texture to the tables.

Afterwards, once washed, they would make lovely mementos of you special day for yourselves, your parents and your in-laws.

NY

       

Lambades

Images from
enkipo.gr &
Annie Angelopoulou

Lambades are a key part in the Greek Orthodox ceremony. They tradtitionally adorn each side of the table which holds the crown tray.  The candles symbolise the couples belief that Jesus is "the light of the world and whoever believes in shall never walk in darkness but eternal life".

That said, there are some hideous ones out there!  Now do not get disheartened when you google them from outside Greece and only come up with the classic organza bow specials. There are some beautiful options for decorating them and as long as you have a good florist, you will be fine. 

I have had problems trying to locate some images for you to prove this point, mainly due to my lack of written Greek and Sara is out of the country on business so cannot aid me in any way. I have managed to find 3 example for you to look at for the meantime and will work on some more for a follow up post.  I love the floral arrangement with the pom poms ( yes I know, I am a bit of a sucker for them) I think it gives the candles a different dimension and adds detail to the base of the candle.  Also the lambades with the calla lily is also beautiful and quite striking.

NY

A Wealth of Traditional Information

Whilst net surfing this morning I came across this wonderful blog dedicated to Greek traditions. I have just spent the best part of an hour reading through all the different and wonderful Greek wedding traditions and I must say it is definitely worth a read. There are some fascinating traditions out there (obviously differing depending on the island or area) but would be lovely to incorporate into your wedding celebrations.

Image from jupiterimages.com

My favorite one so far is the 'step on your foot' tradition and I quote: 

“During the marriage ceremony it’s a tradition that after the Gospel has been read the groom or the bride will step on each others foot. Whoever steps first will be the dominant one.” 

 Damn, if only I had known this before our wedding, I would have whipped Jubbs!

Check out the site for yourselves, there are so many wonderful traditions worth reading. http://greekweddingsandtraditions.com/tag/greek-wedding-traditions/ 

NY

Pomegranates: Traditions & Inspiration

Images from marthastewart.com,
 thelisaportercollection.blogspot.com & dipity.com

For thousands of years pomegranates have been symbols of fertility in Greece.  They are an important part of Greek wedding rites and have been since ancient times.  It is believed that the many seeds in a pomegranate promise children and the red colour of the fruit signifies the soon to be non-existent virginity of the bride.  The Greeks are known to shatter the fruit on the threshold of the newly weds home to increase their fertility and also break them on the floors of their own house at New Year to bring good luck.

Images from greekshops.com, byappointmentonlydesign.com &
michaelaram.com

Now Sara can confirm my slight obsession with the joy that is the pomegranate.  Every time I am in Athens or Crete I buy myself a new pomegranate trinket, whether it be a Christmas decoration, a glass pomegranate or a bit of jewellery.  I love them!  They make cute favours as well.  Anyway, enough of my over enthusiasm, have a look for yourselves.

NY

Some Cute Greek Wedding Traditions

Image by Annie Angelopoulou

1)   At the bride’s house, the Maid/Matron of Honour must give the bride’s parents gifts in order to enter the house.

2)   As the father of the bride puts her shoe on she will attempt to persuade him in to giving her more and more money.

3)   After the reception the groom used to fry his tie and the bride, groom and the parents of the bridal couple had to eat some of it.

4)   The bride writes all her single girlfriends names under her shoe in pen, whichever name is legible at the end of the evening is the next in line to marry.

5)   During a Greek Orthodox Wedding, there's a tradition for male relatives of the bride to slap the groom on the back, sometimes with force, as a way of welcoming the groom into the family.

6)   A Greek bride carries a lump of sugar in her glove on wedding day for a "sweet" life.

NY