Is your daughter, sister, or best friend about to get engaged to the man of her dreams? One way that you can support, love, and celebrate her and her soon-to-be groom is to throw a fun surprise party after the proposal!
Surprise parties are an exciting way to kick off the engagement season, extend the joy and excitement of the proposal, and connect friends and family of the bride and groom!
Here are eight ideas that will help you plan a flawless surprise engagement party that everyone will be talking about for years to come:
1. Delegate, Delegate, Delegate!
Now that you’ve been tasked with throwing the most unforgettable engagement party, find some friends and family members of the soon-to-be bride and groom to help pull it off! They are going to know the couple the best and can help add personal touches that will be a meaningful addition to the party. Friends and family will be excited to jump in and celebrate, so ask specifically for someone to do tasks such as order food, send out invites, take photos, or make a celebratory toast, and a few people to set up and clean up the soiree!
2. Space to Celebrate
Pick a location for the surprise engagement party that will allow for a lot of mingling. The best locations will allow guests to share in the excitement and hear all about the exciting proposal details as well as see that sparkly ring! Don’t limit your options – it could be a parent’s home, a restaurant, or a park! It could also be a meaningful place for the couple such as where they first met or where they went on your first date.
3. No Hangry Guests
Every party needs snacks and drinks! Because the party is all about people connecting, party food should be easy to eat while moving around – think bite-size. Consider a fun snack bar – it could be a waffle bar for brunch, appetizers for the afternoon, or a dessert bar for the evening! If you are unsure of what food would be best, consider favorites of the new Mr. and Mrs. To keep it simple, choose foods that are easy to prepare or even ready upon purchase, not time-dependent in case the bride and groom don’t arrive when expected, and not perishable so guests can keep snacking throughout the entire length of the party!
Don’t forget to have bubbly options for toasts! Consider a champagne or sangria bar with fruit and fruit juice. And don’t forget to have a non-alcoholic option such as sparkling cider so everyone can participate in the toasts!
4. Make it Instagram-worthy
The element that is going to add spark and charm to any party location is the decorations. Choose a theme for the decorations. It can be based on a color template, the proposal story, or a general engagement theme with fun sayings such as:
• Bride and Groom / Soon-To-Be Mr. and Mrs.
• Love / Happily Ever After
• He Popped the Question / She Said Yes!
If you don’t know where to start, focus on a photo op for all the guests to commemorate the happy couple.
A photo op could include a banner, balloons, paper fans, garland, and/or twinkly lights. Other decorations to liven up the space could be flowers, table covers, and candles. One way to personalize the decorations would be to include photos of the bride and groom in a homemade garland or as table centerpieces.
5. Special Keepsake
Plan to have a special takeaway for the bride and groom to remember their special day. A gift could be a set of champagne flutes or a planner for wedding plans! A personalized gift could be a book or frame for party guests to sign. One unique idea is to have a few bottles of wine designated for future anniversary celebrations. Guests can use a metallic gold or silver sharpie to sign the bottles with well wishes!
Another idea is to have a station for party guests to share ideas and suggestions with the happy couple. This could be a basket of well wishes, a bucket for bucket-list ideas, or a jar for date night suggestions!
6. Slow Jams
But, not really. Setting the tone with the right playlist for the party will help create that lovin’ feeling! Consider fun, upbeat, love songs to keep the heart-warming and jubilant mood going!
7. SURPRISE!!
The best part of a post-proposal party is the surprise factor! But, because of that, party hosts need to be prepared and party guests need to be flexible.
Because it is a surprise, let your guests know where to park so their cars are hidden and ask them to arrive 30 minutes prior to your expected arrival time. Consider using the Find My Friends app on the soon-to-be groom’s phone so that you can track the couple’s whereabouts and know when to be ready for the big surprise.
Once the couple has made their grand entrance, give them time to enjoy greeting and mingling with guests before toasts and proposal story sharing.
If you want to play a game after the toasts, choose something lighthearted like a newlywed game between married couples at the party. This can help be an icebreaker to connect guests who may not know each other yet!
8. Have Fun!
You are helping the new couple kick off their engagement season! Although it will be a lot of fun, planning a wedding is also a lot of work. Help them savor every fun and exciting and heart-racing moment of this special day from beginning to end!
