Guest List For A Bachelorette Party

Often girls wonder who should be invited to a bachelorette party. There are no hard and fast rules about who to invite and who to exclude, but a few key tips will help you decide who is an appropriate guest.

First, what do you do if you are having a very small, intimate wedding? Is it appropriate to invite girlfriends to the bachelorette party who aren't invited to the wedding itself? It is a tricky issue to determine who can be invited to the bachelorette party if they aren't coming to the wedding. Technically, coworkers, neighbors, and other female friends who won't be at the wedding can be invited to the bachelorette party, even though this isn't appropriate for a bridal shower. However, there are a few keys to inviting these people. First, make it clear that presents are not required, and they are being invited simply because the bride values their friendship. Next, make it clear that this isn't an implicit invitation to the wedding. Express the reason - is the wedding a destination event, or being held at a very small local church? Have the bride and groom decided to only invite family? Whatever the consideration, be up front with your bachelorette party guests so that they can attend or decline the invitation to the bachelorette party knowing all the facts.

Another tricky issue can be inviting mothers or grandmothers to a bachelorette party. What do you do if the mother of the bride assumes she's invited to a bachelorette party? T hat all depends on what kind of bachelorette party is being thrown and how close the bride is to her mom.

If the bride herself wouldn't feel like the party is complete without her mom, by all means invite her to the bachelorette party. If the bachelorette party is a spa day or something else low key, that is an appropriate event to include moms, aunts, and grandmothers.

However, it is also completely acceptable to make the bachelorette party "girlfriends only." This can be expressed delicately to the mother of the bride or any other family members, and using the term "girlfriends only," usually helps. This works best when the bride wants a bawdier party, such as a night out at bars and clubs where a mom or grandmother may feel uncomfortable or out of place.

Who must be included on the bachelorette party invitation list? First and foremost, anyone the bride wants invited to her bachelorette party must be invited, no matter their relationship with the hostess of the party. If two friends aren't getting along, they should both be invited if the bride wants them to be there, and if they are real friends they'll suck it up for one night and celebrate with the bride.

Also, every single bridesmaid must be included at the bachelorette party. It would be rude and insensitive to single out any bridesmaid as unworthy of being invited to the bachelorette event, and there is no reason to cause trouble among the group in that way.