Drinks

Party Recap

My sister-in-law is the definition of southern charm. I took that personality trait and turned it into a bridal shower theme.

Decor: the venue has a fabulous black and white mural painted on 1 wall and rich golden walls so I used that to tie everything together - yellow, black and white. The restaurant handled the placesettings and I purchased black and white polka dot napkins and placed favors (homemade sugar cookie HATS) at each setting. I chose a theme where the people, in their hats, were the highlight of decor.

We surprised the bride-to-be by inviting her for lunch and having 40 of her closest friends and family members waiting. When she walked in, we were all decked out in big hats and blowing bubbles... After putting on her hat, I started the party by saying "In the south, people big hats are a sign of affluence. We aren't saying Ryan's wealthy but we are saying she's rich with love and we've all worn our big hats in celebration." From there, the games commenced! I handed Ryan a beautiful box saying all the guests chipped in to get her something to help her enjoy married life...She opened it to find a pair of cotton undies and I finished the statement with "enjoy marriage BEFORE children!" We passed the "undies" around for guest signature and that set the tone for games to come.

Our next game was Kiss the Prince. I printed and framed a picture of the groom. I then passed out lipsticks to the ladies who volunteered to plant one on the "prince." The guest who got closest to his lips won a prize. I purchased adorable boxes (calling them mini hat boxes) and placed beautiful chandelier earrings in them as prizes. I then turned the game on the BTB. I pulled out a fabulous gift bag and said she couldn't let these women kiss on her man! She had to get blindfolded and show them how it's done! While she was blindfolded, her mother got her lips ready and I replaced the picture of the groom with a funny pic of a monkey (he's my brother, it's an ongoing joke). Ryan puckered up and planted a big one on the picture and the guests went crazy! When she removed the blindfold we all had a great laugh!
I always try to incorporate a get-up-and-move game so the next game did just that. The bride's sister announced that Ryan is not our typical bride and will not take a typical stroll down the aisle. We turned on the music and our bridesmaids hit the runway to demonstrate. Each guest diva-strut and at the end of the aisle, struck a pose...in their hats... WHAT a photo-op! Ryan chose the top 3 for a walk off and passed a mini hat box to her chosen winner! Of course, the bride had to demonstrate the TRUE diva walk and we all cheered her on. As everyone took their seats, the appetizers were served - calamari, bruschetta and salads.

We took the opportunity to the Purse Challenge game and take pics of each guest with the bride. Lunch (chicken alfredo and Ziti with garlic knots) was served. While guests ate, I presented Ryan with her prize bag(she kissed a monkey afterall). She won a BRIDE tank top and Just married luggage tag. The chatter of 40 women in big hats was awesome. Other restaurant guests came to get pics of it all.

Cakes - I had this idea to bake a homemade cake in the shape of a hat and then purchase a mini wedding cake. The bride cut each and loved the labor of love in the homemade buttercream cake.

Everyone had a blast and, to think, this was a fabulous affair done for less than $250!

💬

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