Hello, brides and brides-to-be!

I am about five weeks out from my wedding date and am glad to have survived one of the more fun events during my wedding planning journey—the bachelorette party! I am fortunate to have some of the best friends ever, all who wanted to celebrate my last days as a single woman in Vegas. Who could turn that down? 

Having been in about 10 weddings myself, I have a little knowledge on how to throw an unforgettable bachelorette party. Colors: basically anything hot pink, black and BLING!!!! Menu: liquid. And of course, lots of drama and craziness! Whenever you get more than 10 girls together for a long weekend with alcohol, there are bound to be some stories, but that is part of the fun, isn’t it?

I didn’t know how I’d feel once the bachelorette activities began, but I have to say, I still have a smile on my face thinking about this past weekend. I was a little intimidated at first, being the center of attention for an entire weekend, but once I realized how amazing it was to have all my closest girlfriends in one place—and that place being Vegas—I never looked back. I won’t get into all the details of my party, but let’s just say, Hard Rock Cabana, nightclubs and the New York New York piano bar all in an amazing environment provided for an unforgettable weekend. Having just experienced my bachelorette party, I thought I’d share some highlights and tips for making your party the best it can be!

Future bachelorettes:

• Plan far in advance. Your friends could have a lot on their plates, especially if they have little ones. I recommend sending out save-the-dates if you plan to travel someplace, like Vegas, four months in advance. That allows your friends enough time to line up babysitters and take off work so they can enjoy the fun, too.
• I’ve read that, traditionally, bridesmaids are the designated “party planners.” However, make the planning process an open and friendly one. Encourage all your friends to contribute if they have ideas so everyone is included. Some of your friends that may not be in the bridal party may have fabulous ideas!
• Be budget conscious. As we all know, the cost of wedding activities can add up, so make your bachelorette party fun and affordable. Even in Vegas, there were ways to manage costs. We decided to spend a little more on a Cabana and to forgo bottle service at a nightclub as an alternative. Just don’t expect everyone will be able to shell out the big bucks every night for every activity.
• Establishing a theme can also be helpful for decorating purposes. Mine happened to be Bling-Bling Bachelorette (because who doesn’t love diamonds and sparkles?), but there are many other cute ideas, such as a shoe theme, or anything else that might represent the future bride’s interests or passions.
• Do something special for your friends to thank them for all their support and making an effort to be at your party. Fun gift bags are a great idea. For my party, I filled them with bling-bling items to fit our theme for the weekend. That included sunglasses, rings, water and a personal note. To top it off, I gave them custom-made, personalized Vegas glasses as a takeaway. For ideas, Etsy.com is a fabulous resource I highly recommend to all future brides!
• Bachelorette parties are the perfect time for girlfriends to shower you, the bride, with sexy items, lingerie and anything you can bring on your honeymoon. A little sexy lingerie shower is always appropriate.
• Games, games, games. A certain ring toss game seemed to be the hit of our party. And we decided to bring it to every bar we stopped at that weekend. Let’s just say we were the hit of the bars!
• Don’t let the traditional bachelorette to-do list intimidate you. Do what you feel comfortable doing—shots, having a guy propose to you, truth or dare, getting a guy to buy you a weird-sounding drink, whatever it may be. Ultimately, it’s your decision, so just have fun with it. If you are uncomfortable with an item, just don’t do it.   
• I know you will probably miss your fiancé, but no one wants to be around a sulking bride-to-be. Suck it up and have some fun! All your friends are there to be with you during your last single days, so do a shot, wear the veil with a smile and savor the moment. Because the next thing you know, you will be walking down the aisle.

I have to admit, it took me a whole week to recover from my experience, and the same was true for most of my friends. But it was worth it!!! I looked forward to my bachelorette party for months, and now that it’s over, I’m that much closer to getting married. That is, if my fiancé makes it back alive from his bachelor party in Vegas this weekend…but that could be another story. (Ha!)

Do you have any fun bachelorette party ideas, local or destination? We’d love to hear them!