ENTERTAINING : Garden Party Bridal Shower

Do you hear that? Those are wedding bells which only means one thing, it’s wedding season!

I have been in wedding planning mode since the beginning of the year, and I can say first hand it’s all adding up quickly which is probably the most stressful part of the whole process. Other than that, I’m eating it all up! I love figuring out the details, doing a bit of crafting here and there, and collaborating with my fiancé to dream up our perfect day.

But wedding day aside, one of my favorite things about weddings are the events leading up to the special day. Between the engagement parties, bridal showers, and bachelorettes, it makes the bride feel incredibly special and gives her a chance to share her excitement with loved ones. Are these events necessary? No, not at all! But we do them because everyone loves a bridal shower brunch ( aka free mimosas) and an excuse to brush the dust off of that clubbing dress that’s been dormant in the corner of your closet. Because Vegas is calling and nothing says bride-to-be like a limp, shoeless girl dressed in white vomiting patron and demanding steak and eggs at 1am. While everyone goes about these ‘traditions’ differently, it’s all in good fun!

All this wedding talk made me think of last year’s wedding triathlon between weddings back in California as well as my older (and only) sister’s myriad of wedding festivities. Being her maid-of-honor, I took on the task of organizing her bachelorette and bridal shower, all of which I have been planning since we were little.

I wanted to keep the bridal shower fun and light while still adding in personal touches that relate back to my sister’s personality – feminine with a touch of laid back cowgirl, done! But I’m not rolling in dough and flights from Michigan to California are NOT cheap, so keeping everything within means was part of the challenge. Below is an overview of the parts and pieces along with tips and tricks on keeping costs down without sacrificing style. Scroll down for some event planning inspiration.

VENUE

While planning a bridal shower it isn't mandatory to have it at a restaurant or event space. You can definitely save on cost by throwing it at a friends home and catering food, or having everyone pitch in and make a dish. We ended up doing it at a restaurant out of sheer laziness and the convenience of having everything we needed in one location-food and drinks along with atmosphere and ample parking to accommodate our guests. The Bride's style in mind we rented a space at Tin Roof Bistro in Manhattan Beach, California. The wonderful thing about having the shower at a restaurant is that we could sit back, relax, and just enjoy everyone's company without having to worry about the stresses of hosting.

DECOR

For me, this was obviously a big one. To set the 'garden party' tone, I knew I wanted to bring in fresh flowers which could get really expensive really fast. In lieu of turning to a florist or trying to create my own bouquets the night before and praying they wouldn't die on me, I turned to IKEA! Yes, IKEA. Between their Malm dressers, closet organizers, and 79 cent dishtowels is a designated area for plants. I purchased an assortment of flowers to fit into pots I had previously purchased, threw some dirt or moss over top and voila, budget friendly centerpieces that can be taken home by guests and won't die in 24 hours! I then mixed in a few candles to add a touch more color and set the mood.

TIP: If you're planning your event at a restaurant ask ahead of time what size tables they use + what color linens. This will help you figure out just how many centerpieces you'll need, roughly gauge what scale your centerpiece should be, and color coordinate any runners or table linens you'll be bringing in. I purchased a moss green roll of burlap that I cut to size based on the dimensions I was given. This added a punch of color and helped create a focal area on the table

Another big part of the décor was the welcome table. I wanted it to feel personal as soon as you walked in, and I wanted my sister to have a memento to take home (along with all the other crap I bought that I also made her keep) that was a bit more sentimental and wasn't your run of the mill sign-in book. I love the idea of 'Love Letters' so I purchased this rustic mailbox, and had pens and stationary nearby so friends and family could share advice, express their love, or draw an inappropriate sketch to stick in the mailbox for her to look back on years from now.

TIP: Add Personal touches by using framed engagement + throwback photos. This adds context to the day and is an easy way to add décor and texture through the use of frames , so get creative with how you display them! I stole a few frames that my sister already had which helped me fill up space and save some cash.

GIVEAWAYS + GAMES

It's not a bridal shower without fun + cheesy games! And while we've all played them at one time or another, we all secretly really love them. We lined up just a few fun and easy ones that could be played while seated. The purse game, the movie quote game, and the 'how well do you know the bride and groom' questionnaire. For prizes my mom and sister months in advance raided the Victoria Secret sale and purchased lotions, body oils, body splashes, you name it. So you also get to leave the party smelling like a garden, see what we did there?

TIP: Planning ahead reaps saving rewards because it gives you time to make a list of what you need and slowly collect everything leading up to the day. With sales, deals, clearance items and everything in between, you can save lots of money and stress by doing this, trust me!

The devil is in the details and I wanted the giveaways to be that cherry on top of an amazing day. I used the couples logo and had custom stickers made for clear candy boxes. The box was filled with candy daisies and heart shaped sweet tarts, then sealed with a green bow. On the side of the boxes were heart shaped seeded cards that I had my sister write 'thank you' on (I had to put her to work somehow). So not only were the guests going home with prizes, potentially a centerpiece, and candy, but a sustainable thank you!

Towards the end of the party we brought in her fiance for a final game of 'How well do you know each other?'. We handed them a white board, asked them a series of questions and they essentially just had to write down their answers blindly then hold them up. It's hilarious, a crowd pleaser, and all in good fun.

A few more little details I loved...

While we all know who the bride is, it's always nice to add that something extra to make her stand out; so whether it's a sign piece on her chair or a floral head wreath it's those little details that help bring a bit more attention to her, which especially works well for photos. Also, keeping your bride well hydrated isn't mandatory, but it doesn't hurt!

While selfie sticks may have somewhat fizzled out, It was a great tool in getting photos of everyone at the tables. So while she may have some great detail shots of her whole shower, she also has some fun impromptu ones she ran around and took with family and friends.

At the end of the day, as long as you put your heart into planning something for a bride-to-be, that's all that really matters. The best piece of advice I could give you would be to ask for help. While I may have taken on a lot of the logistic and décor details, I wouldn't have been able to execute everything without the help of my sister's close girlfriends and my mama. It took a small army to get this done, and at the end of the day the bride-to-be was happy. Mission accomplished!