How to Host a Hen Party from Home

1st June 2020

We've all been finding new and inventive ways to stay busy, healthy and happy during Lockdown. Maybe you've got really into sourdough, learnt a new language or been challenging systemic racism. Whatever you've been doing during this strange time, we've all seen cancelled plans, felt the struggles of not seeing friends and family, and had to come to terms with the thought that things won't feel 'normal' for quite a while. 

The lovely Hannah from our Amazing Space Weddings Team had a hen party booked for April 2020 which of course was promptly cancelled. As Maid of Honour, she had to think outside the box and come up with an alternative plan to keep the Hens and Bride happy, all from the socially distanced comfort of their own homes. Hannah wrote the below for us - with some of her tips and tricks for hosting a hen party from home. Enjoy!

My best friend is getting married this year, if everything still goes to plan. One thing that has definitely gone awry is the hen party we were supposed to be doing. The plan was set, the flights were booked, we were off to Lisbon for a long girls' weekend. We even had a huge modern villa with a pool waiting for us!

The reality is we’re on a lockdown and all strictly practising social distancing - so we had to come up with another idea to keep morale up. Us Hens devised a cunning plan with a surprise Hen Party from Home via video chat! Video Chat quizzes, parties and gatherings are now the new thing. 

Here's how we did it... 

Enlist the Help of Someone on the Inside

We roped in the groom and he agreed to set up a ‘date night’ with the Bride. She got all dressed up and completed a treasure hunt her fiancé had devised taking her around the house. The treasure hunt ended with the Bride finding a computer with a video chat up and running, and all us Hens ready and waiting.

We'd planned a full schedule of drinks, games and drinking games – all from the comfort of our own homes!

There's a variety of platforms you can use, Zoom, Houseparty, Google Hangouts, whatever you think will work best for what you have planned. It's worth thinking about how many people you'll have in the group and how much time you need - as some video chat platforms cap at a certain number or people or minutes. Houseparty has built in games which you can all play, whereas Zoom or Google Hangouts give you the freedom to do your own thing if you have your own activites already planned. 

A great thing about doing our Hen Party over video was that we didn’t have far to crawl into bed at the end of the night (I’m taking silver linings where I can!). 

Games & Activities Which Work Online

As for the evenings events here’s a list of some of the things that were planned:

• Mr or Mrs Game
• Drinking Game (Run the River)
• Scavenger Hunt
• How Well Do You Know The Bride? (Quiz)
• Horrible Hens Card Game
• Cards Against Humanity (they now have an online game here!)

'Made' of Honour - Time to Get Crafty!

To accompany the games and activities, I put together some party bags for everyone and sent them out in advance - so everyone had a goodie bag to open on the evening. I wanted everyone to be able to have something they could use to decorate, wear, or play with during the evening. I wanted it to make us all feel more together in our separate homes and also guessed not everyone would be able to get to the shops and have time to get any hen party type supplies. I thought it could also serve as a hangover pack as well!

In case you have a derailed Hen Party, here’s what we put together to give you some ideas!

Brown Paper Bags

Tissue Paper

Gold 3d Pens/ Stick on Gems/ Craft Sunflowers (anything to decorate your bags really)

Face Sheet Mask

Foot Mask

Body Shimmer Gel – Perhaps to dress up for the Hen Party but also for any eventual Hen Party/Wedding. I wanted include something where we could look forward to when we would next be together celebrating.

Photo Booth Props

Party Poppers

Bubbles

Shot Cups

Balloons (some novelty and regular)

Sweets – I chose things in multipacks that were individually wrapped (Haribo, Milky Way, Love Hearts, Lolly Pops)

Chewing Gum

The bottom line is, we managed to have a great hen party despite the circumstances, and although it wasn't quite what the bride-to-be originally envisaged for herself, we spent some quality time together and had a good laugh. 

If you're stuck inside for your hen do, or need to plan something fun for a future bride, fear not - you can still have a great night with your bridesmaids and a celebration you'll remember fondly!