Bridal shower ideas!

One of my sorority sisters is a PRO at planning bridal showers. My favorite game that we have played at one of the showers she's planned was Bridal Bingo. She made up papers with nine boxes and then put together a list of like 40 "wedding" words (bride, bouquet, flowers, rice, groom, dress, etc). Each person picked nine words off the list and wrote them in the boxes on their paper. Then she drew the words, one by one, out of a basket and we marked them off (just like regular Bingo). Another game that I've played is Two Truths and a Lie. It's a really great game for a small intimate party and a great way for everyone to get to know a little more about each other. It's simple. Everyone takes turns telling two truths and a lie about themselves and the other guests have to try to guess which "fact" is actually the lie. This one requires a lot of prizes because you should have a little something for each person who stumps everyone. As for prizes... the aforementioned sister has gotten things like jar candles, jewelry (both of which I think she picked up at the dollar store, but they were still cool), pocket/key chain video games, even $5 and $10 gift cards to restaurants.

To answer your questions: 1.) Have you ever been to a bridal shower? (Or better yet: have you ever PLANNED one?) What were some of the good ideas that you saw? I recently attended two bridal showers last month. Both went about the same way, we ate food, played some games, then the bride opened her presents. Oh, and at one of the showers there was an "Advice Box" which was just a shoebox. All of the guests would write down advice to give the bride about married life on a notecard and put it in the box. Then later on in the shower, the host read all of the advice to the bride. I've never planned a shower though. 2.) What are some ideas of games that we could play? And what kind of prizes could we offer? At each shower we played 2 games. At the first shower we played a game called "Guess The Spice". The host passed around 7-10 spice jars. Instead of having a label, the jars of spice just had a number. Each of the guests had a notecard and as we'd pass the spices around, we had to smell them and guess what it was! Whoever guessed the most spices right won a prize! If there was a tie (which there was) all of the guests who had guessed the most spices correctly passed their notecards to the bride and she put them in a hat and pulled out one winner. The second game we played at that shower was "Finish the proverb". The host would read out the first part of a proverb such as "A stitch in time" and then we'd have to write down the rest of the proverb on our notecard, which in this case would be "saves nine". And whoever guessed the most right won a prize. And like with the other game, if there was a tie (which there was again) the bride would select one winner out of a hat. The prizes at that shower were little goodie bags the host made. The host makes and sells handmade jewelry, so each goodie bag contained some handmade earrings she'd crafted. They also contained scented lotions and soaps. At the second shower, we played a game called "What Would The Bride Say?" The host made up a page of fill-in-the-blank wedding sayings like "Wedding _____" and "First ______ " and "Bouquet of _______" and printed out several copies of this fill-in-the-blank sheet. Before the shower, she gave one to the bride to fill out. Then during the shower, the host passed out a copy of the blank version to each of the guests. We had to fill it out guessing how the bride answered. Whoever got the most answers correct won a prize, but if no one answered correctly then the bride won the prize. The second game we played was "How Well Do You Know The Bride?" which was a series of questions about the bride like where was she born?, where did she go to high school?, where did she meet her fiance?, what was her favorite food?, that sort of stuff. And whoever got the most answers correctly won a prize. And like the other game, if no one answered any of the questions correctly, then the bride would win the prize. At this particular shower, there were no ties with the games. The prizes at this shower were scented candles. 3.) How many of her friends should we invite? At both of the showers I went to, the only friends that were invited were the bridesmaids. The rest of the guests were all relatives of the bride and groom- siblings, parents, aunts, cousins, and grandparents. 4.) How long do they usually last? Both showers I went to were scheduled to last 2 hours. But they both ran a little over time, as guests liked to hang around and talk after the festivities were done. 5.) What kind of decorations could we put up? (Inside OR outside the house!) At the showers I went to, they put some balloons outside on the mailbox. Then the only part of the house they decorated was the room with the food. They put up streamers, and little bridal shower table decorations you can buy at a party store. Hopefully that helped you! The only thing you didn't cover was the food! One of the showers I went to served cake, the other didn't. Both showers served punch. At one of the showers, the punch was spiked with champagne. And both of the showers served coffee as well. One of the showers had a chocolate fountain that was pretty cool. Some good food suggestions are veggies and dip, little sandwiches, nuts, fruits, etc. Good luck with the shower planning!

Yes and yes lol. The best thing to do is get a planner list so you can make sure to check off items as you get them done. http://www.realsimple.com/holidays-entertaining/weddings/planning/bridal-shower-planning-checklist-00000000000199/ That's a simple check list you can use, but you can modify it to suit your needs ok?So, let's get started. Pick the date-This should be what is most agreeable for the bride of course, but also for all you plan to invite. Most of the time the best times are weekends in the afternoons. However, learn the time schedules of those you plan to invite. Then pick the number, because you'll need to provide gifts for each of them for attending. This can be done cost effectively, but you should still provide them something. After having written the list let's talk theme. Some people do "bedroom" themes where the gifts focus on the honeymoon and intimacy. Others are more family friendly especially if you're inviting family members under the age of 18. Make sure the location is secure for the date planned and that it can accomodate people. If you have it at your house you may want to rent extra chairs/tables for the occassion. This avoids people sitting on the floor, etc. I think it is fine to design your own invitations, but do so on proper card stock. Maile them at least 6 weeks in advance, but you can with etiquette mail them up at least 4 weeks giving them a month to add it to their date book. In terms of food, it's really all about cost and time. You can choose to make all the stuff yourself, or have it catered. Grocery stores offer nice platters like meats/cheeses, fruits/veggies, and even dessert sampler platters. I'm about finger foods so that is what I'd go with. Do nice little chocolate treat bags with netting tied with mock rings. You may want to set the mood with scented candles, etc. Games can get out there. One game is just in the opening of presents. For every ribbon the bride breaks, that's equal to one child she'll have. Her goal, not to break anymore then the children she wants lol. You can also use sites that have free print out games such as this one: http://www.weddingfavorsunlimited.com/Free_Bridal_Shower_Games.html Prizes for games should be kept to your price range. If you're only have a few and you can afford it you can go higher. But most people are ok with let's say a giftcard to a restaurant, local store, coffee house, etc. Anything that lets them have a bit of fun. The number of friends depends upon your space, and money. If you are hosting it, you are paying for it all. How long it lasts depends upon you. Some I've been to are over in a few hours some have lasted 6. If you are doing a barbacue theme, then outside. Otherwise I'd stick with inside so you don't have to contend with weather. Decorations again depend upon your theme. Crepe paper, balloons, etc are generally the standard and can be bought at any Party store. If you're having a tea party you may want to have quaint style tea sets. If you're having a barabue, then nice paperplates, etc may be in order. Hope this helps a bit. Namaste-Anora