Bachelor Finale Party: Throwing a Shindig for Less
Over the years I have learned that a lot of successful women love them some trashy TV just as much as I do. Many of my friends share my passion for ABC's "The Bachelor" franchise.
Earlier this year, ABC announced that Chris Soules, the beloved farmer from Iowa on Andi's season of The Bachelorette, will be the next bachelor. The season is set to begin on January 5 and ABC has promised they are shaking things up a bit.
According to a recent E! News report, the season premiere will be three hours long and broadcast live when it airs. It has also been reported Soules did many of his dates in the United States, bucking the trend of all of the international travel of recent seasons.
With the new season right around the corner, I thought this was an excellent time to post about how to make watching this trash TV treasure even more exciting.
To keep things interesting, during Juan Pablo's season (the worst Bachelor ever, for the record), we started up a Fantasy Bachelor league. Similar to fantasy sports leagues, league participants drafted 5 women and earned points along the way for common Bachelor occurrences like helicopter rides, picnics, and of course tears! It was so much fun, we did it again for Andi's season. For how to start up your own league, check out Bach Fantasy, a website that keeps track of points for you. With the help of a friend, we've got a handy spreadsheet where I keep track of scores. Each week, I send out the standings with a fun recap of the episode. Not a lot of work, for a lot of fun.
At the end of each season, we did a finale party at my apartment. This time, we might also try a live draft as the men get out of the limos to spice things up. The past two seasons, choices have been made based on the bios on ABC's website.
With season quickly approaching, here's how to throw a Bachelor or Bachelorette finale party on a budget! Many of these ideas could also translate into hosting a draft party for your own fantasy league. Now that I already have many of these items, it was easy and even cheaper to throw the finale party for Andi's season.
Decor Ideas:
Champagne Flutes (Target $.50 on clearance for a 2-pack)
Rose Bunches (Dollar Tree $1 each)
Silver Frames- (Target on clearance for about $1.50)
Rose petals (Dollar Tree $1 for a pack)
Red or Pink Table Cloth (Plastic available at Dollar Tree or Party City, I used a red one I had on hand from Christmas and the pink one I had for a Valentine's dinner.)
Plates, napkins, silverware (Valentine clearance from Party City)
Favor Ideas:
Tuxedo Favor Boxes (Dollar Tree-2 pack $1)
Wedding Bubbles (Dollar Tree-2 pack $1)
Ring Pops (Available at Target or other similar retailers)
Prize Ideas:
Big Ring (Dollar Tree- $1)
Prizes
Each participant put in $5 to the pool, with first through third place winners win cash prizes.
I also have done door prize drawings with items from dollar spots at stores like Target and Michael's or other fun inexpensive items.
The winner the first season got a big bling ring (Dollar Tree- $1)
Plates, napkins, silverware (Valentine clearance from Party City)
Printables, Photos, and of course Pinterest:
Check Pinterest for a variety of takes on Bachelor/Bachelorette finale party ideas. I got some great suggestions there.
I also was able to get a great set of printables that a friend has helped me edit each season to create "Team" tags for the two finalists each season.
I grabbed the photos of the contestants from online and printed them at Target (they may have thought I was a little nuts, but anything to make the party fun!).
