Gift Giving Guy

M&Ms have new meaning for me: Marriage & Memories. Late last month, I watched a college friend give her hand in marriage. And for the wedding favors, the couple gave the chocolate candy that melts in your mouth and not in your hand. They chose pink and white M&Ms to match the wedding theme colors, personalized with their names and the wedding date.

Visit MyMMs.com to customize the classic candies. First, pick two colors from 20 options. Then create a unique message on each color (two lines, eight characters per line). MyMMs.com prints one side of the candy; the other side carries the signature lowercase “m” you find on all M&Ms. It’s like text messaging via candy.

And if you’re sending custom M&Ms to your love, play off that urban legend about the green M&Ms as an aphrodisiac.

You also can upload a photo and have a your giftee’s face appear on M&Ms. I recommend choosing a single face for each M&M design because the candies are only one centimeter wide. The resulting image looks a black-and-white sketch, so avoid photos with shadowing on the face.

Allow about two weeks of lead time for your custom M&Ms. For one 7-ounce bag with personalized messages, you’ll pay about $17 plus $10 shipping. The unit price drops as you buy more bags ($14 per bag for two bags; $12 per bag for three bags). For faces on your M&Ms, you’ll need a minimum quantity of three bags for $13 per bag.

For the ultimate packaging, order the custom M&Ms with a cast-iron gumball candy dispenser with a glass top.