What Information Should You Have on the Invitations?
Depending on the size of the bridal shower you are having, you could
have a lot of time
and money invested in your bridal shower invitations. Whether you are
the bride taking
matters into your own hands, or the hostess trying to throw a killer
bridal shower, it is
well worth your time to make certain the bridal shower invitations are
done correctly, the
first time. If you don’t have the needed information on the invitations,
guests will start
calling either the hostess or the bride for more information, and with
many guests, this
can be time consuming, to say the least. Guests need accurate and
complete information
to plan and adjust their schedules for the event as well, so if you want
the invited guests
to attend, you should take the time to make certain this is right,
especially for out of town
guests. Guests will need time to shop for and purchase a gift, arrange
for time off work if
needed, find childcare, and make travel plans, which cannot be done if
the information
provided them about the shower is unclear.
The most obvious piece of information that should be included on the
bridal shower
invitation is the name of the bride and groom. Traditionally, just the
bride’s name was put
on these invitations, but it is more common now for both names to be
used. If you are the
bridal shower hostess and are unsure about this, you might want to find
out what the
bride prefers.
The next thing that needs to be on the invitation is the date the shower
is going to be held.
Your guests must know what day the shower is going to occur, so that
they can arrange
their schedules to attend. For guests that will be traveling in from
afar, this information is
doubly important, as they will need to know when to make their travel
reservations, such
as airline tickets, hotel accommodations, etc.
Along with the date of the shower, you also should list the time that
the shower is going
to take place. If you want people to show up as expected, you must give
them a set time,
or else guests will straggle in all day long.
Another obviously important piece of information that guests will need
is the address
where the shower is to be held. Just like listing the time of the
shower, you can’t expect
guests to show up if they don’t know where the event is to be held.
Remember, that not
all guest may be familiar with the area, so it is important to list the
full address of the
location, not just the name of the building. Don’t say the shower will
be held in my home,
because all of the guests may not even know who you are.
Your name, the hostess, and your home telephone number should also be
printed on the
bridal shower invitations. Guests are sure to have questions, no matter
how much
information you include in the invitations, so you do need to supply
this information.
If you need to get an accurate head count of how many guests will be
attending, for
planning purposes, then you should include an RSVP line, with a date and
time. This
way, people will know to contact you if they are planning to attend by
this time, so that
you can plan the remainder of the shower accordingly. It is always good
to plan for a few
extra, as not all guests will RSVP.
If you are having a themed bridal shower, then you should include this
information on the
invitation as well. Some bridal showers are meant to be household
showers, where gifts
will be related to the home, while others may be more risqué, even
lingerie showers are
popular nowadays. If you have a theme, your guests should know about it,
so that they
can shop and plan accordingly.
There are other pieces of information that don’t have to be included,
but that can be
helpful for guests, such as a map leading them to the shower location,
as well as the name
of any merchants that the couple has registered at.
