Showering the bride

 Are you planning a bridal shower?

Quick details:
-Typically held three months before the wedding
-Should be only women and typically includes 30 to 40 guests
-Cost is often split among the maid of honor, bridesmaids and mothers
-There are usually games, gifts, prizes, refreshments, finger foods and cake.
-Traditional showers are at a home or in a private room of a restaurant.
-Non-traditional showers can revolve around an activity like a nail salon or spa or a class like flower-arranging.

Theme ideas:
-Around the clock: Guests are assigned a time of day and have to give a gift that pertains to that hour. Example: 8 a.m. - coffee mug
-Room of the house: Guests are given a room and are expected to give a gift that can be used in that room. Example: Bathroom - bathrobe
-Month of the year: Each guest is given a month and should select a gift for that time of year. Example: February - romantic DVD
-Stock the kitchen: Guests are asked to bring a gift that can be used in the kitchen and their favorite recipe.
-Love linens: Gifts should be categorized as a linen. Example: table cloth.

Game ideas:
-Toilet paper wedding dress: Divide the guests into two or more teams of at least three people. The teams should select a "bride." Give each group a couple rolls of toilet paper. Give the teams 15 to 20 minutes to create a wedding dress for their "bride" using their toilet paper. Give the best dress a prize.
-Two truths and a lie: Ask each guest to introduce herself and tell the group three things about herself. Two of them are true and one is a lie. Guests have to determine which one of the three is the lie.
-How well do you know the bride? Ask the bride to leave the room. Ask the guests 10 to 15 questions about her.The guest with the most correct answers earns a prize.
-How well does the bride know the groom? Before the shower, ask the groom 10 to 15 questions about himself and their relationship. At the shower, ask the bride to guess what he said. If her answer matches his she gets a prize. If the answer doesn't match, the first guest to answer the question correctly gets a prize.
-How old was she: Ask the bride's mother for photos of her growing up. Attach them to a board and distribute sheets of paper to each guest. As they mingle they can guess what age she was in each picture. The one with the most correct ages gets a prize.
-The clothespin game: Select a "buzz word" such as wedding, bride, groom, etc. When the guests arrive hand them a clothespin and tell them what the "buzz word" is. For the rest of the party if someone hears another person say the "buzz word" they get to take that person's clothespin. The person who collects the most clothespin wins a prize.
-Purse scavenger hunt: Divide the guests into teams of two or three and give them a list of items that can be found in a purse and few items that would be classified as "why would you ever carry that in your purse?" Assign points to each item based on how likely it would be in a purse. For example, a pen would be worth 10 points and a flashlight would be 30 points and a can opener would be 90 points. The team with the most points wins a prize.
-All in the weight: Put a scale in the middle of the floor and weigh each guest's purse. Whoever has the heaviest or the lightest purse wins a prize.

*Bride trivia photo courtesy of www.apairofpears.com and He Says photo courtesy of www.beau-coup.com.