Here’s a lovely, stress-free party idea for a bridal shower! Why bond with your bridesmaids and family over beauty treatments at a day spa? Besides being a refreshing change from traditional bridal showers, throwing a spa party has another great advantage. Nerves tend to run high as the wedding date draws closer, and a day of soothing massage therapies and spa treatments will be most welcome for the bride-to-be and her friends. Most day spas offer a whole range of treatments, from rejuvenating facials to specialized massages to nail art. If you hold your bridal shower close enough to your wedding date, you can get your manicures, pedicures, and other beauty treatments out of the way instead of squeezing all these in before your ceremony starts.

Blue Water Day Spa offers special wedding packages for brides, grooms, and the entire entourage; they’ll even take care of your snacks and refreshments! All you have to do as the guest of honor is sit, relax, and enjoy this special day with your friends and loved ones.

Call or visit any of the Blue Water Day Spa branches across the Metro and inquire about their special wedding packages:

Greenhills
G/F Platinum 1000 #16 Annapolis St
Greenhills San Juan Metro Manila
Tel nos: 723-5537 / 723-4932
Cell no: 0917-8810093

Makati
G/F Tropical Palms Condominium
#103 Dela Rosa St. cor Perea St.
Legaspi Village, Makati City
Tel nos. 817-3126 / 817-5455
Cell no: 0917-8810092

Alabang
Unit 101 Southgate Bldg
Finance Drive, Madrigal Business Park
Ayala Alabang, Muntinlupa City
Tel nos: 824-7667 / 842-7639

Mother Ignacia
#141 Mother Ignacia St.
Diliman, Quezon City
Tel nos: 927-2258 / 928-1750
Cell no: 0917-8329002

Capitol Hills
Capitol Greenstreet Commercial Center
Capitol Hills Golf Annex Building
Capitol Hills Drive, Old Balara, Quezon City
Tel nos: 435-0114 / 473-0455 / 952-4829

Bridal showers have become a very relaxed, casual event over the years but you still need to know some basic bridal shower etiquette so you do not offend anyone. Since there are going to be different groups at the shower – friends, college friends, family, coworkers, etc. – it is important that you understand how everyone interacts, especially with the family around. If the bride is from a conservative family they might place a lot of importance on etiquette.

Usually it’s the Maid of Honor who organizes and plans the bridal shower. If she lives out of town, it’s usually fine for someone to take her place. But don’t take over without making sure it’s okay with her – always ask before assuming anything.

Traditional bridal shower etiquette says that the shower should take place four to six weeks before the wedding date. This is for practical purposes because the bride will get busier as the ceremony date draws closer.

Bridal showers are supposed to be small, intimate gatherings. Etiquette says there should be no more than ten to twenty people. Ideally the guest list should include the mothers of the groom and bride, the wedding party, the sisters of the bride and groom, and close friends of the bride Check up with the bride if she would like to invite more, though. Ask each of them to take up a certain responsibility, even if it’s just small like handling the party games or favors. This will make the guests feel like an important part of the day.

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A bridal shower is a small, intimate gathering traditionally hosted and organized by the maid-of-honor and the bridesmaids. The most obvious reason for throwing a bridal shower is to give the bride presents that she and her new husband can use in their married life together, but bridal showers are also a great opportunity for the bride to spend time with her family and friends before the wedding. Here are a few things you can consider while planning a bridal shower.

Bridal showers are held as far back as two months before the wedding and can be as late as two weeks before the wedding day. They are usually held in the afternoons, but this isn’t a rule that’s set in stone; you can hold it in the evening if you want. It’s also up to you to decide whether it should be a girls-only party or a couples party, and where you want to hold the shower.

Guests who have not been invited to the wedding should not be invited to attend the bridal shower. Otherwise, things could get very awkward for the bride and the guest.

Ask the bride to register for gifts so it will be easier for the guests to figure out what to bring to the shower.

Unless you intend to surprise the bride, involve her in the planning and ask her if there’s a particular theme she’d like the bridal shower to have or if there’s any specific food or drink she’d like to serve.

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Back in the day, bridal showers used to be a traditional and rather stuffy gathering. A relative of the bride would throw the party where the bride would receive old-fashioned presents that are supposed to help her become a good wife and create a fuzzy warm nest for her future children. Today, however, bridal showers are about the bride, who is a full-time professional carrying a college or even a Masters degree. She’s got a wide variety of hobbies, from shopping to mountain climbing, and the only time she’ll ever use a blender is to make frozen cocktail drinks. The best gift to give at a bridal shower are presents exclusively for the bride.

A themed gift basket makes a great non-traditional bridal shower gift. You’re probably a good friend of the bride who knows her inside out; fill up the basket with items that will correspond to her hobbies. For instance, include scrapbook-making supplies in the gift basket if she enjoys putting scrapbooks together. For a present that will serve a double purpose, include wedding-themed scrapbook accessories so she can create a memorable timepiece about her wedding preparations and the gifts and wishes she received from friends and family.

A practical gift that’s a hit at a lot of bridal showers is a set of kitchen utensils–with a twist. Get a medium-sized stainless steel collander with holes. Get a bunch of kitchen utensils that have holes at the end of the handle, like a spatula or a pasta holder, then tie them to the collander with colored ribbons. Place it in a gift box and when the bride opens it up, she’ll be holding a collander with hanging utensils.

Finally, if you know where the bride and groom are going to for their honeymoon, you can also get them things they can use during their vacation. If, for example. they’ll be headed to Hawaii, get them a travel guide, tropical-scented candles, a Tiki Bar handbook for cocktails, and little reminders of Hawaii that the bride can keep in the house. You can also include something traditional, like lacy blue underwear (for the “something blue”). Place all these items in a sarong, which the bride can also wear during the trip. Not only are these presents honeymoon-appropriate; the bride can use them again and again even when the honeymoon is over.

Party favors are usually given by the host to show appreciation to her guests for attending the party. Even though the bridal shower is held for the bride, giving out party favors is a nice way to show that their presence was warmly accepted. Here are a couple of guidelines that will help you choose which party favors to give to your guests.

A small token gift should do the trick, but it’d be great if you could get something that your guests can use. You could get them a porcelain espresso cup, gourmet tea tins, tea infusers, or wine stoppers. For a party favor that’s sentimental as well as functional, give your guests small picture frames. Include a photo of you and your girlfriends in the frame and give these to the girls in your group.

Another great item you can include among the party favors are after-dinner mints. Most bridal showers prepare small meals for the guests, and giving them mints provides them with a quick and discreet way to freshen their breath. You can also give them chocolate or candy favors so they can take home a little part of the dessert table.

When giving out party favors, one thing you should consider is whether or not you should personalize them. Personalizing your party favors will take more time and effort, but your guests will find them more memorable. Include a short note addressed specifically to them in the party favor.

No matter how you plan on choosing your bridal shower party favors, make sure you give your guests something they can use and something that will remind them of the event. Be sure that you specifically thank your guests for being a part of one of the most special moments in your life.