Just For the Ladies: Throwing A Quinceañera Damas Shower

by: Michael Kabel

One of the more interesting choices you make when setting up all the details for your Quinceañera concerns your damas - the seven special women who’ll make one part of your Court of Honor. You may have chosen them just from your friends, or family members, or a combination of both.

Just as brides get to hold a bridal shower in their honor with all their bridesmaids, you may choose to throw a damas shower to thank your "quince maids" for appearing with you and helping you plan your festivities. The damas in turn can celebrate your upcoming milestone birthday with a little more intimacy than at the big fiesta still to come.

The shower doesn't have to be elaborate, and it doesn't have to take a lot of time or money. In fact, you can plan the basics in minutes and get the details down as you go along!

Set the right time and place

Ideally, the damas shower should take place about two weeks or so before the Quinceañera celebration itself. Because you're saving as much money as possible for the main fiesta, it's best to keep the celebration in your home or in your home or the house of one of the damas.

Setting the event on a weekend night or afternoon - say, a Sunday evening - gives the event a little informal class.  If you choose to go the afternoon route, schedule it late enough in the day that your girls won't have to juggle other commitments, like church or time with their families.  An early evening supper is a nice treat, as is a weekday brunch.

You may also simply want to get everyone together for coffee or dessert at a café or coffee shop known for its pastries.

The attire is definitely informal.

The damas shower is about friends getting together to enjoy one another's company. So, there's no reason to have a formal event.

You should let your damas know that the event is purely informal, though, so they don't misunderstand the kind of party you're throwing them. Mention in your invitation that the shower is just a "soiree" or "get together." That way, they'll know to come prepared to relax.

Some guests can bring more than themselves.

If one of your damas has kids of her own, let them known they’re welcome to come along as well.

Entertaining your damas is easy and fun.

You may choose to play party games at the damas shower, so that everyone has a chance to act out and get in on the fun. Or, you might want to host a mellower event, mostly just hanging out and getting caught up on each other's lives. The decision is yours, and your damas will understand it's a sneak preview of your own maturity.

If you plan to play games, giving a few extra Quinceañera favors as a peek at the fiesta guest favors makes a nice prize for the winner.