Wedding Update Wednesday: How to Throw an Open House Shower

This past weekend Chad and I had our first shower. After attending countless other showers it seemed odd at first that I should be attending one that was for me!  It was lower pressure though because of the open-house format. Coming from a big family many of my relatives are somewhat burned out of showers so the a-typical format allowed guests to come and go as they pleased.

How to throw an Open House Shower:

 1. Make everything from the food to the favors self-serve and use lots of signage to instruct guests to take favors etc.

 2. Stick to finger foods. Since it is an open-house and thus there is no official sit-down meal, guests should be able to graze and mingle easily.

 3. Self-serve beverages are a must as well. The key is to keep the atmosphere casual by not relying on the hostess to freshen drinks etc.

 4. Rather than a formal gift-opening event, open each guest's gift upon their arrival (or shortly there after so they have a chance to grab some snacks). Others who wish to watch you open gifts can do so, otherwise they are welcome to mingle. After you open each gift you can display it on a central table so that guests just arriving can still check out what you already opened.

Thanks to my older sister Jennie for the lovely shower!!