I haven’t been able to blog much lately because I’ve been either working on my sister Olivia’s bridal shower or looking for Todd and I a new place to live. We still haven’t decided on where or even if we should move (staying in the DFW area though) but I did help throw Olivia’s bridal shower the other weekend at our parents’ house in Abilene, Texas.
I really wanted to have some kind of theme and turn out a true party for Olivia so I did a lot of research online before hand and all I have to say is I’ve been on MarthaStewartWeddings.com too many times to count. I did several google searches on bridal showers and wedding parties and came up with some really great sites for inspiration such as The Wedding Chicks, Hostess with the mostess, and Style Me Pretty. These are all great sites if you’re hosting a party but they’re really wonderful for brides who are planning their wedding.
For the shower we used the colors gray/silver, white and shades of pink with a fun, elegant, slightly retro theme. One of Olivia’s other bridesmaids, Kristian, hosted the party with me and did all the floral arrangements as well as help me with food and decorations. My mom also pitched in by making a killer chicken salad and helping out when we needed an extra hand.
In my eyes the shower was a success. As the guests arrived they signed in and were given a handmade corsage that they could later take home with them. We had a light fare of finger foods and cupcakes for desert. Then we played the “How well does the bride know the groom” game and let all the guests guess how many questions Olivia would answer correctly. The winner took home a small flower arrangement. Olivia had no idea that we were going to ask her questions so it was a lot of fun for all of us. I especially enjoyed playing Katie Couric, asking Steven the questions before the shower. But I believe the best part of the shower was having the guests give Olivia advice or in our case “ingredients for a happy marriage”. All the messages were so special and I know Olivia will look back at them for years to come.
So I present to you a real diy gray and pink bridal shower, elegant with a little retro flare.
Enjoy,
Molly
The guest sign in table with pipe cleaner flower corsages for the guests and a wrist corsage for the bride. For all the paper goods I used a template from The Wedding Chicks and did a little photoshopping to personalize it. Go check out their site because they not only have free invitation templates and monograms but great inspiration for brides.
Most of my inspiration for the shower came from this Martha Stewart Pink Shower.
I dressed up glass votives I already own with pink ribbon and used some sheer fabric for a table runner. My co-hostess and partner in crime, Kristian, is on the right. We also like to call ourselves MSITs – Martha Stewarts In Training. I kid internet.
The spread close up.
The delicious punch. For the recipe click here.
I don’t know why but when you put fruit in your beverage it makes simple tea or water look sophisticated and pretty.
Here’s my mom’s mini chicken salad croissants I mentioned before. It was so good. On the right are “Individual Crudites”. Now I don’t speak this fancy but Martha does =). I saw these at Martha Stewart Weddings and thought it was a great idea. After looking at her picture again I probably cut my bread a little to tall, woops.
Since I don’t throw parties very often, I borrowed almost all the serving ware you see on this table but the cute white cake pedestal and white square plate. They’re both from Crate&Barrel and were very affordable.
I made homemade cheesecake flavored mints from a recipe my aunts used for their weddings and showers. A good friend borrowed me a rose mold and they turned out almost too cute to eat.
The cupcakes looked amazing and were delicious. The frosting was homemade but the cake was made from a good ol’ Betty Crocker white cake mix. It took several trial runs but we were determined to get that perfect swirl on top.
Again the beautiful flower arrangements were all done by Olivia’s bridesmaid Kristian. I’m trying to convince her to start her own business. If you’re interested in her work contact me for her contact information.
The arrangements were made up of gerber daisies, roses, hydrangeas, peonies and others I don’t have names for.
These recipe or advice cards are great to do at an intimate shower instead of games. I got the idea from my husband’s man shower where his hostess had all the men write advice for him on actual recipe cards. Some were funny and some were really sweet, but we love looking back at them.
My mom took the next few photos. I’m so thankful too because I was so busy playing hostess I almost forgot to take any. Thanks mom! By the way that’s me on the far right. One of these days I’ll put some pictures of myself on my about page.
My sweet little niece made an appearance. I’m biased but how cute is she…
The bride-to-be having fun opening gifts. She totally has that bridal glow.
So, the run down of where I found my inspiration and supplies:
Flowers: bought from The Connection in Fort Worth, TX and Albertsons
Ribbon & Heart Paper Template: The Wedding Chicks but printed and crafted by me
Inspiration and Banner Template: Martha Stewart Weddings’ Pink Bridal Shower Ideas
Cupcake Liners and Mint flavoring from Elizabeth’s Cake Supplies in Euless, TX
Pipe Cleaner Flower Rings and Corsages How-To from Wendy Baner on the Martha Stewart Show
Serving ware: Borrowed from a good friend and my mom
Craft supplies and odds and ends from Wal-Mart and Hobby Lobby
