This past weekend was my sister's bridal shower, and as her MOH, I had the responsibility of planning and decorating this amazing celebration for her. Bridal showers, and any party really, are my favorite things to throw. There's the invitations, the decor, food, drinks, games, the list goes on & on! As crazy as it was to plan a shower being 3+ hours away from my sister & her bestie/bridesmaid that helped me throw it, it was the perfect day, and I'm so glad it was because my sister deserves it & more!
To throw a Pinterest Perfect bridal shower, there are a few things that you'll need to make sure it is the most gorgeous shower you'll ever see. I lucked out and my sister just moved into a stunning house with a sunroom that conveniently didn't have furniture in it yet, so I was able to utilize the space and decorate it any way I wanted!
If you have a strict budget like I did, having it in a family member or friend's space will save you tons of $$$. Now, I know it's not normal to throw it in the bride's house, but just wait until you see how gorgeous the space is, and you'll know why we chose to do it there!
First things first, you obviously need a gorgeous space to host your shower! Try picking a location with a lot of natural light. A family member's sunroom, a winery, a gorgeous brunch location, the possibilities are endless, just always remember: natural light is the key. Not only will it make for gorgeous photos, but it will also feel light & airy and fancy without even trying.
Next up is the flower arrangements and decor! For flowers, I have to be honest, I took a gamble on the flowers because 1) A florist is expensive 2) I love making floral arrangements 3) We have this place near us in PA called Produce Junction that has discount flowers and produce. Can I just say, I have never been luckier in my entire life?! haha! Not only did they have peonies, they had them in my sister's wedding colors, too! She's doing a blush pink and wine color for some of her colors, and boom! Nailed it!
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If you're going to do flowers on your own, the key is to buy a few of the main flowers (peonies for us) and then another filler flower, which happened to be some sort of green hydrangea hybrid. I honestly wasn't sure what it was called, but it was $3 and it came home with me!
You'll also need a vase to put them in, so I opted to use vintage mason jars, which were also used in my own wedding, too! For the side vases, we used dollar store cylinder vases that my sister spray painted the bottom gold for her wedding, and I stole to use for the shower. They were the perfect addition to the table, and they had a few stems of greenery in them for a more organic and natural feel.
When it comes to floral arrangements, less is more. I have learned this to be true more & more as I throw events and parties. The simpler the arrangements and decor, the more classy the event feels. I also kept my table settings simple. I used the hard & reusable plastic plates and got them from BJ's Wholesale, the fancy looking plastic silverware, and got the cutest lemon napkins at Marshall's.
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For the overall decor, I didn't go too crazy since I was traveling from 3+ hours away and also had to keep within a budget. I ended up finding Cheers & Yay balloons at Home Goods and Pier 1 on sale, and they worked out amazingly! I also snagged some white balloons from my sister's stash of leftover bridal shower decor from my shower!
Now, onto the fun part...the Mimosa Bar!!! This was the one thing my sister requested to have at her bridal shower, and everyone was 100% for it. Now, a mimosa bar can look cute, but I had to make it extra cute & classy. I ended up buying real glasses from Walmart for 96 cents each, and it just felt more classy to have a glass vs a plastic cup. Plus, the plastic ones ended up being more expensive!!
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I also got the glass juice containers from a mix of places...Target, Marshall's, and Home Goods. They were all super affordable and were way better than having the juice container on the table. I also used real glass bowls for the fruit that peeps could put in their drink!
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Something that I recommend doing if not everyone drinks that is coming to the shower is to have other options of course. We opted to have lemonade, sweet tea, and best of all, my Mom got sparkling cider so that people could still have a little bubbly!
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Next up, food & dessert! I'm going to start with dessert because holy gorgeous...look at these!! My sister's bestie/bridesmaid is an amazingly talented baker and made these cookies & cupcakes herself! I still can't get over how gorgeous they turned out and the blush & wine cookies match the floral arrangements perfectly.
When planning desserts, it's always a great option to have different types--everything from cookies to cupcakes, you'll be sure to impress your guests!
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These wedding dress cookies are so adorable--seriously can it get any cuter?!
Now, we have the food!! Just seeing these photos again is making me so hungry, because everything my sister's bestie made was delish beyond words. She made different spreads for people, and also kept in mind the weather, and made only cold foods for people to enjoy.
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My favorite spread might be the cheese board. I mean, that's Pinterest Perfect right there!! She also did mini Caprese Salads on a toothpick, which was a huge hit!
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Something else that people loved were the veggie cups. She filled them up with cut veggie sticks and gave a couple options for dips. Definitely, something everyone ended up grabbing.
She also made deviled eggs, pasta salad, shrimp cocktail, and my mom made her family famous chicken salad so that peeps could make little sandwiches!
Lastly, we have favors & gifts! For favors, I went to Bath & Body Works and got a variety of hand soaps. It was the perfect gift to give, because everyone could pick their own scent to take home. I also had a prize basket for the Bingo Game winner, which I'm realizing now, I never took a picture of either!! I guess I was too busy living in the moment. :)
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When my sister was opening her gifts, we had her bestie taking notes on who gave what gift to make writing thank you cards so much easier. I also had my sister sit in a section of the room with great lighting so that I, of course, could take pictures and capture the reaction of opening each gift.
There ya have it! All you need for a Pinterest Perfect bridal shower is to pick a location with gorgeous natural light, use simple and classy decor, a mimosa bar (obviously!), delish and gorgeous food & dessert, and have an amazing bunch of family & friends to make it a day that your bride-to-be will remember forever.
Love you, Seester. I'm so honored to stand by your side on your big day as your MOH.
What do you think?! Did I successfully throw a Pinterest Perfect bridal shower?!
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