It’s wedding season! We are excited to help our summer brides create the wedding of their dreams. Along with weddings, brides typically attend 1-3 bridal showers which are hosted by friends and family. Wedding showers are typically held between two weeks and two months prior to the wedding.
Friends and family – this post is for you! While the brides are in full-blown event planner mode, many of us haven’t hosted an event for a while (or ever!). When you volunteer or are asked to host a bridal shower, you might A) panic a little; B) get excited because you already have a dedicated Pinterest board; or C) a little of both. Stay calm! Everything is going to be fine!
These days, the pressures of hosting a picture-perfect shower are high (thanks, social media!), but don’t let that get you down! Don’t focus too much time and energy on hosting the “perfect shower.” Instead, focus on creating a fun event that your lovely bride will cherish. Does she want an extravagant affair or simple and laid back? Does she want to play games or would she rather focus on conversations? Work with your bride to determine which date works best, what activities she would like to occur, and how many guests will be expected.
Other important items to consider when planning a bridal shower include:
- Theme (if any)
- Time of the event (morning brunch, luncheon, afternoon)
- Location of the event (how many people can fit comfortably? Is there a time limit for your reservation?)
- Number of guests (this may affect your location, menus, etc.)
- Age of attendees (consider this especially if you plan to provide any alcoholic beverages)
- Decor
Once you’ve considered these items, booked your location, and sent out invitations, everything will start to fall into place. Be sure to ask for help from others (make it a team effort with other bridesmaids, family members and/or friends). Divvy up the tasks so you don’t feel overwhelmed or have to take on the brunt of the expenses. Most people are happy to help! If funds are tight, don’t feel like you have to buy the specialized “Bride to Be” balloons, the intricately-designed cookies, or the potted succulent guest favors. This also goes for fancy decorations. One great way to save money and still host a beautiful shower is to rent your decorations.
We had an amazing time planning a bridal shower brunch for our great-niece. Since we have a large extended family, we’ve had a lot of experience with hosting bridal showers. It’s a lot of fun using our decor and incorporating fun items into the event. Featured below are some of our favorite items that we used.
Food Displays
Since brunch is our favorite weekend meal, we decided to serve a little of everything. The entire place smelled amazing while our amazing breakfast casseroles were in the oven (get the recipe here). Choose a recipe you can make the night before to make your morning even easier. We also served mini cinnamon rolls, frosted cake donuts, fruit, and yogurt.
Since donut displays are all the rage these days, we created our own board which holds up to 25 donuts and fits nicely on a tabletop easel. This was such a fun piece that our guests really loved!
The mini cinnamon rolls were displayed on two different-sized vintage platters stacked on top of each other. We offer a wide variety of serving platters, trays, and displays to meet whatever look you’re going for. The cute napkins fit the theme perfectly (Target for the win!).
We also offered a yogurt parfait option, mostly because we wanted to use our fancy serving cups (available in pink, blue-green, and clear). The yogurt and granola were displayed in clear, crystal bowls and the strawberries and blueberries fit perfectly into our pink, “lazy-Susan” serving platter.
For beverages, we kept it fancy by serving coffee in these beautiful, dainty teacups. We also served orange juice and water from glass pitchers. Vintage tableware and serving items like these are a fun way to make your bridal shower unique. And how often do you get to feel like you’re in an episode of Downton Abbey?
Decor
We kept things simple, yet romantic for the decor, incorporating different pieces and displaying photos of the couple throughout the venue. Utilize different sizes and colors of easels to display your canvases, picture frames, and signs. By the drink table, we used one of our “LOVE” signs, several lanterns and vintage tablecloths. For the tables, we featured beautiful, mirrored vanity trays (great for more than just perfumes!). On top of the trays, we used two different sizes of clear vases filled with water and floating candles. We added sprigs of greenery to finish out the look. Our lace screen was displayed behind the bride while she opened gifts (great for photos instead of just a plain, white wall). The lights and greenery are the perfect addition to this item. The screen served as a great backdrop for group photos at the end of the shower.
Extra Advice
- Buy a box of thank-you cards. Have your guests fill out their address on the envelope, making it that much easier for the bride! Bonus points – give a gift of stamps!
- Incorporate the groom into the celebration. We played a fun game called “What Did He Say?” We asked the groom a selection of questions ahead of time and during the shower and then we asked the bride the same questions to see how well they knew each other.
- Have a notepad handy for the maid of honor (or another helpful person) to keep track of gifts and who the gifts were from.
- Make sure at least one person is taking photos. You don’t want to get to the end of the shower and realize no one snapped any pics!
- Have fun and enjoy the party!
Check out This and That Event Rentals in Milford for your next event – big or small!