A bridal shower is an unforgettable event for any bride. As the maid of honor slash BFF, you need to make it the best! This day is more important for you than anyone else. Also, it is a great way to flaunt the hidden event planning talent.

Throwing a bridal shower is a huge responsibility for the maid of honor / best friend of the bride. It is the most important test any best friend goes through in a lifetime for her friend. While attending and executing a bridal shower can be an unforgettable memory, the planning phase can prove to be a trip through hell.

It is already bad enough when you – the bridesmaid – has to handle your sweet best friend from turning into a Bridezilla during the wedding. However, as stressful as planning the ultimate bridal shower your best friend deserves can be, it pays off a hundred times over when it is all said and done.

The theme, invitations, décor, dress code, activities, games, place and take home gifts. There are just so many options out there for everything! While the prime project manager is the maid of honor and her team of bridesmaids, there is always help you can take from other family members and friends.

To throw your beloved friend or sister the ultimate, perfect bridal shower we have concocted a list of essentials you should tick off before the big day.

The Essentials

Before you throw yourself here and there to plan the best of the best bridal shower, here are the essentials to keep in mind to polish your event planner talent.

Who pays?

This is all about you: the maid of honor. In the past, it was found distasteful for family members to host the party but now everything goes. You can also ask the bridesmaids to chip in or split the cost. It is also okay to ask the guests to go Dutch and pay for themselves such as booking a spa or dinner reservation.

Where should it be?

Almost anywhere on the Earth. Lately, people have done crazy things for the bridal shower. You can even host it in the air! Traditionally, preferred bridal shower settings are cozy spaces where the girls can move around, play games and have fun.

When?

You can host the bridal shower anytime within the six-month duration of the wedding. Just plan one before the wedding! It can be planned for any time of the day or night!

Who should you invite?

You can invite anyone from the guest list. If you want to keep it a surprise, you can ask the mother or fiancé of the bride to share the guest list. Do not forget to call close family relatives of the bride and groom and close friends of the bride. If it is a Jack and Jill shower, ask for the male guest list.

What happens in a bridal shower?

Everyone should be happy especially the bride who should be made to feel special. The lady of the hour should be given as much limelight as possible while making everyone feel involved. Keep the food simple and fun exponential!

How to throw the perfect bridal shower?

Theme and Decor

To get the party going, you need to know the theme of your party. When you are deciding on the theme, keep in mind the bride-to-be’s likes and dislikes. As the maid of honor, your bride to be slash best friend (or sister) trusts you to know her inside out. Pay attention to detail and observe her (if you haven’t already) closely.

What are her personal preferences and passions? Does she love talking about Paris and all things French? Go for a French-themed shower then. Does she love plaids? How about keeping it chic and classy with a tea party? Whatever you do, always remember the theme is the prime foundation on which the rest of the building bricks will arise. Make it count for the better!

Invitations

Once you have got your pot of theme churning, everything else including the invitation cards will only accentuate that. The invitation cards are the first deciding factors of how rad your bridal shower will be. Your best friend depends on you to make it as creative as possible that makes the guests want to come running. Also, be very organized with your schedule and mail these on time! You do not want to be one of those irresponsible friends who ruins their BFF’s wedding shower just because she was too lazy to send the invites on time or forgot them altogether! It’s your goal and job to get the house full.

Food

Again the theme decides the food on the menu. The theme and the food both should reflect the interests and preferences of the girl you are arranging everything for. Is it a brunch? A late night sleepover? A tea party? Is it a Mexican themed party? Are you going to have a sit-down meal or standing one? All of this decides where your menu will lie on the cuisine spectrum. Always order extra food than the required amount to keep in consideration the hunger pangs after unwrapping all those gifts.

Gifts and Favors

Favors for the guests are a great souvenir. You can give out something less long lasting like chocolates and sweets or something that will be useful for the long term and will be a great reminder of the crazy time everyone had at the most epic bridal shower of the decade. The more thought and cohesiveness you show with this, the greater the achievement. You might hit the ball right out of the park if you can get this one right. Think it through and execute it with finesse. Be sure to select something harmless for everyone or have more than one options for the guests to choose from!

Games

What is a bridal shower without the games? Now all you need to make sure is to make them epic. Usually, games give the crowd a great laugh. Everyone loves to be busy in a fun activity when they aren’t raiding the tables or watching gifts being unwrapped by the lady of the evening. Simple, sweet games that circle around the theme can never go wrong. You can always Google a myriad of bridal shower games including the classics!

The ultimate photo booth

Find the perfect lighting beforehand and set up the perfect picture booth! No bridal shower can work without lots and lots of pictures and what better way to honor your BFF then to let her shine at the optimal level. Seek a great spot and pop up a nice backdrop (or find a natural one) that goes with the theme. You can also pop in a prop stand for everyone to grab and take memorable pictures. You can go a step further and hire a photographer to do the work while you all can kick back and enjoy the party!

Bonus: Hashtag

Want to make your BFF’s bridal shower the talk of the town? Then assign its very own hashtag and introduce it even before the day. You could even add it in the invitation cards so that everyone else who is invited uses it too! Ask the ladies to hashtag the pictures or add a prop with the hashtag for a subtle reminder or maybe even both!