Southerners know how to throw a good party!  I just got done planning and throwing a wedding shower recently and I’m so excited to show y’all the details of the event!  I’m also going to walk you through a basic step-by-step of “How to Plan a Party!”  Keep in mind that it can be simpler or more intricate than this, but these basic steps will definitely get you a good party!

{1} Pick a theme & venue.
You need to decide what kind of party you want to throw!  Depending on the theme, that may make your venue location easier to decide on.  We went with a Bridal Shower Tea Party & Brunch theme because we’re southerners and that’s how we roll.  Because we knew the party would be in the summer and we knew that since it was a tea party we wanted everyone in their sun dresses and sun hats, we decided to pick an outside location. *Tip: Have a rain location on hand ALWAYS!*
There are not a lot of places in Starkville, MS that have beautiful views and can accomodate for an outside event, but luckily, the Oktibbeha County Heritage Museum had just renovated their outside landscape and they have a beautiful venue.  We had never seen people use the space before so we weren’t sure if it was even a possibility, but ALWAYS ASK!  They were extremely excited that we wanted to use their venue and we got it for a great price – $100! 

We set up outside under this beautiful tree for gift opening!

{2} Order your Invitations!
Invitations should be sent out at least 3-4 weeks before the party, so make sure you have them made or ordered in plenty of time.  I used VistaPrint for mine and they turned out great!  Since we were doing a tea-party, we decided to make mini teabags to insert in the card that displayed where the bride was registered at.

{3} Pick your menu
Again, this goes with your theme!
Our theme: Tea Party & Brunch
Ham & Cheese Corn Muffins
Caprese Baguette Stacks
Cheese Tray
Raspberry Crumble Bars
Petit Fours
Red Berry Sangria
Raspberry Lemonade Tea



L to R: Cheese, Baguette slices, Baby Gherkins, Tomato/Mozzarella/Baguette Tray



{4} Pick your Decorations
You can go as far out as you want on decorations!  For our party we chose toothpick holders that had her “future” last initial on them, cute signs to display what each food item was, small tea cups and saucers, and a boquet of flowers.  When you do a party outside, the scenery becomes part of your decoration and so there isn’t as much that you need to do!

This was my favorite creation!  You can add a little extra something with cup decorations.  I used our colors, coral and mint to create these cup decorations.  I had to use hotglue to help keep it together.  I’ll probably do a DIY tutorial on these because I absolutely LOVED how they turned out!

{5} What else might you want?
We decided to add a little game into ours, we played bridal bingo.  You can come up with games based on the type of party you’re throwing or you can incorporate other activites.  It’s all up to you!

Calling out the BINGO words

BINGO card!  Try to incorporate your color scheme as much as possible!

{6} Last minute things to remember!
Ice
Serving Ware (plates, silverware, cups, napkins, serving platters)
Have a guest book if you need one
Have someone in charge of writing down who brought which gifts
Have fun!
Take lots of pictures!

There are obviously so many things that can go into planning a party, but these were the basics for the wedding shower I threw this weekend!  We had a great time and it was fun to dress up in these large sun hats!  It was a beautiful touch of southern classic!

The bridesmaids with the Bride.

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Dear Friday, thanks for joining me today! I’m excited to welcome in a 4 day weekend!  Dear body, you literally feel like you’ve been hit by a semi… it doesn’t feel good AT ALL!  Dear Flash Dash 5K tonight, I’m super sad that you actually ended up being sold out a mere 5 hours before I chose to sign up for you.  Dear transcript money maker people, I think you’re stupid and dumb.  I pretty much hate you.  I think it’s absolutely RIDICULOUS that I have to pay a flipping $10 to get an official transcript sent somewhere.  You don’t have to create anything, all you have to do is sit on your butt and e-mail out a transcript that was created by ME, because those are my grades, not yours.  I think it’s stupid and I think you need to find another way to make money because you kind of piss me off!  Dear bloggers, don’t forget to sign up for Bloggers Helping Bloggers, 6 days left! Dear link-ups, I’ve noticed lately that there are a bunch of fun themed link-ups going on that I’ve missed out on knowing about for the first week or two of the link-up.  I’m going to admit right now that I’ve been way behind on keeping up with blogs and so I was sad to see this, but I intend to join in on the conversation for the topics I’ll enjoy writing about!  Dear friends, have a wonderful and safe weekend!