My best friend is getting married in 80 days!!! Then she and her hubby are scooting off to Portugal for their honeymoon. How fun, right!? The festivities are well under way, and just this past weekend her amazing Aunt Tina and I threw a Portuguese-inspired bridal shower. I thought I’d share the details here!
Photos by Jodi Reed of rosenoakmusic.com
Portugal was the perfect muse for this bridal shower. Rich, flavorful food, beautiful tile work, and vibrant flowers came together to make such a fun afternoon. The shower was held on the rooftop of Park 88 in DT Bellevue. It was such a beautiful venue that we didn’t need much in terms of decor.
Welcome
We greeted guests as the Portuguese do, with a shot of Espinheira Ginja Cherry Liqueur. Aunt Tina took this detail up a notch by including a cherry at the bottom of each shot glass. It was the perfect way to start the celebration!
I also picked up some amazing square tile from Lowe’s that fit in perfectly with the theme and was an inexpensive way to throw in some Portuguese flare.
A Portuguese Jazz playlist from Spotify played in the background (thanks for the help, Jared)!
Game #1
After our welcome drink and some pre-party mingling we transitioned into our first game. We played a combination of Heads & Tails + Who Said It. Basically I had asked the bride-to-be and groom-to-be a series of questions before the shower. With the guests standing up, I read the answers out loud one at a time and they guessed who said it, bride or groom. Each guest made their selection by placing their hands on either their head or tail (back side). If a guest selected correctly, they continued standing. Those who picked wrong took a seat. Whoever was left standing at the end won and got to pick a prize (Grandma Val won in the picture below…so cute)! The prizes? A table full of Portuguese wine, sparkling juices, and cocktail flavored jelly beans!
The Menu
I was soo thrilled to throw this shower with such a talented cook! Aunt Tina came through majorly with the best Portuguese spread ever! Comment below if you’d like any of the recipes, but y’all…the food was amazing!
Game #2
The second game I had planned has been one of my favorite shower games to date. I love the way it involves everyone and opens up opportunities for a good laugh, a cry, or even a little embarrassing story. 😉 Who Am I? I printed these cards from daintydarlingco which were perfect. I love how the instructions for the game are on the cards. Write out a memory you have with the bride. They will be read aloud & the bride will guess who wrote it. If the bride doesn’t guess you, you win! This was so fun and is a great way for everyone to get to know each other a little better! I sent the bride-to-be home with the cards as well. Such a great way to remember everyone who attended. Again, those who won this game got to pick from the table full of Portuguese wine, sparkling juices, and cocktail flavored jelly beans!
DIY Flower Bar & Guestbook
While folks were mingling I wanted to have a few activities they could do that would 1) be fun for them, and 2) create a meaningful memory for the bride-to-be. I had seen a few DIY flower bars on Pinterest and thought this would be such a fun idea! The flower of Portugal is lavender and it just so happens that I live very close to an ammmmmazing lavender farm out in Fall City, WA: Snofalls Lavender! I was able to purchase a TON of lavender for very little, plus it made the party smell amazing! 😉
DIY Flower Bar Essentials
- Glass Jars >> the jars pictured are from Michael’s, but I also snagged a few at Home Goods & World Market. I also found a great deal on Amazon (lots of color options).
- Ribbon >> I snagged some with good texture to add interest.
- Flower Buckets >> these are perfect for separating each type of flower in your flower bar. I didn’t, but you can even label your buckets (like with these chalk labels) so people know what flowers they’re working with. My buckets were from World Market + on sale!
- Scissors
I pulled together a guest book by using my Polaroid + film and this adorable flip book made specifically for Polaroid minis! I cut card stock for guests to write notes on and then had them take a photo with the bride-to-be to place next to it!
Also pictured below: Letter Board | Candle | 5×5 Spanish Style Frame | Glassybaby | Faux Plant
Dessert
Oh I had some great help when it came to dessert! One of the other bridesmaids offered to bake some naked cakes…so beautiful, thanks Chelsea! And another bridesmaid has a friend with some seriously amazing baking skills who made Portuguese tile cookies for us (thanks Jenn & Jenna)! This dessert assortment was such a hit – so thankful for the help with this!
Gifts
There were some amazing gifts! I decided to go off registry and get the bride-to-be a 4-month subscription to Bootay Bag. If you haven’t checked them out, you need to! It’s an underwear subscription service and their undies are SO cute + comfortable! I thought it would be a fun gift…who doesn’t love getting monthly mail!? 😉
It was the loveliest afternoon but the cherry on top was the rooftop view of the Blue Angels flying over Bellevue! Such an amazing way to end the day.
What do you think!? 🙂 So cute right!?
Stephanie brodin says
Oh, my gosh!!! This is incredibly beautiful!! Great job, Becca and bridesmaids!!!
Becca says
Thank you Stephanie!! 💗