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Whether your best friend is having her first baby or your sister is about to get married, the prospect of throwing a shower for someone you love can be exciting but overwhelming. You want to create a fun event that will supply her with what she needs for her new transition, but you also don’t have hundreds of dollars to spend. Today I’ve got some of my best tips so that you can throw a shower on a budget but still produce an amazing and special time for the bride or mother-to-be. Make sure you read to the end to find a free printable worksheet you can use for planning!
How to Throw a Shower on a Budget
Co-host with other people
If you are the maid of honor, ask the other bridesmaids or members of the bride’s family to help with some of the responsibilities. If this is a baby shower, then ask if there is anyone else who has expressed interest in helping with a shower. Even if you don’t know other potential hostesses, you can still do this. I’ve thrown many showers with people who I had never met before. It isn’t awkward because you’re united by your desire to throw a fun shower for the bride or mama-to-be!
Divide up the responsibilities
None of us are good at everything, so focus on what you do best. I once threw a shower with several friends who are all creative and extroverted, so they did all the decorations, games, and took charge of the hosting. I played to my strengths and made most of the food.
Choose a free location
The best option is usually for someone to have the shower at their home, but if you don’t have a good option among the hostesses, consider having it outside if the weather is nice or asking your church or other local business if you can use some of their space.
Pick the right time of day
I think the best times of day is either mid-morning when you can serve snacky breakfast foods or later evening when you can just have dessert and coffee. Try to choose a time when you don’t need to provide a full meal for guests.
Keep invitations simple
You can create invitations fairly inexpensively at VistaPrint, but the website DIY Invitations also has lots of great ideas for homemade invitations.
Decorate simply and ask for help
Choosing a theme can help guide your decorations, although just choosing a color scheme is also a good choice. Check out the dollar store for fun and simple plates and decorations. You can also raid your house for options to use for decorations. We threw a travel-themed shower for a soon-to-be mom and were able to each bring our own globe that we used to decorate the table.
Play low-key party games
You don’t have to play party games, but if you want to, check out this list of baby shower ideas or this complete guide to bridal shower games. There are many game that require only pencil and paper, or sometimes no supplies at all!
Make delicious but frugal food
As I said when I mentioned the time of day, I prefer brunch showers or dessert and coffee showers. For dessert showers, you can serve cake or petit fours, coffee and punch, and maybe a few different kinds of cookies. I love these sugar cookies and this icing! For a brunch shower, you could have muffins, fresh fruit, mini quiches, and sausage balls.
Other ideas
- Have stamped envelopes from thank you notes available when people come in for them to write their address on to save time for the bride/mama
- For second or third kids, do a diaper/wipes shower or a children’s book shower
- Check out our list of 8 inexpensive baby shower gift ideas
Use our printable worksheet to plan
Getting all the details worked out is key when you’re trying to figure out how to throw a shower on a budget. Get together with the other hostesses and fill out this worksheet together—you can use the back of the page for more notes.
Download the shower planning worksheet!
What are your favorite tips for how to throw a shower on a budget?
