The tradition of a bridal shower is believed to date back to a time when it was commonplace for a bride to bring a dowry with her into her marriage.
The dowry could be a sum of money or another valuable asset such as an heirloom or maybe even land.
This was meant to give the married couple a start in life by giving them a little financial help.
Some brides' families did not have the resources to provide a dowry so it became customary for friends to throw a party for the bride and shower her with gifts to help with the household necessities she will need when married.
Gift giving There are many superstitions tied to showers, many of them are well known but a few are kind of obscure.
If you are planning a bridal shower you can incorporate some of them into the event.
It is customary for the bride to use the first gift she opens at the bridal shower as the first, in her new home.
If the party planner plans right, and has the right gift for the bride to open ready, this can be a lot of fun.
It is also considered bad luck to use any of the gifts given at the shower before the couple is married.
Another superstition is that the lady, who gives the third gift opened at the bridal shower, will be the next to get pregnant.
If the party planner announces that before the bride chooses the third gift to open you can have some fun with this superstition too.
Other traditions A tradition at bridal showers is for a bridesmaid to assemble a bouquet during the gift giving at the shower.
The bouquet is made up of all of the bows and ribbons that were used to wrap the gifts.
The bouquet is then used by the bride during the wedding rehearsal to bring good luck to the marriage.
All of these superstitions are meant to bring fun to the event and should not be taken too seriously.