Guides
The bridal
shower.
The one occasion where mentioning gifts is correct — and the one where the guest list rule is absolute.
How do you plan a bridal shower?
Hold it one to three months before the wedding, hosted by someone other than the bride, and send invitations four to six weeks ahead. Registry information is acceptable here — gifts are the occasion's purpose — on its own line at the foot, never in the invitation sentence. Everyone invited must also be invited to the wedding.
01
The timeline.
| When | What |
|---|---|
| 3–4 months before the wedding | Host decided, date set with the bride's diary in mind |
| 6–8 weeks before the shower | Design and print |
| 4–6 weeks before | Send |
| 1–2 weeks before | Final numbers to the venue or the kitchen |
02
The pieces.
- The invitation — essential, and the piece most likely to carry a theme.
- Place cards and a menu — if it is a seated lunch or tea, which most are.
- Game or activity cards — only if you are genuinely doing them. Printed games nobody plays are the commonest waste at a shower.
- A thank-you card — the bride will need these afterwards; design them at the same time.
The rule with no exceptions: everyone invited to a shower must be invited to the wedding. A shower invitation without a wedding invitation reads as a request for a gift from someone not welcome at the event — which is precisely how it will be described afterwards.
03
Common questions
Can the bride's mother host?
Where does the registry go?
Can we say no gifts?
Part of the same story.
A shower designed alongside the wedding suite carries the same palette and hand, so the whole run of events reads as one celebration rather than several.
See how it works