Personalized Wedding Favor Orders On The Rise for 2009; It's Hot, Hot, Hot!

It's that time of year. Brides all over the U.S. are shopping for the finishing touches for their spring or summer wedding.

This year there will be 2,219,264 weddings in the United States, up from 2,212,923 in 2008, according to The Wedding Report. A quick glance tells me that's up close to 7,000 over last year. The same publication predicts brides will spend close to $30,000 when it comes to planning for their wedding in 2009.

I've been receiving phone calls for wedding favors earlier this year than in 2008. An increasing number of them are from bridesmaids helping out with bridal showers or assisting brides with selecting wedding favors.

It's no wonder brides need help planning their weddings. The Wedding Report says nearly 50 percent of U.S. weddings this year will have between 100 and 200 guests. Another 25 percent will have more than 200 attending their special day. Favors are a wonderful way to thank your guests for sharing your special day. They also serve as a special reminder of your day.

Whether you're planning a beach wedding, or just love the beach, our sea glass soaps make popular favors. For other ideas check out our personalized and monogrammed soap bars.

Bulk Sea Glass Soaps

For large weddings with 100 or more guests, it is much more cost-effective to create your own favors. Our most popular assemble-it-yourself favors are made using our bulk sea glass soaps. At $70 per gallon (enough for 30-40 guests), it is economical, yet beautiful. Most brides choose to package them in cello bags and tie them up with ribbons matching their wedding colors. Add a personalized hangtag and hot-glue a shell to create a seaside-themed favor that guests will love!

Sea Glass Soaps with Hangtags

For smaller weddings, or for those who have the budget to spend a bit more on their guests, save time and energy by ordering finished favors. Our popular seaglass wedding favor soaps are handmade, packaged by us, and are finished with free personalized hangtags. Each pillowpak contains 50 pieces of colorful seaglass made out of our moisturizing and long-lasting soap.

Whatever your choice is for your 2009 wedding favors, I wish you a beautiful day and many blessings in the years to come. Enjoy!

Beach Wedding Themes and Favors

Recently I was reading about wedding facts for 2008 at http://forever-weddings.blogspot.com/2008/04/2008-wedding-statistics.html

I was surprised to see that June 2008 is not the most popular month this year for weddings. Then I did a little more research and found that August wins in 2008 for most booked weddings. Maybe you already know why...August 2008 has a special date that matches the year, which is 08/08.

An estimated 233,413 brides will say "I do" this August. Seaside-themed weddings are more popular than ever, with themes ranging from Luau to Yacht to Sand and Surf.

Our gorgeous, handmade sea glass guest soaps have been one of most popular favors for brides to give their guests. Turnaround time for favor orders is just 10 days. We customize hangtags with bride and groom names and their special date. Enjoy special pricing on 50 or more (regular retail is $12.00), free personalization and free shipping. Email me for details on the best pricing I am able to offer.



Order a sample online at http://www.backporchsoap.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=14&zenid=103b3e37ef60f1434b53ada87ce00806 You'll receive your sample within 3-5 business days. Once you receive your sample and decide to place your favor order of 50 or more, I will gladly credit the price of the sample plus shipping to your account.

Your guests will be so glad you didn't opt for Jordan almonds. :)

May Promo - 20% off and Free Shipping!

In honor of Mother's Day and all the celebrations that come around in May (think birthdays, teacher's gifts, graduation gifts, early Father's Day presents...hey, Dads like soap too!), we are offering 20% all retail orders over $60 and free shipping within the continental U.S.

This offer will run until May 15, 2008, so get yourself over to http://www.backporchsoap.com/ to get yourself a great deal and enter promo code PAMPERMOM at checkout.

One of our most popular gifts, this two-soap set with seashell potpourri (for only $24.00) can be found under Gifts From the Sea. In addition to the fragrant seashells, it contains two best-selling soaps, our 5 oz. Sea Glass and Sea Salt bars, both long lasting and moisturizing. They are scented with Ocean Mist, a clean, soft fragrance.

Need a custom gift set or special gift giving needs that need extra attention? Simply email us at info@backporchsoap.com and we'll make your gift giving fast, easy and fun! We'll even tuck in a personalized note to your gift recipient at no extra charge.

While you're there be sure to sign up for our newsletter. We send out our best sales, specials and news to our beloved newsletter subscribers. Don't worry, we won't share or sell your info!

Getting Sea-Inspired on the Cape

I just returned from a day trip to Cape Cod, the eastern "arm" of land in Massachusetts that is surrounded by water. For me, it is just a short 30 minute drive from Duxbury to the Sagamore Bridge and viola, I'm "on Cape" as the natives say. To drive the full length of the Cape takes about an hour and a half, with little to no traffic. In July it could take twice or triple the time.

But today was a perfect day, reminding me that summer really is just around the corner. Temperatures hovered in the mid-60's and there was not a cloud in the sky. I made a mental list of my favorite Cape things that I want to do this summer.

Cape Cod is known for its magnificent beaches and sand dunes. It's the perfect summer getaway, whether for a week or weekend (visit http://www.capecodchamber.org/) So on my list is a trip to the National Seashore in Chatham along with a stop in downtown Chatham for some great shopping.

This time of year resorts and gift shops are gearing up for a busy summer, stocking their displays with beach and island gifts and decor, including lots of our great handmade, sea-inspired bath and body gifts (shameless plug happening now... http://www.backporchsoap.com/). Brides-to-be from across the U.S. are finishing up their wedding plans for June-August summer weddings that are celebrated seaside up and down the Cape's coast. (If you are a beach bride or know one, be sure to check out our fabulous wedding favors on our site.)

There are so many great restaurants and bars on the Cape. My favorites include the Flying Bridge in Falmouth, Tomatoes in Sandwich, Horizons in Sandwich (spectacular view). If you're up for a splurge, check yourself into Chatham Bars Inn (http://www.chathambarsinn.com/) for a fantastic place to stay and pamper oneself.

Also on my list this year of favorite things to do on the Cape is to hop a short ferry ride from Hyannis or Woods Hole to Martha's Vineyard (http://www.mvy.com/) or Nantucket (http://www.nantucketchamber.org/), which are both beautiful islands and fun to explore. Martha's Vineyard is the larger of the two islands, and takes much longer to explore. But both offer great sites.

While on Nantucket, check out Best of the Beach. It's a fabulous store on Straight Wharf that carries most of our line.

Hope your travels take you to Cape Cod soon so you can find some treasures for yourself!

What Would You Put In Soap?

I just finished the spring Boston Gift Show, a wholesale show where gift shops, hotels and other businesses shop for products to resell. Every year there is a new product that I design (usually days before the show begins under the pressure to have something new and rockin'!) that quickly becomes a bestseller. This year was no exception.
This year's hot soap is a new custom image soap. The image in the soap is made from a new skin-safe material that stays in the soap for the life of the soap! Customers were having fun choosing what they wanted in these 5 oz. bars. Most popular were the words "Beach House." Also selling briskly were town names, quotes and taglines, as well as key destination images. In addition, there are six beautiful fragrances from which to choose.

I had so much fun designing the samples shown here in the picture. See my monogrammed soap? The map is of Martha's Vineyard, my Cape Cod friends love the blue lobster, and the photo in the back left is of Powder Point Bridge near where I live in Duxbury. The ideas are endless. Think business logo to wedding favors to house guests.
All you need to send is a logo or picture in jpeg format (the higher the resolution, the better). There is a minimum of 12 per design. Retail pricing is $8.00 per bar. Wholesale customers should inquire about pricing, etc. at www.backporchsoap.com/wholesale
For more information contact me at info@backporchsoap.com or visit http://www.backporchsoap.com/ and look for the Personalized Soap link.