Bridal Shower Ideas for a Happier Hostess

Hello again!

Now I don't want to give anyone the idea that I don't like bridal showers after my thoughts on Bridalette Showers. To prove it- this post is solely dedicated to bridal shower ideas.

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Getting the chance to host a bridal shower means the pressure is on. I mean EVERYONE has gone to a bridal shower with rather lame games that seem to last forever and you certainly don't want to throw a party like that.  But you have to give the hostess some credit; it's not easy coming up with fun ideas and themes for the shower. 

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Hopefully this post can help. 

Here are a few ideas I've complied to get those creative juices flowing:

ABC Shower: Each person is assigned a letter and they bring a gift that starts with that letter. 
Always a Bridesmaid:Invite the guests to wear a bridesmaid's dress (or prom dress) from another wedding. Have all guests vote on the most ugliest, out-dated, obnoxious, etc. 
Can't Live Without It: Each guest should bring something that they have found that they just can't live without as a gift for the bride. It can be really fun and interesting to see what other people think they can't live without. 
Centerpiece Giveaway: If you have centerpieces at the shower and don't want to keep them all, here's an idea. Get everyone to fill out their name and address on some thank-you note size envelopes. Put them in a bowl and have the bride draw names at the end of the shower to give the centerpieces away. This way door prizes are given and when the bride goes to write her thank-you notes they will already be addressed! 
15/20 Recipe Shower: For this shower, everyone brings with them a recipe that will not take more than 15 - 20 minutes to prepare. This helps the newlyweds get off to a good starting spending romantic dinners together after a hard day at work, with little effort! 
Shower by Mail: If family and friends are spread across the country, this "shower" works well. Think of a theme, and send shower invitations to friends and relatives. Include extended family (i.e. aunts and grandmothers) as well. Send them in advance and specify a weeks period of time in which to mail the gift. During that week, the bride will be showered with gifts via the mail. Usually the bride will be very surprised, not expecting a shower at all. She will feel very much loved by the end of her shower week! 
Travel/Honeymoon Shower: Ideas for this shower might be luggage, a travel alarm, camera, binoculars, maps, travel guides, travel clothes, etc. 
Wedding Album: Have all the guests bring their wedding albums to the shower. It's fun to look at the old photos and see people in funny hairdo's and dresses, etc. It's a could way to get the guests to mingle and meet each other. 

Whether the theme is spa greens and blues....

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or flower blues, pinks, and purples...

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your party can be fun for the guests and (more importantly) the bride.

Because lets face it....when the bride is happy EVERYBODY'S happy :)

These are just a few ideas I liked that seemed a little different than most bridal shower themes and games we usually see. 

For more shower themes and ideas you can visit Weddings Galore.

Now ladies I really want to know....what has been your favorite game or theme at a bridal shower you've attended? 

-Ale

Chevron-Harvest: Our '11 Fall Inspiration Shoot

Utah Events by Design had a pretty exciting event last weekend!

A fall photo shoot was in order and the amount of work that went into it really paid off. I wish I could show you all the pictures here, but you'll have to wait and be surprised!

So many vendors, friends, and even husbands were there to help make this shoot amazing- but the person who can really take the credit is Michelle!

Check out this amazing inspiration board she created for the shoot:

Not only did we have THAT brilliance to work with, but we had an amazing location to shoot at!

THIS is the Red Cliff Ranch in Heber Valley. 

Pretty gorgeous huh?

The non-traditional colors and eclectic combination of simplistic props created an elegant yet rustic feel during the shoot. The style even included the trendy Chevron patter that is evident in the vision board.

Michelle was going for a perfect blending of steam punk style paper suite merged with the rustic elegance of the ranch and it made for a beautiful combination!

In addition to how beautiful everything turned out, everyone involved had a lot of fun... It makes all the difference when you get to work with a fantastic team of professionals (and expect no less when you hire Utah Events by Design to plan and design your big event)!

Thanks to everyone who made this shoot possible and stay tuned for some glimpses of the shoot to be published in the coming months!

-Ale

Bridalette Shower

Surprisingly, having reached the ripe old age of 22 I've seen about 70% of my friends from high school and college get married. That being said, I've seen my fair share of weddings and have attended QUITE a few bridal showers. Oddly enough, I haven't attended very many bachelorette parties....and let me tell you why. Most of the bridal showers I've attended have been a mixture of bridal shower and bachelorette party. I like to call these Bridalette Showers and somehow they NEVER turn out very classy. 

I've never quite understood why bridesmaids and friends combined these two parties. Maybe they don't want to plan something separate, or maybe guests just don't understand the difference. 

Traditionally, bridal showers were meant for friends of the bride to come together and bring her gifts to help her plan the wedding and start a home.

Bachelorette parties on the other hand are an excuse for the bride and her close friends to get together and have one last hoorah as a single girl. Gifts for the honeymoon come in here. 

Here is the definition of a Bidalette Shower and a few suggestions on how to avoid it (if you plan to):

A Bridalette Shower is simply a shower where guests bring gifts, but the invitation didn't specify the kinds of gifts that are needed/welcomed. Close friends of the bride, her mother and possibly even her grandmother are invited. Friends of the bride bring *hem hem* sexy clothing and toys, while mom and grandma bring kitchen and home accessories. All guests invited and the bride especially become very embarrassed when it's time to open gifts- for obvious reasons.

Now there are exceptions to every rule- some brides have grandmothers who'd be the first to give them sexy playthings for the wedding night and others have friends who would never DREAM for getting them such things for a bridal shower. 

But for the sake if classiness we have to plan for the worst.

It is often through no fault of the bride herself that these things happen. It's the responsibility of the bridesmaids or best friend or even a designated keeper of classiness to keep these two separate. 

So how do you avoid the confusion and embarrassment?

Simple.

For the planners:

Make sure the invitation indicates what kind of bridal shower it is. For the kitchen, for the bathroom, etc.

You can put any kind of theme or even just a specific mention to where the bride is registered to give guests a clue to what they should bring.

or

Have a friend shower separate from the family shower. 

or

Make sure friends know there will be a bachelorette party for the more outrageous gifts.

or

If the bride isn't a bachelorette party kind of person- ask that gifts of a more private nature be saved for after the shower or at least be labeled so the bride knows what she is getting into.

For the guests:

BE SMART.

 Give the gift that is appropriate for the occasion.

or

 If you really can't resist, attach a note to your gift asking for it to be opened later "for the wedding night."

Don't forget that you are free to join in the new craze and splurge the two parties together (it does save time in the pre-wedding craziness), but be sure to make sure everyone involved is comfortable!

Let's keep it classy ladies.

-Ale

Roses are Red...

Flowers can make your wedding a masterpiece. 

Whether it's hot reds...

Or soft pinks and whites...

Or every bright color in the book...

Or soft pinks and purples...

Or my personal favorite,

greens, pinks and peaches...

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They can tie in your colors, make centerpieces pop, and overall change the way your wedding looks and feels.

But let's face it: 

Flowers can be one of the most expensive items on your wedding list.

Nowadays, it's not very hard to get the flowers you want during any season- but you might have to pay the price depending on what you want.

It's always going to be cheaper if the flowers you want are in season. 

Conveniently, some flowers are available all year round:

Orchids

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 Roses and Lilies

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 Gerber Daisies

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and Anthuriums and most tropical flowers are also available year-round. 

For complete lists of flowers and their seasons you can visit:

About.com Weddings

or

Wedding Flowers Guide online

It's also a plus if the flowers are grown locally. This fun little website called Bliss Weddings has a wedding floral generator to help you look at colors, what's in season, and if any of the flowers you want are grown locally.

No matter what season your wedding is in- or what flowers you choose to have make sure it reflects your personality and what you love. 

Sure, the flowers won't last forever- but your memories will!

-Ale

Pinterest

Thank you Michelle for that sweet introduction!

Now lets get down to business...

One of my favorite websites is called Pinterest.

I'm sure a lot of you have heard about it but I'll explain it just in case you haven't.

Pinterest is basically an online collage maker- but so much better!

The website says it's a virtual pinboard to collect the things you love. 

Simply put, once you sign up you can "pin" pictures online and separate them into "boards"

Each board has a theme.

I have many- but my favorite by FAR is the one I have called "Wedding Loves"

In here I have all things wedding related.

The best part is, once something is pinned you can always click on it and it'll return you to the site the picture originally came from.

That way you can always return to the source.

Let's face it- as much as I love perusing magazines for wedding ideas- it's just not worth my time to cut out pictures constantly. 

And- once you cut the picture out...you don't remember where the picture came from.

Pinterest saves you all that trouble.

The site is connected to facebook so your facebook friends can follow your boards and vice versa.

You can also browse the site as a whole and repin whoever else's pins you want with no restrictions.

You don't have to be friends with someone on pinterest to view their boards and repin their ideas.

No one is limited to repinning everyone elses ideas.

Say you see something online you would like to pin. (I do this a lot when I'm wedding blogstalking)

There is a "Pin It" tool you can attach to your web browser's toolbar.

Whenever you see something you want to pin- simply click the "Pin It" tool.

Then chose the picture you want to pin.

You can describe the pin and decide what board you want it in.

And voila!

It's pinned for you to look back through later. 

So, how do you use this for your wedding?

Simple, not everyone has a set idea of what they want for their wedding when the time comes.

Pinterest is perfect for visually getting ideas together about colors, dresses, cakes- anything wedding related.

The next step is to take all these ideas to someone like Michelle who can make all these ideas into reality!

It makes it so much easier for everyone involved in wedding planning to have ideas to start with.

Enjoy Pinning!

-Ale