Bachelorettes and bridal showers have not been a norm in our country since time immemorial. Only over the last decade or so have we seen a crazy upsurge in this particular cultural practice and boy, is it a welcome change. For all the bride-to-bes, it is that one last night where you want to hang loose, let your hair down and make it count with all your main girls. While I have also noticed a trend of a bachelorette week with some, the rest of us are not that lucky to get a week off from work to celebrate the last few days of our friends' spinsterhood especially since we look for more holidays over the wedding celebration anyway.
To the meaty discussion now, I scoured the internet like a spy looking for clues to throw the best bachelorette for my best friend. While there are some articles out there, nobody wants to think more in detail than the obvious, get away with your friends etc.
Of course, a get away is a wonderful idea if you have that kind of time at hand and I would suggest that if you plan to get away, do it at least a month prior so as to stock up on your leaves ahead (This is for all of you women who have crazed work schedules like most of us).
While if you are going to be in the city, here are a few pointers to keep in mind while throwing a bachelorette to make the experience memorable not just for the bride to be but also for everyone attending.
- The first thing most people think of when they think bachelorettes are the crazy amount of paraphernalia associated with this celebration. From sex toys to kinky hand cuffs, drinking board games to customised balloons, everything needs to be given enough detail. If you are looking to throw a down and dirty bachelorette then this article is not for you since I am personally over the whole male anatomy cake movement. Keep it classy. Make sure you keep your friend's taste in mind which is why I kept everything refreshingly girly and fun. Polka dotted balloons, bride-to-be-balloon, a kinky pink furry hand cuff just for the element of fun, customised badges keeping in mind all the girls who are going to be wearing it and the works.
- The second thing that most people do not give much thought or importance to are the party favours and how those tie in to the party. My searches yielded a few ideas of creating hang over kits for everyone which included bandaids, a box of disprin and some crisps etc. As cool as that idea is, I wanted to do something of my own and tie it into the party. So my party favours were specially picked bright coloured Nyx lipsticks for all the girls. It was placed in their glass before they came in and when they picked their lipsticks, they had to wear it for the rest of the night, keeping it in the theme of the loud, bright girls' night. Safe to say, everyone loved their shade.
- The third thing that I gave a lot of thought and emphasis to was the cake. The other option always is to customised cupcakes with cute fondant figures like bikini tops, bottoms, lipsticks, a bottle of champagne etc, but I was quite keen on a cake. Ensure that you do an in-depth research on the cake bakers in your city and choose the one who gets exactly what you need. I spoke to my baker in depth so much so that she knew how I wanted the insides of the cake to be! Be a pain but make sure it is the perfect cake. As far as the question of what cake to get goes, I skipped the trashy perverted connotations for a classic timeless Victoria's Secret cake with interesting pink ruffles peeping out. It looked and tasted divine and my research paid off. The other peppier options available these days are cake pops and if you live in a metropolitan city, those could be customised in colours and toppings too.
- I did not obviously take photos of everything since after a while I just wanted to concentrate on having fun and obviously not share all the photos from a personal night. :) Another important aspect of the night if you plan to notch it up real high is the right champagne. We popped pink bubbly which I thought was appropriate given the theme of the night. I opted for Moet and other pink option is Chandon. Two ideal pink champagnes.
- The aspect where I found most articles really unimaginative was the part about what games should follow the customary cake cutting, champagne popping. There are the obvious options of drinking roulette, which I must admit is quite fun but it is important you come up with games that engage all the girls throughout the night, depending on what you plan to do. I planned a bar crawl across the best bars in the city with a rule to consume different liquor at every bar, so the games had to up the ante too. These are two game ideas that I found and had a blast playing with the girls. Since many painstaking hours were spent finding it, I guess its time I share my research with the world to benefit many others.
- Most importantly, whatever activity it is that you choose to highlight at a bachelorette, make sure it is keeping in mind what the bride-to-be will enjoy. Take a lot of photographs, do not sleep and ensure everyone wakes up with at least a mild hangover. Mild embarrassment in public is also due and should be on your agenda. (Fight with the DJ, drinks and conversations with random couples, hugging the bouncer, weird dance moves, some ideas that are tried and tested and can comfortably be spoken about on a public forum). The rest I shall leave up to your imagination. :)
I hope a few of these pointers and tiny detailed references help. The images are not of the finest quality and I am sure you could understand why. Make sure you give the bride-to-be a night that she will not forget and do it in your own style. There is nothing people love more than a party that screams of your effort and enthusiasm.
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