Bridal Shower Planning

Bridal showers are one of the most anticipated pre-wedding events for the bride-to-be. They are typically an all-female gathering in which the brides closest friends and family members gather around and shower the bride with gifts. The hostess usually plans fun games, serves delicious food, and best of all, the bride can spend some time with her closest friends and family for a day.

Bridal showers are often hosted by a close friend of the bride, such as the maid of honor, or a family member such as the mother of the bride or the mother of the groom. Whoever ends up planning the shower needs to be conscious of the fact that every step of the wedding planning process and the events leading up to the wedding will all be a special memory for the bride. After all, these pre-wedding events can help the bride stress about confiding in her closest friends or relax knowing that she is placing her trust in the best people for the job.

One way to create a truly memorable bridal shower and to get some inspiration for the best bridal shower decorations is to come up with a theme that is linked to your bride's personality, sense of style, or a favorite activity. Once the theme is established, the decorations should pretty much find themselves.

First, you'll want to plan the set up. If you're hosting a tea party, consider setting up little round tables with a maximum of four guests per table. If the weather is nice, set up some picnic blankets with several pillows for your guests to lounge around. Whatever your set up, this can then help you decide how to best plan out your decorations.

At the gift table, provide a box filled with cards where guests can write their best wishes for the bride after they set their gifts on the table. The cards can later be arranged in a personalized scrapbook to serve as a guestbook. Another idea is to use the cards for guests to write their favorite recipe and this can then be compiled into a bride's cookbook. When you compile the scrap or recipe book, be sure to personalize it with pictures of the bride and groom and plenty of pictures from the bridal shower itself. If you would prefer to have a more traditional guestbook, you can also put a twist on the classic by purchasing a personalized signature picture frame where guests sign around the edges of the frame.

When planning your table decorations, you can save some money by crafting edible centerpieces. Instead of having a separate dessert table, use some of your desserts like monogrammed petit fours or cupcakes as the centerpiece by setting them up on a pretty plate or tower. For a more traditional centerpiece, set up individual flower vases on small tables and add some personalized ribbon around the vase in the shower colors. If you're hosting a picnic type event, consider situating them beneath trees and then using fabric to create a tent-like environment. You could also use picnic baskets filled with flowers as the centerpieces there.

Decorate the buffet tables by using your theme as the inspiration. You could set up some colorful tea tins and various tea sandwiches for a tea party themed shower. Cocktail infusers along with personalized martini glasses, which can double as favors, would be perfect for cocktail parties. A kitchen themed event would definitely call for a potluck or buffet set-up with personalized labels with the recipes. You could also hand out personalized lemonade and chocolate favors along with mini whisks or measuring spoons.

When you finish decorating, stand back and admire your handiwork. Then prepare to celebrate with the bride-to-be!