I have a wedding coming up in my family and I am so excited. My son is getting married in July so I decided to give my future daughter-in-law a bridal shower at my home. As a young girl, Makenzie always had a dream to have a barn wedding, and in July her dream is going to come true. So when I was planning out the Bridal Shower I wanted to come up with the same kind of theme to go along with all the festivities ahead of us.

 

First I started with the menu. I thought we would have it on a Saturday morning and I could do a quick and easy breakfast brunch. I decided to do my easy Salsa Egg Bake and instead of putting it into a 9×13 glass pan, I would place the egg bake into muffin pans to make it more like finger food. It turned out great and they were a delicious way to serve a traditional breakfast meal in an adorable hand-held snack size – perfect for the occasion.

Next I wanted to serve some cut fruit but wanted to do something different instead of just placing it into a bowl. So I made fruit kabobs and once they were done I cut a watermelon in half and stuck the kabobs straight up to give some height variation at the buffet table. Then, as always, I just had to serve Four Brothers Fruit Dip to make them even more luscious to eat. I can promise it was a fan favorite this weekend.

I am a scone lover, and couldn’t make up my mind what flavor I wanted. It was between raspberry and blueberry so I said, “Why not both?” Fresh raspberries and blueberries were picked up right out of our Produce Department, and boy were they delicious. The recipe is so easy and they were the hit of the party because they were so moist and had such great fruit flavor.

Here is the recipe for Raspberry or Blueberry Almond Scones along with the recipe that I use for my famous Almond Glaze recipe. Both are delicious and surprisingly simple to make!

Next came the center of the plate with a meat and cheese tray. I did it a little different this time because I felt like making my own version of meat and cheese tray that would go along with the party theme. I placed a variety of Kretschmar shaved meat such as Honey Ham, Honey Turkey, Chipotle Chicken and Hard Salami throughout the tray. I also tied in green and black olives along with a variety of red and green grapes that paired so well with the cheese. Now you also can’t forget to serve some Artisan breads with the meat and cheese and Coborn’s has a variety of flavors to choose from.

Last but not least, I needed a dessert to serve and wanted to go outside that box with an idea. Well the other day I was in one of our Coborn’s stores and in the Bakery Department was a perfect display of cupcakes. They were actually on display in a little flower plot and the minute I saw it I knew this was what I needed. It brought such beautiful color to my table and they were the perfect sweet treat at the end of the brunch meal.

Now I needed to serve some beverages so I thought of the perfect item for brunch and it was Mimosas. I had poured a variety of juices (orange juice, cranberry juice and pink lemonade). Then I just added some Risata Moscato d’ Asti. To garnish the table and add some natural sweetness to the drinks, I placed some fresh fruit in dishes so my guests could help themselves. I served fresh blackberries, strawberries or raspberries for the guests to add to their drinks.

Once I figured out the entire menu, I just had to tie in the barn theme. I did so successfully by using a wooden dish holder, twine and ribbon. I started with my grandmothers lace tablecloth, wrapped some lace and twine around blue canning jars and I put a candle in. I placed picture of the engaged couple around the Mimosa Bar and buffet table, added some favors to give out to each guest that said “Love is Brewing” and placed some bags of tea in each one.

I couldn’t forget to add some fresh flowers to the table and Coborn’s has them in the Cash & Carry section of the Floral Department. It was also a great gift to pass on to the Bride to Be! The fresh spring colors were beautiful and they smelled great as well – which is always a plus. I enjoyed the large pink flowers as they gave the barn theme a modern day look with splashes of fun colors.

My front door went along with the barn theme as well as I featured a beautiful ring of white flowers in a circular wreath shape with a simple veil decorating the base of the wreath. I put it right outside by my welcome sign so the guests could stop and admire Makenzie’s theme before they even entered the house. A last minute pointer to remember as you are setting up your buffet table is to always have some height at the back of the table and throughout your display. To do so, I used martini glasses to serve out of and displayed them on a section of the table. To add to this, I even laid one down on the tray to have the olives flow from it. Finally, in order to keep the barn look theme going, I used wood pieces to display many of the foods and beverage options.

If you like the printouts that you see in the video or throughout the blog images above you can also print them off  to use at your next Bridal Shower. Whether the bride you are hosting for has a rustic barn theme wedding or not, these fun printables are a great way to add a touch of creativity to the average bridal shower party. From games, mimosa bar signs, food labels and party gift ideas we’ve thought about everything for this blog!

The Free Printables I’m offering that were featured throughout today’s blog are:

• The Guess Who Bride or Groom Game: Click Here to download.
• The How Well Does She Know Her Groom Game: Click Here to download.
• The Tea Bag Label for the Party Guest Gifts: Click Here to download.
• The Mimosa Bar Sign: Click Here to download.
• The Mimosa Bar Fruit Labels (Includes Strawberries, Raspberries, Peaches, Blackberries & Blank Labels to Write Your Own): Click Here to download.
• The Mimosa Bar Juice, Wine or Champagne Labels (Includes Pink Lemonade, Orange Juice, Cranberry Juice & Blank Labels to Write Your Own Varieties of Beverage Options): Click Here to download.

As you can see by Makenzie and the rest of the guests’ expressions, this Bridal Shower party was a huge success and we had an absolute blast. I hope some of these quick and easy tips help you plan your next Bridal Shower!

Jayne
Coborn’s Inc. Meat and Seafood Merchandiser

Click Here for more articles written by Jayne