TresSugar

Five Bridal Shower Theme Ideas

TresSugar — Mon, 04 May 2009 06:00:00 -0700

Bridal showers might not have the flair of bachelorette parties, but they should be just as fun! There's a lot of etiquette to consider when planning a traditional wedding shower, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't have fun with it. Here are some theme suggestions that could make the event even more exciting for the bride and the guests. Source

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Wedding Parties Week in Review

DearSugar — Sat, 17 May 2008 09:21:30 -0700

Just in case you missed any of the wedding party week coverage here on Dear, you can check out my recap below!

Coed parties are the new trend, but are they a good idea or a bad idea?
Learn all the proper etiquette when it comes to throwing a bachelorette party or bridal shower.
What do you think? How many pre-wedding parties are too many?
Managing family issues during your wedding can be a real struggle, so check out my advice for dealing with a demanding sister-in-law, estranged relatives, and a familial rift.
Would you want to know what goes on at your man's bachelor party?
Make sure to check out the newest installment in Dear's wedding timeline series for your wedding planning needs.
Bachelorette parties can range from totally wild to spa-day relaxing. What kind do you want?
When it comes to party entertainment, are bridal shower games and penis paraphernalia dos or don'ts?

To see all of our wedding coverage, check out IDoSugar.com.

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Do Tell: How Many Pre-Wedding Parties Are Too Many?

DearSugar — Wed, 14 May 2008 08:00:00 -0700

Being a part of someone's wedding is a huge honor, but it's also very time-consuming and expensive. It seems that everyone's free time is getting more and more limited, so when you add wedding requirements to the mix, they can feel like more of a burden than an event to look forward to. Typically brides have one engagement party, one bridal shower, and one bachelorette party, but some have many more. Now I love a good party, don't get me wrong, but I know how monotonous these kind of parties can be. So ladies, do tell, how many pre-wedding parties are too many?

To see all of our wedding coverage, check out IDoSugar.com.

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The How-To Lounge: Bridal Shower Etiquette

DearSugar — Mon, 12 May 2008 12:00:00 -0700

Traditionally a bridal shower is an opportunity for women to get together to "shower" the bride in the presents that she’ll need to make a home. While certainly times have changed in terms of wedding etiquette, generally, bridal showers have remained the same. To find out some basic shower etiquette and ways to make this traditional event more contemporary, read more.

Typically the shower is thrown and planned by the maid of honor and/or a female relative - the bride’s mother may be involved in the planning, but she's not in charge of the occasion.
Women who are not invited to the wedding should not be asked to attend the bridal shower. However, of the wedding invitees, feel free to ask everyone from coworkers to great-grandmothers.
Nowadays, it’s not uncommon to have a co-ed shower, which is usually thrown at night and is more similar to a traditional engagement party. But if you're planning the occasion, be sure to check in with the bride and groom and see what works for them.
Showers usually take place four to eight weeks before the wedding day in order to ensure the bride isn’t completely overwhelmed with scheduling right before the big day. If multiple showers are being thrown, the more time that’s given the better. You want the bride’s shower to be special, not another thing she has to stress over.
Formal invitations are expected for bridal showers. If you're following a specific theme, make sure to either utilize it in the look of the invitation or mention it within. While the invites can include an insert mentioning the couple’s website and gift registry, it's best not to include that information on the invitation itself.
Though many showers incorporate games and themes, neither of these are necessary. Just make sure that whatever is chosen works for the brides and keeps in mind that women of all ages will be attending.

Bridal showers may not be as exciting a bachelorette party, but they should still be fun, so don't be afraid to think outside of the box and try something totally untraditional!

To see all of our wedding coverage, check out IDoSugar.com.

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DearSugar Needs Your Help: Do I Have a Say in My Bridal Shower?

DearSugar — Sat, 22 Sep 2007 09:00:00 -0700

Dear Sugar and Bride-to-Be Betty need your help. Should she tell her fiance's mother to travel to the bridal shower her mother is planning or should she let her future mother-in-law plan her own?

Dear Sugar--

I am getting married next August and have been diligently planning the wedding. I have to say I'm pleased that everything has been going pretty smoothly and nobody has been too opinionated.

The other day I was talking to my mom about the bridal shower she is planning in the Spring. It's going to be in New Jersey where my parents live, and she wanted to know if my fiance's family would come from Connecticut. I called my future mother-in-law to extend a verbal invitation and she told me that she's not too into traveling and was just planning on throwing her own bridal shower for her side of the family.

I was fine with it at first, but when I told my mother, she was a little turned off and hurt and then I realized that I was too. It's only about a 2 1/2 hour drive, so what's the big deal? I thought the point of bridal showers was to get all the women together before the wedding to celebrate?

Do I have a right to say something to my fiance's mother about this? Is it normal to have two different bridal showers, one from each side of the family, or do you traditionally just have one with everyone? I don't want to seem like an ungrateful or bitchy Bridezilla, so I'd appreciate any advice from former brides.

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A Do or a Don't: Bridal Shower Games

DearSugar — Tue, 13 May 2008 14:00:00 -0700

Wedding showers are notorious for their getting-to-know-you games, like making a wedding dress out of toilet paper or seeing how few times you can say the word "wedding." Though in theory, games should be fun, sometimes they’re just not! I love the idea of doing something at the shower that both the young and old can participate in, but I think that the typical games can be a little blah if not flat-out cheesy. But ladies, what do you think? Are shower games a do or a don’t?

To see all of our wedding coverage, check out IDoSugar.com.

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Group Therapy: Maid of Honor/Bachelorette Party Pickle

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 04:00:00 -0700

I am having a mini panic attack about my sister's wedding and need some advice. I'm her maid of honor but we don't really get along - the only reason she asked me to be in her wedding is because I'm her only sister. We just had the bridal shower, which was fine except for behind-the-scenes drama with another bridesmaid, but now I'm worrying about the bachelorette party.

I am a teetotaler and will be the only one not drinking at the bachelorette party. Since I'm the MOH, I'm the one who is supposed to plan everything, but I just don't feel comfortable being around alcohol all weekend. My sister and I have a very strained relationship as it is, but I feel like she'd almost have more fun if I wasn't there. Can I back out of the bachelorette party? Would that cause an even bigger rift than we already have? I just don't know what to do!

[EDITOR'S NOTE: To read more GROUP THERAPY, click here or submit your own question here.]

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Group Therapy: Still bitter and needing your thoughts

Thu, 19 Apr 2007 16:00:00 -0700

I was married 8 months ago, but am still bitter about how my guests/friends acted around my wedding. I have thought about this and wondered if I am overreacting, but I really don't think I am, and I don't know what the problem is except that I am hurt. I really don't need people to tell me to let it go, because I know I should to a point. I haven't, and am needing to vent and get advice other than, just let it go.

Click here to

Around the time of my wedding, my friends totally turned the other way and became unsupported and caddy. I had 2 showers for 2 separate groups of people. At one of the showers one of my very good friends told me it was all so awkward and weird to be at a shower for me. What the heck does that mean? It isn't a keg party, it is a shower. Also, I overheard one of the girls making fun of my BM dresses. At that shower my friends and bridal party (not the older ladies) acted like it was a pain to even be there. I felt really sorry for my family, and it really hurt me. Oh, and I overheard one of the girls telling another girl that I was having many showers but she was only invited to one. Do people not understand that different showers are for different groups of people and it would be almost rude to invite people to all of them (remember I had 2 only)?? Even my in-laws who I had just met asked me why my friends and bridal party were being so rude to me.

So, I went on like nothing had happened. At my wedding we tried to provide anything and everything that would make our guests have fun and feel comfortable. Several of my friends I have seen dress nicely for other weddings didn't dress up at all. None of my girlfriends took pictures of us together like they ALWAYS do at weddings. Everyone left early so we had to shut the reception down early and I only had a few people left to throw the "rice" and see us off. Also, barely anyone brought us gifts. Maybe 15 people out of 90 did. My family and his co-workers did, but none of my friends brought anything. No cards, no gifts. I don't want it to sound like I was in it for gifts because that was not the case, but come on! No card. I think it is so rude. My bridal party gave us nothing (they didn't stay until the end either), and my friends gave us nothing. I have gone to other people's weddings with these same friends since and I have watched them bring other people cards or gifts. I really don't understand and it is still bugging me. I am still friends with these people, but feel like I want to put less into our friendships because I think they are less quality (not as good of people) than I previously thought. I resent them very much. Help!

[EDITOR'S NOTE: To be involved in more GROUP THERAPY, click here]

How To Throw A Power Shower

DearSugar — Fri, 03 Nov 2006 08:15:44 -0800

Dear Sugar
I have offered to throw a bridal shower for my cousin in a couple weeks and I have to work fast. There will be two distinct groups present at the shower. Do you know of any games to play to set the tone so that everyone can mingle a little bit and get to know each other? I'm kind of picky and I don't want to do anything cheesy. The bride is also easily embarrassed and I don’t want to do anything to make her feel too uncomfortable.

We are very close, but I am actually not the maid-of-honor. Her MOH is her best friend from childhood, but she’s kind of a flake. Do you think that I should let her know ahead of time about the planning so that she won't feel left out? Am I stepping on her toes by throwing this shower to begin with? This entire wedding has been so stressful on so many levels and I certainly don’t need any more tension. Concerned Cousin

To see DEARSUGAR’s answer read more

Dear Concerned Cousin
If you are concerned about tension and causing more trouble, I suggest that you ask the bride what she suggests you do about her Maid Of Honor. She may say that her MOH has many responsibilities and she’s relieved that someone has offered to take care of the shower for her. Or she may ask you to please call her and to include her because she’s very sensitive and will feel left out.

Technically speaking, if you sent out invitations for the shower, the MOH should be contacting you when she RSVP’s and offering her help to you. However, if she’s a flake, she may not think to do this. I would see what the bride says and take it from there. If you are detecting tension or nervousness from the bride, then just call her MOH and clear the air…it can’t hurt.

The following shower games are fun and very “politically correct” icebreakers for groups of women who don’t know each other. An oldie but goodie is Paired Bingo; ask the gals to partner up with whoever is sitting next to them. Prepare game boards with bridal registry items. As she opens her gifts, you can call out the items. The first pair to win bingo gets a token gift such as: a candle, a box of girly stationary or candy.

Bridal Word Scramble is also fun. Have the ladies break up into groups of three and have a list of 15 bride specific or wedding related words to unscramble. The first to get them all screams out the groom's name. Ideas for words are: lingerie, joint checking account, engagement party, the location of their honeymoon, etc…

There's Movie Love Songs Match-Up. Create a card with a list of 15 romance movies and number them 1-15 leaving a blank space by their number. Make another column next to the movies and list the 15 theme songs from the movie with a letter next to them. Have the girls break up into groups to figure out which song goes with which movie. The first group to match up all 15, wins!

This is more of an activity than a game; but you can have everyone write out a piece of advice for the bride and submit it into a big bowl anonymously. Have the bride pick a card from the bowl and read the entry aloud. The bride then has to guess who wrote the advice. If she guesses right, the one who submitted the card gets a prize. For a few more ideas click here. I hope this helps. That’s very nice of you to throw your cousin such a thoughtful shower. Have fun and good luck.

Let's Get This Party Started

DearSugar — Wed, 22 Mar 2006 14:16:40 -0800

Dear Sugar
I am in charge of throwing a bridal shower for a great friend of mine. I am growing bored of finger sandwiches and "lovely" conversations. These events have the potential to be really fun, but usually they are stuffy and contrived. I want this shower to be fabulous since I am the hostess. Do you have any ideas of games that we could play that are family appropriate? Always A Bridesmaid

Dear Always A Bridesmaid
There's Bingo. Make enough Bingo cards for each guest and fill the boxes in with the gifts you expect the bride to open such as: lingerie, serving pieces, gravy boat, etc... Whoever gets Bingo first, wins a prize. There's the video idea. Ask the groom a series of questions and tape his answers. During the shower, ask the bride the same questions, and then compare her answer to the groom's (that you play for the crowd). If you get creative with the questions, it's a lot of fun. You could also create a crossword puzzle for each table to work on together (this helps with the mingling). Make all of the clues about the bride. Just remember to mix up the clues with some things say only the family would know, or only work friends or good friends would know. This way everyone has a fair shot at the prize. Lastly playing Mad Libs at showers is hysterical. Write a story about how the bride and groom met. Make it funny so when the tables each read their versions, they are both ridiculous and hilarious. Hopefully you all don't think I am too corny and you get the point that bridal showers can be fun!