Whether you’re planning a bridal shower, baby shower, and other event for a guest of honor – there are so many places for inspiration. My favorite place for party and event inspiration is Pinterest. You can check out our Pinterest page to see the boards we’ve created that focus on various themes. This is exactly what you can do while planning an event. Create a board based on the theme of your choice and then find web images and other Pinterest pins to pin to that board. The overall effect (looking at the entire board as a whole) almost feels like an event in itself!

While you don’t need a theme for your baby or bridal shower, it really makes an impact when a theme is selected and carried through from invites down to the decor.

How to select a theme:

• Choose a theme that relates to something the bride-to-be or mom-to-be enjoys. Does she love a specific sport? Is crazy about a certain color? What are her hobbies? Create a theme around things she loves.
• Choose a theme that matches a room in their home (i.e. baby’s nursery). If the parents-to-be have created an elephant themed room for their new baby, perhaps an elephant themed shower is the perfect choice!
• If you’re stuck or want more ideas, check out our downloadable party theme ideas below!

When to begin planning? I recommend starting your organizing and planning at least 2-months prior to the event date.

Planning Your Event

 

Steps to Take To Plan Your Event:

1. Decide on the type of the shower or event. If it’s a shower, will it be a co-ed event, ladies only, etc? This will also help to plan your theme as well. If it’s a co-ed party, you might select a BBQ theme for your event. If your event is a ladies only affair, you might do something more feminine in the design of invitations and decor.
2. Pick a location. If the location is going to be in someone’s home, check first to see how many guests will comfortably fit in the space. If you plan to hold your function at a location such as a community hall, restaurant, meeting space, or banquet hall; check their capacity requirements and inquire about time frame. Many outside locations require a deposit and reservation well in advance of your event date.
3. Select a theme. Once you’ve gone through the options, searched Pinterest and other websites, and have settled on a theme; it’s time to begin make a checklist of all the party decor and other items you plan to purchase. Check out our downloadable party theme ideas below!
4. Try to purchase everything at the same time. If you’re using a designer, things will often be less expensive if the designer can do all of your items at once, instead of piece-meal. If you’re purchasing anything from a party store or website, buying it all at once will ensure that your items are available. Inventory often changes and you’d have to be without an essential matching piece you saw previously.
5. Go all out. Some of the best parties I’ve seen out there include matching banners, cupcake toppers, food labels, signage, water bottle labels, favor tags, and more.
6. Put it all together. Order and assemble all of your party stuff prior to the date. For mailing invites, I recommend that shower and party event invites mailed our no later than 3 weeks in advance. You want to give them enough notice, but not too much time so they’ll forget about your event.

Check out more great baby shower tips from Babies R Us and bridal shower tips from The Knot.

Theme Ideas

 

The Ultimate List of Baby Shower Theme Ideas:  Blog Post • PDF Download

The Ultimate List of Bridal Shower Theme Ideas:  Blog Post • PDF download (coming soon!)

The Ultimate List of Birthday Theme Ideas:  Blog Post • PDF download (coming soon!)

 

So, what’s YOUR  theme for an event that you planned recently or are in the midst of planning? We’d love to hear from you.

Stay tuned for more posts: a peek at a Ballerina-themed birthday party from our friends at the Modest Homestead, a bit about “Why I Don’t Do Disney”, and more! Subscribe to receive our posts via email by clicking the “Follow” button at the lower right-hand side of your screen or fan us on Facebook for blog post updates.