The Do’s and Don’ts of Bridal Showers

Are you hosting a Bridal Shower for the firs time? Are you the guest of honor at a Bridal Shower and not sure what your role is? We get a lot of questions asking for advice on how to host Bridal Showers, for tips and tricks to pulling off the perfect Bridal Shower and even brides reaching out to us for advice on their role in the planning of the bridal shower and day of expectations. 

We thought this week, we would share our personal do’s and don’ts for everything Bridal Shower related. 



Do’s…
…Allow multiple people to throw a shower for you, if they want.
…Send paper invitations. This adds a classy, personal touch and gives a nod to the traditional.
…Set up an activity for guests. This allows everyone a chance to meet and mingle. In next week’s blog, we’ll share some of our favorite Bridal Shower games. 
…Create a ribbon bouquet. We love this tradition! Ask a bridesmaid or another shower attendee to gather all of the ribbons from the gifts and create a bouquet for the bride to carry at the rehearsal. 
…Thank everyone properly and promptly. Send handwritten notes to the attendees thanking them for their gifts and give a small gift to the hostess or hostesses. (Bonus tip: If you are hosting the Bridal Shower, a great gift to give the bride is a set of Thank You cards - in the color scheme or theme of the Bridal Shower - with pre-addressed and stamped envelopes. As a special touch, have a customized return address stamp made for the bride and groom that they can use for years to come!)


Don’t…
…Invite people who aren’t going to be invited to the wedding. There are only two exceptions to this rule: (1)  if you are having an extremely small wedding (15-20 guests) and your guests know and understand this in advance and (2) if your co-workers are hosting a shower for you, not everyone you work with needs to be invited to the wedding.
…Host the shower yourself. This sends the message that you are asking for gifts. Usually, a bridesmaid, maid of honor or family member hosts the shower.
…Use the wedding decor as inspiration for the bridal shower. The bridal shower should have it’s own theme independent of the wedding.
…Expect guests who are invited to multiple showers to bring more than one gift. They only need to bring a gift to the first shower they attend.
…Include registry information on the actual shower invitation. A more appropriate way to communicate this information to your guests is to direct them to your wedding website or include registry information insert with the invitation. 



Let us know what you think about these Do’s and Don’ts in the comment section below or on one of our social media pages. 

Next week we’ll be sharing some of our favorite Bridal Shower games that are easy to set up and always memorable!

If you have an idea for a future blog post, send us an email or comment - we’d love to hear from you!

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