Medieval Favors

I am not sure how common it is to have a little gift, or favors, for your guests today, but Americans does it and some danes as well. I am not quite sure how long it can be traced back through time, but I do know that amongst the vikings your wealth was not measured by your riches but by your generosity.
With what I've read it was normal in the 16th century to offer your guest some sort of gift when they came to a wedding, especially in Italy and France (in France called: bonbonniere). It was a combination of a sign of gratitude and a way to share the couple's fortune with their guests. Mostly the gift of five Jordan almonds are mentioned. Each of the almonds would represent wellwishes: health, welth, fertility, longevivity and happiness.
These gifts of almonds were used by the upper class of the medieval times, along with other exclusive confectionary. Obviously this would make a fine favor for a medieval themed wedding.

Find a great step by step recipe to make them yourself on tastykitchen.com.

Edible favors in general are a good idea for this kind of theme. You can make or buy jam, mead, mustard and honey, or maybe include a genuine medieval recipe that your guests can try out at home. It can also be things like spices, herbs or salt, that had great value in medieval times. Chocolate hadn't arrived in Europe from South America at the time, so sorry guys - no wonderful chokolate favors.

Honey was the sugar of the Middle Ages

Salt was both for seasoning and conservation

Jam made from berries tasted as good on bread then as it does now

Of course there is the nonedible favors as well, such as pouches of lavender or rose petals used in medieval times in drawers with cloth and linnen to keep it smelling wonderful. One can give the guests biwax candles, flowerseeds, replica medieval coins or a medieval poem.

If you have a wax seal - then seal the gift

Coins may make a memorable favor

A seed favor can be done easily and rahter cheap

 I hope this quick list of ideas can inspire you to find the right favors. I must admit I had never heard of the tradition until I started planning my own wedding and I probably wouldn't have spend the money on it, if it wasn't because I got this amasing offer. I've made crests for both Robert and me and so because of a sale, I had them made into pin backs for the family, so wheter they come in costume or not, they are wearing the (new) family shield of arms. - in case any of my guests are reading this - Look the other way ;-)

Shield of Arms 2 - an inspirational website

Hi again
I came across this website and obiously I had to share with you. In an earlier entry I wrote about how you can make your own crest or shield of arms, but you might already have one. Look in the index under the first letter of your surname and check out the many crests to see if your family name has one.

LINK: http://www.heraldry.ws/index.html

DIY - My shield of Arms

I made both of our shields of arms in Paint and based on our personalities.


My boyfriend has both the Danish word for electricity and the word for hammer in his names, so I made a lightning bolt and a war hammer. He wanted it to be about force and war. Manchester united is his favourite soccer team, and they have a crest of their own with a red devil. As it looks like a dragon, a common medieval symbol, I included the devil on his shield as well but I switched the trident with a sword. The background I painted blue - his favourite colour and the colour of nobility.
This is the result:

It's simple, but my fiancé loves it :)
My shield of arms was equally simple. Green is my all time favorite colour so obviously it had to be a part of it. I chose red for love and green for life and growth, a black unicorn for secrets and fantasies and the tree of life. My names include the words shoe and spike. I translated it to a horse shoe and a spear. And here it is:

All sorts of decorations can be made for the party using the shields. First I made actual shields, or I bought some children shields for 4 pounds and painted them over:

Then we decided to use them as favors as well. Everyone gets a badge (pin back) with one of the two shields upon arriving at the party. My family gets my crest and Robert's family will get his:

Shield of Arms DIY

The shield of arms was a way during the Middle Ages to show people what family you belonged to. It was primarily the wealthier families who had such a symbol and there was much pride in the blood line.


It will add a nice touch to the party if you make your own - one for the family of the bride and one for the family of the groom. You can paint them on two big wooden shields and hang them over the bride and groom during the reception.
It will also look impressive with tall banners hanging along the wall, maybe with other shield of arms to represent the "connections" to the family.
If you aren't as lucky as to have an actual shield of arms in the family you can:
1. Make your own - takes a little creativity but it's very fun and you can make it very personal.
2. Borrow someone else's shield - most nations have an official shield of arms - or you can google it and choose amongst the many powerful ones that pop up.


Try not to make it too complicated if you choose to make it yourself. You have to decide on:
             a. Colours - should there be more than one? Remember the medieval is known for its use of bright strong colours. They may symbolise different virtues or something specific to you.
Red: Passion, war, love, blood fire. Blue: Purity, devotion, faith, royalty, water. Yellow: Sun, warmth, wealth, air, joy. Green: Hope, earth, fertility, family, children, courage. Black: Strength, power, night, secrets, myth, man, magic. White: Truth, day, woman, justice, clarity, superiority.
           
             b. Symbols - often there's a lot of symbols on a shield of arms. An often used example is the lion, which is associated with kings and bravery. The French took a fancy to the lily, a symbol of beauty. There are weapons such as swords, bows, hammers, staffs, spears, axes and arrows. All tokens of strength and conquest. Then there are animals like: Hog (strength), swan (beauty), eagle (power), unicorn (supremacy), deer/stag (hunt, grace), dragon (unearthly power), Bear (wildness/greatness), fish (Christianity), owl (knowledge). Flowers also appear frequently, roses, lilies. Nature symbols like sun, moon, tree, ocean, star and mountain are very old. An example of objects could be cup, sceptre, crown, heart, cross, kea, horse shoe, shell.
            
              (c.) a motto. Like: show no mercy, trust and fear not, Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus (Never tickle a sleeping dragon - Hogwarts, Harry Potter), or Splendor sine Occasu (splendour without diminishment).


Have fun now :)  - next entry I will tell you how I made mine.