Etiquette Guide Article

The Bridal Shower: It Is All in the Timing

There is no doubt about it, planning a bridal shower takes a lot of time and just a bit of work. When it comes to the timing which goes into producing a bridal shower there are a lot of opinions on when the plans for the bridal shower should be made. The truth of the matter is that there are a lot of variables which will affect the way the bridal shower should be held and when it should be given. When planning a bridal shower some of the factors which must be considered will include the number of people which will be attending, the availability of a local facility in which to have the bridal shower and how far away that the guests may live from the location of the bridal shower.

One of the decisions that will have to be made is how much time do you intend to allow between having the shower and the actual wedding. There are no hard set rules on what is considered to be the proper amount of time from the bridal shower to the big event. Generally it is acceptable to hold the bridal shower from as much as two months away from the wedding to as little as two weeks away from the wedding. As you can see, this gives bridesmaids plenty of leeway in planning the actual bridal shower.

Once the decision has been made to give the bride a bridal shower, you will need to decide exactly how much time that you will need to make all the arrangements. If the bridal shower will be held at a public facility you may need to give extra time because of the booking arrangements for the affair.

The type food which you are planning to serve will also to determine a lot about the timing of the bridal shower. Some bridal showers feature a formal meal where others will use an informal meal format. If you decide to go with the formal meal, then you'll need extra time to plan the menu and to hire a caterer.

The invitations are another timing decision as well. You want your invitations to go out with enough time for the guests to be able to attend the bridal shower, but you don't want to send them to early or too late. It is a good idea to send the bridal shower invitations out at about a month or so before the actual bridal shower. This should allow more the time for all of your guests to make time on their calendar to attend the bridal shower.

These are some of the decisions you will have to make when throwing your loved one a bridal shower.