Weddings can mean a lot of planning, but can also be a great outlet for your creative side! When done correctly, wedding favors are a great way for your guests to remember your special day. Here are some great ideas for inexpensive and fun wedding favors to think about for your wedding.

1. Homemade Lip Balm

This is a great DIY project for the dedicated bride! You can create your own flavor that will compliment the drinks and cuisine at your wedding, or you can buy some great homemade lip balms from online crafters on sites like Etsy.

2. Salt Water Taffy

This is an excellent favor for summer weddings, especially Jersey Shore weddings! Who doesn’t love a delicious treat like Taffy?

3. Shot Glasses

These are a relatively inexpensive favor, and can be bought in bulk and personally engraved. You can also add some candy to these and wrap them in ribbon to really make guest happy.

4. Custom Flip Flops

This is a great favor for any wedding, especially a beach wedding. Female guests are sure to be thrilled when they get to kick-off their heels and dance the night away!

5. Smores Kit

Last but not least, a cute homemade Smores kit will surely be a hit.  These are simple to make, inexpensive, and will work well for guests of all ages.

Ready to start planning your wedding or social event? Contact us or call 732-542-5050! Our knowledgeable staff  is here to help make your day one to remember.

Wedding Season is upon us, and here at Branches we can’t wait to see the creativity of our brides and grooms shine through! One great theme this wedding season is “green”, and we don’t just mean color! It is possible to have a great wedding and still remain ec0-friendly. Check out some great tips to get started on your green wedding.

Source: www.earthshare.org

Wedding planning and protecting the environment? It is possible. And having an environmentally friendly wedding doesn’t have to mean giving up what you want. In a lot of cases, being environmentally friendly can even lessen the stresses of planning and make the special day more enjoyable.

Go organic. From flowers to food there are lots of ways to go organic. Many caterers offer organic and local produce options. You will be helping the environment by supporting products that use less pesticides, and likely have tastier food!

Something borrowed. Consider borrowing items from friends or family. This will save resources and add a customized feel to the wedding.

Go local. Consider a wedding location near where the majority of your guests are from. This will save on gas and jet fuel as your guests have less distance to travel. If a local venue isn’t possible, consider reducing the impact on the environment by offsetting the emissions that contribute to climate change. Several Earth Share members offer special programs that you and your guests can use to calculate your carbon output and take steps to offset them. Visit the websites of Earth Share members Conservation International and American Forests, or visit CarbonFund.org to learn more.

Ring true. Ask for rings with gold, silver, diamonds or other materials that were mined sustainably. Many mining practices are detrimental to the environment and local communities. Consider using materials from a ring in your family or looking at antiques.

Digital photos. Most photographers can do digital photos of the event. You can then preview the photos and just order prints of the pictures you want—reducing the toxics and waste involved with printing pictures.

One location. Consider having your ceremony and reception in the same location. This will simplify the day and save on gas as guests go from one site to another.

Gift of giving. Picking a china pattern not your style? More couples are asking for donations to charities instead of a gift. Consider adding Earth Share or another environmental charity to your registry.

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Ready to start planning your next gathering? Contact us or call 732-542-5050! Our knowledgeable staff  is here to help make your event one to remember.

Wedding Season is gearing up and here at Branches, and we couldn’t be more excited! Many of our brides and grooms enjoy getting creative with their champagne cocktail selection, and we offer complimentary ones during our Wedding Cocktail Hour. From old classics to new trends champagne is a must have at any event and is sure to elevate the elegance to the next level.  Read further for some fun ways to spice up your cocktails, and be sure to check out our packages for your next social or corporate occasion!

Signature cocktails are great at weddings and are a way for Brides & Grooms to express their personality, likes, and even expand on their themes. Here at Branches, we find that no wedding is complete without a Champagne Specialty Cocktail.

There are quite a few trends emerging in the world of Champagne cocktails:

*What’s Old is new again – Traditional classics such as the Champagne Cocktail with sugar cube and a dash of bitters never goes out of style. Or try a champagne gin fizz with gin, lemon juice, sugar & a lemon twist!

*The Flirty Personality Cocktail – If you are trying to incorporate a color you can create your own like the BLUSH & BASHFUL – vodka, pink lemonade garnished with a raspberry to capture the perfect pink hue.

*The Seasonally inspired drinks draw upon nature – who can also serve as an inspiration or theme.  Who wouldn’t love a FALL INSPIRED champagne cocktail with spiced cider and an orange twist!

Be sure to check out the full list of signature champagne cocktails that we offer, here.

Ready to start planning your next gathering? Contact us or call 732-542-5050! Our knowledgeable staff  is here to help make your event one to remember.

Nothing says a baby is coming more than the idea of nesting, and the nest theme makes a wonderful shower for a boy or a girl or gender neutral celebration.  Being that it is Spring, and Easter has just passed, nests and nests decorations are everywhere and most likely available on sale.  Now is the perfect time to plan a nest themed shower. Check out some of our decorating tips and contact Branches Catering today to start planing your social, corporate, or fundraising event today!

* The most well put together showers start with the invitations and follows right through to the favors.

* Providing guests with an assigned seat is the epitome of hospitality.  It gives them a sense that you as the host have thought about them and where they would feel most comfortable.  It also alleviates any hesitation or stress on their part in looking for a seat .  Generally you can secure matching place cards from the same source as your invitations, but you can also go a different route, get creative, and adapt plain ones to resemble the invites.  Craft stores now carry all sorts of scrap booking supplies including stickers, punch outs and decals which can elevate plain escort cards to a whole different level.

* Doing a colored napkin on a white or ivory table cloth is another great way to incorporate the invitation theme or color at a pretty affordable price.

* Nests themselves are perfect for centerpieces!  They are the perfect shape and hold any type of arrangement well.  You can purchase them at a craft store and do them yourself, or your florist will do an amazing job!

* Another table setting idea is the colored water glass.  You can rent a colored wine glass, goblet or flute to play into your theme color and kick your table up a notch!

* Favors are not necessary at a baby shower, but they are are nice touch.  Not only are they nice for the guests, they add another decor level to your table set.  For a nest theme shower small nests filled with speckled chocolate eggs of the color of your choice are beautiful and delicious and can be found anywhere this time of year.   Wrapped in cello bags and tied with raffia or a pretty ribbon and they good to go!

Need some help getting started? Contact Branches Catering today and start planning your event at our NJ catering hall!

A Bar Mitzvah or Bat Mitzvah is an event with which you can truly have fun and get creative. Everything from colors, to table settings, to food are customizable and can reflect the guest of honor’s personality on his or her special day. Read further for some fun and affordable ways to decorate at your event, and be sure to check out our packages for your next social or corporate occasion!
*The best way to start planning a Bar/Bat Mitzvah is by picking a theme or color. Branches hosted a great Bar Mitzvah with a football theme! (See photos of this event bel0w)
*Pick fun colors to use throughout the decor, as well as incorporated into linen or napkin colors. An upgraded linen is an inexpensive way to tie in a theme throughout your venue. We saw some great spandex tables and chairs in royal blue, white, and navy blue.
*Instead of doing traditional place cards, do something unique. The Bar Mitzvah we hosted used stadium flags for the kids seats, as well as to cheer on the guest of honor.
*Instead of a traditional cake, cake pops are a delicious treat and are sure to be a hit!

Still need some guidance and help planning ? Contact us or call 732-542-5050! Our knowledgeable staff  is here to help make your event one to remember.