Winter in Paris Themed Bridal Shower // Irwin, PA

One week ago yesterday, we hosted a Winter in Paris themed bridal shower for my sister Ellen & I can’t believe that it’s already over! I literally left that evening, after everything had been cleaned up, the hall swept, the dishes washed, and the gifts packed into vehicles, praying that the wedding day wouldn’t go half as fast as the shower did, because, WOW did it go fast!

This was the 2nd of two bridal showers for my little sister. Her first shower was a Sherlock inspired party up in New York, held the week of Thanksgiving, and it was a lovely introduction to the bridal shower world for Ellen. Let’s be honest: we’ve all been guests to bridal showers, but when the spotlight is focused on you – that is a totally different ballgame! It was really nice to have a smaller, more intimate shower first, before the “big” one. And Ellen’s shower here in PA was definitely a BIG one!

When we originally began planning Ellen’s bridal shower, we were thinking we would have around 40 people attend. When it was all said & done, we had 72 lovely ladies RSVP that they would be coming to the shower! It was crazy (especially when we realized that we needed to expand our food menu!) but absolutely wonderful – the love that every single attendee had for Ellen & Jonathan was easily felt throughout the room and quite honestly: overwhelming.

We went with a “Winter in Paris” theme for Ellen’s bridal shower & I love how it all came together! Ellen has always been obsessed with Paris & all things Eiffel Tower, so it only made sense to pull from that love to theme her bridal shower. We decorated with fresh pine (literally cut from a tree in my parent’s back yard) and white & silver snowflakes that together, ran down the middle of each table. We gave it a touch of elegance by adding an eclectic mixture of candles and candlesticks. On the menu, we served croissants, coffee punch, and homemade creme puffs & eclairs (among other things) for dessert. We set each place with silverware, the name for the ice breaker game, a Mad Lib (I created several so we would have variety – I made my own, gathering from the inspiration of a few I saw online plus personalizing them to Ellen & Jonathan), a ticket for the Chinese Auction we had, a thank you card envelope, and cards to fill out to give Ellen some keys to a good marriage (also used for a game).

Our order of events were kept to a tight schedule. I really didn’t want to keep everyone there for 3+ hours and I knew with so many people and so many gifts, that that was a real possibility. That being said, we didn’t plan many games or activities. After I welcomed everyone to the shower, I had everyone complete the ice breaker game, which got everyone up & out of their chairs. As soon as you found your match, you were then free to go thru the line for food. After everyone had gone thru the line, we kept things moving by asking if anyone wanted to share their marriage advice to Ellen, and then we moved right into a version of the Newlywed Game, where we played a video recording of Jonathan answering each question after we asked the same question to Ellen (this was hilarious by the way & got everyone laughing and cheering plus gave those who hadn’t met him yet, a small introduction to Jonathan) From there, we moved straight into gifts & pulled the names for the Chinese Auction giveaways mid-way through, since some of the ladies had to leave.

The shower ended up lasting about 2 hours and 45 minutes, which was about 15 minutes longer than I had planned, but like I said, with so many attendees and so many gifts, it just takes time! Overall, it was the most splendid day. I loved meeting so many of Jonathan’s family & getting to visit with some old friends of Ellen’s – everything went so well & I couldn’t be happier.

Hey look! It’s me! I hosted the shower, so that meant I got to speak really loudly and talk to all of these lovely ladies!

Gifts!

So, I’ll tell just one story. Ellen was given a mountain, the size of Mount Everest, of gifts and so many were personalized, personal things. Some were hilarious (for example: my sister Amy’s boyfriend bought Ellen & Jonathan the spaghetti scoop that was on their registry, but Amy wrapped it & put it in a Victoria’s Secret bag with a card that said it was from Nathan) & some were thoughtful (Jonathan’s pastor’s wife gave Ellen a whole box of homemade spices), but one gift brought tears to everyone’s eyes. Jonathan’s Aunt found & framed a piece of handwritten sheet music that Jonathan’s Dad had written. Jonathan’s Dad passed away 2 years ago, and he was a very special man – not just to Jonathan, but in our lives as well as he taught me, Ellen, Amy, and Ruby piano lessons for over a decade. What a special piece that they will literally treasure forever.

And, upon special instruction from Amy, Jonathan arrived at the end of the shower with a big bouquet of flowers for his lovely lady.

So now, we’re in the home stretch! Details are being finalized, the straggler RSVPs are being rounded up, and a million little tasks are being checked off on a daily basis as we come up to the “one month” corner. It’s coming!