Hosting an Amazing Shower on a Budget

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Let’s talk planning a baby shower or bridal shower on a budget. Budget isn’t my favorite word and honestly, if it were up to me…and not my wallet, I would just go buy whatever the heck I wanted when I’m planning a party. But, reality being what it is, dictates that I don’t have unlimited funds to spend. Dang it!

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So, with that in mind, let’s get into my favorite ideas for hosting a shower on a budget!

Don’t Host Alone

Unless you’re a total control freak (why is everyone looking at me?!), most people already gravitate towards co-hosting or simply dividing up the party duties. I like to divide up the duties by assigning one person food, another decorations, another invitations and venue, and another person in charge of games and activities.

If you’re co-hosting with only one other person, and not an entire bridal party, you can still divide up the duties, and costs, between the two of you.

Co-hosting Tips

Have a planning meeting so that everyone is on the same page. Decide together if there is a theme or color palette. Decide on a budget and then divide up the duties.
It might be helpful to have one person be the main point of contact. For instance, the maid of honor may be the head of the bridal party planning, or the mom of the mom-to-be might be the main person in charge of a baby shower.
It can be helpful for every co-host to contribute a set amount and then as a group decide who gets what. For instance, food is generally a more expensive item so half of the money might go towards food, a quarter to decorating, and a quarter of the funds for everything else.
Pooling your money can also open up possibilities that otherwise wouldn’t be possible. If every co-host contributes $100, perhaps you can afford to have a bridal shower at the bride’s favorite restaurant or rent a limo for your night out.
Borrow what you don’t already have.

Low Cost and Free Party Invitations

Look for free printable invitations or create one yourself on Canva. If you go that route, you’re only in it for the cost of the cardstock, ink and postage.

If you want a completely free option, there are several digital options. Canva and Greetings Island are two solid options for beautiful invitations.

Budget Party Decorating

This is my favorite part! There are so many creative ways to save money and still have a gorgeous party!

Budget Party Decorating Tips

Incorporate your gift into the decorations. Check out this adorable garland for a Little Man Baby Shower. It was a major piece of party decor and also a gift….win/win!

Don’t underestimate the power of the dollar store! Actually, my local Walmart has a bunch of $1 party supplies as well. I recently purchased three different colored streamers, plates, napkins, cups, an 8-pack of treat bags and a bag of balloons for $8. Add to that some free printables and I was pretty much ready to go!
If budget allows, fresh flowers elevate your decorations and make a wonderful gift for your guest of honor to take home. Or keep them for yourself! You deserve it after all that planning!
Look for free party printables. This is a great way to add style or themed decor without spending anything extra.

Party Food on a Budget

This is usually where you’ll spend the most money. If the decor is a little light, no one really cares or even notices. No one is going to remember what the invitations looked like, only that they were cute. But food? Well food is what makes a party!

You don’t need a full menu, but whatever you provide should be delicious…and not break the bank.

Budget Party Food Tips

If you really want to save some money, plan your party in-between major meals. Plan to serve desserts or appetizers rather than a full meal.
If you do plan a meal, make it a buffet, rather than a plated meal.

Meat stretches much farther if it’s in a soup, stew, chili or casserole. You could also consider things like tacos, delicious and each taco can only fit so much meat.
If you are co-hosting with several other people, make it a potluck and have each co-host bring their specialty food, or be responsible for one type of food: dessert, appetizers, sides or main dish. Did you see how I listed “dessert” first? It’s a party, why not!!

If you are having your party catered, consider Mexican food. I’m not gonna lie, Mexican food is my absolute favorite so it’s often my go-to food idea anyway, but it’s also one of the least expensive foods to cater. I have a local restaurant that caters for around $11 per person. For a 10-person party, that’s $110! Yes please!
Have a food bar of some kind: baked potato bar, taco bar, chili bar, ice cream bar…you get the idea.

Party Drinks and Beverages

Drinks can get expensive. Skip the individual cans and bottles and provide drink stations with cups, glasses or flutes (depending on what you’re serving).

Filtered tap water with sliced cucumbers, fresh sprigs of herbs or sliced lemons, in a pretty dispenser makes a nice display AND provides a refreshing delicious beverage.
If you’re serving alcohol, don’t have an open bar. Make one signature drink and put it in a nice glass beverage dispenser. Or make a few pitchers of your favorite drink. If you have a mimosa bar or wine bar, buy what your budget allows and when it runs out, it runs out. Try to serve everyone who wants one, their first drink so everyone gets one. Then let people get their own second drinks.
Punch in a punch bowl is another option for a large batch of beverages. Just be sure to let people know if it has alcohol or not!

Party Games and Activities

This is one area that can be free if you need it to! There are so many options for games out there. There are plenty of free printable games, but honestly there are plenty of games that don’t require anything to play and are totally free.

You can provide a little treat for the winner(s) if you want, but it doesn’t have to be anything expensive. It can be a homemade cookie, a fancy chocolate truffle, a notepad, a mug, or an inexpensive candle.

Free Printable Games

Fish Bowl Game

Fishbowl is a fun party game that mixes charades, Password, and Taboo. It’s my very favorite party or family-gathering game to play and it’s 100% free. All you need are a few scraps of paper. Here’s how to play:

Setup

Split into two or more teams
Everyone writes 3-5 words or phrases on small slips of paper (people, objects, places, movie titles, anything) and drops them all into one bowl
The bowl gets passed around round to round, so the same slips get reused three times

Round 1: Taboo style
Each player takes a turn drawing slips from the bowl one at a time and describing them to their team using any words except the word itself, within a time limit (usually 1 minute). Team guesses as many as they can before time runs out. All slips are kept out of the bowl until the last one has been guessed. Once every slip of paper has been guessed, you move onto round 2.

Round 2: Charades style
Same slips, same bowl, but now players can only act it out, no talking allowed. This is where it gets funny, since everyone already sort of remembers what’s in the bowl from round 1, but now they have to get it across through gestures alone.

Round 3: One word only
Same slips again, but this round each player can only say a single word to get their team to guess it. Since everyone’s heard these words twice already, this round tends to fly by fast and gets pretty ridiculous.

Scoring
Each correct guess is a point for that team. Add up points across all three rounds, and whichever team has the most at the end wins.

Talking and Visiting

Honestly, I do love a party game, but it’s also okay to sit around a visit, especially if that’s what the guest of honor would enjoy the most. Be sure to communicate with your guest of honor while planning the party to get an idea of what she would enjoy the most!