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HOW TO PLAN A BRIDAL SHOWER
1.
Plan your budget.
When planning for a bridal shower, you must consider who will becontributing to the budget. If you are a bridesmaid, consider the other bridesmaids, thebride’s mother and the groom’s mother. Or if you are paying for the shower yourself, thenyou will have a very good idea of how much money you will be able to spend.Once you have your budget amount, remember your budget will have to include:a.invitationsb.postagec.room rental, if applicabled.foode.beverages and/or bar servicef.centerpiecesg.décor h.favors or small gifts for your guestsi.a cake or special dessert j.floral corsage for the bride, mother of the bride, mother of the groom andgrandmothers, if applicable.2.
Decide on the guest list.
It’s most appropriate to select from the family and friendsalready invited to the actual wedding. If you are planning a bridal shower on the smallside, it is customary to invite only the bride’s closest family and friends. If you areplanning a large bridal shower, then you may want to consider inviting all of the femaleguests on the actual wedding guest list, aside from those who are living out of town andnot in the bridal party.Make sure your have good addresses, email and phone numbers for each guest if possible. This will make for easier follow-up if a guest doesn’t respond by the RSVP date.
EVENT PLANNERS TIP: If you will be inviting elderly guests who don’t drive or like todrive in unseasonable weather, find out prior to mailing invitations if you are also inviting someone who lives near them or will be responsible for picking them up and dropping them off at home. If no one on the guest list can do this, you might have to add anadditional guest that may have not been on your original bridal shower guest list, such astheir daughter, niece or neighbor who can handle those duties for you.
3.
Plan your Color Scheme.
Establish the color scheme for the bridal shower. For instance, if you are planning a Cinderella themed bridal shower, the colors of lavender,periwinkle blue, pastel pink and silver are a complementary colors to the Cinderellatheme and most decorations you will find will use those colors.
EVENT PLANNERS TIP: If you want to use other colors than those, a great way tofind complementary colors to create an event color scheme is to head straight to your local paint store. They have thousands of shades of complimentary color swatches and most of them are displayed in a way that you can see the greater part of them at once.This is so helpful in deciding on complementary color schemes and makes it so easy toselect 2-3 colors that will be successful in setting the tone for your event. Also, the paint swatch cards are free, so grab a few for color matching fabrics and other décor down theroad.
4.
Select your Venue.
The venue may be a fancy restaurant favored by all in your crowd,your mother in laws living room, or the local club. Wherever the bridal shower will be,make sure you know ahead of time of any costs and what that cost includes.
EVENT PLANNERS TIP: If you are using a restaurant or private club, make sureyour contract is in writing, not verbal. If you can, make sure it includes the wording of who will responsible for the following tasks/equipment:a.Who is your contact person at the venue? b.Who will provide the tables and chairs for the event? What is the cost? c.Who will set up and arrange the tables and chairs for the event 
 
d.Who will tear down the tables and chairs after the event is over e.When will the food be served, if venue is providing food as well f.Who will receive any food leftovers from the event, if venue is providing the food g.When may other vendors arrive for set-up (i.e. – bakery with cake)h.Who will provide the linens (tablecloths and napkins) for the event? i.If the venue is providing, what is the charge and are there color selections tochoose from?  j.How long will you be able to occupy the space? Will that be long enough for set-up, the event, and tear-down after the event or will you be rushed to accomplishall of that in the time allotted? Make sure you will have ample time at the space.k.What is their drink policy? Will alcohol be allowed to be served? l.Will there be any people to assist you with removing gifts and other items fromthe space after the shower is over, perhaps a waiter or member of the sites janitorial staff? m.Do you have any handi-cap guests attending the shower and if so, will the venuesuit their needs for mobility, restroom accessibility and will they be comfortable? n.Get the total cost for everything you will need in writing from your venuemanager. Make clear and concise arrangements for when deposits and final  payments are due to them and in what form payments are accepted.o.Bring a copy of the contract signed by both parties the day of the event so thereare no discrepancies on prior agreed responsibilities.These simple common sense tips are in no way exhaustive of all the things you should makesure are on your venue contract, but they will certainly push you in the right direction and assist you and the venue manager in creating a contract you both agree upon making it less likely you’ll both wind up in front of Judge Judy.
5.
Select your Bridal Shower Date and Time.
This sounds easy enough, but it cansometimes be a little harried. Speak with your bride first (if it is not a surprise bridalshower), and find out the days and times that work best for her schedule within a four week window of when you would like to host the shower. Then speak with the bride’smother and groom’s mother to ask which of the dates the bride gave you are good for them as well. Then you will speak to the bridal party and important guests, if you can andmake sure the narrowed down dates are good for them as well. Since you should have aselection of dates, this will assist you in narrowing down the available date to the bestone of the list.Ideally, no matter how much fun and activities you want to plan for this bridal shower,people will give you about two hours of their attention. After two hours, interest begins towane and guests will want to leave with any excuse they can think of to scat. Try to limityour bridal shower activities: greetings, lunch, any games-if applicable, opening gifts,groom visiting – if possible, and closing to 2 hours, no more. If guests want to linger andvisit with one another after your planned activities have finished, that’s wonderful – letthem. But it’s nice to have them stay on their own terms, not because they feel they can’tleave yet.
6.Order or Make your Bridal Shower Invitations
Find the bridal shower invitations that best suit your theme, design, event tone, etc. If you’ve found a place to buy them within your budget, great. If you found a template andyou are planning on making them with some pretty paper and your home computer,great. Whatever you want to do, just make sure it fits into your budget and you have thetime to devote to the task.
EVENT PLANNERS TIP: For a bridal shower, make sure your invitations are sent out nolater than 6 weeks prior to the event. This will give your guests time to receive the
 
invitations and the RSVP their attendance. This will also give you time to follow-up withany guests who haven’t RSVP’d and still have time to give a timely final count to your venue or caterer.
7.
Order your Bridal Shower Cake or Special Dessert.
Often times the bakery or baker who is creating the wedding cake will also be available to create the bridal shower cakeor special dessert. If you want to surprise your bride with a special dessert instead of cake (unless cake is also her favorite), order her favorite cheesecake from her favoriterestaurant and have that served as dessert instead of cake. She will love it!
EVENT PLANNERS TIP: Most restaurants charge $1.00 or more per slice to cut and serve a dessert that was not purchased at their venue. So beware when bringing in your own desserts. Ask your venue manager when reviewing your contract at the beginning about this extra charge.
8.
Select your menu.
If you are having the restaurant or a caterer make and serve themeal, meet with them and finalize your menu choices. Often times they will include icedtea, hot tea and coffee with the meal, which is nice. Ask about sodas or alcoholicbeverages and the cost of those. Decide if the guest should pay for those themselves or if you will be responsible for that additional cost as well.
EVENT PLANNERS TIP: As long as you are offering your guests a nice variety of hot and cold beverages, there is no reason to feel obligated to be responsible for thisadditional bill as well. If a guest wants a merlot and it’s not on the provided drink list, sheshould be fine to pay for it herself.
Make sure the meal you chose is clearly outlined in your contract and your contractincludes any side dishes, courses or service provided with the meal. Try to choosesomething light and refreshing as this is usually meant to be a ladies luncheon. A cup of soup, and a grilled chicken or grilled steak salad are always welcome and great for guests to enjoy. Try to avoid very rich foods with heavy sauces that will surely put your guests to sleep while your bride is opening her gifts.9.
Make a Floor Plan of the Room Set-up for the event.
Try to have the room and tablesizes for the space you will be occupying. With some paper, pencil and ruler, make adiagram of the room, where the guest tables will be placed, making sure you haveenough spaces for each of your guests. If there will be a bridal head table at the shower where the bridal party will sit, make a place for that on your floor plan as well. Your floor plan should also include a cake/dessert table, gift table (depending on the number of guests invited you may want to have 2-4 of these tables), a table for the prize gifts if youwill be playing some type of games at the bridal shower, and if needed, a table for theguest place cards if you will be having assigned seating for your guests. Also includewhere the reserved tables will be.Usually there is one table reserved for the mother of the bride and whom she chooses tosit with her as well as one table for the mother of the groom and whom she chooses to sitwith her.
 
10.
Decorations & Décor.
If your budget permits, you may wish to add the followingdecorations and décor to your bridal shower.
•
Cake Table Banner.
These custom table banners are availablethroughwww.eventbelladesigns.com and are custom designed for your  event.
•
Head Table Banner.
These banners are also available atwww.eventbelladesigns.com
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bumpywater20

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reply04 / 20 / 2010
overratedquota95930

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reply02 / 15 / 2010
overratedquota95930

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reply02 / 15 / 2010
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