It’s not just the wedding that people look forward to but also pre-celebrations like the rehearsal dinner, bachelor’s and bachelorette’s party, and of course, the bridal shower. Throwing a bridal shower is not that simple. Apart from the extensive planning and preparation, there are also certain etiquette rules that must be followed. Here are some of them:

Host
Tradition forbids the bride’s immediate relatives (mother, future mother-in-law, or sister) to host the wedding shower. And why is that? You might ask. This is not acceptable since it would appear that the bride and her family are asking for gifts. The proper way to go about this is to have the maid of honor or another close friend host or throw the party. It can also be done by a group of people like the bridesmaids.

Planning
Some brides have more than one shower. That’s not a problem at all. But the hosts should step out to consult each other so that the guest duplication can be avoided.

Timing
Bridal showers can be held a few months or weeks before the wedding. It’s not a good idea to wait until the wedding is only a few days away before you hold this celebration. The bride will be overwhelmed with the wedding itself and will have a hard time enjoying the party. Her mind will already be full of things needed for the big day.

Guests
Etiquette tells us that the host cannot invite to the wedding shower anyone who’s not on the wedding guest list. The host should definitely consult the bride first about this to ensure that there’s no blooper in this part. Keep in mind however that not everyone in the wedding guest list should be invited to the bridal shower. Only the nearest and dearest should make the cut.

Invitations
The bridal shower invitation should be sent out at least a week or two before. This gives the shower guests ample time to shop for a gift and make the necessary arrangements to attend the event. It’s not appropriate to send out the invites with only a few days remaining. You’ll only stress out the shower guests. They’ll rush out to buy the shower gift, only to end up with something you don’t really like. And you can’t blame them. You need to give your guests ample time.

Traditions
There are various traditions surrounding the wedding shower. One of the most popular involves the fiancées showing up right with flowers right before the opening of gifts. This has made a comeback only recently, and would definitely be a nice surprise to the bride. This gives guests who haven’t met the lucky guy to finally have the chance to do so.

Gifts
Guests are expected to show up with a gift on their hands. And while it’s okay for the host to specify what gift categories are encouraged, especially if there’s a theme, the guests should be given freewill in their choice. The host may only offer gift suggestions and not gift restrictions.