How to Host a Great Bridal Shower (8 Steps)

I recently helped my mother-in-law host a bridal shower. It was such a pleasant experience that I decided to help others by sharing how we accomplished this feat.First enlist help. Although you can do this by yourself it is a lot easier and less expensive if you enlist the help of some family and friends. We broke up the tasks of the party to make it easier on everyone (one person made the main course and centerpieces, another person brought the vegetables and cake, another person made the games and prizes and brought the fruit, another person sent out invitations and made favors).
You need to decide what type of shower you are going to plan. In this day and age it is not necessarily the brides' place to partake in events alone. Some wedding showers include the husband to be. These showers are thrown more as a couple shower where guests bring spouses. This type of shower can get expensive to throw, as you are essentially doubling your guest list. You need to decide if you are going to make it a themed shower (i.e. garden bridal shower or kitchen bridal shower). This will help guests know what to buy off of the couples registry. Pick a date, time, and place to host the shower and send out invitations about four weeks before the event so that you will give people enough time to accommodate their schedules and receive responses.Create an estimate of the number of guests that will be coming to the shower. This will help you decide on how much food to prepare.Create a menu. (We did a chicken salad sandwich on croissant, vegetable skewers, sliced fruit, and a cake for desert). Decide weather you will be having a buffet set out or if you are going to do plated meals. This helps for time management. A plated lunch will take less time than a buffet lunch if you plate the food a half hour before guests arrive. This also means that you will not run the risk of some guests taking to much food and some guests not getting any food.
Set up tables with plates, silverware, drink ware (drinks should be poured prior to guests arrival to save on time). Forks are to the left of the plate while knives and spoons are to the right of the plate lying atop napkins. Favors should either be placed at each place setting for guests or placed on an entryway table for guest to take as they depart. In a garden themed party for example, you could buy inexpensive small clay pots and place flower seeds, flower bookmarks, and candy in them. Tie a simple ribbon around the pots in the couples wedding colors to give good presentation to the favors. Throwing a themed shower also gives the host/hostess a direction for creativity. For example, a garden themed party can have flower centerpieces (a simple vase on each table with hydrangeas will suffice), flower trivia game( a name that flower game), spice smelling game, potted plant favors, and garden tool prizes.
The Shower should flow well. There should not be any large lulls in time, guests will visit with each other during the dining and game play. After guests have eaten there should be one or two games to be played by guests. For the shower I threw I created a wedding movie trivia game with multiple choice questions for the first game and a game I call Spice Delight, where guests have only their sense of smell to use and must guess the spice or herb hidden in several different containers. I awarded prizes to the person with the most correct and the person with the least correct. I had tie-breaker questions ready as well. The prizes I created were simple glass vases I picked up at a local dollar store with a pair of gardening gloves, a garden tool, and a pack of garden herb seeds placed inside. I tied two ribbons around the vase in the couples colors to tie into the rest of the décor of the bridal shower.
Before using these games you need to make sure to keep a copy with the answers. The guests' copy of the games should not have the answers highlighted. Once everyone has had a chance to guess the answers, you go over the answer key out loud with the guests. Hand out prizes after each game.The Tie-Breaker questions I got from Wikipedia.Wedding Movie Trivia Game
1) In the 1991 film 'Father of the Bride', where did the bride and groom, Annie and Bryan, meet?
A) Paris
B) Rome
C) Chicago
2) At the end of the 1989 film 'When Harry Met Sally', how long do Harry and Sally say it took them to get married?
A) 12 years and 3 months
B) 3 years and 10 months`
C) 7 years and 9 months
3) What song is playing at the very end of the 1999 film, 'Runaway Bride.'
A) Love the second time around
B) You Can't Hurry Love
C) Finally Found Love
4) In the 1998 film, 'The Wedding Singer', what rock star was on the plane when Robbie was going to Vegas?
A) Bruce Springsteen
B) Boy George
C) Billy Idol
5) In the 2001 film 'The Wedding Planner' How do the main characters Mary and Steve meet?
A) Steve saves Mary from getting run over by a car.
B) Steve hits Mary's car.
C) Steve saves Mary from getting run over by a dumpster.
6) In the 2005 film 'Wedding Crashers' Who are the two main characters?
A) John and Jack
B) John and Jeremy
C) Jack and Jim
7) In the 2002 film, 'My Big Fat Greek Wedding' who says,' 'The man is the head, but the woman is the neck.'
A) Maria Portokalos
B) Harriet Miller
C) Thia Voula
8) In the 1997 film, 'My Best Friend's Wedding' Michael made Julianne swear that if they were still single at age __ they would marry each other.
A) 30
B) 28
C) 35
9) In the 1987 film 'The Princess Bride' What was Miracle Max's favorite food?
A) A nice MLT
B) A nice Pastrami on Rye
C) A nice BLT
10) In the film 'Pride and Prejudice' what is the name of the house that the Bennett's live in?
A) Netherfield Park
B) Rosings
C) Longborn
Tie Breaker Questions:
1) Wearing a white dress was a trend started by what famous bride?
A) Queen Elizabeth *B) Queen Victoria C) Queen Mary2) Wedding veils from ancient Rome were what color?
A) White B) Black *C) Yellow
Spice Delight There are seven different spices in seven different containers. Each container has been numbered and covered. This game quizzes your sense of smell and your knowledge of common herbs and spices. Please smell each container and try to identify its contents based on smell and smell alone. Write down what herb or spice you think is in the container next to the corresponding number on your paper. 1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7) Tie-breaker Questions:1) What is the difference between and herb and a spice?Herbs are, or may be, used fresh. Typically the leaves of annual and perennial plants are used as herbs but sometimes the leaves of woody plants are used. Spices come from plant parts other than leaves such as the bark, roots, buds, flowers or fruits. They are usually perennial plants grown in tropical areas and include things like cinnamon (bark), ginger (root), nutmeg (fruit/nut) and pepper (berry).2) Where does the herb name Mint originate from?The name comes from the Greek legend of the nymph Minthe, who attracted the attention of Hades. Hades' wife, the jealous Persephone, attacked Minthe and was in the process of trampling her to death when Hades turned her into the herb (and was ever sacred to him). A symbol of hospitality and wisdom, 'the very smell of it reanimates the spirit', Pliny tells us.
After the games have been played and prizes have been awarded it is time for the guest of honor (bride/bride and groom, depending on how the party is thrown) to open gifts. Someone must be in charge of writing down what gifts the bride and groom are receiving and from whom they are receiving them from. This is essential for the bride and groom to be able to write their thank you cards. Usually the person in charge of doing this task is the maid of honor, the mother, the mother-in-law, or the groom to be.
After the gifts have been opened, there is one more task to be complete. Thank your guests for coming. A simple, 'Thank you for being a part of celebrating the union of two wonderful people. We are incredibly happy that you are all here to be a part of the beginning of what I am sure will be a happy marriage. Once again, thank you for coming, thank you for taking the time to be here with us.' (If you have favors placed on an entryway table this will help segue the end of the shower and the departure of guests. You can simply add on to the end of your thank you speech, 'There are favors for each guest to take home with them on the entry table, please make sure to take one as you are leaving.')
VPS Hosting

How to Start an eLearning Website Receive the Payments

Set up a Web hosting presence. The important factor with hosting an eLearning site is to find a web host that can host third-party software packages. As of August 2010, reputable web hosting of this variety is available for as little as $4 per month.
Select a content management system to run the eLearning site. There are many options available. Research the different choices while also considering how you will use the CMS package on the eLearning website before making a choice. You may also ask the Web host for recommendations based on the setup of the Web server.
Install and configure the content management system. On most Web hosts, this is as simple as opening the server's control panel, locating the name of CMS package and choosing to do a new install. A wizard-type interface will guide you through each step of the installation, including initial configuration options.
Create a payment-processing account. The CMS will use a payment-processing company to send customer payment data for processing. This allows website users to pay by credit card and other methods. Many small businesses choose to use Google or PayPal, but there are also many other alternatives available.
Develop the content. An eLearning site differs from other content-rich sites because of the educational nature of the content. The content of an eLearning site must be in a format that facilitates learning. Often, large eLearning companies use content-development specialists to create material tailored for online delivery. Inexperienced website developers may benefit by hiring a freelance content-development specialist to assist with this step.
Deploy the content onto the CMS. After the educational material is developed, it needs to be loaded onto the CMS into the secure area of the site. That will allow the CMS to both manage the content delivery and prevent unauthorized users from accessing the content.
Test the site prior to launch. All facets of the site, from payment processing to content accessibility, need thorough testing before the site is opened to the public. The site will be ready for launch when testing is completed.
VPS Hosting

How to Move CMS Made Simple to a New Server (7 Steps)

Open a browser window, navigate to the Admin Console of your CMS Made Simple website and log in with an Administrator password. The path to your Admin console is “http://www.yourwebsite.com/cms_location/admin,” where “yourwebsite” is the domain name of your site and “cms_location” is the directory where CMS Made Simple is installed. For example, if your website is cmsfun.com and CMS Made Simple is installed in a directory called “simple,” you would type “http://www.cmsfun.com/simple/admin” to open the Admin console.
Click “Site Admin,” “Global Settings,” “Clear Cache” and “OK.”
Navigate to your Web-hosting management console and download your CMS Made Simple database. If you use cPanel or DirectAdmin, click 'phpMyAdmin' in the Databases panel, log in to the database, if necessary, and click “Export.” Click the “Quick” export method, click “SQL” from the 'Format' drop-down menu and click “Go.” Save the SQL file on your desktop.
Open an FTP client like Filezilla, log in to your Web server and download the directory that contains the CMS Made Simple files. Save the files in a directory on your computer.
Log in to your new Web server with your FTP client and upload the saved Content Made Simple directory on your computer. Ensure that the “tmp,” “uploads” and “modules” directories and subdirectories are writeable.
Log in to the Web-hosting management console on your new server, open 'phpMyAdmin' and click “Import.” Click “Browse” and navigate to the saved SQL file on your computer. Click “SQL” from the 'Format' drop-down menu and click “Go.”
Log in to your new CMS Made Simple site and ensure that all files have been moved and that your data is intact.
VPS Hosting

How to Install Wordpress On 1and1 Servers

Log in to your 1and1 control panel and click the hosting package on which you want to install WordPress.
Click “MySQL” under the Database heading on the hosting panel and then select “MySQL Database.”
Enter a description for your new database in the field provided. Something as simple as “WordPress Database” is fine, provided you only plan to have one iteration of WordPress installed on your 1and1 account.
Create a password for the database in the “Password” field and then verify it in the “Repeat Password” field. Make a note of this password as you will need it when installing WordPress.
Click “Set Up” to finish creating your database. When creation is complete, 1and1 displays the details of your database, including the database name and username. Make a note of both of these values as you will need them when installing WordPress.
VPS Hosting

How to Build a Web Site Step

Brainstorm the site's themes, ideas and contents. Most sites are text-heavy and based on informative content, such as how-to guides and research. Other sites may be focused around an interactive element, such as a message board and online forum.
Choose a paid web host. Hosting plans for basic websites can start at a price as low as several dollars per month, though this price can vary by service provider and be exponentially more as you add more services and features. Various companies offer basic web hosting plans for new sites, such as 1and1 and GoDaddy (see Resources). Most plans can also be upgraded with more features as the site grows.
Select a domain name. This is the address that individuals type into their browser to access the site you've built. Some service providers, such as 1and1, include the domain name with the hosting plan. Choose a name that is simple and easy to remember, and one that also represents the theme or purpose of the site. Keep your future goals in mind. For example, don't choose a dog-specific site name if you are starting a dog care site but plan to expand it to include other types of pets.
Plan the general page design of the site you wish to build. Sites are made up of specific components, the main features being the actual content and the navigation. Typically, the navigational features (for example, site links, search bars, etc.) are found at the top and left-hand side of the page. The empty area is typically the page contents. Sketch out the design on a blank page of paper so that you can envision what the final product will look like.
Build the site. You may use a website building software, such as Adobe Dreamweaver (see Resources). Your web host may also provide automated tools to help generate a webpage. If you are confident in your knowledge of HTML and manual website coding, you may even choose to use a basic text editor and write the code by hand. Individuals often benefit from reading an HTML resource book for the basic principles and tags for building a website. Such books are available at your local library, bookstore or online at a retailer such as Amazon.
Check that each page you've built for the site is compliant with W3C web standards (see Resources). All pages must begin with the
tag and end with the appropriate closing tag,
. Likewise, all opening tags within the two HTML codes must have alternate closing tags (accomplished by repeating the tag and inserting a forward-slash into the first portion of the code).
Upload the finished website to your web host. You may use the host's file browser, which is accessible when you login to your webhosting account. However, most web designers typically upload finished sites using an FTP program such as Cyberduck or Fetch (on a Mac) or SmartFTP (for a PC). The FTP program will connect to your server, and files may be uploaded by dragging and dropping the file on your computer into the FTP software's interface.
VPS Hosting

How to Build a School Website (4 Steps)

Establish your goals. What are you looking to do? Disseminate homework? Create an online forum where teachers and parents can communicate? Keep the school calendar current? All of the above? Before making any decisions, be sure you consult your educational hierarchy. Check all policies concerning the Internet and its use for school business. Make sure you've answered all questions from the school board regarding what you're doing and what their vision may be for the website.
Explore your design options. There are a variety of websites that provide online templates that are ready for use. The only thing left for you to do is personalize it to fit your needs. One of these sites is Freewebtemplates.com. It provides some impressive, yet simple, websites free to download. Microsoft Publisher also comes with ready-to-use web templates. If you're building your school's website from scratch, consider some of these software options:
-Macromedia Dreamweaver
-Microsoft Frontpage
-Microsoft Publisher
Prepare your design, location and files. Know what the school logo is and where to get all your information. Be sure to locate the server that your school website will be on, who's in charge of the server and how big the site will be. Get a clear understanding of how much space you will have for your website. One good idea is to browse other school websites to get a good idea on what you would like to do. Make your design something simple at first. Use your school colors to give it a personalized look Place a sidebar with links to the school logo at the top of the page. Some people can design complex websites that either take too long to build or take too long to load. Create your school website so that it's user friendly for students, parents and teachers.
Remember the most useful information is information that can be integrated among parents, teachers and students. Some examples of different items to put on your site is:
-School theme, mascot and motto
-Parent-Teacher Association information
-Brief history of the school, the district it's in, and the community where it's located
-School board news
-Link to the city or county's main public school website
-Events, announcements
-A Teacher' Page by grade with pictures and contact info
-Staff page for contact information
-What is needed to enroll your child
-School calendar
-Cafeteria menus
-Fun links for students
-Page for homework assignments (if teachers request them)
VPS Hosting

How to Create an Online Thrift Website (5 Steps)

Compare and contrast web hosting packages. A free hosting package will likely be most practical to keep your profit margins high. Remember to read through the commerce tools provided by the web host. You will need a shopping cart and a simple way to track inventory.
Determine your web domain name. When using a free web host, your URL will usually appear as 'yourbusinessname.webhostname.com.'
Set up a merchant account so that you can accept credit card payments or use a third party merchant company such as PayPal.com to enable you to process credit cards.
Select a design template and upload product images, descriptions and pricing to your web pages. Add buttons underneath each product that allow customers to place items in a shopping cart for later purchase.
Test your website buttons and functions. Once you are satisfied, publish your website to the web.
VPS Hosting

How to Find Where a Web Site Is Hosted (5 Steps)

Do a 'whois' search. This is a search that shows you who has registered a domain. There are many sites that allow you to perform this search; see Resources for just a few examples. The site WhoIsHostingThis.com offers the simplest results; typing in a website address will yield the very simple result: 'xxx.com is hosted at xxx.com,' as seen in the image.
Read through the results of a more complex 'whois' search, such as one done through GoDaddy's 'whois' search. In the example in the image, Registered through: GoDaddy.com, Inc. shows the website DesignLogicMedia.com is hosted at GoDaddy. The administrative and technical contacts show DomainsByProxy, meaning privacy restrictions were put into place to prevent the address and phone number from showing up and being available to spammers.
Call or e-mail the administrative or technical contact, if it is listed, for further information.
Go to the website itself as an alternate to, or in addition to, a 'whois' search. Often, the website will have information on where it is hosted. Scroll down to the bottom of the page, and you may see 'Hosted by' and the name of a company.
Contact the person listed as webmaster on the website itself. Depending on the circumstances, that person may be willing to offer you information.
VPS Hosting

How to Create Your First Web Site (10 Steps)

Choose an ISP to host your Web site.
Investigate several hosting services, considering factors such as maximum space, accessibility, reputation and terms of service.
Select and download a Web-page editor. Several simple editors are available for free; Netscape Composer is one. These editors let you see what your site will look like as you build it, so you won't have to learn HTML or other programming languages.
Your Web-page editor will give you specific instructions about options such as naming your site, creating different sections, creating backgrounds, adding links and inserting images.
VPS Hosting