The Perfect Bridal Shower

Storm Hulsebus
Aug 28, 2017
3 min read

Not going to lie, the stress of planning a bridal shower was insane, especially when it is for your best friend. Obviously I wanted it to be the best event anyone has ever been to and not your typical bridal shower. Now, my best friend isn't your typical bride either, and I wanted to make sure that her party fit her and her personality. That's the hard part about planning; making sure the party is fun and enjoyable at all times, but also completely customized to that bride.

About my bride: Jenna, my best friend since I can remember, is getting married in just a short 16 days. She is a fashionista that enjoys a beer over a vodka soda. She loves glam and glitz but would rather go to the creek than the spa. She loves going out for a nice dinner, but would rather sit on her couch eating Cheetos Puffs with her dog and Fiancé (sorry Trev, Oakley comes first). Lastly, to my defeat, she is a successful event planner; therefore, I have high expectations and big shoes to stand in.

It was my challenge to make her bridal shower the crazy mixture that she is. This was difficult for me because I would rather have a vodka soda and champagne, the spa, and get all dressed up for a nice dinner, but this wasn't my party and it couldn't be what I wanted. So I sat down with my second mom (Jenna's mom) and devised a plan and the perfect party for Jenna.

Food, food, and more food was a must. If Jenna and I have anything in common it is our love for food. (If we're ever lost at a party, check the kitchen before freaking out.) However, I couldn't just have the food sitting there and look random, so I created "bars." We would have a yogurt bar, a coffee and donut bar, a sandwich bar, and lastly, my favorite of them all, a mimosa bar. I centered the whole party around these bars that also turned into decorations for the party. I have a severe love for crafts and decided to make everything from scratch, which was also a part of showing Jenna's style.

---check out my gallery for more pictures---

Another party must was picture accessories. When people would look back to pictures from that day, I wanted them to know exactly what they were from. Therefore, I created a Photo Booth area with a white back drop along with the famous saying, "Kiss the Miss Goodbye," hung above it. Also, because snapchat is so popular, I made a Geofilter that was custom for Jenna and her bridal shower. Making people feel like they are getting something completely custom and made just for them only is super important. It makes the guest and the bride feel like their bridal shower is unique and not universal for everyone.

Lastly, no lame party games. If you have ever been to a bridal shower, baby shower, or any of this sort of party, you know just how boring some of these games can get. Everyone always seems to play the same ol' games that make you wish you had refilled your mimosa before starting. My biggest mission for this party was to make sure that was not the case, (not that a full mimosa is a bad thing). I searched high and low for a game that most people have not played before and was also interactive so no one got bored. I came up with Bridal Jeopardy. This game had 4 question columns; meaning that the guests would be trying to answer questions about the bride, the groom, the couple, and miscellaneous wedding questions. It was played just like regular jeopardy and everyone loved it (Thank God). The only other game we played was gift bingo. Everyone received a blank bingo card in which they needed to fill out each box of what they thought Jenna would receive, then as she opened each gift you tried getting bingo by crossing off the items she got. Simple game but it got everyone interested in opening gifts when typically that is not the best part of a party.

Keeping the list of games short was an amazing idea. It gave us all more time to mingle and hangout with the bride and also made them excited when it came time to play a game.

With all of these different aspects, I managed to pull off a pretty fun party. Seeing how happy Jenna was made my heart melt. Everything went smoothly and I even had leftover donuts to take home (AKA I was also very happy). All that matters after your party is if your bride and your guests are smiling.