How to Host a Cocktail Bridal Shower

My sister and future brother -in-law have been together since they were in highschool- they are true high school sweethearts.  I’m so happy for them to finally tie the knot and make it official!!  They’re wedding is coming up this May and I’m so excited to share photos from her Cocktail Bridal Shower this past weekend!  When she told me she wanted to do something different than a brunch and instead have a cocktail party, I’d never been to or even heard of a Cocktail Bridal Shower before.  My own shower and all the subsequent ones I’ve ever been to, which were lovely, were during the day either brunch or lunch, you sit, chat and eat a yummy meal while the bride opens presents.

Her wish was to have a cocktail style shower that would allow her to really spend time with her guests and enjoy their company.  So that’s what we did!!  I found a local venue Little Bird Events to host us  with a hip industrial chic vibe and it was truly the perfect back drop for this event.   Hosting a Cocktail Bridal Shower at your own house would be a great option too, however we had a lot of guests and needed a bigger space.  Here are some of the details and photos from the day!

THE INVITATIONS:

The invitations were designed by my friend Kelly @KelisticDesigns we went with a simple white and green theme invite and added an additional card informing the guests that her shower will be a display shower (aka no opening gifts)…

“DISPLAY SHOWER:
Your thoughtful gifts will be put on display, so no need to wrap it anyway.  A ribbon or tie will do just fine leaving us with more time to visit and dine!”

THE DECOR:

The white floral and greenery theme, with hints of gold were the perfect accents to the beautiful event space with it’s industrial chic vibes. I went to local thrift stores collecting brass candle sticks to go down the long beautiful farm tables.  Simple greenery, mixed with faux white roses and layered over the prettiest chiffon runners added sophistication the long farm tables.   I purchased large cardboard letters from A.C. Moore and spray painted them gold and added white flowers and greener to the corners.  We used double stick tapeto adhere them to the large industrial doors- which was the PERFECT backdrop for photos through out the evening.  As guests entered the space they were welcomed with this stunning vintage mirror, which I rented and had hand lettered from Taylor @Topknottypography

I love how the gold accents of the mirror tie in so perfectly with the metal door in the background.

Here is the “Display” table where guests placed their unwrapped presents for the bride to see!

FOOD AND DRINK:

For the food and drink the venue served beer, wine and champagne.  Then we did a signature drink of a blood orange sangria which was so delish! The food was a mix of a stationary charcuterie table and passed hors d’oeuvres  and for dessert we did a cupcake display with all different types of flavors and frostings.

The “Love is Sweet” sign is from Hobby Lobby.

DATE JAR & FAVORS:

As a way for the guests to get involved we had a Date Jar- we used some tongue depressors, an antique blue mason jar and a letter board to ask the guests to share their best date ideas with the soon to be Mr. and Mrs.  For the favors we ordered these little tags from Etsy and printed them ourselves, then wrapped them around mini wine bottles.  We did a variety of wines because we liked the different colors.  To display them I took some crates from my home and turned them upside down to get different heights.

It was a beautiful shower and I’ve never seen my sister so happy!  We shared so many great laughs and conversations.  I loved spending time mingling with everyone and I know she did too.  I have to say I think I’m on team Cocktail Bridal Shower… I mean why have a brunch when you can have a cocktail party?!  I’m just so excited and happy for my sister!!

Thank you for stopping by! I hope this inspires you if you ever are hosting a bridal shower for someone you love.  It’s fun to try something different and outside the norm.

Jordan

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