By Ashley Rader
Your big day is only days away, but it is important to make time for the little things. One of the most important "little" things you can do as a bride is to host a bridal luncheon or tea. A bridal luncheon or tea is traditionally held in the afternoon a day or two before the ceremony. Occasionally, bride's host this intimate gathering the morning of the ceremony in the form of a breakfast tea that is held at the hair salon while all the girls in the wedding party are getting their hair done. A cocktail party or intimate dinner is also nice, but may not be quite as kid-friendly if you are wanting to include your flower girl(s) or younger bridal attendants. Your bridal luncheon is the ideal time to give your bridal attendants any gifts you may have purchased for them, and it's a nice way to say thank-you for all the hard work and time that those special ladies have given to helping you pull off a truly memorable wedding. However, you may not even know where to begin, especially you are overwhelmed with all the other wedding plans you are making, so here are some great tips on where to get started.
1) Whose invited? Traditionally, all the young ladies involved with your wedding are. This usually includes the bridesmaids, maid of honor, mother of the bride, mother of the groom, and the flower girls, and any other girls you might have in your wedding such as candle lighters, guest book attendants, etc. As a courtesy you might also include the mothers of any young girls in your wedding, as well as, your grandmother(s) and the groom's grandmother (s).
2) What to serve? If you are having a luncheon, you could have it catered to the location of your choice or you could host it at a local restaurant, but see if they have a party room you could reserve for this event. Another neat idea is to host your luncheon at a nearby "tea room". A "tea room" is a restaurant that serves light fair such as soups, salads, and sandwiches, as well as, a variety of coffees and teas. A "tea room" often will offer an intimate, feminine location for your party. If you host your "luncheon" in the morning such as at the saloon while you are all getting your hair done, you can have it catered by a local bakery or you can pick up a variety of muffins and bagels, as well as, thermoses with different flavors of coffee, milk, and juice.
3) What to give? A lot of bride's fret over what to give the girls in their bridal party. Traditionally gifts are not given to the mothers or the grandmothers, so unless you just want to, don't worry about finding something for them. Including them in your "luncheon" is thanks enough. As for the young members of your bridal party, you can consider giving them things that are appropriate to their age. If they are really young and you find out they are interested in things like Dora the Explorer, Disney Princesses, Hannah Montana, etc. You can look for something to give them that reflect their interest in these types of things such as a Barbie doll, books, or other toys of that character. If you have young ladies in your bridal party that are teens you could consider giving them a gift card to download music or a CD of their favorite artist, or bath and body products. As for your bridesmaids and maid of honor, you could consider giving them the jewelry you want them to wear on your big day, or maybe give them all gift cards to a local movie theater and restaurant, so they can enjoy a nice dinner and movie to relax after all their hard work. There are just so many great ideas, so don't limit yourself and don't be afraid to get creative.
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