Themes you might not have considered

1. Ornament Shower (bring ornaments for their Christmas tree)

2. Specialty wedding items (the cost of wedding accessories can be expensive!  Help the bride; each guest brings something for the wedding, like a guest book, unity candle, decorated garter belt, etc.)

3. International shower (each guest is assigned a country and then brings a gift indicative of that country.  For example, a pasta maker for Italy, a wok for China, etc.)

4. Our family's favorite foods (each guest prepares a favorite casserole, dessert or appetizer and brings it to the shower, along with a recipe card.  Each guest then talks about the significance of the food and the cards are assembled into a notebook, which is given to the bride.) 

5. Movie mania (assign each guest a different movie title before the shower.  They are to use the title to inspire their gift idea.  Examples could include "Breakfast at Tiffany's," "Scent of a Woman,"  "Casablanca," "Car Wash," "Singin in the Rain," "Pillow Talk," etc.)

Invitations

1. Pre-designed invitations you can print on your computer from Hallmark.com

2. Design your own invitations with computer software like Hallmark Card Studio Deluxe 3.0 ,   Print Artist Gold 2002 , or American Greetings Creatacard Platinum  

3. Get some simple free printable baby shower invitations from Mom's Break.

Centerpieces and decorations

1. Revive a charming Victorian tradition with these lucky cake charms! Bake a several layer cake, placing one or two charms between each layer as you decorate the cake until you have used all six charms. At the shower, each bridesmaid pulls a ribbon to reveal their special keepsake charm that signifies such things as wealth and happiness.  You can purchase the charms and a booklet explaining their meanings from shindigz. Cost: $19.56. (Item # WEDCLC).  

2. For the Movie Mania shower, you can purchase movie posters, life-like stand-up actors, film accessories and more from the Hollywood Megastore

3. A bridal blessing tree. Spray paint a branch (with several limbs) white and sprinkle with glitter while the paint is still wet.  Tie small white cards around the tree.  As each guest arrives, have them take a card from the tree, write a few words of marriage wisdom and put it back on the tree.  During the shower the bride can read the blessings and wishes out loud to all of the guests. 

4. Plates, napkins and cups in bridal shower themes can be purchased from the Creative Gift Giver's Party Store or shindigz.    Some of the available motifs include:

• Petals and Pearls

• Tulips 

• Butterflies

• Precious Moments 'Love Forever True'

• Bridal Ribbons

Games and entertainment

1. What is the Bride wearing? (After the party has been going for about 10 minutes, have the bride leave the room.  Ask each person in the room to write down what the bride was wearing, the color of her shoes, how her hair was styled, etc., if she was wearing a necklace or bracelet, etc. The guest who answers the most questions correctly wins a prize.) 

2. Design the bride's wedding gown (Split the party up into groups and give each group 3-4 rolls of toilet paper and some tape.  They need to design a gown for the bride in 10 minutes, using one member of the team as the model. Give prizes to the team with the prettiest gown, silliest gown, etc.)  

3. Almost-Newlywed game (Before the shower, in private, ask the groom questions about himself and the bride, such as their favorite foods, when they had their first date, where they got engaged, etc. At the shower, ask the bride to answer the same questions and see how much she knows about her groom. The answers could be quite funny! 

4. Famous Couples (Give everyone a piece of paper and a pen, then tell them they have five minutes to make a list of  famous couples, such as Cleopatra and Marc Anthony, Napolean and Josephine, even Felix Unger and Oscar Madison! At the end of 5 minutes, each guest reads of his/her list.  The person with the most famous couples wins a prize.

Food and beverages

1. Find recipes for Heavenly Thoughts Pasta Salad and Lemon Twist Pasta Salad from Flying Noodle (This link will take you to their homepage; see the recipe section on the left side of the page to locate these recipes.)

2. Frozen Lemon Pie

3. Find recipes for Coffee Flavored Fruit Dip and Pistachio Cream Cheese Fingers at AllRecipes (This link will take you to their website; enter this recipe name in their search engine to find the recipe.  Check out their "AllRecipes Tried and True Favorites Cookbook"--makes a great gift for the bride!) 

4. Find recipes for Peach Champagne Slush and Tahitian Punch at CookN.com (This link takes you to their homepage; at the bottom of the page click on 1400 Free Recipes to find these recipes.  While you're at it, get a copy of their free recipe software!   It would make a good gift for the bride, too).

5. How about Fondue?  Find recipes and the ingredients at iGourmet  

6. No time to cook? Get a Tapas Party Platter or elegant Imported Cheese Platters from iGourmet You won't find these international specialties at your local grocery store!  Or check out the canapes and hors d'oeuvres available through Hickory Farms

Party Supply Stores 

1. The Creative Gift Giver's Party Store 

2. shindigz.com

3. Oriental Trading Company, Inc.

Our favorite wedding shower planning resources

Books

Bridal Showers: Special Touches and Unique Ideas for Throwing a Fabulous Shower.

Phyllis's Unique Fun and Games for Baby or Bridal Showers

Wedding Showers : Ideas & Recipes for the Perfect Party

The Everything Wedding Shower Book:Thrill the Bride and Amaze the Guests with a Celebration to Remember   

Websites

Bridal Shower Wedding Cake 

Directions from the Hershey's website for making a beautiful bell shaped cake featuring Hershey's Kisses.  

joann.com

Check out their project section for information on making elegant and sophisticated shower decorations from silk florals.

Some Cost Cutting ways to host a shower

This article, which appears in the Dollar Stretcher website, includes some ways to save money when hosting a shower, including a potluck shower, game ideas and more.