Last weekend, my mother and i hosted a bridal shower for my sister, Frances, in my parent's Orange County home. I had fun making up bridal games and activities, planning the menu, and making the decor.

I chose the Flirty French theme because, from first to sixth grade Frances attended a magnet school that taught French, and France and the French language has always been something that she idolized (plus, the word "France" in Frances). Once we met a woman from Quebec in a restaurant, and Frances spent hours conversing with the woman in French.

Anyway, I had a very small budget so much of the decor was DIY. I printed clip art from MS Word and framed the images. A quick google search gave me a list of romantic sayings and phrases in the French language, which i printed on clear lables, stuck on place cards, and used as part of the decoration. I also used things from around the house like my Mothers Party Lite vases and candles.

The theme colors were pink, black and white. I bought individual packets of colored M&M's, circles of tulle and ribbon to create the party favors. I made a mistake when purchasing the balloons - i accidentally bought purple instead of black! Of course, the store wouldnt switch for the right color unless i purchased more balloons...so i had to keep purple. booo!

 For about $3-$5 you can download and print great games for any occasion at Purple Trail. but I decided to make my own (with Word, of course), but i dont think anyone really noticed that they were homemade. We played Bridal Pictionary, using movie titles and love songs, a Love Song - Movie Match-up (where they match the love song to the movie), and a game I made up where all the guests got in groups and had to make a veil using only the materials supplied (similar to the toilet paper wedding dress game). Frances chose a winning veil and had to wear it for the remainder of the day!

The menu was great. My mother made a cold Chicken Pasta Salad, I baked a Stawberry Pie with coffee, made pitchers of Cosmopolitins using a store-bought mix, and a friend brought in Croissant Sandwiches and Cookies. I thought it would be cute to serve fruit on skewers and that was a big hit! Its very inexpensive, easy to make and it looks classy!

All in all, we had a great time and the bride-to-be enjoyed herself. Ok, time for pictures!