BRIDAL BOOTCAMP 001// Hens Night

Hello baby sunflowers!

Today's post is a little different from my normal beauty and fashion. So welcome to my first post in the series BRIDAL BOOTCAMP.

I have now been in the bridal party of a few, well a couple, weddings and so now I totes think I'm a professional event planner. Just kidding.

But what I did find was the number of hours I spent trawling the Internet and Pintrest was insane. So I'm going to include links to websites I found helpful so you don't need to waste time.

*Know Your Bride.

Make sure that you have asked your bride if there is anything that she wants included. I'm sure we have all thought about what we want/don't want and would be disappointed if it wasn't included.

* Budget.

hens nights are all done differently. Traditionally the bridal party games on the cost, however it's becoming more and more common for guests to pay a small fee to attend. Make sure that it is affordable for everyone's budget and you give a decent amount of time for people to pay it off and budget it in.

*Venue.

Find a venue that is big enough to have a dance floor and fit everyone in comfortably. If your in the bridal party, it's a good idea to volunteer your place, especially if it has a good backyard.

* Games.

Having games is an essential part of the night to not only break the ice, but to get everyone giggling. A good guide is one game per hour. I personally would say a maximum of 2/3 throughout the night. 

Some of my favourite games include:

The honeymoon Night box - each member of the bridal party contributes 2 or 3 items that the bride will use on the night of the honey moon. These can range from anything from toothpaste and socks to the more x rated items. Every guest get's a pen and paper and write's what they think is in the box. Person with the most correct wins. 

The fruit in a cup game - This is the most hilarious game. Get guest's into teams of three. Then, one person from each team starts 'racing'. A piece of string is tied around the waste and drops down, at the end of the string is a Banana. You must then use the banana to push an orange to a 'finishing line'. The two losing racers take a jelly shot! 

* Decorations.

Decorations don't have to be costly, just pretty. Asian store's at the mall that sell miscellaneous items are perfect for this. Also Kmart has a huge range at very affordable prices. A pack of fairy lights easily create a magical environment. Crepe paper draped over chairs make's the place pretty. Kmart also has lantern's and paper flowers that drape from ceilings. 

*Food.

People are going to get hungry, especially when they're drinking. Finger food is key here. Think sausage rolls, Cheerio's, chips and dip. Just finger food that people can constantly snack on. Make sure though you have a penis cake and some naughty cupcakes.

*Photo Booth.

A photo booth is an awesome activity that creates lifelong memories. For Chrome user's its easy peasy to create one. Using your web cam, download from the chrome store 'photobooth' and your away. It takes 4 consecutive photos and saves them automatically. A back drop can be made from curtains and tinsel or coloured paper. And props brought from the $2 store. 

* Bachelorette Check list

A fun activity for the bride is to create a 'last fling before the ring' checklist which she must tick off throughout the night. Pintrest has many idea's with the hashtag #bacheloretteparty or you can check out my board here. I have also included the CHECKLIST that we used, feel free to use this by adjusting the banner to your hen's name. It was also laminated so that it didn't get ruined throughout the night. 

I have also included a hens planning checklist which  may be beneficial when preparing everything in the lead up to the big event. Click here. 

Remember

1. You may not know the other bridesmaids or all have the same interests, but remember why you're there - For the bride. You all love her and want to throw her the best hens night ever.
2. You don't always have to run the hens night yourself. Hire a limo and cruise the town drinking, or do an activity such as pole dancing or burlesque dancing to take the heat of you a bit.
3. Have sashes that say 'Bride to be' and 'Bridesmaid' etc to set the theme and make your gals feel a little special.
4. Create a secret facebook event to communicate with your guest's, just be sure not to include the bride to it!
5. Get the bridal party together on a pintrest board to all contribute ideas.
6. Have an insane amount of jelly shots. Use them as prizes, penalties and just for whenever someone wants one.
7. Get everyone to post photo's to all social media using the same hashtag. Combining the two last names works well so you can all find everyone's photo's on facebook, insta and twitter! #greavesgrantwedding or #lintongibbonswedding 
8. McDonalds is a MUST for breakfast the next day. Make sure you know what everyone likes so you can do a run before everyone wakes.
9. Don't stress to much. Every 30 minutes of the evening doesn't need to be planned. The best moments sometimes happen at random.
10. Beer pong is a cheap and easy game that everyone loves.

Useful websites to help you out that I used were Uk Girl Thing, Plan a Hen Party and of course pintrest

Let me know what you did for your hens night! xxx