Planning the Perfect Hen Do Part 2: Picking the Destination

Hi guys,
Sticking with the hen do theme, it's time to talk choosing a location! When it was time to plan my hen do I knew there was only one place for me: London. The city I lived in, the city I loved. If you're thinking of travelling outside of your home town and going a little further afield though then three are brilliant hen do ideas that we also considered: all tried and tested and lots of fun!

Visit Brilliant Brighton
Brighton is the UK's hen do capital and for good reason: it's a brilliant place to have a hen do! I have just come back from my sisters hen do which I organised in Brighton, and the possibilities for things to do was almost limitless. We took part in a life drawing class, had a cocktail making session that was brilliant fun and then partied the night away. No one blinked at our costumes, because every second person you passed on the street was wearing a costume too, and we felt safe all day and night long. The morning after the night before was great too because Brighton is the perfect place to take a walk along the beach to clear the cobwebs.

Take a Mini Cruise 
A friend went on an amazing mini cruise to Belgium for her hen do: mini cruises run by companies such as Fred Olsen often have a reputation as being more suited to an older clientele, but that simply isn't true. They run short party cruises, the liners have a host of bars and even nightclubs and themed party events, and you know you're not going to have too much trouble finding your way home at the end of the night! As an added bonus you then get to spend a day discovering somewhere new you might otherwise have not visited before. I think it's a brilliant idea!

Lovely London!
Don't overlook lovely London for a hen do, particularly if you don't live in the city. This is where I had my hen party and it was brilliant. We went to see Pricilla: Queen of the Desert before having dinner and drinking the night away: simple, but awesome! There are loads of options for shows you can see, classes you can take, and unusual entertainment options. This is the ideal destination if you're looking to have a sober party. Not something I know much about......


Have you been on any brilliant hen dos? Do you have any destination recommendations?

Love Tor x

Goodie Bags: Planning the Perfect Hen Do

Hi guys,
As soon as I returned from our holiday, I packed another bag so that I could get up the next morning and head off for my sisters hen weekend! I had organised it all, so I was very nervous about everything going well. We headed down to Brighton where we enjoyed a life drawing class, cocktail making, a delicious dinner and danced the night away. And it was awesome: phew!!

As well as organising the party I had also organised goodie bags for all of the 12 girls that attended. I decorated the bags and filled them with goodies for everyone:

The pastel coloured bags are from Hobbycraft. I embellished them myself using stick on gemstones: one painful gemstone at a time! On each name label I also added gems to look like minature Mickey Mouse ears, as a Disney theme was the order of the day. The bags were filled with a host of stuff:

Practical things: I taped paracetamol to water bottles so that people could soothe their sore heads the morning after the night before. I also added a tin of mints to each bag and some miniature toiletries in case any one had forgotten to pack their own. And because I am the queen of hyper-organisation I also added a copy of our itinerary to each bag so that everyone would also have the names and addresses of our next destination.

A gorgeous keepsake: My absolute FAVOURITE thing that I put in the goodie bags was the personalized shot glass from Mugshot Glasses which had a picture of Amie's face on it, as well as the date of the weekend we went away. I loved these so much (and so did everyone else) so they really made an impact and Amie got a real kick from drinking out of her own face. I think these were a fantastic addition to the bag because whilst everything else in it was disposable, this was a nice keepsake that everyone could take home and have as a souvenir to remember the weekend. They only cost £5 each too (unless you're ordering more than 10 in which case they are £4 each) so they aren't going to break the bank if you're organising a party on a budget. Hands down the best thing I ordered!!

Adornments: I popped in 'team bride' badges for everyone to wear (a bargain from eBay) and to keep with the Disney theme (but in a subtle way) I added little tiaras and wands for everyone to wear in the evening too. We had dressed up in full on Disney costumes all day, so everyone wanted to glam up a little in the evening: this was the perfect way for them to do just that whilst still having a hen do feel. Amie had to wear a much more ornate crown, complete with veil, sash and huge 'Bride' badge. And of course it wouldn't be a hen do without the obligatory willy straws, sweets and balloons! I don't think you're ever too old to laugh at a funny willy.....

Have you ever organised a hen do? I'd be interested to know if you made goodie bags and what you put in them? I swear organising these actually took longer than organising the party!

Love Tor x