My Sister’s Bridal Shower Recap

Where

We held it on the patio at The Lot at Edgewater in Oakmont, PA. Steph had been there several times and mentioned that she wanted it there, which made it really easy on us. The patio is covered and they had just extended the deck to include a little lounge section with fire pits and heat lamps.

This made us feel a lot less uneasy about having an outdoor shower in October in Pittsburgh where the weather can be unpredictable. Steph also wanted it to be more of a cocktail party, rather than a shower, so we thought the location being a bar/restaurant, naturally lended itself to that.

If you’re looking to book an event, you can contact Matt at info@matthewdailey.me.

Itinerary 

3 pm – Set up

4 pm – Party starts

4:30 pm – Food comes out

4:35 pm – Nicole welcomes guests, Steph introduces bridesmaids

4:45 pm – Eat

5:30 pm – Steph acknowledges gifts

6 pm – Tanner arrives

6:10 pm – Shoe game

6:30 pm – Guests start to depart, Friends arrive

Theme

There wasn’t necessarily a “theme” per se, but there were colors and elements I wanted to include. I chose rose gold so that it was very soft and feminine. We wanted lots of fresh white and green florals so, we went with hydrangeas and eucalyptus. Lastly, we wanted a ton of tea light candles so it made it romantic. The words I would use to describe it would be: sophisticated, romantic and fresh.

I ordered the Mrs. Yocca balloon from Etsy and the string from Amazon.

Backdrop

I wanted something really classy and simple that tied into the rest of the theme. I had a vision, but wasn’t sure how it was going to come together until day of, but I think it turned out amazing!

I had a pretty much everything already, so all I needed to get was the hanging floral. I hung the sheer curtains over the bar, like you would hang regular curtains. Then, I draped the white string lights behind the sheers and hung them with six clamps. Next, I attached a solid white background with the same six clamps so you couldn’t see the windows that were behind the backdrop. I ordered two packs of the hanging florals from Amazon. All I did to attach was bend them in half and hook them over the top.

Photos

I DYI’ed a photo display using a hoola hoop. Click here if you want the steps on how I did and a list of products needed. I also printed 4x6s and 5x7s printed for frames which were scatters across the tables. I printed everything in black and white so it was cohesive. I didn’t buy any frames, but rather collected extra ones I had laying around. I liked that they were a mix of different textures, colors and finishes. 

Food

We did buffet style to keep everything casual. The menu included a charcuterie board, mozzarella stuffed veal meatballs, grilled veggies, salad and quesadillas.

We also did open bar. What cocktail party is complete without open bar!? Not one I’m throwing… 😉

Deserts

All the deserts were from Oakmont Bakery.

Games

Steph, similarly to her bachelorette, didn’t want to go the traditional route, and told us “No games.” She didn’t want to have guests check the contents of their purses or guess the ages of the bride and groom. We did have date night cards for people to fill out at their convenience. She did want to do the “shoe game” when Tanner arrived, which ended up being really funny. I printed them on card stock and then cut with paper trimmer that my work had. You can also get a smaller one from the craft store.

The gifts for the shoe game were bottles of wine. We started with the person that had the most right, and worked our way down until we handed out four bottles of wine. I DIY’ed the wine bags by getting the brown paper bags and tissue paper from the Dollar Store. I used a calligraphy pen and wrote wine quotes on them that I found on Pinterest. 

Gift Table

On the invitations, we asked everyone to bring their gifts unwrapped. We set up a table for everyone to set their gifts on and attach a tag with their name on it so we’d know who it was from. During the party, guests would also walk by the table to see the display.

When it was time for Steph to acknowledge the gifts, the bridesmaids stood up with her and took turns handing her presents. Steph stood and help up each gift saying what it was and who it was from. Not having the gifts wrapped saved so much time and made the gift part a lot less awkward. Also, because she was standing, everyone was able to see what she got. I sat and took notes on who gave her what.

Guest Gifts

We wanted the gifts to be something that people would actually use or want. We decided on succulents. We ordered the succulents and the little terra-cotta pots from Amazon and potted them ourselves. I almost threw out the galvanized tier out when I moved into my house, but knew it would come in handy for something! I found the little chalk board sign from Target’s Dollar Spot. We got the little tags from Jo Ann’s. After putting one on, it felt a little too big for each one so we used the tags for the gift table.

After the shower was “over,” we cleaned up and changed into comfy clothes. Everyone’s significant other’s and friends were invited to join the party. We stayed at the The Lot well into the night, hanging by the fire pits and sipping drinks.

It was such a perfect day to shower the beautiful bride with lots of love!