Category Archives: Party Games

Printable Bachelorette Game: Name 3

This printable bachelorette game is based on the board game Five Second Rule, so if you’ve ever played, you already know the basics. Each card asks you to name 3 of something. In this case, I’ve created a special deck with cards that have a wedding/love theme, so you’ll have to name things like three wedding destinations, three celebrity couples or three stripper costumes. If you name three in five seconds, you keep the card. If you can’t name three, you pass the card to the next person in the circle and they try to name three…but they can’t repeat any of your answers! Keep going until someone can name three in five seconds. The person who has the most cards at the end of the game wins.

To make this a drinking game, you drink if you fail to name three. If you succeed, everyone else drinks!

It may seem simple, but having such a short time limit will lead to some pretty hilarious answers as people are forced to spit out the first thing that comes to mind.

You’ll need:
This printable deck of cards – Click here to download the PDF for easy printing.
A five-second timer

Printable Bachelorette Game: Name 3Printable Bachelorette Game: Name 3 Printable Bachelorette Game: Name 3


Bachelorette or Bridal Shower Game: Create a Hilarious Personalized Mad Lib

The great news about this game is that the bride already did a lot of the work for you, and she doesn’t even know it! To create a hilarious and personalized bridal shower Mad Lib game, simply head to the bride’s wedding website and click on her “About Us” or “Our Story” page. Here, most couples will have included a paragraph or two describing their relationship—how they met, some of the high points of their relationship, how they fell in love, how he proposed. This is perfect material for a Mad Lib. Simply copy and paste the bride’s words into a Word doc and then get to work choosing key words to cut out.

Create a hilarious personalized mad lib game for a bridal shower or bachelorette party. Plus, it's so easy since the bride has already done half the work for you!

I’ll use my own wedding website as an example. First, go through and identify words that have potential to be replaced. I’ve highlighted some in red below.

Caitlin and Andrew met in New York City in 2010. We met on Match.com (and no, we will not be auditioning for the commercials) and immediately felt at ease with each other, finding that we shared a sense of humor and a love of literature, traveling and the outdoors. While we couldn’t find much common grounds in our music tastes, we soon found ourselves exploring NYC together and growing closer as we learned more about each other (eventually we would even find some bands we could both tolerate).

When we had been dating for only a few months, Andrew asked Caitlin if she wanted to take a trip to Iceland with him. Caitlin was surprised to be asked to go on an international vacation together so soon but (after conferring with some of her girlfriends and deciding that yes, this was crazy, but yes, it was also awesome) she decided to go for it. It turned out to be one of the most amazing trips we’ve ever been on and set the tone for our relationship: encouraging each other to try new things, supporting each other through challenges, and laughing along the way.

After three years of heavy commuting from Caitlin’s apartment on the Upper East Side to Andrew’s apartment in Brooklyn (including Caitlin hysterically calling Andrew a record 21 times in one night when she found a mouse in her apartment at 1am), we moved into our apartment in Brooklyn’s Park Slope, where we are still living today. Five years after our first whirlwind trip abroad, we’re still going on crazy adventures and loving every minute of it.

I recommend leaving a maximum of 20-30 blanks, depending on the length of the bios. Mine was really long (because, hi, I like to write) so this version has 30 blanks. I even cut a few sentences that didn’t have good Mad Lib potential because mine was just too long. You want to have at least one blank per sentence. To figure out whether it will be funny or not, just slot in sex words while you’re working on it. You want to find the words in the sentence that will have the greatest impact. For example, in the first sentence, I want to keep “Caitlin and Andrew met” because it gives me the potential for a funny explanation of how we met. Changing the year wouldn’t be very funny, so choosing the place is the best word to change in the sentence. In general, you should keep the names of the bride and groom because you want it to be about them. And don’t change so many words that their story becomes unrecognizable.

You can also choose phrases rather than single words. For example, replacing just “at ease” might result in an awkward turn of phrase because of “with each other” following it. But if we just replace that whole phrase “at ease with each other” with a feeling, we’re guaranteed to get something that works. We’ll immediately feel “sexy” or “nauseous.”

Next you need to write out a list of the types of words you need. Here’s where you need to stretch your high school English muscles. You don’t have to follow the exact format of the original. For example, with my first blank “New York City,” I could say “city” but the answer wouldn’t be very funny. It’s much better to just say “place.” Then Andrew and I can meet in a bathroom or at a sex club. You can also lead the witness a little to make the Mad Lib funnier and specifically ask for the type of words you want. For example, if you want a place, just say place. If you want a number, just say number. If you want a body party, say body part.

If your high school English skills are a little rusty, here’s a quick guide to a few of the most common parts of speech to slot in.

noun: a person, place or thing (bride, strip club, wedding ring)
proper noun: a specific person or place (Michael Jackson, Disney World)
gerund: here’s some advanced shit for you. A gerund is derived from a verb, but functions as a noun. You can identify them because they always end in -ing. In the example above, “commuting” and “traveling” are gerunds.

verb: an action word (wiggle, run, jump)
For verbs, make sure to communicate the tense you need. You will probably need past tense, present tense and verbs ending in -ing (present participles).

adjective: describes a noun (in the example above, crazy and awesome are adjectives)

adverb: describes or modifies a verb, adjective or another adverb (hint: adverbs often end in -ly, like warmly or kindly)

interjection: a word or phrase that expresses surprise or emotion (WTF! Yikes! Hooray!)

If you’re worried about how the bridal shower Mad Lib will work, try taking it on a test drive with one other person (maybe someone who won’t be attending the party). This will help you figure out if any of the blanks aren’t really working. But don’t stress over it too much. It’s a Mad Lib, it’s supposed to be a little wacky!

The Ultimate Simple, No-Fuss Bridal Shower Game: Scratch-Off Cards!

Let’s face it: You can only fill out a zany, mildly inappropriate mad lib or wrap a grown woman in toilet paper so many times before you start to feel ridiculous. But what never gets old? Winning things! For the bride who doesn’t want cheesy bridal shower games, but does want a small interactive activity at her shower, try this bridal shower scratch-off game! Give each guest a card as they arrive or place them at each table setting. The winner’s card will be marked with “I DO!” It’s quick, simple, and absolutely no skill is involved. And you still get to hand out a cute prize. Win/win. Check out more colors and other games at Beau Coup
The Ultimate Simple, No-Fuss Bridal Shower Game: Scratch-Off Cards! from Beau-Coup The Ultimate Simple, No-Fuss Bridal Shower Game: Scratch-Off Cards! from Beau-Coup The Ultimate Simple, No-Fuss Bridal Shower Game: Scratch-Off Cards! from Beau-Coup

Photographs by Mintwood Photo Co.

Bridal Shower & Bachelorette Game: What’s in Your Cell Phone?

I have to admit that I’m totally guilty of spending way too much time on my cell phone. When I go on vacation, I intentionally “cell phone detox,” which means no email, no social media, no texting—and it’s awesome. That said, why not put all our obsessive Instagramming to good use? I’ve updated the traditional “What’s in your purse” bridal shower game for the smartphone generation. Ultimate Bridesmaid presents the What’s in Your Cell Phone game

bachelorette game whats in your cell phoneI’ve created two free printable games for you. One is appropriate for a bridal shower with mixed age groups (i.e., even your mom should be able to play). The second one is designed for a bachelorette party, with questions geared toward the younger crowd that include a few racier requests. I’ve also give you the full list of questions after the jump in case you want to select the questions that you like most and create your own printout.

Don’t just pass out the sheets and let people fill in their scores though. Have the host read each question aloud and then ask guests to share their answers when appropriate. Guests can use their sheet to record their score, but make sure you keep everyone engaged and talking. Share the photos you have to hunt down, make them admit if they have Candy Crush and find out who scores the highest on rounds that award multiple points.

Make sure to download the PDF versions from the links below for the best printing results:

Bridal Shower What’s in Your Cell Phone Game

Bachelorette What’s in Your Cell Phone Game

Bridal Shower What's in Your Cell Phone Game Bachelorette What's in Your Cell Phone Game

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The Cake Pull Tradition

What is a cake pull? The cake pull is a Southern tradition, most popular in Louisiana, that could be an excellent alternative to the bouquet toss (which I personally loathe) or a way to share a special moment with your bridesmaids at the wedding. Since I’ve never personally participated in a cake pull, I went to my cousin Dawn, a Louisianan and veteran cake puller (she’s been in 9) for information on this Southern tradition. “What I love about the cake pull is that it is a way to include more female friends without having 20 girls in your wedding party,” she says. “As I get older, participating in one more ‘single girls’ activity at weddings can be slightly awkward, but this is much less humiliating than the bouquet toss. I plan to include one at my wedding!” Here’s a breakdown on what a cake pull is and how to incorporate one at your wedding or bridal shower.

What is a cake pull? Find out how to incorporate this Southern tradition into your wedding.

The Cake Pull Tradition
There seem to be a few variations on the tradition. In one, unmarried female friends are invited to participate and in the other only the bridesmaids partake. In either version, a set of charms is placed under a layer of the cake and each girl pulls one, though in the bridesmaid version the “next to be married” charm must be removed if one or more of your maids is already hitched. While the cake pull most often takes place at the wedding reception, some will argue it should actually be done at the bridesmaid luncheon or even at the shower.

How To Do It Yourself
Ok, let’s talk logistics. The cake pulls are typically given to the baker the week of the wedding and then placed when assembling the cake at the reception site. Dawn has placed them herself when organizing a pull for a friend, and advises you to have extra icing on hand to pipe around the base of the cake once the pulls are placed. A ribbon is tied to each charm (or if you want to get creative, you can attach them to charm bracelets). You can find a vendors on Etsy selling cake pulls, but you can also make your own by picking up charms and ribbon at a local craft store.

Common Charms and Their Meanings
Each charm has a different meaning and tells you something about what’s to come in your life. Common charms might include a camera or the Eiffel tower (a life of travel), a flip-flop (a life full of relaxing fun), a cross (a life full of faith), a heart (a life full of love), a ring (the next to be married) and a pacifier or baby carriage (the next to have a baby). There are even Louisiana-themed cake pulls, like a crawfish for a life of good fortune or a Mardi Gras mask for the life of the party. The bride can select which charms she wants to incorporate, or even assign special meaning to personal charms. You could attach a folded card to the end of the pull with a quote to reveal the meaning of the charm—just make sure no one peeks before the pull!

Image courtesy of Katie H Photography.

Ultimate Bridesmaid’s Top 10 Posts: Year 1

Ultimate Bridesmaid's Top 10 Guides (Bridal Shower Games, Writing a Maid of Honor Speech, Planning a Bachelorette Weekend and much more!)

When I was first asked to be a bridesmaid, I Googled “bridesmaid duties” (just like you probably did) and found myself led to a string of websites that look like they were thrown together around the time the internet was invented. I was really disappointed to see that there was very little real advice for bridesmaids that delved below the superficial and most of the lists I found seemed dated and out of touch, a sort of “Miss Manners” approach rather than an honest assessment of what to expect. I decided to use my own experience to put together articles and guides that might help other women like me. I’m really honored to find out that these articles dominate this year’s top 10. I could spend hours collaging gorgeous images of bridal showers or compiling bachelorette inspiration boards, but I really put my heart into these articles. Thanks for reading them and I promise I’ll keep more coming in year two. Please let me know what topics you’d like more info on in the coming year!

1. The Ultimate Maid of Honor Speech

How to Give the Ultimate Maid of Honor SpeechThis post was far and away the highest viewed in our first year. In my opinion, delivering a speech at a wedding is probably the most difficult thing asked of the maid of honor. Planning parties may be time consuming and logistically complicated, but writing and delivering a speech comes with a lot of pressure. This post breaks down how to structure the beginning, middle and end of your speech, with ideas for topics, jumping-off points and even a gimmick or two.

2. The Maid of Honor Speech: Do’s and Don’ts

The Ultimate Maid of Honor Speech: Do's and Don'ts

Speech writing and giving was such a large topic that I had to split it into two posts. If you’re looking for down and dirty tips for delivering the speech, I actually recommend this post over the first, which is more focused on the writing process.

3. Bachelorette Games: The Fiancé Quiz

Bachelorette Games: The Fiance QuizAfter the Maid of Honor Speech, you were most interested in bachelorette games. This is a classic, and is still my number one go-to for every kind of bachelorette party, be it a raucous destination weekend or a more intimate dinner with friends. It can even be adapted to a bridal shower—just make the question PG-13 for the daytime crowd.

4. Bachelorette Games: Bar Scavenger Hunt

Bachelorette Games: Bar Scavenger Hunt

Your fourth favorite post—with super-fun free printable checklist!

Ultimate Bridesmaid bachelorette bar scavenger hunt

5. Bachelorette Games: Most Likely To…

Bachelorette Games: Most Likely To

A hilarious game to play with a close-knit group of friends (even if its not a bachelorette party!).

6. 5 Simple Bridal Shower Games (that don’t suck)

5 Simple Bridal Shower Games (that don't suck)

I typically find bridal shower games to be incredibly boring, so I decided to pull together five not-lame options. Toilet paper wedding dresses are just not my jam. Being made to wear a hideous veil every time you let the word “bride” or “wedding” slip? Highly preferable. Maybe that’s just me.

7. A Step-by-Step Guide to Planning a Bachelorette Weekend

A step-by-step guide to planning a bachelorette weekend

This post was seriously a labor of love. I pulled from all of my experiences to put together all the details for organizing a bachelorette weekend, with a timeline and advice on how to coordinate a huge number of girls, find lodging, book dinners, plan events and keep everyone entertained.

8 and 9. Lingerie Shower and Mission Bachelorette Party!

IMG_1040These two posts make me a little bit nostalgic and bring back great memories because they are two of my very first posts on Ultimate Bridesmaid. Both talk about my own experiences planning parties, one for my friend Amanda’s lingerie shower in Atlanta and another for my friend Marisa’s bachelorette party in Savannah.

10. Six Dirty Details Bridesmaids Need to Know

Six Dirty Details Bridesmaids Need to Know

From your unofficial role as Designated Bride Bodyguard on bachelorette night to corset-lacing, bustling and the ol “help the bride pee” bit on wedding day, this list includes six parts of bridesmaiding you may not be looking forward to, but you’ll need to be prepared all the same!

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Let me know what aspects of bridesmaid duties you want to know more about in the comments! I’ll have many new guides and articles in year 2.

5 Simple Bridal Shower Games (that don’t suck)

Bridal shower games are not mandatory, but they can help break up the day and be funny and cute. Save the racy stuff for the bachelorette though. At a bridal shower, you’re going to need activities that work for a mixed group of ages. Remember that people want to eat, drink, and chat, not have a regimented schedule of enforced games, so just choose a few to sprinkle in. And have prizes! People are more likely to take interest if there’s chocolate involved.

Bridezilla

Before the shower, make the most hideous veil you can with a cheap tiara, glitter, different colors of tulle—whatever you can muster. Then once all the guests have arrived, tell them that the word “wedding” and “bride” are banned. If you use one of the words, you are Bridezilla and have the wear the veil until someone else slips up! During your time as Bridezilla you are encouraged to add to the veil to make it more hideous if possible.

Ring Hunt

Hide fake diamond engagement rings around the house and tell the guests to collect them throughout the party and put them on as they find them. The guests wearing the most rings at the end of the party wins. This one is simple, non-invasive and will lead to plenty of cute pictures.

Chick Flick Charades

We all know how to play charades. But raise the bar by banning the typical tactic of acting out the words in the title. Instead, pairs of guests have to act out a scene from different chick flicks. You’ll end up reenacting the Katz’s Deli scene from When Harry Met Sally, snapping a jewelry box closed as Julia Roberts reaches for her necklace in Pretty Woman, or trying to jump into Patrick Swayze’s arms for Dirty Dancing. If both players claim to have never seen the film and thus cannot act out a scene, let them default to the title, but make sure you appropriately shame them for neglecting to watch You’ve Got Mail. You can also opt for a tiered point system: 1 point for just acting out the title, 2 points for a scene, and 5 points for acting out the entire movie in less than two minutes. Some other flicks to throw in: My Best Friend’s Wedding, Runaway Bride, 27 Dresses, Sleepless in Seattle, Bridget Jones’ Diary, Something’s Got to Give, Love Actually, Breakfast at Tiffany’s.

Two Truths and a Lie

Guests take turns sharing two truths and a lie about the bride. It’s a good idea to announce this game early in the shower so guests have time to think of good facts. Maybe bring it up before lunch or dinner is served or before you open presents. The facts can be about their friendship or history with the bride—they’ve been friends for 15 years, they taught the bride how to drive, they shared a lost weekend in Myrtle Beach—or a little known fact about the bride—the details of her first kiss, what she really thought of her groom when she first met him, her biggest pet peeve. Everyone else writes down the number of the fact they think is false. Those who get it right get a little prize or a point and most points win at the end. Remember to keep this PG-13 if you’re in a shower with mixed age groups or that includes relatives or coworkers of the bride who may not need to know about her scandalous behavior in college…or six months ago.

Purse Scavenger Hunt

This game may seem too simple or overdone, but in this version you add an element of urgency. In the typical game you get a point for each item that you have, but in this version it’s the first person to find the item who wins. Watching women frantically rifle through their purses is what makes it funny. People will know they have that peppermint but they just can’t find it!

Come up with a list of items a woman might have in her purse. The host reads the items aloud and the first person to fish that item out of her purse gets a prize. You can also give out small prizes for each item, but then designate points to each item for a big reward at the end. Make sure it’s on a sliding scale so that easy items like wallet and keys get one point and harder ones like dog treat, pepper spray or corkscrew get more. Here’s a fun sample list. You’ll be surprised how many of these people have in their purses!

Wallet, keys, cell phone, mirror, lip gloss, foundation, mascara, deodorant, hairbrush, tweezers, umbrella, book, pepper spray, dog treat, condom, tampon, Advil, band-aid, stomach medicine, underwear, scissors, a Groupon, a stamp, a mint, a bottle of water, USB flash drive, a $50 bill, a menu, stain remover and bottle opener. You can also throw in a few things that require a little bit of extra effort. For example: a picture of the bride. Someone’s got to have it on their phone, right? A cup of coffee will have clever people riffling through their wallets for their Starbucks gift card.