Weddings are life milestones worth sharing with close friends and family. But even before you walk down the aisle on your big day, you can enjoy your time with your closest loved ones with pre-wedding festivities.
Choose from a variety of pre-wedding parties: An engagement party, bridal shower, bachelorette or bachelor parties, bridal luncheon, rehearsal dinner -- these are some of the parties you can throw before your wedding.
Here's a rundown of pre-wedding parties and some top pre-wedding party decoration ideas!
What Happens in a Pre-wedding Party?
A pre-wedding is a great way to share quality time with family and friends before getting married. Here are the pre-wedding parties and all you need to know about them.
1. Engagement Party
What better way to break the news to family and friends about an upcoming marriage than through a party? An engagement party is the first among a line-up of pre-wedding events. Everyone wants to be invited to an engagement party to celebrate a blossoming love story.
Engagement parties are hosted by either the groom or the bride's families. Other couples opt for both families to host and have a say. It's often thrown within three months of a couple's engagement.
You can opt for a cocktail party or a dinner banquet and have some of your closest family and friends share well-wishes. You can even get creative with the party theme to give you a fun time. Engagement parties are a great way to gather your closest friends and family to celebrate your upcoming marriage.
2. Bridal Shower
A bridal shower is the right place for friends and family to shower the bride with love and attention. Guests can bring pre-wedding gifts and food to celebrate the bride-to-be.
The party is often organised by the maid of honor and the bridesmaids, attended by wedding guests close to the couple to be wed.
Bridal showers can be a casual event to get everyone comfortable. If you're throwing one, you can start off with some light conversation with guests, enjoy a nice lunch or dinner together, then open gifts with them. You can even throw in some fun games to lighten up the mood.
3. Bachelorette and Bachelors Parties
These are some of the most sought-after pre-wedding events by couples and their bridesmaids and groomsmen. A bachelor's party and bachelorette's party are often thrown separately and are usually organised by the maid of honor and the best man.
Friends often choose to throw a wild party to celebrate the bachelor and bachelorette before getting hitched. Get creative with this pre-wedding party depending on the bride and groom's preference.
4. Bridal Lunch
A Bridal Lunch, also known as a Bridesmaids Luncheon, is one of the lesser practiced pre-wedding activities. However, this optional festivity can be a great way for the bride and bridesmaids to relax, unwind, and celebrate their hard work in preparation for the big wedding.
These parties are often a girls-only event. If you're organising a bridal lunch, try some fun bonding activities. You could opt for a round of drinks or a trip to the salon for some mani-pedis! Don't be afraid to get creative with your bridal lunch.
5. Rehearsal Dinner
One of the most popular pre-wedding events is the Rehearsal Dinner. It's both a rehearsal for the big wedding day and a great space for family and friends of the groom and the bride to converse and share pleasantries.
The rehearsal wedding is an important pre-wedding activity to iron out last minute details and make sure everything turns out smoothly on the day of the wedding. The party is often hosted by the groom and his family while the details are planned out by the bride. Current custom often breaks away from this tradition as sometimes both families opt to sponsor the dinner, depending on the couple's preferences.
How do you plan a pre-wedding party?
Planning a pre-wedding can also take some work. Here are some top tips on how to plan a pre-wedding party.
1. Select a Date and Location
Planning for a wedding can be hectic and take up a couple's time. Make sure you and your loved ones are present at the most important pre-wedding events.
You'll also want to celebrate at a nice and cozy location. Scout for event locations in your area at the earliest time possible so that bookings aren't full yet. The same goes for locations that are out of town. Plan months before the wedding party for destination pre-wedding parties. This lead time often gives planners leeway to bid for lower rental prices.
You'll want to choose weekends to make sure everyone on your guest list can make it. Make sure to choose a wedding venue that's accessible to make sure everyone in your guest list can make it.
2. Create your Guest List
Speaking of guests, creating a guest list is one of the most important elements in planning for pre-wedding parties.
Make sure to run through a list of all your close family and friends so that nobody gets accidentally left behind. Set a time to brainstorm for your guest-list.
You may also want to agree on how many people to invite to your party before choosing who can attend. This way both the bride and the groom can have equal say in who gets invited to the wedding.
3. Choose a Theme
What party is complete without a theme? Pre-wedding events are less structured than the wedding proper and the wedding receptions. So this is where you can get really creative with your party theme. Try a superhero theme, or a pyjama party theme for the bachelor and bachelorette party. You can also opt for an outdoor picnic, a barbecue night or a beach theme and venue for your engagement party for a relaxed vibe break for all your guests.
4. Decide on your Menu
What better way to bond with your closest loved ones than to share the most mouth-watering food with them? You can plan your menu in line with your party theme. You can also opt for a menu consisting of family favorites.
If you're looking to hire catering services, inquire and book early on especially if you're pre-wedding parties fall near the holidays.
5. Plan your Event Décor
Of course every couple wants to celebrate their pre-wedding parties in style. Make sure you wine and dine with kith and kin in elegance with the right party decor. You'll want to look up design inspiration based on your party theme. If you're hosting a big party, try purchasing event décor in bulk to score lower prices.
6. Offer a fun activity
Having a fun activity with your friends will make it all more memorable. Fun things with flowers can be:
Flower Crown Workshop
Create your own Bouquet
Create a table arrangement for you home
Women's buttonholes or corsages
These are hands on activities that you can do together with a cocktail masterclass for example. Flowers first cocktails last as you don't want to be handling secateurs after a few drinks.
What are some Pre-Wedding Party Decoration Ideas?
Of course no party would be complete without the right pre-wedding party décor. Make sure you and your guests share laughter and memories in style.
Dress up your big occasion with event décor to suit your pre-wedding party. Choose from a variety of party themes to maximize the fun.
1. Glittery Fun with Sequins
If you're looking for a more fun décor set-up try going for Glitz Sequin décor for your bachelorette party or bridal luncheon.
2. Naughty and Nice with Bold Prints
Planning for a wild night for the bride and the groom? opt for bolder pieces. Think leopard print linens and some statement pieces to boot.
If you're looking for a more family friendly yet bold décor, try decorating with gingham and some earthy décor for an outdoor picnic party.
3. Fine Dining in Style
For more formal pre-wedding celebrations like the Rehearsal dinner, you can opt for a classy look with muted colours and neutrals.
One key to make your party look elegant is to use quality events linen. Don't underestimate the power of clean and crisp linens in setting the mood and tone of your event.
If you want to decorate your party with high-quality décor on a budget try buying wholesale event supplies. Try buying Wedding Tablecloths in bulk. You'll be surprised about the amount you save when you buy wholesale.
4. Flowers!
Even if your celebration is relaxed and not formal, you can have little jam jars with flowers that can be taken away by the guests after the party. Or maybe you could have a statement piece to wow your guests at the entrance and then have them pick some flowers from a installation to take home. There are many creative ways to use flowers to decorate and also as a keepsake. Get in touch to talk about it.
Make Memories with a Pre-Wedding Party
Planning and preparing for a wedding ceremony can be quite challenging. You can take off some of that pressure with some casual pre-wedding events. Just have some fun with your closest family and friends and get to know them better.
We've run through the basics of all the pre-wedding festivities along with some pre-wedding party decoration ideas.
If you're just looking to spend some quality time with your wedding guests, try throwing these pre-wedding parties. Have a blast with your besties before getting officially hitched. Share laughter, food, and good company to make memories to remember even before your wedding ceremony.
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