A great birthday party favor doesn’t have to be elaborate or handmade or expensive. I do love it, though, when a favor doesn’t come straight from the party favor aisle … when it shows some originality. Can we agree as moms that we’re tired of little bags of trinkets, pencils and candy? I think your funds are better spent on one special favor.

My girls attended a party this weekend where the favor was a plastic popcorn box (two for $1 at Dollar Tree) filled with big, movie theater-style candy. They could not have been more thrilled. (And they know me well: they both hid their Reese’s Cups from me.)

Here are some birthday party favors ideas I’ve used.

At our Valentine’s SweeTart Party, I packaged candy hearts in little red tins, and topped them with a party circle from Tickled Peach Studios.

For my SIL’s It’s Good to Bee 60 surprise party, we gave little jars of honey, with a tag by The TomKat Studios.

Try a decorated cookie, like at our Letters to Santa Party. Just package these in a cello bag and add a thank you tag, like this one from Brown Paper Goods.

At our Charlie Brown Thanksgiving Party, we gave plush backpack clips of the Peanuts gang and some gum balls. I decorated the round boxes to look like Charlie Brown’s shirt and then decoupaged a page from the book to the lid.

We gave violet seed paper at our Flower Fairy Party, so each girl could start her own garden. I added the seed paper to glassine envelopes topped with party circles from Xcreations.

For our Shabby Chic Easter Party, I gave each guest the book The Country Bunny. (Books are one of my favorite favors.)

Felt cookies in a real tea tin were the take-home gift for our Vintage Tea Party.

And for our Wizard of Oz Party, I broke my own rule about keeping to one great item and packed blue gingham tin lunch boxes with Glinda’s bubbles, rainbow hair elastics, Wizard of Oz stickers, and a custom-made felt poppy barrette from Little Boo Creations. (Tag by Loralee Lewis.)

A cute Chair Cover Pockets can be a great place to store your party games and favors.

I hope these ideas give you some inspiration for your next party!