Last Thursday I shared the menu that we used for my sister-in-law's Vintage Bridal Shower.
Food and decorations are typically welcome at any
Bridal Shower, but I know some folks have pretty strong opinions about NOT
playing any of those SILLY games.
One side of me totally understands that point of view -- because the games can be silly, for sure. But then the other side of me, that loves to win at any event that is winnable, thrives off of them.
Not that I am competitive.
Still, when I plan any type of party (Bridal Showers included), I try to come up with games that aren't too silly and that feed everyone's competitive spirit.
Game #1: Name that Spice
Most Brides-to-be aren't expert chefs and are now entering this new world of Cooking for Two. When I got married I didn't know how to make scrambled eggs {my hubby would argue that I still don't, since I refer to my cookbook for the milk to egg ratio -- but, hey, I like my eggs with the right amount of fluffiness and that recipe does the trick}. This simple game won't teach you about cooking scrambled eggs, but you'll learn a bit about using herbs and spices.
Choose some pretty bowls and fill them with various dried spices and herbs. I printed off a sheet of numbers, cut them into squares and then set one in each bowl. Each guest had a piece of paper and numbered it 1-9. We placed all of the bowls on a decorative tray and then let the guests LOOK and SMELL, but they couldn't taste.
We had a culinary student in our crowd, but even she didn't guess all nine. Still, I'd be prepared with a tie-breaker in case several guests do get them all correct.
Game #2: Bridal Scattergories
One of my all-time favorite games is Scattergories. If you're not familiar with the game, it works like this:
#1 Roll an alphabet die to choose a letter (let's say the letter is "C")
#2 Answer each "question" with an item that corresponds to that letter
-- for example: Question = A Type of Drink // Answer = Coca Cola
#3 If someone else guessed Coca Cola, your answer doesn't count (and neither does their answer)
#4 If no one else guessed Coca Cola, you'll actually get 2 points because "Coca" and "Cola" begin with the letter "C"
-- in other words: if your answer was just "Coke", you'd only get 1 point
There are more rules, which you can check out here if you are interested. But, for a shower I didn't get too nit-picky with the specifics. After all, we only had a short amount of time to play the game anyway.
In Bridal Scattergories, the letters are chosen for you {B-R-I-D-E} instead of rolling a die. I gave the group 5 minutes; but they begged for more time... and I'm a sucker... so they played for 10 minutes.
Oh -- and this game can make for some good reading too. To make it a keepsake for the Bride, have each guest sign the "Completed by" spot at the bottom of the page.
You can download the FREE printable of this game by clicking here.
Game #3: Purse Hunt
My husband is a Youth Pastor and one of our favorite no-prep games is one we call "Personal Scavenger Hunt." The students compete to see who on their team has whatever random item we call out first {i.e. cell phone, chapstick, wallet... pocket lint... we get creative}. Since only one team will get the point in each round, it can get pretty competitive {errr... dangerous} to see who can pull out that pocket lint the quickest.
Purse Hunt is a more "ladylike", hopefully less-aggressive, version of that game.
Each guest will search their purse for the items and check it off if they find each item. After searching, guests total up the correlating score for each item and the person with the highest total points wins the game.
-- for example: cough drops are worth 15 points, while a pen is only worth 5 points
You can download the FREE printable of this game by clicking here.
If you still need a gift for the Bride and Groom, check out these prints in our Etsy Shop.
So, when you attend a Bridal Shower, are you hoping for or against playing games?
Labels: Party
