Our Engagement Party + Tips

Outfit Info: In Store-Cake Walk Style Shop  // Identical Dress!  // red lips // heels // pearl bracelet

As most of you guys know, Colton and I got engaged while we were in Capri and I don’t think it even took us a day to decide that we wanted to throw a huge party for it as soon as we got back. As amazing as it was being there, we were anxious to celebrate our engagement and to see all of our friends. To be able to share this moment with every person who had been such a huge part of our relationship. 

The party turned out to be a dream and such a sweet celebration. It was very emotional for Colton and I to have everyone there in one place. From high school friends who mean so much to Colton and I, to our college friends who watched our relationship start and grow, it was pretty surreal having everyone in one place. One of my best friends even flew in from LA to surprise us! It was seriously just such a fun night. I wish I could relive it over again lol. 

When we first started planning the party, I was clueless, so thank goodness for my best friend Ann (she used to work for A Fare Extraordinaire) who pretty much took care of all the complicated stuff for me.  We sat down with my dad, made a list, and the rest was pretty easy going! That is until about 12:00 the day of the party. Honestly, so much happened in 5 hours that I don’t even know where to begin. I’ll just give you the gist of it and say that the venue double booked, Colton & our friends from out of town got into a car accident on their way to pick up food and Randall’s popped all of our LOVE balloons right before the party started. Looking back it really wasn’t that bad, but at the moment I was convinced that this was too much stress to handle -lol! The party would not have been possible without Annie, my parents, and Colton’s parents. Everyone seriously pulled their own weight. 

We had an open bar, a ridiculous amount of food (especially sushi!), a dessert table filled with Colton’s favorite cupcakes and the cutest little engagement cookies. Of course we included a Mister Bentley, and my mother and grandmother did all of the floral. We also had the best cello and guitar duo playing throughout the whole event. I highly recommend them! They were seriously so good and played the best music without being overbearing.

When it came to the guest list, we wanted to keep it under 50 people. When we first started writing the list, we had both of our immediate families + all of our friends and the list quickly jumped too over 100 lol. So we chose to only have our parents//grandparents and then only friends who had impacted our relationship in someway. We tried to stray away from one sided friendships because this wasn’t just my party nor his, but ours. This was the hardest part. 

My favorite part though, with out a doubt were the speeches. My Dad gave a really sweet speech, as did Colton. Then of course my mom gave her two cents and Colton’s dad of course made a ridiculous speech to try and embarrass Colton and I – lol. It really was just such a fun party! I kept joking that I didn’t even need a wedding after this because this was  all I needed!  After the party ended, we headed to La Grange to continue the celebration! 

It truly was a night I will never forget and was the perfect kickstart to our wedding journey! Thank you Dad so much for such a n amazing party. It made Colton and I feel very special, and very loved. 

My advice for anyone throwing an engagement party

1. Use your resources & connections. Whether it’s for food, entertainment or literally anything else, think about who you  or your parents know & reach out to them.
2. Ask for help. Do not try and do everything by yourself. Delegate as much as possible. Trust me, your family and friends want to help more than you think.
3. DIY what you can. For example, my mother doing our flowers saved a ridiculous amount of money. If there is something you know you can make, without it being hassle, do it. 
4. Do not buy things the day of. Try to have everything bought and ready to go the day before so that on the day of the party, all you have to do is set up!
5. Have a sign in book for guests addresses. The people you invite to the engagement party are the people you know you will be inviting to the wedding. By having all guests sign a book, leaving their addresses, it will save you time in the future when sending out invitations! 

If you are planning an engagement party and have any question, send me an email (lifetolauren@gmail.com)! 

xo,

Lauren

All Vendor Information 

** I want to give a special Thank You to Joe Broussard, from The Blue Fish on Washington. Who went out of his way to help us and truly went above and beyond **

Location: 7 Riverway

Dress: Cake Walk Style Shop

Spray Tan: Bronze Bar Tan 

Make-up: Dior – Nordstrom’s 

Hair: The Dry Bar

Sushi: The Blue Fish

Additional Catering: Central Market, Prego’s, Papadeux

LOVE Balloons: Party City

Large Balloons w/ pink Tassel: Emerson Sloan 

Cello & Guitar Duo: Third Floor Strings

Engagement Cookies: Michaels Cookie Jar

Cupcakes: Crave Cupcakes

Tartes: La Madeline

Cocktail Napkins: Moments & Occasions Inc. 

Linens: Aztec Party Events & Tents

All Rentals (tables // plates // dish ware : A Finer Events

He Asked, She Said Yes Banner: Colton’s Mother 🙂

Floral: My Mother & Grandmother 

Photography: Colton’s sisters boyfriend, Ricky!