As the Maid of Honor your job is to throw a bridal shower to honor your best friend’s big day. A wedding is a celebration and a bridal shower should be too. But it can also be a little more casual with more emphasis on fun than a formal wedding. Give your “bride-to-be” a stylish, hip party with lots of friends, presents and treats to let her know how special you think she is. (Hint: Even if you don’t think she’s all that special, she made you the Maid of Honor. Your entire reason for existing is to give her an amazing bridal shower…..so read on.)
Decide on a theme for your bridal shower. If the wedding is going to be somewhere cool, like the Caribbean or Europe, play off the location. Build your menu off location favorite foods and drinks and use landmarks and cultural icons to decorate. Many on-line companies offer themed favors for just about anything you can come up with. Miniature double-stack buses for London, tiny Eiffel towers, silk leis, grass skirts, you name it, you can probably find it. This is also a good idea if the bride knows where she’s going on her honeymoon. If she’s going to Tuscany, decorate with huge sunflowers and host a sit-down dinner with Italian favorites. Most Italian dishes are deceptively easy to make and fairly cheap if you do them yourself. Or, if you have the budget, hire a caterer. Don’t forget tiramisu and cannoli for dessert. For that tropical get-away, have a Hawaiian bar-be-que. Tell your guests about the theme and let theme dress accordingly. For example, an Italian sit-down dinner shower might be a little dressier than a Hawaiian luau.
If the guests are all close friends and would enjoy their male friends participating too, consider splitting the party in half. Begin the shower with light fingerfoods and drinks, and let just the girls enjoy talking and opening presents. Then invite the guys to join you later for the dinner.
Another idea for a party that is guy friendly: host a wine tasting. Start with lighter wines and work up to fruity reds. Offer hour’ oeuvres to compliment each selection. Depending on location and the personalities of your guests, the attire could be dressy or casual. Consider renting a room at a local club because the decorating is already done and the mood is set.
If it’s not a destination wedding, does it have another stylized theme? Maybe the bride wants the wedding colors and style to reflect old Hollywood glamour, so give her a chic cocktail party. Let everyone wear their favorite little black dress and play 40s jazz in the background. Serve elegant finger foods, like petite fours and a tray of olives and cheeses. Then have everything ready for your guests to enjoy martinis and other favorite cocktails. If you have the budget, you could host the bridal shower at an elegant jazz club or restaurant with a bartender. But be sure to time it so you don’t get in the way of other guests.
If the planned wedding doesn’t have an easily distinguished theme, consider the bride-to-be’s hobbies. Cinema buff? World traveler? Big fan of burlesque? Anything, with a little forethought, web surfing and creativity, can make a fun-filled shower. And remember, there’s no rule that a bridal shower can’t be beer, wings and the Red Sox game if that’s where the bride and her friends would have the most fun.
