The 5 W's of Bridal Showers
Getting ready to throw a bridal shower and don't know where to begin? We've got all the basics for you right here - from who's going to throw it, to why you have it in the first place!

Using the infamous "5 W's", take a look at our guide to putting together a bridal shower to remember. Even though many traditional rules of etiquette no longer apply when throwing a shower, if you cover the basics you will have a wonderful party.

Who?
Who throws the shower: Unless there are unusual circumstances, the maid of honor always hosts the bridal shower. Whether it's at a restaurant or at her home, this special bridesmaid runs the show.

Who to invite: There is one steadfast rule here: ASK THE BRIDE! (Or the bride and groom if you're having a co-ed shower). You never know who else may have something planned for her, or she may be having something separate with her family.

Who to RSVP: Unless the shower is going to be given at the bride's home (in which case the bride might want to accept RSVPs), either the maid of honor or one of the bridesmaids keeps track of which of the invited guests are coming.

What?
What is a bridal shower? Legend tells us that bridal showers began when a rich young woman wanted to marry a poor man. Her father freaked out and refused to provide a dowry for her. Feeling sorry for the couple, their friends got together and bought them the things they needed to set up house. Thus, the party we have today for the couple where we "shower" them with gifts. Today, bridal or wedding showers can have central themes carried out from the decorations to the gifts you bring.

What to give: You can choose your shower gift based on the couple's registry list, the theme of the shower (for instance, a kitchen bridal shower), or a special gift you know they would like.

Where?
Where to have the shower: The shower can be held in a variety of places, from the home of the maid of honor to a restaurant to the bride's home. No matter where you choose to have it, be sure to check with the bride to see what's the most convenient for her and/or her family - for example, if you are going to invite Grandma, you may not want to have it in a dark and smoky bar.

Restaurant showers: This trend is a fun and easy way to throw a shower with very little preparation and absolutely no clean up. If you are planning a shower in a public place like a restaurant, be sure to include payment instructions in the invite - guests need to know before they arrive whether or not food and drinks will be provided. It's perfectly all right to have guests pay for their own meal and drinks; afterwards, provide them with dessert or a cake if you so desire.

When?
When to have the shower: Bridal showers are usually held anywhere from 6 weeks to 2 weeks before the wedding. However, if there are a lot of guests coming from out of town to the wedding, many brides have their shower two days before the wedding so that everyone can make it.

What day of the week: It's not necessary to have the traditional Sunday afternoon shower if many of the guests will not be able to make it. Again, check with the bride as to when would be the most convenient for her as well as the people invited.

When to plan: You may want to start planning for the shower up to 6 weeks before you throw it; especially if you're going to send out printed invitations and have a specific theme.

Why?
Why a bridal shower? Traditionally, bridal showers are a ritual of female bonding. Women got together with the bride to share stories, eat, and focus on the bride (on a smaller scale than the wedding) with gifts and fun. Today, many showers are co-ed affairs where couples mix and mingle - it's more like a party before the big party. No matter which style shower you choose, remember that this is a fun way to honor the bride before the wedding.

Bridal Shower Ideas
Did your sister's bridal shower turn to disaster when the piñata caught fire? Do you know some lesser-known shower games that are sure to make everyone laugh? Share your bridal shower know-how with our readers in our Bridal Shower Idea Gallery!

All-Female Shower
"When I got married, my bridesmaids threw me a bridal shower with a tea theme. I love antiques, so each girl brought me an antique tea cup and saucer. It was so fun! My maid of honor brought white gloves for everyone, so we felt very elegant. She had all the guests sign mine, so now I have a keepsake from the shower as well. Excellent idea for all-female shower." Gillian from Austin, TX

No Exotic Dancers!
"My bridesmaids thought it would be funny if they hired a stripper to show up at my bridal shower. We were having it at my girlfriend's house, and my great-grandmother was there, not to mention my mom. Needless to say, they were both horrified, and I was completely embarrassed. A general rule of thumb: before you do anything, ASK THE BRIDE!" Kelly from New York City

Recipe Book
"Have each invitee send you a recipe or two with their name at the end of the recipe. Prior to the shower, type each one, add the names of those who sent it and put in in a nice folder or 3 ring binder for the bride to be. You can type an index for the different recipes they send, really nice gift for the bride to be." Bonnie from Holland, Michigan, US

Keepsake Invitations
"Have every invited guest bring their invitations to the shower with them. As a keepsake for the bride, each guest can write a message to the bride. It can be anything from suggestions on how to maintain a happy marriage, to just a simple good luck message. This idea allows the bride to have little memoirs to read once the actual wedding is over." Kaponika from Cleveland, Ohio

Naughty and Nice
"If the bride doesn't object to less than perfect decorum, I like to purchase a 'naughty' and 'nice' lingerie set for her. One for the night of the wedding, and one for the night after. It also helps fill in that 'Whatever will I wear on our honeymoon?' gap." Victoria from Oceanside, CA

Memory Book
"Have each invitee send you a special picture of the bride and type or write about that special day. It can either be the bride by herself or the two of you. Then, at the shower, you can give them to the bride in a special binder covered with material and place for a photo of everyone at the shower on the front." Cookie from Cincinnati, OH

The Blessing Tree
"Have a bridal blessing tree. Just take branches of a bare tree, have small white business cards with small envelopes. Punch a hole in one corner of the envelope and run a short ribbon through it. As each guest arrives, have them fill out the card with a wedding blessing or a tip for a happy marriage. Place the card in the envelope and tie it on the tree. Then, have the bride read the cards and try to guess who gave the blessing or tip." Sondra from Reidsville, GA

Rock Around The Clock
"Have a 'round-the-clock' shower. When the hostess sends out the invitations, she includes a different hour of the day in each one. The guest then brings a gift related to the hour she was assigned. The bride opens her gifts by the "hour" and the giver then explains why she chose the item. Things given for the hours during the middle of the night can be particularly clever. At one shower, the bride received a set of glasses and a package of bathroom tissue for the 3 a.m. hour because the giver always got up at that hour to let her cat out and she got a drink of water and used the bathroom. If 24 guests won't be invited, one for each hour, the hostess can assign 2 or more hours, such as noon to 2 p.m., to one person. If more than 24 guests will be invited, 2 guests can be assigned the same hour, or some hours of the day can be broken down by half hours." Glenna from Boise, Idaho

Hearts Bridal Shower Decorations

Celebrate your bride's true love with a shower that's entirely lovey-dovey and full of heart. Decorate the shower with these easy ideas for valentines that you can use all year 'round.

Heart Tree

Instead of a Christmas tree, decorate miniature trees with heart cut outs tied with pretty ribbons. Or take leafless branches (from real trees or faux branches from a craft supply store) and pretty terra cotta or stoneware pots and fill the pots with Plaster of Paris. Arrange branches in the plaster to dry. Hang homemade heart ornaments of paper or beads from the branches. Add extra sparkle with white Christmas lights.

For a special touch, have each guest write a message to the bride on one of the paper hearts, and hang it back on the tree. She will have a tree full of personal keepsakes from her bridal shower.

Garlands of Hearts

Materials:
red thread
red construction paper
scissors
glue

Make garlands of hearts from construction paper and red string! Cut 1.5" hearts out of the construction paper (remember while cutting that two hearts will be glued together to make one). Take one heart and place under the thread, then glue another heart onto the top of it, so the string lies between the two hearts. Glue hearts together every 2" to form a garland of hearts that can be hung over the front of a table, across a mantel, or from the ceiling.

Stock the Bar Wedding Shower Games

From wistful to downright wacky, if you're having a male-and-female wedding shower, play some games that provide a ton of laughs for all, while still honoring the bride and groom.

Kiss and Tell

Object: Get the bride or the groom to guess which kiss they have received is from their beloved.

Play: Choose either the bride or the groom to take their turn first. Let's say it's the bride. Number off all the males in the room. Blindfold the bride and have each male in the room approach her, say their number, and give her a kiss on the cheek. The bride then guesses which kiss was from her future husband. (It's a little harder than you think!) Then turn around, and do the same with the groom and all the females. Prizes are awarded to the players the bride and groom suspect to be their honey (whether they're correct or not).

The History Quiz

Object: Guests must answer questions about the past lives of the bride and groom correctly to win a prize.

Play: This game-show format takes a little bit of preparation. Before the shower, ask the bride and groom to name some important events and the years in which they occurred. For example: in what year did the bride first kiss a boy? Or, when did the groom go on his first date? The bride and groom will then give the correct years in which these events took place. At the shower, pick one guest to be the emcee of the game show, and have him/her ask different guests the questions about the bride and groom, and then give them three different years in which they could have occurred (a lot like the Dateline timeline game) for them to guess. The guests then have to choose which year they think this event occurred. The bride and groom give the correct answer. Every guest who chooses the correct year gets a prize. This also works well with songs, movies or other media events that are memorable.

Surprise Guest

This was sent to us from Bonnie in Holland, Michigan

Object: Shock and surprise the bride-to-be with a strange guest that she's never seen before.

Play: "The first thing the hostess needs to do is find a person that nobody, including the bride-to-be, knows. Let 2 or 3 other guests in on it, as they have to direct the person what to do, where to sit, etc. This stranger has to pretend she is at the 'wrong' shower!!

"You give the surprise guest a fake invitation - I used a baby shower invitation, and put the same time as our shower, but used a different address - usually a block away or down the street. Ask your surprise guest to show up a little late. Here is the best part. It is hilarious!!

"She sits there and looks around the room like she is lost and acts like she is in the 'wrong' place, but doesn't say a word. Beginning with the chair on her left, go around the room and have everyone introduce themselves and their association to the bride. The surprise guest is last, and she will say 'I don't recognize any faces here, I think I might be at the wrong shower'. The hostess will ask her if she got an invitation, and she starts pulling all of this stuff, diaper, wipes, bottle and anything else she had in her purse and laying it on the floor for everyone to see (remember she has a baby shower invitation) until she finds the invitation. Look at the invitation, and say, 'Oh! You're at the wrong place, this is a wedding shower - yours is for a baby shower' and pretend to give her the directions to the 'correct' address. She picks up the stuff from her purse and leaves. As she leaves, you might say, 'gosh we're sorry', still giving her directions and such - you have to play the part, too.

"Have her wait outside while you give everyone a piece of paper and pencil. By this time, everyone is laughing, or in shock that someone was at the WRONG party and forgot what the heck she had in her purse. Then go get her, and introduce the 'wrong' person. Ask the guests to name the items that she pulled out of her purse. The one that names the most items is the winner."

Stock the Bar Wedding Shower Decorations

Here are a couple of decorating ideas to accent your Stock the Bar Bridal Shower that are fun, frivolous, and will be the life of the party!

Cocktail Shaker Centerpieces

Using antique cocktail shakers, create floral centerpieces for your Stock the Bar Bridal Shower. The same thing can be done with beer steins.

Place a piece of floral foam in the bottom of a cocktail shaker. Fill with flowers of your choosing. Place lid in the arrangement using a short piece of dowel rod hot glued to the inside of the lid on one end, and stuck into the floral foam on the other. These little centerpieces can double as game prizes or favors for guests as well.

Martini Candles

Fill martini glasses with candle wax to create a Stock The Bar decoration that's also a great take-home favor or game prize.

It's important if you're going to use this decoration that you find martini glasses that are heavy, that can withstand heat. Place a wick with a metal wick tab at the bottom of the glass, and lay excess wick over the edge of the glass. With a candle-making set or natural beeswax, heat wax to temperature in the instructions and fill glass with it. Trim off excess wick. Let cool and set, or place in a cool-water bath to set.

Stock the Bar Wedding Shower Recipes

What kind of Stock The Bar Shower would it be without cocktails and fondue? Make your wedding shower a splash with these outstanding recipes that will wow your guests.

Swiss Fondue

Serves 8

This kitschy '70s dish has come back in style full force at cocktail parties and home gatherings. Instead of dunking bread, you can also cut up bits of beef and sauté them to dip in the cheese. Whatever tickles your fancy.

Ingredients

2 cloves garlic
2 cups dry white wine
2 lb. Swiss cheese, grated or cubed
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. fresh ground pepper
6 Tbsp. kirsch
Salt to taste
2 loaves French bread cut into 1" cubes

Instructions

If you don't have a fondue pot (which are very much in style now and available everywhere), you can use a chafing dish or a heavy earthenware casserole dish over low heat on an asbestos mat to keep the cheese melted.

First rub the dish with the garlic clove after it's been smashed with the side of a kitchen knife or cut in half. Turn the heat on low, then pour the wine into the dish and heat until it simmers. Add cheese bits a few at a time on very low heat, stirring constantly. Once cheese is melted, stir in nutmeg, pepper, kirsch, and salt.

Using long-handled forks or fondue forks, place a chunk of bread on the end of the fork and dip in the cheese. If, after a while, you notice the cheese drying up a bit, add a little more wine.

Cocktails

Each recipe makes one drink.

All of these cocktails we got off of Cocktail UK, a fabulous drink site that has every yummy beverage you could ever imagine, and then some. A measure is used to determine how much liquor to put in the glass. You will need one of those to achieve the proper proportions in the drinks. These were just a few of our favorites.

Perfect Love

Ingredients
2 measures vodka
1 measure maraschino liqueur
1 measure parfait amour
5 ice cubes
1 lemon rind

Directions
Place the ice cubes in the glass, then pour vodka over them. Next pour the parfait, then the liqueur. Finish with the lemon rind.

The Red Baron

Ingredients
2 measures gin
dash lemon juice
dash grenadine
dash lime juice
1/2 measure orange juice
dash sugar syrup

Directions
Put all the ingredients in shaker with crushed ice. Shake, and pour without ice into a cocktail glass.

Mojito

Ingredients
2 measures white rum
1 measure lime juice
soda water to top off
10 mint sprigs
1 measure ice cubes
1 slice of lime
1 tsp. sugar

Directions
Using a highball glass, place ice cubes in glass. Mash the mint leaves and sugar together until they are juicy. Add the rum and lime juice, pour mixture into highball glass and top off with soda water. Garnish with slice of lime.

Mimosa

Perfect for a Sunday brunch wedding shower.

Ingredients
1 measure orange juice
dash of orange Curacao
champagne to top off

Directions
Fill the bottom of a champagne flute with orange juice, then Curacao. Top off the glass with champagne.

Garden Party Bridal Shower Games

All of these cute bridal shower games have to do with the garden. Use these games in keeping with your garden party theme, where happiness is definitely in bloom!

Whiff of Herbs

Materials

12 paper cups
12 different fresh herbs
Aluminum foil
Paper and pens
Magic marker

How To Play

• Put the twelve different herbs into twelve paper cups. Cover each cup with aluminum foil and poke a hole in the top. With a magic marker, number each cup 1-12.
• Hand out a piece of paper and pen to each guest. Ask them to number their papers from 1-12, then pass around the cups of herbs.
• Have each guest sniff the hole in the cup, then write down what herb they think is in the cup next to the corresponding number on their paper.
• Tally up the correct answers. The guest with the most correct guesses wins!

Hand Over Your Corsage!

Materials

One corsage for each guest

How To Play

• When each guest arrives, pin on them a flower corsage.
• Instruct each guest that no one is allowed for the duration of the shower to say the word "wedding". Anyone catching someone using the forbidden word gets to take their corsage and pin it on themselves.
• The guest wearing the most corsages at the end of the shower wins a prize.

Tossing Bouquets

Materials

1 paper plate for each guest
Materials to make a "bouquet" for the bride- construction and tissue paper, pipe cleaners, ribbons, etc. Glue

How To Play

• Everyone is going to make a "tossing bouquet" for the bride. Give each guest a paper plate, and make sure everyone has access to the decorations and the glue.
• Give everyone only two minutes to glue anything they want onto the plate for the "perfect" bouquet.
• Let the bride decide which bouquet is the "best" after two minutes (not very much time at all). Have the bride toss the fake bouquet like she will do at her wedding.
• The guest who catches the bouquet, according to superstition, is the next in line to wed.
• Both guests - the best bouquet and the catcher - win a prize.

Garden Party Bridal Shower Recipes

Using spring's fresh edible flowers and delicious herbs, make gardenish dishes for your bridal shower guests.

Many thanks to the kind and happy folks at Sunrise Herb Farm for giving us the dandelion recipes. They have wonderful suggestions on their website for recipes using edible flowers.

Dandelion Fritters

Serves 8

Ingredients
2 cups whole wheat flour
4 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. cinnamon powder
2 pinches salt
2 egg
1 cup milk
4 Tbsp. olive oil
2 cups chopped dandelion flowers
1 cup strawberry jam

Directions
Mix the dry ingredients. Beat egg and add milk and oil. Stir into the dry mix. Add the dandelion flowers and blend. Cook the same as you would pancakes, heating until golden. Serve with strawberry jam.

Dandelion Salad

Serves 12

Ingredients
8 cups dandelion leaves
8 cups romaine lettuce leaves
4 cups diced tomatoes
1 cup chopped chives
1/2 cup chive flowers
2 cups chopped dandelion flowers
Dressing:
1/2 cup olive oil
2 Tbsp. tamari
4 tsp. lime juice

Directions
Wash and dry the greens. Tear into bite size pieces. Place greens, tomatoes and chives in a large pretty bowl and toss well. Add the dressing and garnish with the chive and dandelion flowers.

Cucumber Gazpacho

Serves: 8

Ingredients:
10 peeled and seeded cucumber
2 tsp. cumin
salt and pepper to taste
4 diced red bell peppers
2 diced red onions
4 fresh chopped fine chili peppers
1/2 chopped cup fresh cilantro
1 lb plain yogurt
4 juiced lemons
2 chopped bunch scallions
2 tsp. coriander

Directions
First, pure cucumbers in a food processor. Then, while continuing to pure, add the yogurt and lemon juice. Transfer to a large bowl and add the bell peppers, onion, chili peppers, cilantro, scallions, coriander and cumin. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add a few sprigs of cilantro or a small dollop of yogurt as a garnish, if desired.

Down Home Bridal Shower Games

Use household items with these fun shower games - down home style!

The White Stuff

Materials

Baking Powder
Baking Soda
Confectioner's Sugar
Flour
Bisquick
Cream of Tartar
Powdered Milk
other white household products

How To Play

• Before everyone gets to the shower, place the different "white stuff" household items in ziploc bags. Number each bag (so you can remember which is which, too).
• Give each guest a piece of paper and pen. Pass around the bags of white stuff. The guests are allowed to look and feel the bag, but not to open it.
• Have everyone write down which white thing they think corresponds with each number. The guest with the most correct answers wins a prize.

Paper Bag Peek-A-Boo

Materials

A paper bag for each guest, large enough to fit over their head

How To Play

• Place all the guests in a circle. Have them place the paper bags over their heads.
• Instruct them to remove everything they're wearing that is not absolutely necessary. The person with the most items off in two minutes win the prize.
• Hilarity ensues when guests begin to remove all kinds of clothing items without realizing you can remove the paper bag, too. All guests that figure this one out before the end of two minutes win a prize.

Donut Challenge

Materials

Clothesline
One powdered donut for each guest

How To Play

• String donuts along clothesline by tying a string through the hole and holding it in place with a clothespin.
• Have each guest stand in front of a donut with their hands behind their back. Instruct them that they have one minute to lick as much powder off the donut without it crumbling.
• Guest who has licked off the most powder without donut breaking and hands remaining behind their back at the end of one minute wins a prize.

Hearts Bridal Shower Games

Get your guests hearts pumping when you play shower games that focus on that all-important life giving organ!

Love Will Melt Your Heart

Materials

Ice cubes
Red hots or other heart-shaped candies
Dixie cups

How To Play

• Prepare ice cubes by placing a heart-shaped candy in each cube before they freeze.
• Drop each ice cube into a dixie cup and distribute to guests.
• Instruct them that, without touching the ice cube itself, they can use any body part to warm the cup to try and melt the ice. The first person to melt their ice cube enough to retrieve their candy wins the game.
• Hilarity ensues as guests use various body parts to try to get their ice to melt. Game can run simultaneously while food is being served, etc.

Name That (Love) Tune

Materials

A tape of bits of 10, 15, or 20 love songs
Paper and pens for each guest

How To Play

• Played like "Name That Tune", except with paper and pens. Play the bit of a love song, and each person writes down their guess for song title and the artist. Give guests a certain amount of time (like 5 or 10 seconds) between each tune to guess before moving on to the next one.
• The guest with the most correct answers at the end of the game wins.

Famous Pairs

Materials

Paper and pens for each guest

How To Play

• Make two lists - an "A" and "B" column, each column listing half of a famous love pair. For example, Nicole & Tom, Henry & Anne, Elizabeth & Richard, Jackie & Jack, etc.
• Have guests match names in the "A" column to their match in column "B". The guest with the most correct pairs at the end of 3 minutes wins a prize.
•  

Down Home Bridal Shower Decorations

For that antiqued, country-store feeling, add old fashioned items such as gingerbread men and Mason canning jars to your decor for a Down-Home Shower.

Mason Jar Wildflower Centerpieces

These off-the-farm centerpieces make perfect additions to your red-checkered table cloth and fried chicken. Find 8 oz. or 12 oz. Mason canning jars at your local grocery or craft supply store (sometimes you can find antique ones that are tinted a beautiful light blue). Fill jar 1/3 full with water, arrange wildflowers. Take strips of grosgrain ribbon in polka dots or checks and wrap around under the lip of the Mason jar. Tie off in a bow.

Variations: Votive candles are just as lovely inside the Mason jars as wildflowers. Or you can plant a small flowering plant or herb in each jar. No matter what you choose, these centerpieces make great favors or game prizes for guests to take home.

Gingerbread People Place card Holders

To add to the Down-Home, country store feel of your bridal shower, make these place card holders that double as delicious desserts!

For this decorative project, you will need a male and female gingerbread cookie cutter (unless your bridal shower is all female; then use the gingerbread girl cutter). Make gingerbread cookies, cutting out for each guest according to their gender.

There are several ways you can turn these gingerbread girls and boys into adorable place cards. With the help of a pastry bag and tip, you can write each guest's name in icing across each gingerbread person. Or before baking, you can poke a hole in the hand, heart, or head of each gingerbread cookie with an awl. After they cookies are finished, you can loop a handwritten place card tied with pretty ribbon through the hole. Or, you can make your own little "Hello, My Name Is..." cards and glue them to the gingerbread person's hand with royal icing. Then the guest can fill it out themselves when they sit down. If you use the real thing, they can peel it off and wear it as well.

Five-Star Bridal Shower Games

Here are some truly class-act games that are perfectly appropriate for any bridal shower, but especially nice and sentimental for the bride-to-be at your Five-Star Shower.

My, How You've Grown!

Materials

5-10 old photos of the bride-to-be, ranging from childhood up through pictures with her fiancé.

How To Play

• Pass around photos, one at a time, and have each guest make a guess as to which year the photo was taken. The guest who comes closest to guessing the correct year for each photo wins a prize.

The M&M Game

Materials

Enough M&Ms for each guest to take a handful.

How To Play

• Pass around the bag of M&Ms and ask each guest to take some.
• Beginning with the person seated directly to the left of the bride, each guest has to name one "true" thing they know about the bride and groom for each M&M they took. After they are finished, they are welcome to eat the M&Ms! This is a great sentimental game where guests get to focus on the bride, how long they've known her, etc.
• There really is no prize awarded in this game, but if you want, give a prize to the person who took the most M&Ms (and named the appropriate number of "truths").

Recipe for Romance

Materials

Pen and Paper for each guest
Hat or Bowl

How To Play

• Have each guest write down what they think the perfect "recipe" is for keeping romance alive in a marriage. Don't have them sign the paper.
• Drop all the recipes into a hat or large bowl. Have one person read all the recipes aloud while the other guests try to guess who wrote which recipe!
• Guest who has guessed the most correct authors wins a prize.

Five-Star Bridal Shower Decorations

Want your bridal shower to look like the Four Seasons, but (like most of us) can only afford Wal-Mart? Here are some inexpensive ideas for luscious centerpieces that won't cost you an arm and a leg.

The Bounty of Fruit

This decorative centerpiece idea is inexpensive and looks like a million bucks. For holders, you can either use a bunch of different kinds of glass containers (your mother's glass cake plate, terra cotta flower pots, etc.), or you can go and purchase matching containers. The size you buy depends on how big your tables are. Since you're filling them with fruit, you don't want to buy the containers too small - you'll only be able to display two or three pieces of fruit.

When you go to the store to choose fruit, consider your shower theme and the time of year. If it's autumn, you could get apples, grapes, figs, and other lovely autumn fruits. If your bridal shower is in May, however, strawberries, lemons, and other summer fruits will work best.

To assemble fruit arrangements, fill the bottom of each container with a block of floral foam. For a towering topiary, hot glue a cone-shaped piece of styrofoam to the bottom of the container. For the topiary, stack firm fruits like apples, pears, lemons in patterns around the cone, fastening them to the cone with toothpicks. For a square or round flat arrangement, just pile container with the fruit so it looks like it's spilling out the top of the container. Grapes work excellently for this look. If you're afraid of fruit falling out, hot glue fruit together as you're arranging it.

Five-Star Bridal Shower Recipes

Have a brunch for your at-home bridal shower, Four-Seasons style. Polish your silver and get out that china you've used only once. Prepare this simple yet delicious brunch menu worthy of the most posh palate.

This Italian-influenced brunch menu is not hard to prepare, yet includes some wonderful tastes from the Umbrian and Tuscan regions of Italy. Bowl over the guests at your silver-and-crystal Five-Star Shower with this brunch menu.

Prosciutto and Melon Salad

Makes 24 pieces

Ingredients
2 lbs. cantaloupe or honeydew melon, ripe
12 thin slices Italian prosciutto
Lemon wedges

Directions

Cut melon into quarters in order to remove the rind. Slice quarters into 6 wedges so you end up with 24 pieces. Slice each piece of prosciutto in half lengthwise, then wrap each piece of melon with the ham. Serve immediately, or refrigerate until ready to serve.

Potato and Leek Frittata

This is an Italian version of quiche without the crust. Serves 8. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Ingredients
10 eggs
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground pepper
2 cups potato cut into 1/2" cubes
2 cups thinly sliced leeks
2 tbsp. minced parsley
1/2 cup butter (8 tbsp.)
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup fresh Parmesan cheese, grated

Directions

Cook potatoes and leeks in the 4 tbsp. of the butter and olive oil heated in a skillet. Cook until potatoes are soft and browned. Once off the heat, put potatoes and leeks into a separate bowl and toss with cheese and parsley. Set aside.

Mix the cream, eggs, salt and pepper, then add to the potato and leek mixture. Pour entire frittata into a buttered 9"x 13" casserole dish or cake pan. Bake for 20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean and top is golden brown.

Creamed Portobello Mushrooms on Toast

Serves 8

Ingredients
3 lbs. Portobello mushrooms, stems removed, thinly sliced
1/2 pound butter
1/2 cup Madeira wine
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
Salt and pepper
1 loaf French baguette or rustic Italian country bread
4 tbsp. butter

Directions

Slice baguette or crusty Italian bread into eight slices. Butter each slice (you may also use olive oil), and place in a 350 degree preheated oven for 15 minutes or until toasted. Remove toast from oven and set aside.

While bread is in the oven, melt butter in a skillet until it bubbles. Add portobellos, cooking allowing to simmer over low heat for a few minutes, then adding wine and cream. Cook until mushrooms are cooked through, stirring occasionally.

Placing a piece of toast on a plate, spoon creamy mushroom mixture over the toast. Garnish with fresh Italian parsley or basil if desired.

Craft Nite Bridal Shower Games

Okay, this isn't really a game, but more of an activity. Instead of playing pin-the-tux-on-the-groom, ask your guests to help out in making the bride's wedding favors in a craft nite of fun!

How To Plan for a Bridal Shower Craft Night

This bridal shower idea works best at an at-home shower.

• First, find out the kind of favors the bride wants to make. You may want to go shopping with her, so you can help her pick out what she wants. You and some friends also may want to offer to pay for the favor supplies in lieu of a gift - especially if she's paying for the wedding herself, this offer might be much appreciated.
• Too many cooks in the kitchen? Making favors isn't the greatest idea if you're planning on inviting 100 people to the shower. For the favors to get made to the bride's specifications, keeping the guest list under 25 is probably a good idea.
• Make sure to explain (explicitly) what the itinerary of the shower will be in the invitation. Guests need to know if they should dress down (if you're going to be painting or cooking) or bring items from their home. If you are going to need extra items like glue guns or scissors, include your request in the invitation.
• Set up "crafting stations" around the room. Get there early. Help the bride set up crafting stations. If you're placing candy in cello bags tied with ribbon, have one station of bolts of ribbon and scissors, have one station of bags and chocolates... you get the idea.
• Set a time limit. No matter how helpful your friends and family might be, no one wants to spend the whole party working. If, after an hour or hour and a half, the favors aren't finished, maybe you could help the bride finish them at another time. Then be sure to spend the remaining time focusing on the bride.

Craft Nite Bridal Shower Decorations

Since everything is getting hand made at this bridal shower, why not decorate with the whimsy of home made crafts? Here are some suggestions for decorations that display your creativity - which is the theme, after all!

Home Made Shower Luminaries

Line the sidewalk to your house or apartment with home made luminaries. Here's how you do it.

Materials
Paper Bags
Awl, scissors, hole puncher
Votive or tea light candles
Sand, gravel, or potting soil

First, purchase a package of white or brown paper lunch bags (or any color you want, really, party stores carry every color under the sun). Then, gather together materials to make patterns in the paper bags- awls, scissors, hole punchers, etc. You can create a design on a separate sheet of paper, making a luminary template to draw on each bag. Or each bag can be totally different, with the names of the bride and groom, their wedding date, or other wedding-ish themes punched or cut into the bag.

After cutting or punching the pattern into each bag, fill each bag with gravel or sand to weight the luminary. Gently place one votive into the bottom of each bag, and line your sidewalk with them. Right before the shower begins, light the luminaries, making a lighted path straight to the door.

Make Your Own Place card

At this craft nite shower, have each guest make their own place card for the table. Provide a table with materials: construction paper, paper plates, doilies, flowers, ribbons, pipe cleaners, whatever you choose. When guests begin to arrive, have them go to the craft table and create their place card holder. Then have them choose a place to sit, and mark it with their creation. If you want to make a game out of it, let the bride choose the "best" one - whether it be the most creative, the funniest, the one that used the most stuff - and award that guest a prize.

Sewing Kit Centerpieces

Since you will be using crafting materials later on in the shower when you make the wedding favors, why not have baskets of supplies that are also centerpieces? Make craft baskets from wicker baskets, sewing baskets, or other decorative containers. Fill each basket with tissue papers in the bride's colors or pretty linen napkins or place mats (which can also be given to the bride). Then pile the crafting materials you will be using to make your favors (glue guns, scissors, bolts of fabric, bolts of ribbon) into the baskets for adorable centerpieces that go along with your "Craft Nite" Theme.

Craft Nite Bridal Shower Recipes

Let your guests get creative with their plates when you give them a make-your-own meal. Check out our great ideas for a hands-on buffet for all your guests!

Make Your Own Tacos

Get creative with this make-your-own Mexican meal. You may want to include just the basic taco ingredients - beef, refried beans, tomatoes, lettuce, and cheese - or you can get as elaborate as you want, with soft and hard shell tortillas, roasted vegetables for toppings, and pico de gallo or homemade salsa as well. For a special touch, try these recipes straight from the Valley in Southern Texas for a delicious salsa, and guacamole to die for.

Borderline Salsa

Serves 8

Ingredients
6 large ripe tomatoes
1/4 cup olive oil
4 cloves garlic
Salt and pepper to taste
Juice of one lime
Cilantro

Directions

Dice tomatoes into small pieces. Using the back of a wooden spoon or a mortar and pistle, smash tomatoes until they become saucy. Mince the garlic; add to tomatoes along with salt, pepper, lime juice and cilantro to taste.

Simple Guacamole

Serves 8

Ingredients
4 avocados
2 Tbsp. lime juice
6 cloves garlic, minced
4 Tbsp. cilantro, minced
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp. hot sauce or pepper flakes

Directions

Mash avocados either with a fork, or a mortar and pistle. Add garlic and lime juice and blend. Add spices to taste. Cover (to keep from turning brown) and refrigerate for 30 minutes before serving.

Make Your Own Sundaes

Having everyone make their own desert is a great way to get guests mingling. And who doesn't love ice cream? Indulge in some old-fashioned glass sundae dishes, or substitute the plastic ones from a party store. Here's some great recipes for homemade sundae sauces at your Craft Nite Bridal Shower.

Chocolate Fudge Ice Cream Sauce

Yield: 6 cups

Ingredients
2 14-oz. cans of sweetened condensed milk
24 oz. chocolate chips
1 1/3 cups water
1 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. vanilla

Directions
In a heavy-bottomed sauce pan, blend the chocolate chips, condensed milk, salt and water over low heat. Stir constantly until chocolate mixture is smooth and of uniform consistency. Remove from heat, add vanilla, and serve hot or cold.

Rich Butterscotch Sauce

Yield: 2 cups

Ingredients
1 cup light corn syrup
1 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
4 Tbsp. butter
2 tsp. vanilla

Directions Put the corn syrup, the dark brown sugar, and the butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and let simmer over medium flame until it reaches 230 degrees. Remove from heat to add salt and vanilla, blending until smooth and combined.

Creative Wrapping Tips for Shower Gifts

You're pressed for time, yet you still want to show you care creatively and fashionably. It's easy. Use these pointers from American Greetings to ensure your gift is received with a smile.

  Be different and wrap one half of a present in one design and the other half in a complementing solid paper. Attach a solid bow that brings everything all together.

  Inexpensive items and things you can find around the house can become creative package decorations. For example, ball up a piece of ice cream-colored tissue paper and nestle your scoop into an ice cream cone -- the perfect topping for a package wrapped in ice cream-patterned paper or a gift for an ice cream lover.

  Attach something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue. A lovely piece of old lace, tied with a blue ribbon and topped with a shiny new penny, is certain to catch the eye of the bride-to-be.

  Mix two different complementing colors of tissue to top off gift bags. Attach a bow or a package decoration to make this very easy wrap extra special.

  Wrapping gifts in unexpected ways adds to the fun of the occasion. Roll golf balls in a cylinder of golf-themed wrapping paper, tied at each end and between each ball with curling ribbon. Curl the ribbon with a pair of scissors.

  When giving a gift for the kitchen, such as a blender or mixer, attach color-coordinating measuring cups or spoons to tie in with your gift.

  Fresh flowers make great present-toppers on any occasion. Stick with solid color wraps that complement, rather than compete with, your ensemble.

  Add a fan fold for special occasions. Cut a section of wrap and fold in half diagonally. Fold into a fan and tie or tape the fan to your gift.

  Draw out the anticipation of a gift-giving occasion by delivering the gift scavenger-hunt-style, having the recipient follow clues on a series of notes to lead him or her to the present.