There are many rituals that symbolize the close bond between bride and her bridesmaids. And the tradition of a bridal shower party is no exception. Traditionally, a bridal shower was held for the bride who either had a father who could not provide a dowry or whose father did not approve of the marriage and would not provide a dowry.
In 15th century Holland, legend says there was a young man who worked at a mill and had very little in material possessions, but won the hearts of townspeople because of his generosity. A young woman fell in love with him and wanted to marry him. Her father disapproved, disowned her and withheld the dowry that she would have received, if she were to marry the man chosen for her. The townspeople heard of this and gathered what they could to ‘shower’ the newlywed couple with dowry for their new life together. The girl’s father heard rejoicing from the mill, and so went over to see what was going on. He was shamed to see that the villagers had so little and still gave to his daughter and her husband. In return her father presented them with a new home and held a feast in the village to celebrate their marriage.
Eventually a dowry would not be necessary in order to marry. And during the Victorian times, gifts would be placed in a parasol and opened atop the bride’s head, as to shower her. And though this concept isn’t taken so literally today, brides are surely showered with love and support by the women in her life celebrating the new journey ahead!
The modern bridal shower is typically given by the maid-of-honor (but not always). It is also common for the bride to have more than one bridal shower, depending on the bride’s number of social circles. Guests usually include the bridal party, close female friends and family. As the bride, consult the hostess so that guest lists are different for each shower. You do not want guests to feel the pressure of purchasing multiple gifts in your honor. Speaking of expense, the hostess is usually responsible for the cost of the party. Plan on the whole group hosting if you’d like a fancier style shower so the burden of cost doesn’t just fall on one person. Be sure to gather money from the group at the beginning planning stages—trust me; I still haven’t collected from a Bridal Shower the whole “bridal party” hosted for a friend over a year ago.
Four weeks before the wedding is an ideal time to throw a bridal shower. Creating a themed bridal shower will make planning it much easier and more fun! It will make it easier to come up with a menu, gifts, games, and the favors!
Stay tuned for bridal shower theme ideas!
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