Hen's Party & Bridal Shower Ideas. Wollongong, Illawarra & South Coast NSW (2024)

FAQs

What's the difference between a bridal shower and a hen party? ›

These two celebrations may seem similar, however they're actually vastly different. Hen's nights are known for being a bit wild. They often involve lots of alcohol, nudity and just general debauchery or mischief. The bridal shower is a tamer party that tends to be multi-generational and quite sophisticated.

It's a more formal event, compared to the hen's night, and you can still dress up the bride, but opt for something subtle, like a cute apron. Guests don't have to dress to a theme, although this is up to the organisers of the bridal shower. If they do, it's quite fun – and an icebreaker.

A bachelorette party (United States and Canada) or hen night (UK, Ireland and Australia) is a party held for a woman (the bride or bride-to-be) who will soon be married.

Typically, the deposit that needs to be paid for the hens party package would be covered by the bridal party, by the bridesmaids or Maid of Honour paying upfront for their cost. The rest of the invitees then pay the chief bridesmaid their per head cost.

Traditionally, the bride won't pay for anything on the night. It's a celebration to honour her future new status, so the cost should be divvied up between the guests and not her. This is something that should always be brought up first with the guests, as some may not be able to afford an extravagant weekend away.

Hen nights might feature male strippers, shots, and dancing on tabletops. If that's too much for the bride, she may also opt for more of a lowkey weekend getaway type of hen do, with delicious dinners, cooking and/or co*cktail classes, and outdoor activities.

For many brides, the hen celebration is gift enough, but an extra present to signify one of the most important events of her life will always be appreciated.

We would advise that it is always a lovely sentiment to invite the mother of the groom, and no matter what the activities we would recommend inviting her...but you must make sure she is aware of the activities you've planned beforehand so she has the option to politely decline.

Only wedding guests should be invited to the hen party, and family invitations are a matter of personal choice – the mother (and future mother-in-law) of the bride may choose to attend the more genteel and sedate proceedings that characterise the start of many hen parties, such as an afternoon tea or spa session, ...

Do you have a cake at a hen party? ›

Your hen party is undeniably and unequivocally all about you (the bride), so it makes sense for the cake to embody you. This may require a more creative design but it will be worth the giggles! Whether it's recreating you on a wild night out or perhaps you relaxing with some of the bride squad.

Guests at the hens party often give the bride a gift, but it's usually something small and may be some kind of gag gift. The gift to the bride may be a bit bigger if there aren't any other pre-wedding events like bridal showers making the hens party the only opportunity for gift-giving.

During a bridal shower, guests come together to celebrate the bride and have some fun. The event usually includes activities, games, and sometimes even a theme. Essentially, it's an opportunity for the bride's closest friends and family to show their support and celebrate as she embarks on her journey to marriage.

chook. A domestic fowl; a chicken. Chook comes from British dialect chuck(y) 'a chicken; a fowl' which is a variant of chick. Chook is the common term for the live bird, although chook raffles, held in Australian clubs and pubs, have ready-to-cook chooks as prizes.

There's no record of the first hen parties, but one could assume they started happening around the same time as stag parties. Today, a hen do is a party exclusively for ladies to gather and celebrate as a group before the bride-to-be goes off to get hitched.

A common misconception is that the terms 'hen' and 'stag' both originate from simple social stereotypes. In fact, it's more likely that the word hen hasn't always meant female chicken, in middle English, hen could mean the female of any bird and so a hen party was a party exclusively for ladies.

According to etiquette, this event should be held a month or two prior to the wedding. If you are planning a long journey, make sure that the weather doesn't ruin your plans. Speak with the bride and the rest of the group to find out whether they have any pre-booked holidays around the time of the hen's night.