Hosting a Victorian Tea Bridal Shower

When I think of a bridal shower, I get the image of a very elegant event. And little is more elegant than an afternoon Victorian tea. This is a wonderful way to honor the bride-to-be amid luxurious surroundings.

For this type of bridal shower, you should use fine linens, china dishes, and silver. If you don't have any of your own, check with other women friends or a rental equipment business. Also, this type of shower works best with a limited guest list. Too many guests will destroy the cozy and elegant atmosphere usual with afternoon teas.

Invitations

Invitations to your Victorian tea bridal shower should be custom printed and don't forget to include an RSVP card. Also, you might consider ordering matching thank-you notes for the bride-to-be at this time.

Decorations

Fresh flowers are the best decoration for a tea. But a large abundance of flowers should be avoided; one large bouquet on your main table and perhaps a couple smaller bouquets on side tables is all that is necessary.

Food and Drink

Victorian teas traditonally serve an assortment of finger sandwiches with the crusts removed. Sandwich fillings such as chicken salad, tuna salad, or egg salad are typical at a tea. Beverly Clark, in her book Showers also suggests using cream cheese with walnuts, avocado and diced olives, and sliced hard-boiled egg and cucumber. Lunchmeats, such as ham, roast beef, and turkey are not usually served.

Other than sandwiches, the only other food served at a tea is dessert. I suggest having some kind of cake and a variety of pastries, such as eclairs, scones, madeleines, individual tarts, and fancy cookies.

Choose a brand of tea which is favored by connoisseurs, such as Earl Grey or Darjeeling. Have cream, sugar, lemon, and an artificial sweetener on hand for the tea. It's also a good idea to provide some kind of punch, just in case some guests prefer a cold drink rather than hot tea.

Shower Themes

Since a bride-to-be usually is given several bridal showers, it's good to choose a specific theme for your shower. Examples include kitchen shower, lingerie shower, linen shower, etc.

In keeping with a Victorian tea, suggest to your guests they bring shower gifts that would help the bride-to-be host her own afternoon tea. Items such as a teapot, creamer, sugar bowl, serving trays, silver serving utensils are a good choice. Check with the bride to see if she'd prefer china serving dishes or silver.

One final suggestion: If the weather permits, consider having your tea party outside in a garden. Warm sunshine, nice wind, and beautiful flowers make a wonderful scene for an afternoon tea party shower.

Mary Arnold is an author on http://www.Writing.Com/

This article has been submitted in affiliation with http://www.Prye.Com/ which is a site for Wedding Invitations.

Tips For Having a Modern Wedding Shower

Wedding showers, also known as bridal showers, have romantic beginnings. According to oral legends, the friends of the bride would gather together and bring gifts, ensuring that she would have enough dowries to marry the man she loves. These ancient "gift giving parties" were most likely held for brides who did not have a dowry because her father did not approve of the groom.

The monetary value of wedding showers made it tacky for the bride's mother to host the party. But today, the purpose of this gathering is radically different. The fate of the bride and groom no longer hinges on whether or not enough dowries can be collected during the party. In fact, a wedding can take place even without a wedding shower. The modern bridal shower is an opportunity for the friends of the bride and groom to show their support of the upcoming marriage in a fun, relaxed, and informal setting.

What is a modern bride to be party?

A modern bride to be party is a fun event that is organized mainly by the bridesmaids but one of the bride's friends, who may not be part of the entourage, can also put it together. The party can take place anywhere, such as a beach, a restaurant, or a rented party room. It can also be held in the house of the bride's mother. A bridal shower hosted by the bride's mother is no longer viewed as tacky because it is the last chance of the bride's family and friends to enjoy each other before the wedding. Gift giving, of course, is still practiced but the gifts need not be practical. In fact, the gifts can be silly and suggestive of the wedding night. And finally, wedding showers are no longer an exclusive activity for the bride and her female friends. The groom and the male friends can join the party!

How to organize a modern wedding shower?

If you are the one assigned to organize this event, then here are few tips that can help you put together an enjoyable and affordable party.

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  When: The shower should be held at least two months before the anticipated wedding day. The party invitations, of course, should be sent weeks ahead. To allow many of the couple's working friends to attend, the bridal shower should be scheduled on a weekend afternoon, however, this is not a rigid rule.


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  Who: The guests should be those who were invited to the wedding. It would be awkward to explain why you would invite someone to the wedding shower and not to the wedding. If you plan to include the groom and some male friends, make sure that the activity you choose would be meaningful and romantic for the couple.


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  Where: An all-female gathering can be a day at the spa but a male-and-female party should revolve around the wedding's theme or the couple's favorite. For example, if the couple loves tennis, the party can be on a tennis court. Keep in mind that there is nothing wrong with hosting the party at a house.

About The Author
Paul Jones researches and provides article content for womens' health, beauty and fashion.
Find 100's of Unique Wedding Ideas at UsWeddingIdeas.com. Learn how you can "Plan The Perfect Wedding on A Shoestring Budget." Its all in a neat little e-book. Yours Free just for visiting.

Couples Baby Shower

The first baby showers were women-only events. They were basically a way to give new moms some entertainment while they were in seclusion with their child in the first few months after delivery. Thankfully, that's no longer how our culture does things. Now couple baby shower have become more common. However, when you start blending the genders on your guest list that means you may need to make some party changes starting with your baby shower invitations.

The Guest List for the Baby Couples Shower

Obviously, one of the main changes when you decide on a co-ed shower is who is going to receive the baby shower invitation to the couple baby shower. When it was mainly an event for moms, the guest list consisted primarily of female family members and friends of the mom-to-be. Now the guest list can be broadened to include friends and family of both sexes. Be aware that the change might result in a bigger shower than you might have been prepared to manage. On the bright side, the couple will probably score a lot more great gifts.

Baby Couples Shower Activities

With such a diverse array of people coming to the babyshower party, one might wonder what other changes should made. For starters, the entire event can now be planned by either a female or a male friend or relative. Although you may not find many guys who are willing to tackle the task of sending out couples shower invitations, it's now a possibility. That's nice for couples who have more men than women as friends and family members.

Even more important than who might get to be the lucky host of the event is what types of activities to choose that will appeal to the varied guests at a baby showers couples party. You don't want to make the men feel as if they are just along for the ride but you also don't want to totally dilute the entire idea of the shower. For starters, you may want to have a man and a woman work on planning some couples baby shower games together. That way you'll have input from both sexes and that should generate some activities that make everyone happy. Trivia contests about the couples are a great choice. You could also break the group into male and female pairs for activities, such as diapering contests or baby food tasting events.

If you're looking for couple baby shower plans, just remember you don't want to divide the genders. When you are hosting couples baby showers, you want both sexes to participate together. That doesn't mean having a television playing ESPN in one room while all of the women exchange child birth horror stories in the other part of the house. Remember those couple baby shower invitations are going to both genders so plan accordingly.

Of course, if you're having trouble planning your couple baby shower go to the expecting parents for advice. Not only do they know their friends and family members better than anyone else but it's there party for better or for worse.

About the Authors: Sarah Porter and Patti Paz have written several articles about Personalized Baby Shower Invitations, About Couples Baby Showers, Fun Baby Shower Party, Creative Baby Shower Games, Diaper Cakes for Baby Showers, Types of Baby Shower Invitations, All About Hosting Baby Shower, Hosting Surprise Baby Shower, Free Shower Invitations, Baby Invitations for Baby Shower and many more for CardsShoppe and Express-Invitations.