The Bridal Shower:
The bridal shower is given by a relative, close friend or a member of the bridal party. It shouldn't be given by the mother or sister of the bride. It can be a surprise shower, but most brides like to participate in the planning. You can help by:
Choose your colors:
Most brides like the shower to be the same color scheme as their wedding. It's a great way to introduce the color scheme and give the guests a preview of what's to come.
We love brights like the above lime and raspberry. Or, orange and raspberry. lime and yellow, or lime and purple.
We also like Chocolate and Robin's egg blue, or black and red.
Important note: When choosing your color scheme, you should check out the flowers available the time of year of your wedding to be sure you will be able to carry out your color scheme with flowers you will be happy with.
Choose a theme:
You don't have to have any other theme than "A Bridal Shower" - but some people like to limit the gifts by having a "kitchen" shower or a "Bed & Bath" shower. One of our favorites is an "Around the Clock" shower where guests are given a time ( say, 9:00 a.m.) and have to bring something that would be used at that time (like an omelet pan for breakfast). One hostess we know actually made the face of a clock out of poster board and tied long pieces of colored ribbon to each number on the clock - then as the guests arrived, she attached their gift to the other end of the ribbon. The gifts were opened in order around the clock.
Decorating Ideas:
One of the coolest ideas we've run across is using kitchen utensils as floral containers for your centerpieces - then giving them to the bride. Colanders, graters, and large measuring cups (filled with jelly beans), etc. (just put a drinking glass with water in it inside the grater to hold the flowers and bowl with water in it inside the colander). Put small clay pots with flowers in them in the cups of a muffin tin for a cute centerpiece. The food serving table can have items like a rolling pin, measuring spoons, etc. scattered around.
Games:
You don't have to have games - especially if it is an older crowd (like your church group etc.). But younger women tend to enjoy them, so - it's your call. You can have everyone bring their favorite recipe, or have 3 x 5 cards for them to write marital advice (and have someone read the best ones). Personally, I just like having the bride talk about how she met her fiance and how he proposed before or as she is opening gifts. But, if you really want to have some games so you have an excuse to give prizes, try one of these:
Bridal Shower Trivia
To prepare for this game, you'll prepare trivia questions (ask the bride, her sister, or mother for suggestions of questions). Some sample trivia questions are below:
What year did the bride graduate from high school?
Who was the bride's first kiss?
How many siblings does the bride have?
The guests then try to answer as many questions correctly as they can. The guest to answer the most questions correctly wins the game.
WHO AM I BRIDAL SHOWER GAME
This is very popular ice breaker wedding shower game. Prepare index cards with the names of famous people written on them. When guests arrive, attach a card to each guest's back so that the guest cannot see who the name is, but everyone else can. Each guest must then ask the other guests for clues to the identity of the famous person whose name is taped to their back.
BRIDAL SCRAMBLE
Use about 20 words ( could be less ) that have something to do with "wedding". The words are scrambled and everyone has 10 minutes to unscramble them. The person who unscrambles the most wins the prize. Some examples of words: bride, groom, bridesmaid, maid of honor, limousine, garter, tuxedo, flower girl, rings, shower, honeymoon, church, reception.
How Many "Cows" is the Bride worth?
Just like in Johny Lingo, there are still many cultures today who offer the bride's father cows in exchange for the bride. How many cows is the bride worth? Have a glass jar with cow candy in it and have guests guess how many cows are in the jar. Whoever comes closest to the amount wins. Go to http://www.simplybovine.com/products/holsteintaffy.php and buy cow candy or chocolate cow shaped cookies - or buy some miniature plastic cows from your local toy store.
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