Pre-wedding Parties

[Deleted User] · July 2012

Hey ladies, I am starting to think about all of the pre-wedding parties that are typically associated with weddings and wanted to get everyone's take on when to have certain parties, themes, who to invite, etc. There's a forum for pre-wedding parties but I put this in here because I'm more curious about what other April 2013 brides are doing and I'm sure some of you will have some great input:-) Below are my ideas:

Bachelorette Party: Early/Mid-March in Charleston. Activities to include shopping, bar-hopping one night, carriage tour or walking tour of historic district, mani-pedis, brunch at Toast, etc. One of my BMs lives there so we're all going to save some money and crash at her place. I chose Charleston because it's relatively central to all of us and it's my favorite city so far :-)

Bridal Shower: Late March/Early April in Pittsburgh. FMIL has volunteered to host this. I'm thinking an Alphabet theme that I saw from the Martha Stewart wedding site. According to FMIL, we can't have it in early March because a lot of people won't come out if the weather is yucky.

Bridal Brunch: Day before the wedding(April 27th) at Lake Gaston. I'm not sure if we'll go out or if my mom and I will make a custom brunch to-order for everyone. I've got 8 bridesmaids and one flower girl so that would be a lot of pancakes ;-)

Rehearsal Dinner: Night before. Beachy/tropical themed and casual(I think). We're having it at a local restaurant that has a gazebo separate from the rest of the restaurant that overlooks Lake Gaston. We will probably hand out gifts to our bridal party and parents after dinner. I'm thinking there will be about 45 people at this to include the wedding party and their significant others, officiant and his wife, our parents, his grandmothers, and US!

Alright, show me whatcha got!!

vk2204 · July 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-club-boards_april-2013-weddings_pre-wedding-parties?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding Club BoardsForum:820178d7-4f43-4671-bcab-c5c2c01eef1eDiscussion:3344492b-926f-434b-ab4b-e33b8adbd42cPost:70552782-eda9-465c-8891-6aa21f963fc7">Pre-wedding Parties</a>:
[QUOTE]Hey ladies, I am starting to think about all of the pre-wedding parties that are typically associated with weddings and wanted to get everyone's take on when to have certain parties, themes, who to invite, etc. There's a forum for pre-wedding parties but I put this in here because I'm more curious about what other April 2013 brides are doing and I'm sure some of you will have some great input:-) Below are my ideas: <strong>Bach</strong>elorette Party: Early/Mid-March in Charleston. Activities to include shopping, bar-hopping one night, carriage tour or walking tour of historic district, mani-pedis, brunch at Toast, etc. One of my BMs lives there so we're all going to save some money and crash at her place. I chose Charleston because it's relatively central to all of us and it's my favorite city so far :-) Bridal Shower: Late March/Early April in Pittsburgh. FMIL has volunteered to host this. I'm thinking an Alphabet theme that I saw from the Martha Stewart wedding site. According to FMIL, we can't have it in early March because a lot of people won't come out if the weather is yucky. Bridal Brunch: Day before the wedding(April 27th) at Lake Gaston. I'm not sure if we'll go out or if my mom and I will make a custom brunch to-order for everyone. I've got 8 bridesmaids and one flower girl so that would be a lot of pancakes ;-) Rehearsal Dinner: Night before. Beachy/tropical themed and casual(I think). We're having it at a local restaurant that has a gazebo separate from the rest of the restaurant that overlooks Lake Gaston. We will probably hand out gifts to our bridal party and parents after dinner. I'm thinking there will be about 45 people at this to include the wedding party and their significant others, officiant and his wife, our parents, his grandmothers, and US! Alright, show me whatcha got!!
Posted by lch0708[/QUOTE]

Bachelorette Party: What you are doing sounds fun. My sister is my MOH and she will be 19 by the time my wedding rolls around so I want to do something that includes her. I really want to go out dancing though. I love love love to make a fool of myself lol. We aren't having a theme or anything for that, and it will most likely be towards the middle of March.

Bridal Shower: My mom is hosting the shower for us. Our wedding is 4-13, so I believe the date we decided on was 2-16, or whatever Saturday that falls on. We really don't have a theme or anything for that. Easter is March 31st, and I know a lot of people go on vacations so we want to do the shower as early as we can. What is this alphabet theme you speak of, it sounds pretty cool! ps. I am sure people will come out for your shower regardless of weather!

Bridal Brunch: I have never heard of this one before... But I do love pancakes lol. I was thinking about getting a hotel room the night before and inviting my girls to stay the night and I would provide breakfast so I guess it is similar?

Rehersal Dinner: I am not sure what is going on with this. FI's parents have offered to host it for us. We will probably have about 50 people there. As for the theme I have no idea. I would be happy with pizza! And I kind of want to do it on the Thursday before our Saturday wedding, just to give us (myself really) an extra day of preperation. What do you guys think about that? Also, your RD location sounds beautiful! I can just picture the sunset over the lake... amazing!

erbear84 · July 2012

I have no idea what we're doing for anything but my shower will likely be in February/March in Pittsburgh...your FMIL is right, people won't come if the weather's bad, but I kind of have no choice since I'm getting married April 6th. Easter's the last week of March, too, so that's not going to work.

Christine9866 · July 2012

Bachelorette party--love your idea-- Mine Is March 23 (getting married April 6) We have the casinos in CT so the plan is to go to the 3 vineyards that are all with in 5-10 minutes of the casino, check in have a nice dinner and then go to the bars.

Bridal shower-will be February 17, and that is all I pretty much know. They are keeping it a surprise. I am sure when invites go out they will tell me then which is what we did for my sister. It is being hosted by my sisters and my mother. I do not know where it is, or any theme. I do know that it is booked.

Bridal brunch--never heard of this! Sounds cute though! I will be staying in the hotel the night before the wedding with some of my girls. The next morning we will be having a light brunch when we get ready.

Rehersal dinner- We are not having any theme. There is this awesome restaurant next to the hotel which is an italian wine and beer bar. We will be doing apps, pizza, beer and wine. It will be intimate since we are also paying for this. So only our bridal party and significant others. We are not sure if we are doing readings in our ceremony, but if we do they will also be included in this.

nay1984 · July 2012

i do love the idea of a bridal brunch! awesome

i am so worried about the bridal shower because toronto and snow in february march is the worsttt!!!!! My mom wants to have the shower in november to prevent the weather being an issue. but i feel like november to april 13th is just way to long..its almost anticlimatic..

what do you ladies think? Is november too far away?

Christine9866 · July 2012

Nay--My mom also wanted to have my shower in November! She is also worried about snow, and I nixed that real fast. I feel like November would be rushing it, and it is also soooo far away from the wedding. I like the idea of having my shower and bachelorette party the 2 months prior to the wedding because it adds to the excitement of how close the wedding is, those parties I feel are supposed to be close to the date of the wedding, and I did not like the idea of having my shower 6 months out at all because of all that time in between.

[Deleted User] · July 2012

VK: http://www.marthastewartweddings.com/228685/alphabet-bridal-shower/@center/272456/bridal-showers Check it out!!

Erbear: Thank you for reaffirming FMIL's view on Pittsburgh weather. I figured they'd be more inclined to travel in bad weather than my family(southerners) so it's nice to know we're not total whimps :-) I asked FMIL how she'd feel about a shower the weekend of Easter but I know it's not ideal for anyone so maybe she'd want to do it the weekend before. I also offered the first weekend in April but that cuts it kind of close. I'm quitting my job after we get married so I'm trying to save up leave until two weeks before the wedding so I can get paid through the honeymoon and possibly a couple of weeks after that to help us bridge the gap until I can find a job in Tampa. That being said, I'd only fly up for a Friday-Sunday deal. We're also limited on dates because FI is flying the first few weeks in March and I assume they'd want him to come up the same weekend that I do but maybe not...I don't know.

Christine-vineyards, awesome!!!! Sounds like you'll have a blast :-D

ChiGirl2013 · July 2012

I don't know how far your guests have to travel, but it sounds like an awful lot of hopping around. Are your guests ok with this, and potentially having to take time off work to travel? I, personally, think that would be a lot to ask of people in such a short amount of time, in addition to traveling to your wedding, but only you know your guests. If you've talked to them and they're fine with it, then you've got it made! All of your events sound like fun - except the pedis because I HAAAAAATE when people touch my feet. lol

I highly doubt I'll be having any pre-wedding parties, so you guys will have to post when you have yours so I can live vicariously through you. I was told that, since we're doing such a small destination wedding, that "it's not even worth it to have a shower" and nobody has mentioned a bachelorette party to me. I only have 1 person in my bridal party and she's not exactly the responsible, plan-ahead type. Plus, she's unemployed right now.

We're doing a rehearsal dinner in Savannah, most likely in the meeting room at the hotel where we blocked rooms. Parking in Savannah is a nightmare, and also very expensive, so I figured it would be easier on everyone to just stay in one place. Nothing is set in stone, though.

[Deleted User] · July 2012

Sorry, I should have explained further. Everyone is spread out so much that these parties are kind of a "if can make it cool, if not, no worries" approach. The Pittsburgh bridal shower will probably only be attended by the groom's family members. I'm guessing there will only be five of us(bridesmaids and I) at the most for the bachelorette party due to $$ and family obligations for some of the BMs. The bridal brunch and rehearsal dinner will both be at the Lake the day before the wedding so everyone that is attending both will already be there.

I'm not sure if my family/friends are going to do a bridal shower for me because of how spread out my side is, which is fine because I'm guessing the bachelorette party will take the place of the traditional shower.

ChiGirl-I love Savannah but I know what you mean about parking. Charleston is a similar situation but luckily my BM lives about 10-15 min from downtown so we should be good with parking and we'll just take cabs when it's time to party :-D

vk2204 · July 2012

The alphabet theme is really cool!

Blondy214 · July 2012

My mom has offered to host my shower, and we were thinking mid February for that. But I think I might want to tell her that I would rather do it in December.I know that it is early, but I am a student, as are most of my very good friends. I will be graduated by December (YAY!!!) but a lot of my really good friends won't be,including of 2 of my BMs, and I think it will be easier for them both if we can do it in between semesters.

Bachelorette party, we were thinking mid March (spring break). I'm trying to make everything as convenient for my girls as possible. Particularly my one friend who starting in an advanced nursing program in May. She has been totally swamped with school, and I don't want any of my WR activities to stress her out. It should be a fun time!

shipsinthenight · August 2012

Shower- I have no idea when this will be. My MoH and my mom are going to host the big one, and it's possible there could be a couple more. The big one will probably either be in February or March and will probably we Cali family and church ladies. There's a chance the church choir could do one, probably co-ed like they did for my parents. If they don't, that's fine. Most of those ladies will probably be at the big one anyway. And I'd say there's a decent chance of there being one when we go to see fi's Texas family in January. Again, if not, that's fine, since I really only know his parents so far.

Bachorlorette Party-Disneyland! I haven't been in over a year, and I used to go about once a month. It's one of the ways I've cut my spending. No pass, no Disney kitch, no Dole whips

This will probably be in the week of the wedding, as one of the BMs is in Florida, and if we put it too far out, she won't be able to come.

Rehearsal Dinner-I'm hoping for a Chinese banquet at a restaurant near my church. But fi's parents are paying for it, so that may not happen. I have some other ideas, but I'd like the RD to be more formal than the wedding, since the wedding is not going to be too formal. I feel like our friends and family do deserve that moment.

Day After Brunch-I'd really like to have a small brunch the next day, late brunch like 12ish. It'll be a Sunday, so that's totally doable. Just to say thanks to the parents and OOT family, very informal.

I'm not big on "themey" parties for adult functions. I like going more for a feeling than a theme in general. There's nothing wrong with them, and the aphabet one is cute. For a friend's shower we did a Christmas theme because the shower was in December. I would be happy with a spring theme for my shower. Maybe one of the church ladies with a nice yard will let us hold it at their home....

bdpbride · August 2012

I'm a little on the non-traditional side as this is my second marriage. I have a daughter from my first marriage and we are trying to keep things as small and simple as possible, we don't even have a wedding party so things are a little different.

Bachelorette Party: I think I will probably take my sisters, my two best friends, and my daughter and do a spa day in January or February. I will include this as a Christmas gift/pre wedding pampering for those that mean the most to me.

Bridal Shower: I actually have no idea if we will have one of these, I hadn't really thought about it. The finance and I aren't sure if we should register or not. We recently moved in together, we both had houses full of 'stuff' already so we aren't really starting out with nothing. He wants to do a honeymoon registry, where people can put money toward honeymoon expenses but I'm not sure I'm comfortable with that. Has anyone else done this?!

Bridal Brunch: My first time around the day before we just rented a hotel suite where all of our out of town guests were staying and opened it up to our friends and family to hang out in and we provided snack foods. It was fun to mingle with no pressure or other distractions - I hardly got to talk to the out of town family at the wedding so it was perfect. We might do something like this but the rehearsal dinner will be similar fashion to this so I'm not sure yet.

Rehearsal Dinner: My fiance's mom is planning this for the night before. We have something like 150 people invited to the wedding - all super close friends and then the families (his is huge). And with most of his family and friends coming from out of town, this is going to be almost like the full reception because pretty much everyone is invited! We are having it at a fromal dining hall on the military base where my fiance works.

And LCH0708 - I just had to tell you that I LOVE the Jason Mraz song in your posts! I am walking down the asile to the piano version of that song. It has a lot of meaning for me. My first husband walked away not long after our daugther was born without any warning and without any effort in trying to work things out. My fiance from day 1 has said that he is going to show me that he is in it forever....and he does everyday.

[Deleted User] · August 2012

BDP-I know, we're thinking about making it our first dance song. FI and I met three years ago when we reported to Basic Officer Training in NY and then he left two weeks later to go to his duty station in FL. We started dating after he left but it only lasted a few months because I was assigned to a ship in Alaska. Neither one of us had any leave built up or really any money to fly to see each other so we went our separate ways. Needless to say we moved on and dated other people during my two year sea tour but I thought about him EVERY SINGLE DAY for two years. I received my new(current) assignment in Florida and we got back together a couple of months after I transferred here. The song has an extra special meaning for us because he's a pilot :-) We're not giving up this time!!!

bdpbride · August 2012

Oooh that is SOO perfect! Love the story behind the two of you! Congrats and best wishes with everything!!!

[Deleted User] · August 2012

Thanks, you too!

mabapunta · August 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-club-boards_april-2013-weddings_pre-wedding-parties?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20Club%20BoardsForum:820178d7-4f43-4671-bcab-c5c2c01eef1eDiscussion:3344492b-926f-434b-ab4b-e33b8adbd42cPost:815dd0e4-397b-459f-b9db-162bfeb3c5df">Re: Pre-wedding Parties</a>:
[QUOTE]BDP-I know, we're thinking about making it our first dance song. FI and I met three years ago when we reported to Basic Officer Training in NY and then he left two weeks later to go to his duty station in FL. We started dating after he left but it only lasted a few months because I was assigned to a ship in Alaska. Neither one of us had any leave built up or really any money to fly to see each other so we went our separate ways. Needless to say we moved on and dated other people during my two year sea tour but I thought about him EVERY SINGLE DAY for two years. I received my new(current) assignment in Florida and we got back together a couple of months after I transferred here. The song has an extra special meaning for us because he's a pilot :-) We're not giving up this time!!!
Posted by lch0708[/QUOTE]

wow. that's so awesome!! beautiful story :)

I'm not sure if we'll do a bridal/wedding shower. My MOH and family are in KY, FI's family and some of mine are in Indiana, one BM is here in Iowa and another BM is in St Louis. My MOH is not super involved with any wedding planning yet, which is fine...except we need to hammer out the BM dresses still and I know her budget will matter more than the others. Anyway...even if a shower was put together, not sure if I'd have a lot of people show. So I'm not planning or expecting one, but will go with the flow if FMIL or MOH decide to step up.

Bachelorette Party - This will definitely happen, even if I plan it myself. I thought maybe March 16th because it's my bday, a week away for 2 of my BM's bdays, and bc it's right before the craziness of St Paddys Day....but maybe we'll make it in Feb instead? I don't know. I want to have it here in Iowa and will probably keep it pretty small - bridal party, FSIL x2 and local friends. I figure we'll eat, drink and be crazy together :)

Bridal Party Brunch - Hadn't really thought of this but I've heard of it. Not sure when we'd do it...maybe during the day on the Friday before? Depends on when my BMs can get into town. LOVE the idea tho! Breakfast food is my favorite - anytime of day!

Rehearsal Dinner - I am PUMPED about this! FMIL and FFIL have agreed with our suggestion of having it at our favorite Thai restaurant in the city we'll be married in. So yummy!! I'm guessing we'll do this the Friday before.

[Deleted User] · August 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-club-boards_april-2013-weddings_pre-wedding-parties?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20Club%20BoardsForum:820178d7-4f43-4671-bcab-c5c2c01eef1eDiscussion:3344492b-926f-434b-ab4b-e33b8adbd42cPost:03d563a3-d885-4777-bdbc-8e0d4cc80db9">Re: Pre-wedding Parties</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: Pre-wedding Parties : wow. that's so awesome!! beautiful story :) I'm not sure if we'll do a bridal/wedding shower. My MOH and family are in KY, FI's family and some of mine are in Indiana, one BM is here in Iowa and another BM is in St Louis. My MOH is not super involved with any wedding planning yet, which is fine...except we need to hammer out the BM dresses still and I know her budget will matter more than the others. Anyway...even if a shower was put together, not sure if I'd have a lot of people show. So I'm not planning or expecting one, but will go with the flow if FMIL or MOH decide to step up. Bachelorette Party - This will definitely happen, even if I plan it myself. I thought maybe March 16th because it's my bday, a week away for 2 of my BM's bdays, and bc it's right before the craziness of St Paddys Day....but maybe we'll make it in Feb instead? I don't know. I want to have it here in Iowa and will probably keep it pretty small - bridal party, FSIL x2 and local friends. I figure we'll eat, drink and be crazy together :) Bridal Party Brunch - Hadn't really thought of this but I've heard of it. Not sure when we'd do it...maybe during the day on the Friday before? Depends on when my BMs can get into town. LOVE the idea tho! Breakfast food is my favorite - anytime of day! Rehearsal Dinner - I am PUMPED about this! FMIL and FFIL have agreed with our suggestion of having it at our favorite Thai restaurant in the city we'll be married in. So yummy!! I'm guessing we'll do this the Friday before.
Posted by mabapunta[/QUOTE]<div>
</div><div>Thanks!! I wasn't sure about going with the weekend of March 16th because of the St. Patty's craziness haha. I'm going to wait for FMIL to schedule a day for the bridal shower and then plan the bachelorette party, probably :-)

</div>

aimiroku · August 2012

Wedding shower: I know it may seem early but doing this in Early September. Were having a retro type theme and I wanted it to be around the same time as the Woodward Dream Cruise (love me some old cars) The venue was only available just after labor day... Were having a destination wedding in Jamaica & also didnt want to deal with cold and snow and the like. So fall it is!

Were not the traditional couple so.....

Bachelor/bachlorette: I think these may be skipped unless the bridal party steals us for shenanigans once in jamaica in april (all inclusive why not!!)

Brunch/Rehersals: Something that seems more fitting once we get to our destination... but not something im planning on

mabapunta · August 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-club-boards_april-2013-weddings_pre-wedding-parties?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding Club BoardsForum:820178d7-4f43-4671-bcab-c5c2c01eef1eDiscussion:3344492b-926f-434b-ab4b-e33b8adbd42cPost:58848ec8-1064-4003-afc2-7a030dd28e39">Re: Pre-wedding Parties</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: Pre-wedding Parties : Thanks!! I wasn't sure about going with the weekend of March 16th because of the St. Patty's craziness haha. I'm going to wait for FMIL to schedule a day for the bridal shower and then plan the bachelorette party, probably :-)
Posted by lch0708[/QUOTE]

Yeah, we're in a relatively small town...so I thought maybe March 16th would be fun because more people would be out pre-gaming, but not the full-on craziness of St Paddy's Day. Who knows! :)

[Deleted User] · August 2012

Spring Break is also something to consider for us. College of Charleston is off one week and The Citadel is off the next. I live in Panama City Beach so I'll be trying to escape the Spring Breakers, lol :-)

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