Pretty Party Ideas: A Blue Bridal Shower, Louboutin style

The shower I gave for Christina is starting to look like a bride at the end of her bachelorette party, because baby, she gets around. You go, honey. Here’s my most famous bash, as featured on Hostess with the Mostess (thanks, Jen!), in AZ Magazine, The Arizona Republic, and blogs galore.

The inspiration: Christina’s something blue — a pair of killer Louboutins that I borrowed for centerpiece duty.

Next, I assembled every blue treat I could imagine, like mini lemon-blueberry cupcakes (on stacked Tiffany boxes as a cake stand).

At right, parmesan truffle popcorn in paper cones sealed with monogrammed stickers I made at home.

Mini milkshakes are my party trademark because people freak out when they appear and they’re ridiculously easy. How to make: go through the drive-through, and order two large vanilla shakes to go. Yup. Works every time.

I found the shot glasses at Big Lots a few years ago, $1.99 for three. To decant: pour the shakes into a large ziploc bag. Cut off a corner of the bag and pipe into the glasses like frosting. The straws are from Smeeks. I cut them in half. Also sold online here.

Below, I served fruit and cookies in cupcake liners (also from Smeeks) and ice cream in nut cups complete with blue sprinkles (find in Arizona at ABC Baking Cake Decorating).

Also on the menu: Greek salad, grapefruit mimosas, and mini bottles of water with personalized labels.

We had the party at one of my favorite shops, Domestic Bliss in Mesa. The space has been re-imagined by the Bliss folks as FOUND, and I still think it’s a great place for a party.

No shower games here: we shopped, noshed and did a craft: peacock fascinators for our hair. They did double duty as activity AND party favor.

Lucky location:  Allison Tyler Jones‘ AMAZING photo studio is across the hall, and she opened up to play photo booth with my guests.  (It was Domestic Bliss owner Kristin Alber’s idea, and it was brilliant. So posh, and so much fun.)

It is impossible to play shy around Allison, who had each of us thinking we were totally Tyra Banks. She’s one of the best portrait photographers I know (and I know a lot), so it was a privilege to play with her. (She does babies, families and engagements, too. Drool.) The cute blue props? Her idea.

My mom and sisters came to the shower to help me play hostess. Thank you Mom, Heidi, and Kapri. Thank you, Allison, for this photo that became an instant treasure.

Decor: Martha Stewart tissue paper flowers, (dying) roses tucked into the lid of a Tiffany box lined with plastic and Oasis, and Christina’s wedding announcement, created by my friend Andrea Heser, the local letterpress goddess of Featherpress Design.

I made the shower invites: simple postcards that went out in the mail.

On the back, small die-cut envelopes held a card with all the important info on it.

Photos in studio by Allison Tyler Jones, photos of party by Jill Richards/The Arizona Republic and me.