Unique Bridal Shower Guestbook or Decoration-Postcard Banner

Image copyrighted-Design Sponge

After seeing this amazing postcard banner from Design Sponge, I began thinking that this could be a great guestbook idea or decoration for a shower too.  All of the instructions can be found here.  (It's a different variation from the lingerie ones people use at lingerie showers.)

So many ways to use this idea!  Some ways:

• Use photos (the engagement photos, wedding pictures if the party is post-reception, photos of the bride when she was young) as postcards. Or try vintage photos of the couple's relatives.  (Try Zazzle where you can add your own or use pre-designed ones.) 
• Use postcards of where the couple is planning on honeymooning or getting married if its a destination wedding.
• If you're collecting recipes for the bride, use the recipe cards for the banner.
• Have guests sign the cards/photos/postcards and use it as a guestbook for the shower. Just hang it up later after everyone has signed it.

Wine Poem-the 6 Firsts

Having a wine themed shower or just giving the bride some wine as her bridal shower gift? If so, consider giving her the wines with this poem attached. You attach the poem with 6 bottles of wine. We've seen different variations of this poem-First Hanukkah, First Passover, First Thanksgiving, etc. Feel free to leave your favorite variation in the comments or e-mail it to us.   

Wedding Night

The night you have dreamed of is finally here
The future surrounds you with hope and yet fear
You’ve wanted so long to find your perfect mate
Sip this wine and toast this perfect date
The night is meant for you to share
Enjoy each other – a perfect pair!!

First Fight

When fights occur and tempers get hot
Pour a glass and be thankful for what you’ve got
If you always agreed it would certainly be a bore
And by asking for (BRIDE's) hand (GROOM) is surely
in for more!

First Anniversary

Been married a year, where did the time go?
No longer newlyweds, now you are pros
Hope the days found you in good health and
good spirit
Keep saying I love you –
one always needs to hear it!
Now toast this first date, it’s certainly not the last
And as you build your future don’t ever forget
the past!

First Dinner Party

Open your home to entertain and eat
Catch up with old friends and new ones to meet
When the night is over share this bottle of wine
But don’t sit down yet – it’s clean up time!!

Christmas Eve

A wise man said wine is better than beer
And now is the season for lots of holiday cheer
So pop the cork and relax a bit,
And when the night is through,
Kiss goodnight, close your eyes
And Santa will be good to you!

First Baby

The news that a baby will soon share your life
will make you a mother, not only a wife
You’ll see it through good times and sometimes
through bad

(BRIDE) the loving mother
and (GROOM) the dearest dad
Sadly Lonnie must drink this one alone, and (BRIDE) with an empty glass
Sit back and relax – nine months will quickly pass!

Wear those Bridesmaid Dresses Again!

The lovely women over at Always a Blogsmaid recently decided to tackle one of the hardest problems facing bridesmaids: how to wear our bridesmaid dresses again.  Asking everyone to submit inspiration boards on how to re-wear bridesmaid dresses from 57 Grand in a contest, they received some very creative entries and of course this helps us with inspiration on how to wear the dresses again.

This inspiration board paired a bright pink (fuschia) dress with grey accessories to make an outfit that could be worn for Easter brunch, church, or going out to lunch.  Or look at this look which took a formal reception gown into a complete rock 'n roll look, pairing the bridesmaid gown with a leather jacket, edgy sandals, and a studded purse. 

There's even more "re-wear" suggestions at 57 Grand. No matter what bridesmaid dress you wear, you're sure to find some great suggestions on how to wear your dress again.

Pay for Bachelorette Party when I'm not attending?

Bachlorette Party Etiquette

Q: I'm a bridesmaid in a wedding and won't be able to make the bachelorette party. I feel bad but am wondering-should I still help pay for the party?

A: Bachelorette parties are occasions where everyone who attends expects to chip in to pay for the party, even if they're not in the bridal party.

Since you're not attending the bachelorette bash, it's a nice gesture to contribute something to the costs of the party but is certainly not expected. Buy the girls a nice bottle of champagne or offer to pay close to what the other girls are paying for (i.e. help the rest pay for the limo for the bride.)

Bachelorette Party Invitation Wording

While the wording of bachelorette party invites is not as etiquette sensitive as wedding invitations (how to address one of the parent's as being deceased, how to address step-parents), bachelorette party invites still should include some vital information.

Itinerary-Give a run-down of the expected events for the bachelorette party. This also helps guests know what type of party it is (a spa weekend, a rowdy party of drinks and dancing).  List events, meals, games, accomodations - with check-in time, and transportation options.

Sample Itinerary

2 pm Meet us for manis at Blue Mercury Spa

6 pm Dinner at Carmine's 

$75 per person includes open bar of wine & beer, choice of entree, and salad

10 pm Meet us at Providence Nightclub for drinks & dancing

Costs-Guests already know for the bachelorette party that they are expected to pay for themselves and, of course, pay for the bride. However, it's a good idea to give guests an idea of how much the shindig will cost. $20 cover for the club? $55 per person for a limo or party bus to take you around? This lets guests know how much cash to bring. Not sure how much everything will cost-put in the invite that "remember we're paying for Rachel so bring some extra cash too!"

Tip: Put in the invite or e-mail that costs may change. If two girls drop out at the last minute, you don't want the other guests to be shocked that they now owe more.

Attire-Is everyone wearing those "Sarah's Bachelorette Party" shirts or does the club you're going to demand little black dresses? Let all of the guests know so no-one shows up in flip-flops or other club no-nos.

Gift-giving Parties-Are you planning on hosting a lingerie shower as part of the festivities? Be sure to let guests know so they bring gifts along. (Otherwise, leave gifts out of the invite wording.)

RSVP-Do you need to make reservations for dinner, shows, or any other form of entertainment? Chances are, you do. Let guests know when to RSVP by and if they have to pay any costs ahead of time (i.e. the deposit for the limo.)

X-rated-Planning something a little naughty to end the night with? You need to let guests know to expect X-rated entertainment in case some guests are offended or uncomfortable with the idea of something risque.

Sample Invite

BRIDE is tying the knot! 

Join us for one last weekend of fun.

Lodging. We are booked in a suite at the ________________. Check in is at 2:00 PM so feel free to show up on Saturday any time after 2. The total cost for two nights is $800. Right now we have six confirmed attendees, which means that each girl will owe $160.

Saturday

2 pm Manis at Blue Mercury Spa

6 pm Dinner at Carmine's  ($75 per person includes open bar of wine & beer, choice of entree, and salad)

10 pm Providence Nightclub for drinks & dancing

Sunday

11 am Brunch at House of Blues ($35 per person)

RSVP by DATE to HOST(S)

Giveaway: 20 Shower Invites from Sweet Wishes Stationery

Who doesn't love Etsy? We  have found another great etsy store selling the cutest invites: Sweet Wishes Stationery. The entire shop is full of great designs for bachelorette party and bridal shower invites.

The above invite is available here.  The design is perfect for bachelorette parties or lingerie showers-its sweet and sexy at the same time.  If you want more lingerie shower invites, be sure to look at the rest of the invites available at Sweet Wishes Stationery.

Love the above invite.  The design is classic-very streamlined and modern.  It looks like more expensive invitations for half the cost.  Since the text is customizable on all of Sweet Wishes invites, this one could also be used for bridal shower luncheons. 

The above invitation is just pure cuteness.  What better way to invite guests to a bridal shower than to show the bride holding all of her presents!

Sweet Wishes has made it easy to get the invitations you really want.  All of the text is customizable so you can even pick these margarita cocktail party invites and use it for a stock the bar shower or bachelorette party.  You can also have the colors changed to better match the wedding colors or party theme.  Custom quantities are available too-if you need 25, 35, or 50 invites just start a convo with her and ask.

Sweet Wishes also offers  matching fill-in (or blank) thank you notes ($.85/each), return address labels ($.30/each) and favor labels (round or rectangle for $.40/each).  Love the favor labels-what a nice (and cheap) way to have your decor match the invites.

Besides offering a ton of bridal shower and bachelorette party invites, Sweet Wishes covers you for other occasions and holidays. There's adorable couples baby shower invites, graduation party invites, and of course kids birthday parties invites. 

Giveaway: Want to get some of the great invites featured above? You can purchase any of the invites from Sweet Wishes Stationery.  BUT, Sweet Wishes has generously offered to give-away a standard set of 20 invites in your choice of design. 

How to Enter:

Visit Sweet Wishes store and let us know what your favorite design is.

For more entries:
Be sure to leave a comment for EACH additional entry that you complete.
1 extra entry-Follow us on Blogger or through Google Friend Connect
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3 extra entries-Write a blog post on your blog about the contest (leave the link please)

This sweepstakes is seen on Cashnet Sweeps, Online-Sweepstakes, and Prizey!


Disclosure: We have not received any monetary compensation for this review or giveaway.


The Legal:

• Contest begins March 26, 2010 and ends April 6, 2010 at midnight. All entries must be posted by midnight to qualify.
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• US residents only.
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• There is a limit of one entry per person/household/email address for the duration of the promotion period. Entries received in excess of the stated limitations from any person or email address will be void. All entries become the property of the Sponsor and will not be acknowledged or returned. Entries will be attributed to the authorized account holder of the email address submitted during entry. In the event of a dispute as to the identity of an entrant, the authorized account holder of the email address used to enter will be deemed to be the registrant or participant. The "authorized account holder" is the natural person assigned to an email address by an Internet service provider or other organization responsible for assigning email addresses for the domain associated with the submitted address. Winning participants may be required to provide Sponsor with proof that the claimed winner is the authorized account holder of the email address associated with the winning entry, or forfeit the prize. Entries specifying an invalid, non-working, or inactive email address will be disqualified and ineligible to win.
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• Prize is awarded "as is" with no warranty or guarantee, either expressed or implied by Sponsor. Winner may not substitute, assign, sell or transfer prize or redeem prize for cash, but Sponsor reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to substitute prize (or portion thereof) with one of comparable or greater value. Winner is responsible for all applicable federal, state and local taxes, if any, as well as other costs and expenses associated with prize acceptance and use not specified herein as being provided. All prize details are at Sponsor's sole discretion.
• Released Parties are also not responsible for any incorrect or inaccurate information, whether caused by site users, tampering, hacking, or by any equipment or programming associated with or utilized in the Sweepstakes. Persons who tamper with or abuse any aspect of the sweepstakes or website or who are in violation of these Official Rules, as solely determined by the Sponsor, will be disqualified and all associated entries will be void. Sponsor reserves the right at its sole discretion to suspend, modify or terminate the sweepstakes and, if terminated, at its discretion, select the potential winner from all eligible, non-suspect entries received prior to action taken or as otherwise deemed fair and appropriate by Sponsor. Entrants, by participating, agree that Sponsor and all of their respective officers, directors, employees and representatives and agents (collectively, "Released Parties") will have no liability whatsoever for, and shall be held harmless by entrants against, any liability, for any injuries, losses or damages of any kind, including death, to persons, or property resulting in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, from acceptance, possessions, misuse or use of any prize or participation in this sweepstakes or the rights granted herein. The winner, by acceptance of this prize, expect where legally prohibited, grants permission for Sponsor and its designees to use his/her name, address (city and state), photograph, voice and/or other likeness and prize information for advertising, trade and promotional purposes without further compensation, in all media now known and hereafter discovered, worldwide in perpetuity, without notice or review or approval. In the event of a dispute regarding entries received from multiple users having the same email account, the authorized subscriber of the email account at the time of entry will be deemed to be the entrant and must comply with these rules. Authorized account subscriber is the natural person who is assigned the email address by the Internet Service Provider (ISP), online service provider, or other organization responsible for assigning email addresses. Use of any device to automate entry is prohibited. 
•  This GIVEAWAY is now closed. Congratulations to Allison,comment number 36 (chosen from Random.org)! Remember that even though the giveaway is closed you can still purchase from Sweet Wishes Stationery.

Kim & Kourtney Kardashian's Vera Wang Bridesmaid Gowns

Celebrity Bride Guide voted the Kardashian sisters bridesmaid gowns as the best celebrity ones of 2009, besting the ones worn by Bridget Marquardt and Holly Madison for Kendra Wilkinson and Hank Baskett’s Bel-Air wedding; the ones worn by Holly Montag and Stephanie Pratt for  Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt’s wedding; and the dresses worn by Hayley Duff and Emmanuelle Chriqui at the garden wedding of Jenna Dewan and Channing Tatum.

The Kardashian sisters dazzled at their sister's wedding in Vera Wang.  To wear a similar gown check out Vera Wang's current Maids collection.  The above dress is style Claire (22M09) in Satin in 10 colors and is available for $260.  Kourteney and Kim wore it in purple-it's shown in amethyst.

Image copyrighted-Vera Wang

Not Your Typical Bridesmaid or Future Mrs. Shirts

Wedding Chicks by theperfectbridesmaid on Polyvore.com

Items in this set:
Custom Future Mrs. Burnout Tee
Hummingbird Bride Tee
A Vintage Bride Tee

Looking for couture bridal party attire, something a little classier than the standard "Bridesmaid" or "Future Mrs. Jenkins" shirts. After all when the bride you're outfitting is more likely to wear Jimmy Choos and Michael Kors than t-shirts with beer mugs on it, asking her to wear that at her bachelorette party is almost an insult.  Problem solved-look no further than the incredibly beautiful designs found over at Wedding Chicks.

Check out the gorgeous shirt designs above.  The custom future Mrs. Burnout tee lets the bride proudly proclaim her new last name. The hummingbird bride tee and  vintage bride tee have burnout fabric that is put through an extensive process to reveal years of authentic cozy vintage worn-in feel. Of course, you can get matching vintage bridesmaid or vintage maid of honor shirts, too.  All of the shirts can be customized with a wide range of different colors making it easier to match the wedding party colors or colors of the bachelorette party.

Bachelorette Party Planning: Holiday GoLightly

Need to plan a bachelorette party or any girls weekend getaway for say your best friend's 30th (or 28th or 32nd) birthday or a reunion of your best college buddies? Well one travel agency has made planning girlfriend getaways nice and easy.

Holiday GoLightly was designed for destination girl getaways. The site makes it easy to choose where to go based on the theme you want, destination of choice, or the main activities you want to do while there. For theme what do you think the bride has always dreamed of-a fun in the sun beach bachelorette party where she can lounge around and learn how to surf in the gorgeous paradise that is O'ahu North Shore? Or has the lucky bride been dying to sample the cuisine from Chicago or Seattle? Or maybe her dream party involves shopping, festivals, wine tasting, or skiing? Either way Holiday GoLightly has got you and your group covered.  After choosing a destination, you can select activities to customize the trip.  Out with the scenic bike tour, in with the wine tasting.

Best of all, they takeover the planning process. Okay, maybe some of you enjoy it, but for the other 99.8% of us who have to balance work and the 18 gazillion other things going on, planning a destination bachelorette party can be tough. Instead, give it to Holiday GoLightly and let them handle the planning, including the extras so you can customize the trip to how you and your girls really want it.

Holiday GoLightly also has great extras to check out too.  Check out the Airport Spa Directory for ideas on where to get manis and massages before your next flight.  And the packing list will help you on your next trip anywhere-I swear they've thought of everything you could possibly need.

From Dessy: Bridesmaid's Guide

Dessy made this cute little video about bridesmaids and the traditions associated with them throughout the years.

                               

DIY: Bachelorette Party Veils

 (Image courtesy of Bachelorette.com)

We've all been to bachelorette parties where we outfit the bride in embarrassing shirts (Buy me a shot, I'm tying the knot!) and of course give the bride a veil to walk around in so everyone knows she's the bride.  Well thanks to this great DIY tutorials, you can make the bride her own bachelorette party veil which means you can make one that matches her leopard print dress or that is hot pink. The choice is up to you!

Miss Pug's blog has a great tutorial where she made her 80s themed bachelorette party veil in pink and orange tulle-of course, you can easily change the colors if you want to.  The DIY Wedding has a great tutorial for making a bridal veil so nice you could actually use it in the wedding.

Of course if making a party veil is not in the cards, you can always buy one.  Look at Bachelorette.com for a ton of bachelorette party veils like the one pictured above.

Wedding Shower for Justice of Peace Weddings/Elopements?

Bridal Shower Etiquette

Q: I'm friends with a couple who are eloping by going to see a justice of the peace.  Friends of ours have suggested that we throw a bridal shower for the bride.  Is this okay even though they are not having a traditional wedding?

A: It depends.  If the couple are still planning on having a reception or party to celebrate the wedding, then having a bridal shower for the bride would still be acceptable as long as the guests to the shower are invited to the reception or party.  Many couples forgo the church or traditional ceremonies or choose to have a private, intimate ceremony (and of course many couples do this to save money.) 

If the couple aren't having a reception or party for their wedding, though, then skip the bridal shower and instead consider throwing a party for the couple instead. 

DIY: Plantable Seed Matchbox Favors

Matchbox favors have always been popular at weddings but from Martha Stewart comes a fresh, eco-friendly favor-seed matchbox favors that guests can plant after they leave the shower or event. All of the instructions, including the clipart, can be found here.  What a great favor for garden showers.

Claim: TU7MYKE5N4GD

Real Showers: Sex and the City Bridal Shower

It's hard to believe that  Sex and the City has already been off the air for years because it remains our of our generation's favorite shows.  And of course it makes a great theme for bridal showers-fun and flirty.  This Sex and the City bridal shower looks like it was a ton of fun.

 

Set the tone-The invites asked everyone to dress as a character from Sex and the City to get the guests in the mood.  Then at the shower, stickers that said "I'm a Charlotte," "I'm a Samantha,"etc. so that the guests could pick and stick on the one that fitted them the most. For decorations, there were ZookHooks purse hangers scattered about, an official Sex and the City movie poster on the sliding door viewable from the outside tent and tables, bright flower table cloths, pink roses and pink, silver and black balloons anchored by sexy pumps and stilettos.

The Food-What else would you expect from a SATC party then cocktails and cupcakes? For drinks they had a fountain bubbling out pink lemonade and vodka, which looked like Cosmopolitan’s when poured into a martini glass. (They avoided actual Cosmo's since the shower was during the day.) Wine and liquor bottles were also out and  had flower designed Wine-O cards around their necks for added decoration.  For dessert, Magnolia cupcakes and ones from Sweet were featured.

The Favors-This bridal shower featured a ton of favors-what a way to make the guests feel special. The first favor-Cosmopolitan jelly beans in a cool tin from Beau-coup Wedding Favors.  Yum-jelly beans that taste like Carrie's favorite drink! Next up was the ZookHooks quality purse hangers that were used as table decorations.  The next favor was lip balms from Pin Up Balm which feature vintage designs with a glamorous retro pinup girl on it.  Then, the guests were lucky enough to get a mini martini gel candle and a chic leather stiletto key chain.Love how the favors incorporated the SATC's girls favorite things-alcohol, makeup, and shoes!

Thank-you Gifts-The bride used her shower to give her bridesmaids a special thank-you! The gift-personalized bow pads from Good Thoughts Paper Co with their names on it and a Thank You written by the bride.  What a nice gesture from the bride.

What a beautiful bridal shower. To see even more, see Tara's blog at When Tara Met. To find out how to do your own Sex and the City shower, read our guide.

Alfred Angelo's New Eco-friendly Bridesmaid Dresses

Popular wedding designer Alfred Angelo has recently unveiled a new line of eco-friendly dresses called Purely Alfred Angelo.  The premise of the "Purely" collection is wear again bridesmaid gowns in eco-friendly fabrics like silk and cotton.  

More details aren't given about how the gowns are eco-friendly-are they made with organic fabrics?  Are the dyes better for the environment?  Are they made in America in sweatshop free conditions? Unfortunately more information is not given on the Alfred Angelo website but this is definately a great start for the wedding industry.

As for the gowns themselves, there are a few creative, non bridesmaidy ones which be both good and bad. (Don't expect anything too fashion forward here.) The bad-those brides who want black-tie traditional full-length dresses won't find any in this collection.  In addition, right now the color choice is limited-you won't find the full range of Alfred Angelo bridesmaid color choices. Most of the colors right now are better suited for a spring or summer wedding, although one would expect more colors and styles to be added for fall and winter.

However, brides who want shorter, cocktail length dresses have a few choices like the one shown above.  The one above (Purely Alfred Angelo Style 7111) shown in feather blue plaid is a darling cocktail length plaid dress in an eco-friendly silk duponi plaid that would be striking at casual summer weddings.  The dress is available in sizes 0 to 18, 16W to 30W, 8JB to 14JB for under $250.   

Another great choice in the collection is the dress pictured above Purely Alfred Angelo Style 7109. This dress is an eco-friendly cotton sateen cocktail length halter dress that would be easy to wear again. This one is available for under $200 and is also available in sizes 0 to 18, 16W to 30W, 8JB to 14JB.  It's available in five colors.

So far the collection is a great start-hopefully more designers start making eco-friendly dresses for bridesmaids.

(All photos are copyrighted images of Alfred Angelo)

Real Showers: Indoor Vintage Garden Party

Having a vintage garden party indoors in February in Illinois can be difficult to pull it off but this amazing bridal shower featured on Hummingbird Tales did just that.  

The invites-the invites really set the tone for the shower and these adorable invites from marta writes are just the ticket.  The invitations really display the couple's love of cycling (and are just plain cute too!)

The Theme-The perfect touches for a garden party-a new bike basket for the bride filled with spring flowers by Julie at growing grounds in Bloomington, IL. along with  multiple large mason jars all throughout the shower filled by Julie as well. 

Welcoming guests to the shower were two adorable easy DIY crafts: a welcome sign (inspired by the Gossip Girl bridal shower on  hostess with the mostess) and handwritten name-tags on punched scrapbook paper. Of course a happy picture of the couple also greeted guests.

The next sweet touch-mod podged mini clipboards inspired by m.writes with bridal shower notes to the bride that each guest filled out and read to the lucky bride and the rest of the attendees before the bride opened their gifts detailing their history together and offering support and marriage advice to the bride. Best of all, the notes are available for free in 4 different color palettes here.  

Tip: Activities like this help break up the monotony of opening up gift after gift while also being an excellent way to not only get to know the bride's friends and family a little better, but also allow each woman to reflect on her own friendship with the bride-to-be.Cute idea-save the notes after each guest reads them and put them in a scrapbook with photos of the shower for a cute souvenir.

Another personal touch for the couple-a congratulations banner written in Hawaiian since their destination wedding will be on Maui.  The DIY instructions: 

1) Cut hearts out of thick scrapbook paper

2) Print the letters in a font you love and cut onto smaller circles of paper, 

3) Glue the two together and mod podge over it to give it a little resilience

4) Punch holes in the top

5) String a ribbon through.  

This was also inspired by m.writes and her diy party banner.

More finishing touches-vintage mason jars collected up by the bride's grandmother and stuffed with homemade cloth napkins cut and hemmed from cute vintage-looking fabrics. The easy instruction-just cut 18 inch squares of fabric and hemmed around the edges 1/4 inch. 

The shower favors-tiny tins filled halfway with potting soil and planed with daffodil bulbs just starting to bloom. They then put them in little plastic bags, stuffed some easter grass and candies in the bottom around the base of the tins, and tied a ribbon around the edge to finish it off with little squares of paper that had a little hand written note of thanks.   

Tip: Looking for ways to save money on favors? Take some tips from this shower-look for tins from local craft stores (here it was Hobby Lobby) and fill with flowers from the local grocery store. Or try our idea of a floral potluck from before and use the decorations for shower favors.

Food-a wonderful chocolate fountain station and homemade sugar cookies with the bride's grandmother's recipe, frosted in pink and red and hand piped with sweet little sayings for the bride and groom as well as white cupcakes with white frosting and white/clear sprinkles in sweet tulip wrappers found on etsy.com at Cupcake Social's shop.

There's even more to this beautiful shower including the creative gift given by the hostess here.  It certainly looks like it was a wonderful time and we can't thank them enough for sharing the shower with us. 

Bridal Shower Game: Light's Out on the Wedding Night

Bridal Shower Game:  Light's Out on the Wedding Night

The Idea:  The bride needs to get dressed in complete darkness on her wedding night.

What you Need:

Bag, suitcase, some sort of container

Assorted clothes-bras, robe, pajamas, sweatpants

Assorted accessories-sunglasses, scarves, hats, work gloves

Blindfold

How to Play:  Tell the guests and bride to pretend the wedding is over and it is the wedding night. The motel/cruise/resort that the couple is staying in loses all electricity and the bride must prepare for her wedding night in complete darkness. Next blindfold the bride and hand her the suitcase, bag, or container. She must put on everything in the suitcase, over her clothes, in 2 minutes. 

To make it more interesting, put items in it such as huge bras, sunglasses, men's underwear, work gloves, trucker hats, ugly scarves, or anything else that may bring a laugh.  The more ridiculous the items, the better! Look at thrift stores for great items. 

Be sure to take a picture when the bride is done!  It's also a good idea to have a mirror there for the bride to see herself in all of her glory. 

DIY: Candy Bar Favors

Create your own favors using miniature candy bars that you decorate and use as favors. You can make candy bar favors using comic books as the wrapping paper.  This tutorial at Intimate Weddings used vintage comics but any comics will do. Or take your favorite photos of the bride and use them to adorn the candy bars.  Going for something more classic? Do a simple monogram for a classic wrapper or use the black damask candy bar labels. The candy bar wrapper found here is also a classic-love the dotted design.

Bridal Shower the day before a destination wedding?

Bridal Shower Etiquette

Q: Should we throw a bridal shower the day before a destination wedding? The bride has asked us to, as this way all of the guests will be able to attend. The only problem is that we are already throwing one shower before.

A: Ah, throwing a shower the day before a wedding might seem like a good idea for a bride whose family is across the country and coming in. However, having a shower the day before is most likely a recipe for disaster.

-One shower is enough.  If you're already throwing the bride one shower, then many of the same guests will be invited to this one which is an etiquette no-no.

- Having the shower the day before a wedding does seem to make sense but logistically presents many problems. The guests will have to bring their gifts to the wedding destination, which might mean lugging a new bedspread across the country or having to pay extra fees on the airline for bringing extra packages on the flight.  Then there's the issue of bringing the gifts back to the bride and groom's house-they'll have to lug all of the gifts back home.

-If the bride wants to give out-of-town guests something to do, tell the bride to try the latest trend and have a rehearsal dinner after-party. Or all of the guests who are there can attend the rehearsal dinner.

DIY: Wedding Gown Favor Boxes

 (Image copyrighted -the hybrid chick)

Create these fun dresses to give out as bridal shower favors.  Best of all, you can use them as unique favor boxes to fill up with candy from a candy buffet or fill them ahead of time with favorites like Jordan's almonds, Hershey's kisses, or little candy bars.  They would also make great place cards for fancier showers.  All of the instructions can be found here. 

Bridal Shower Idea: Make Your Own Floral Arrangements Classes

Finding unique bridal shower or bachelorette party ideas is never easy which is why we were thrilled that 100 Layer Cake featured this DIY Bodega Flowers class.  The idea behind this class is simple: most of us don't know how to arrange flowers and yet buying professional arrangements on a daily basis is expensive so the brilliant ladies at Blossom & Branch came up with this class to teach women how to shop for and clean/prepare and arrange flowers all using their own containers.  This class featured roses, tulips and carnations with the savvy instructor showing all of the guests how to transform them into stylish arrangements.

This would make a great bridal shower, bachelorette party, or just a plain ole' girls night out. 

Want to do it? Here's how.

Get an instructor. Don't live in the NYC area? Don't worry-you can find floral instructors throughout the country. Contact local florists and ask if they're willing to teach you and your friends for a class.  Many community colleges have floral arrangements classes-contact the instructor.

Or try the Flower Party-in-a-Box by the floral geniuses at Flower Duet which includes a How to Create a European Wrap Bouquet DVD to instruct you and your guests, flower recipes, floral cutters for every guest, and to-go vases. No instructor required! The image below is one of the gorgeous floral centerpieces you can learn to make from the DVD.

 Image copyrighted-FlowerDuet

No need to decide what to give out. At this party, the flowers serve as the favors. 

Keep the supplies simple (and cheap). Ask the instructor what she recommends, although you might want to ask her to purchase the flowers for you at wholesale prices or give her an idea of what your price range is.To keep costs down, go for in-season flowers and look for farmer's markets or wholesale florists where you can buy the flowers in bulk. We suggest tulips, gerbera daisies, stargazer lilies, and roses.

Don't want the floral arrangements to be the entire party? Take our suggestion from before and have as favors a floral potluck.  With a floral potluck, keep bunches of flowers available for guests to make their own arrangements.

Get your bridesmaid dress cheap at Gilt Groupe's Wedding Weekend

Gilt Groupe, an online sample sale paradise, is having a wedding sale extravaganza  this weekend beginning March 12 at noon. Besides gorgeous wedding dresses, you can also find sweet, stylish bridesmaids’ dresses by Thread, Amsale and Vera Wang Lavender along with flower girl dresses by Pippa and Julie, lingerie by Elle McPherson Intimates, and Lulu Frost hair accessories.  There will also be spa packages so the whole bridal party can look their best at drop-dead prices along with honeymoon packages and tons of other wedding accessories to make the bride's day perfect.

Hint-you must be a member to enjoy Gilt's sample sale prices. Click here to join and become a member. (It's FREE!)

Cynthia Rowley Bridesmaid Dresses Coming Soon!

 Image courtesy of Dessy.com

Another option will soon exist for bridesmaid dresses that are affordable and gorgeous-the Cynthia Rowley collection for Dessy.The main design elements were taken directly from Rowley's eponymous ready-to-wear collection and include tulle skirts and drop-waist silhouettes designed for both day and evening weddings as well as long after the reception. Based on her collection, I would expect to see plenty of asymmetrical dresses. Best of all, the collection is expected to run under $200 which means those of us who have been longing for her party dresses will actually be able to have one without emptying out your entire bank account.  The collection should debut in May 2010 and because Dessy has a partnership with Pantone should be available in a ton of colors.  Sign up here to find out when the collection arrives.