6 Great Bridal Shower Theme Ideas

As in weddings, themes can tie bridal showers together and create an easy template for party fun. Here are some great bridal shower themes.

1. Around the clock:

For this theme, guests are assigned an hour of the day and are asked to bring a gift corresponding to that hour. For 7AM, the guest might bring an espresso machine. For 5PM, they might bring cocktail glasses or dinner plates. Refreshments can also correspond to the hours of the day and breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner, and dessert foods may all be served. You could use clocks and timepieces for decorations and could use sunflowers, morning glories, or four o’clocks for floral decorations. "Rock Around the Clock" by Bill Haley would be a good music opener, and a cake decorated with a clock face could round out the theme.

2. Stock the pantry:

For this theme, guests are instructed to bring gifts that the bridal couple will need for their pantry. They might be food items, kitchenware, or small appliances. You might schedule a food tasting for the party and serve appetizers corresponding to specific appliances or utensils. An herbal theme partners well with this one, and you could play "Guess the herb," a game where guests must guess the identity of unknown herbs by smell. Decorate with potted herbs and send out herbal-themed invitations and thank you cards.

3. Beach/honeymoon:

If the bride is especially excited about her upcoming honeymoon you might want to give her the chance to enjoy it early by throwing her a honeymoon-themed bridal shower. If it is a beach destination, decorate with floating candles, serve margaritas, and play beach-themed games.

4. Lingerie/pajama party

There are popular lingerie party companies that give demonstrations out of people’s homes. You could schedule a demonstration as the centerpiece of the shower, and guests could be asked to bring lingerie gifts or purchase them after the demonstration. For this theme, guests could be asked to attend in their pajamas and you could serve popcorn and an ice cream sundae bar as a throwback to childhood pajama parties.

5. Room by room

For this theme, guests are asked to bring a gift corresponding to an assigned room of the house. One guest may be assigned the office and could buy a wireless keyboard and mouse for the computer. Another might be assigned the bedroom and could buy colorful throw pillows for the bed. A good party game for this theme would be a scavenger hunt that brings guests through each room of the house with clues leading to a door prize.

6. Casino

This theme is good for a bride who enjoys games. Stage a mini-casino night in her honor with poker, blackjack, and even craps or roulette. Serve martinis and long island iced teas with bar food and decorate the cake to look like the face of a poker chip.

Themes are intended to be fun, and are a wonderful way to add a sense of play to any party. Throw a themed bridal shower for a bride who has specific interests or hobbies, or throw a more general garden or food-themed party for someone without standout preferences.

Misha Anatolia is a bridal shower writer. For ideas for bridal shower themes, go to bridal-showers.org