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Bachelorette Party Planning Ideas from iPartygram

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Bachelorette parties are more than just a night out with the girls, they celebrate the bride-to-be’s passage transformation from single woman into married life. It’s a chance for her to celebrate this life-changing event with her closest friends and family. The bachelorette party is usually planned by the maid-of-honor, although she might also want some help from other members of the bridal party: planning an event like this is an enormous task. Here are some tips to help you plan the perfect bachelorette party that the bride-to-be will never forget:

1 – Find out who else is in the bridal party.

Traditionally, the guests at a bachelorette party are the members of the bridal party, and maybe some close family too. It’s important to get details of the other people in the bridal party as soon as possible so you can involve them in planning the event, and know when everyone will be available to attend.

2 – Decide on the date, duration, and budget of the party.

It’s also tradition that attendees pay for the bride-to-be to attend her bachelorette party, so you need to make sure that party guests can cover their costs, and put some money towards covering the bachelorette too. The budget will influence where you hold the party, and how long it lasts. Some bachelorette parties run over a weekend, while others last for an evening. The date of the party can be anything between a month and a few days before the wedding. Even if you’re keeping the party a surprise, the run up to the big day will be a busy time for the bride, so make sure she knows to keep the day or weekend of the party free.

3 – Choose a theme.

Bachelorette parties don’t necessarily have to have a theme; however this can make the party more entertaining. Some parties become risqué, so if you’re choosing a theme make sure it will be agreeable to all guests. You should also consider what the bachelorette herself will want: will she want a big night out, or is she the kind of person that would prefer time at home with friends?

4 – Hire or book a venue/hotel and entertainment (if necessary).

Even if you’re having the bachelorette party in someone’s home, you should start thinking about the kind of entertainment you’re going to have. This might include party games, movies, music, or even something like a cooked dinner. Once you have the theme and know what kind of venue you’re using, you can start thinking about purchasing bachelorette-themed decorations and costumer accessories.

5 – Send invitations to guests well ahead of time.

Remember to give guests a date by which they should RSVP. You should also ask them to tell you if they have any special requirements, such as food allergies. The iPartyGram app lets you send out free, customized invitations to guests via email, saving you time and money. Simply download the app, create your invitation, and then share it with everyone you want to invite. Guests can also upload their own photos to the party’s page within the app, so it’s a lovely way to get everyone involved in the bride-to-be’s big night out.

6 – Book accommodation and transport (if necessary).

If you’re booking a hotel for the bachelorette party, you should try to arrange it as soon as possible to ensure you get the best deal. You also need to arrange transport to and from the party venue, especially if there are no designated drivers. Some bachelorette parties hire a limo to travel in style, but arranging transportation might be as simple as booking a few taxis.

7 – Ask guests to pay their share of the night’s costs in advance.

This is important for two reasons. Firstly, having other guests’ share of their costs on the night means that you can pay for everything yourself, saving time and minimizing any complications that might arise with everyone wanting to pay for food and drink separately. Sometimes people can drop out of bachelorette parties at the last minute, leaving the other members covering the bachelorette’s costs on their own. Asking guests for money to cover expenses in advance reduces the financial impact if someone isn’t able to make it on the night

8 – Double-check confirmations the week before.

Make sure the guests know the date, time and venue for the party, especially if it’s a surprise. If you’re planning to travel from one venue to another, it’s helpful to send guests an approximate itinerary for the evening so they know what’s happening, and you can focus on having a good time.

Party Invitations and Guest Lists Using iPartyGram

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iPartyGram is a new app from TECHtionary that enables you to create events and send stylish, digital invitations to guests for free. Instead of spending hundreds of dollars designing and printing professional invitations, then taking the time to mail them all, iPartyGram lets you create beautiful customized invites, and send them to multiple guests at the same time via email. Perfect for weddings of all budgets, iPartyGram is an easy and fun way to complete one of the most important steps involved in your wedding planning.

The iPartyGram app is also perfect for managing your guest list, as you can use the app to select VIP guests. This could be special members of the groom and bride’s families, the best man, the bridal party, and whoever else you’d like to include. When VIPs log in to iPartyGram, they can add their own photos to the event for other guests to see.

When sending invitations through iPartyGram, you can include detailed information about the venue, and separate notes and instructions. This is the perfect time-saving opportunity, as you can provide your guests with information about the dress code, menu and any gift requests in one go. Doing so helps you save time sending further messages or answering multiple questions later.

As you can create as many invitations as you want per event, and send each invitation to multiple people at a time, you can send out separate invites to separate groups of guests. For example, the invitations you send to the groom or bride’s main parties might also include details of the bachelor or bachelorette parties, while invitations you send to friend and family who have volunteered to help out on the day might include different instructions.

As well as choosing the information you want to include in your invitations, you can also customize their appearance, choosing the background that you think suits your wedding the most. Whether you want a traditional-style invitation, or would like to do something a bit different, the wide range of styles available with iPartyGram means you’ll be able to find the image that’s right for you.

Once you’ve sent the invitations, you need to find a way to keep track of your guests’ RSVPs. To do this, you can use one of TECHtionary’s other apps, iFlipTips, which enables you to store information on digital flashcards. Simply create one folder for confirmed, one for declined, and another for outstanding, and you can easily view which guests you still need to chase. Alternatively, you can also try creating a spreadsheet and color-coding it according to whether a guest has said yes, no, or you’re still waiting to hear.

Finally, you can use iPartyGram as a record of the build-up to your wedding. Guests marked as VIPs can add photos, so you can show guests the edited highlights of your bachelor and bachelorette parties, as well as images of your wedding preparations. It’s a lovely way to keep the whole wedding party involved in the run up to the big day, and set the tone for a fun event with friends, family and each other.

Wedding Planning-Planner Quicklist – Check & Re-Check the Details

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Essential Wedding Planning Shortlist

Planning a wedding is a huge endeavor, and it’s easy to get so caught up in the planning process that you find it difficult to enjoy the big day itself. One of the key ways you can organize your wedding planning to minimize your stress level is to create a wedding planning checklist. Using this checklist, you can make sure you get everything done on time, and with good preparation, so on the day of the wedding, you can focus on each other.

One year to nine months before

  1. Start a wedding folder - This is particularly useful if you’re not sure what you want to do for your wedding yet, as you can gather clippings, notes and pictures for inspiration.
  2. Decide on a budget – Your budget will determine what kind of venue you hire, and how many guests you invite. Many people get into debt paying for their wedding day, so think carefully about how much you can afford.
  3. Create a guest list – This includes choosing the key roles like your best man and maid of honor.
  4. Hire a planner – If you have the budget and want someone else to take charge of the details, an event planner can help alleviate some of the stress that goes with organizing a wedding.
  5. Make a date and reserve a venue – If you want to keep costs low, choose the same venue for the ceremony and reception, and otherwise remember to plan time for the journey between the two locations.

Six to nine months before

  1. Hire any third-party contractors – This includes caterers, photographers, transportation, florists and entertainment, such as a band.
  2. Decide on and purchase a wedding dress - Remember that you will need to get fittings, and you should make the final fitting as close to your wedding date as possible.
  3. Research guest accommodation – If some of your guests will need somewhere to stay overnight, now is the time to start researching and reserving blocks of rooms to ensure they are guaranteed overnight accommodation.
  4. Create a gift list – If you’re using a registry service, this is a good time to set up and start adding items.
  5. Send save-the-date cards – If you’re skipping save-the-date cards and just sending invitations, you can also do this now. Letting people know the date well in advance gives them enough time to make the necessary arrangements to come.

Three to five months before

  1. Plan the rehearsal dinner – You will also need to plan the menu to account for guests with dietary requirements.
  2. Order the cake – Choose your baker carefully; it’s worth sampling several different services before deciding so you can make sure you’re getting exactly what you want, and at a good price.
  3. Plan the wedding music – Doing this in advance is especially helpful if you’re hiring an external DJ.
  4. Finalize the menu – You know who your caterer is, and you can now agree on what the final menu will be.
  5. Organize favors – If you’re giving guests wedding favors, these can easily slip under the radar until the last minute, so plan and purchase them now to avoid stress closer to the time.
  6. Plan the day’s schedule – This includes who is giving speeches, and what will happen at the reception. You can also send this schedule to your venues so they can make plans.
  7. Purchase your rings – This might seem like a simple task, but you will need to leave time in case you want engraving, or need the rings resized.
  8. Send invitations – You can send free invitations via email using the iPartyGram app. Remember to include an RSVP date to encourage guests to respond as soon as possible.

One month before

  1. Get a marriage license – Do this in advance to leave room for any delays.
  2. Chase guests who haven’t RSVPed
  3. Pay vendors – Most vendors will require complete payment in advance of the day, so remember to pay their invoice in full to avoid any unnecessary stress over the next few weeks.
  4. Create a seating plan – If you haven’t done so already, create a seating plan and send it to the venues.

The week before

  1. Delegate tasks to close friends and family - Take some of the heat off by asking others to carry out small tasks, for example liaising with contractors on the day.
  2. Send a final guest list to the venue – Last minute changes are inevitable, but you should send the final list of attendees at least 72 hours in advance.
  3. Double-check arrival times with the venues and contractors.