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Bridal showers are often hard to plan. The party is not just about opening gifts. Guests enjoy food and activities too. Themed bridal showers leave an unforgettable impression on guests and help simplify planning. Some themes even have food and games already included.
When choosing a bridal shower theme, it’s important to consider the bride’s interests and personality to create a personalized and memorable experience. Themes such as boho chic, tropical paradise, or vintage glam are all trending for 2023 and offer unique elements that can be incorporated into the decorations, food, and activities.
There are many bridal shower themes to consider and details to hatch out. You can have a garden party if you want to be outdoors or have a tea party inside. But before diving into specific bridal shower themes, let’s look at some frequently asked questions.
Bridal Shower Ideas 2023
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1. Champagne Brunch
Line up your guests so they can say “I do” at a waffle bar and sparkling mimosa station. Serve beautiful bowls of fruit, fresh pastries and chilled champagne. The pre-wedding party theme will get everyone excited about the upcoming wedding.
A champagne brunch can quickly turn into a co*cktail party if you have a fun theme. If all the women are enjoying themselves, then keep the party going.
2. Nautical Affair
You can keep your bride-to-be and her shipmates on dry land or head out on a yacht. To pull off a nautical bridal shower theme, use navy blue hues, stripes, anchors, ship wheels and sailor’s hats. Have your guests dress with gold accents.
Beware of April showers on your nautical adventure. If you’re considering an outdoor bridal shower theme, consider how to bring the party inside if rain hits.
3. Beach Bonanza
A beach bridal shower has a coastal vibe, so it helps to have sand and sunshine for this bridal shower theme. Incorporate seashells and starfish into the decorations and create a backdrop with aquamarine hues. Consider pineapple centerpieces. Keep your guests busy with a beach ball as a decoration and a fun activity.
Invitations can be beach themed too! Envelopes with a sunset at the beach are a great way to invite your bridal shower guests.
4. Black-Tie Glitter and Glitz
If the bride-to-be loves dressing up, invite guests to wear their fanciest outfits. Go out on the town all sparkly and glittery. If you want to score bonus points, make sure the night has a chandelier involved. Keep in mind if the bride has chosen a black-tie wedding theme, you may want to dial the bridal shower back. You do not want to outdo her wedding party.
5. Backyard Bliss
Paradise awaits in your backyard. Transform your outdoor space into a casual bridal shower. Add fun floral arrangements to bring color in the fall and winter. You can also get some traditional picnic food and twinkle lights as decorations. This is a great excuse if you need a reason to give your backyard a makeover.
The bride will love an outdoor bridal shower theme if the lucky lady has a boho wedding. Everyone can wear flower crowns. Make sure everyone has their favorite beverages.
6. Tea Party
Clink your tea cups and wish each other a good day during some afternoon tea.Consider a bridal tea party for the girl who loves all things floral, delicious and dainty. You can keep it classically British or switch it up with a Mad Hatter theme. Either way, serve a refreshing assortment of artisanal tea, savory scones and tasty cucumber sandwiches.
The bride-to-be may have had many tea parties as a child and dreamed of this moment all her life. This bridal shower party theme will help her remember her childhood innocence.
7. Paris Romance
Celebrate love with a bridal shower that pays homage to Paris, France. Incorporate scenes of the Eiffel Tower into the decorations and serve French wines, cheeses and desserts. The final touch? Press play on an Édith Piaf recording.
Consider renting a photo booth. Find all the best French props, and remember the baguette. All the photos will be silly coming out of the photo booth, but hey, they add to the perfect theme for everyone to remember.
8. All-White Bridal Shower
The day is fast approaching when the bride will wear all white. Get in the mood with an all-white shower.
The decor can also be all white but consider some beautiful flowers to contrast the bridal shower theme.
9. Gatsby Themed Wedding Shower
Throw a bridal shower party fit for Daisy Buchanan with flapper dresses and feathered headbands. Serve classic Prohibition co*cktails like sidecars and Gin Rickeys.
You could also incorporate a cooking class for bridal shower ideas. Gifts for those on the guest lists could include items to take them back to the 1920s. Just be sure to leave the brass candlesticks as decorations and not as gifts.
10. All About Color
Bridal shower theme ideas can be about just about anything. However, bridal showers with bright colors present some great ideas. You can choose any color in the wedding color palette and use it as the theme color on the invitations.
Color-coded themes provide a straightforward way to find the right decorations. Guests can wear the same color, and you can even match the color to the drinks, the party favors, and the gift wrap.
11. Glam Pajama Party
Remember how much fun you had when you went to slumber parties as a little girl?
The bridal shower could be a fabulous girls’ night with pizza, drinks, candy and games. You can host the bridal shower at your own home or reserve a suite at a hotel. Either way, make sure the night is the ultimate chill-out session. You can even include an option with spa access.
A pajama party is one of the best bridal shower themes. Consider some simple flowers, as this item is often forgotten when you want to glam it up. The invitations should have plenty of glitter and sparkle to help everyone know it is a glamorous event.
12. Shabby-Chic
Channel romantically contrived vibes with delicately distressed décor, tea administered in mason jars, hand-drawn signage, and baby’s breath centerpieces. For a homemade touch, enjoy your afternoon tea with homemade treats (pie would be perfect). Include the bridesmaids or the entire guest list. Here you can even invite everyone to bring their favorite desserts for a potluck dessert table.
13. Love Is Sweet
A candy-centered bridal shower is a pretty sweet bridal shower idea. The bridal shower idea lends itself to bright, colorful decorations.
Bring in a dessert bar filled with treats and candy.
You can also customize M&M’s in the bride’s wedding colors, to say “I Do,” or even add an image of the bride (or her spouse-to-be).
A great bridal shower activity is having your guests write something sweet on a card. Then you can make a collage with the bridal shower theme.
14. Country Chic
Here you won’t be having your afternoon tea. Though what better way to be with your besties than to hang outside? You don’t need to worry too much about April showers cause a country girl doesn’t care.
Ask guests to wear their cutest cowgirl attire for a country-loving bride, and decorate your space with hay bales, horses and horseshoes. Find some cute country-themed wedding shower invitations, and you are ready to get this bridal shower idea going.
15. Garden Party Bridal Shower Theme Ideas
Garden party bridal showers can be held indoors or outdoors, with real flowers or faux ones. Timing is crucial for a garden party theme. An outdoor picnic shower at the botanic garden is lovely in late spring or summer but not so much in the fall or winter. Whether your vision is a casual brunch at the maid of honor’s home or a sophisticated tea party that pulls out all the stops, the bride is sure to love this theme.
16. Spa Themed Wedding Shower
What is better than spa bridal shower ideas? Planning one of these is exciting as you prepare for a day of the bride being pampered.
A spa bridal shower is a perfect way to spend time with close friends and give bridal attendants some indulgent pampering before the wedding day. The bridal shower is also a fantastic time to relieve exhausted bodies and minds. Depending on your budget, you can hold a spa bridal shower at home or in a spa.
17. Brunch Themed Bridal Shower
While some may consider “bridal shower brunch” a theme, you can get as specific as you want. A theme is not necessary for a bridal shower brunch, but having a particular style threaded through pre-wedding festivities and the wedding day itself is helpful.
If the couple is hosting a whimsical, garden-themed wedding, consider hosting a Bridgerton brunch or an elegant tea party. For a glam wedding, aBreakfast at Tiffany’sthemed event might complement the couple’s vision.Specific color patterns, prints or style motifs appearing on the big day can also be incorporated into the shower design. The cohesion will help create a look to tie all wedding events together.
Touch base with the couple to understand the vision and use their ideas. They may even want to include the guys for a bridal shower.
Bridal Shower Idea to Include Guys
Who says a bridal shower is only for the ladies?
Some brides may want every wedding activity done together, right down to the bridal shower. Making the bridal shower theme a coed affair with a Jack and Jill shower can be fun.
Jack and Jill showers typically have a party theme ranging from a fiesta to backyard BBQs or game nights.
A quirky theme for your Jack and Jill will make the day more enjoyable and entice more fun with the guest. Here are some coed bridal shower themes to consider:
- Beers with baseball
- Brunch with bocce
- Whatever your heart desires
- Afternoon tea by the lake
Be practical and do something your guests will want to attend. Remember, your grandmother doesn’t want to play paintball.
Please focus on the event to help guests understand what they’re getting into. No one will be overdressed if the invite says “Wedding Weekend Kickball Kickoff.”
Do Not Go Overboard
While you might want to do something quirky, avoid becoming too obnoxious with the theme. You should have a theme and some provide food and drink. To minimize stress, you can:
- Choose free or inexpensive locations, such as a public park or a relative’s backyard.
- Use drink ticketsto control the bar tab. You’ll overdo it if you spend it all on the booze. Two drink tickets per guest are customary as part of the price of admission.
- Kegged beer or cases of wine provide a more economical alternative to bottles and is less wasteful.
- Choosehearty, shareable optionswhen it comes to food. You can go with barbeque or sandwiches that can easily feed many people cheaply. Taco trucks are also always a huge hit!
Whatever you choose, if you remember these tips, your bridal shower is sure to be a hit!
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Average Amount to Give for a Bridal Shower Gift?
If you are hosting a bridal shower, one of the questions you will be asked most is how much is acceptable to spend on a bridal shower gift.
The typical amount for bridal gifts is $50 – $100. If you are invited to a bridal party, but you aren’t close to the bride, expect to pay at least $25.
Does the Bride Choose the Bridal Shower Theme?
Most brides don’t have to worry about planning a bridal shower because the planning is done by a family member or close friend. Some might want to be involved though, especially when it comes to the important details. They can help select the theme, activities, date, location and who you invite.
How Far in Advance Do You Have a Bridal Shower?
Thankfully this is one of the more straightforward answers for you.Tradition tells us the bridal shower must be held between three months to two weeks before the marriage.
Who Normally Pays for the Bridal Shower?
Standard etiquette says the host of the shower will pay. If there are multiple hosts, they could split the costs. Make sure to keep an open conversation about the expectations of who will pay for the bridal shower.
Now that we have answered some common questions, we will provide you with some of the best wedding shower themes to consider.
What is the Best Bridal Shower Theme?
If you are the host of a bridal shower, chances are you’ve given a couple of themes a great deal of thought. While no rule says youneeda bridal shower theme, it does help inspire answers to what décor, color palette, food, and games are at the bridal shower.
Ultimately, keep it simple and choose a theme that reflects the guest of honor while also pleasing a multi-generational crowd.
A great way to pick a theme is to take the wedding theme and give it a fun twist. The bride-to-be will appreciate the thoughtful nod to their wedding theme.
However, the theme can also be different. The bride-to-be has been busy planning the wedding with her friends and family. Having a co*cktail party to take her mind off the wedding is a great idea. Signature co*cktails are a great way to start the bridal shower before the upcoming nuptials.
Serena Lawrence
Serena & Dominic are a married couple and parents to 3 wonderful children. They plan weddings, run multiple small businesses, and curate wedding events.
By giving you everything you need to make your dream wedding attainable, you can eliminate stress, get the ‘wedding glow,’ and focus on spending this rocking day with the person you adore. Discover their podcast for more information
