How To Throw A Bachelorette Party Truly Worthy Of A 'Full Moon Goddess'
Make it as magical as the bride-to-be!
It seems like everyone is calling themselves a "goddess" these days, and why not, since a goddess is the embodiment of feminine power, beauty, and wisdom! Don’t we all want some of that?
In particular, when most of us imagine a bride, we're especially likely to picture a visual image of the goddess archetype.
So if you're trying to figure out how to plan a bachelorette party full of games, activities, decorations and ideas worthy of your amazing best friend or sister, why not honor your favorite bride-to-be with a Moon goddess-themed celebration worthy of the magical being she is?!
In cultures all over the world, the feminine face of the divine has been honored since ancient times.
There are literally dozens of lunar deities — gods and goddesses of the Moon— that have been worshipped around the world, from Artemis and Selene in Greece to Chang'e/Chang-o and Chang Xi in China, Hina and Mahina in Polynesia, Ala and Gleti in Africa, Mama Killa and Ka-Ata-Killa in the Inca Dynasty ... and on and on and on.
Today, she may be hibernating in many places, but she’s still there in our collective unconscious, and she is definitely re-emerging, especially in those places where women actively gather to reclaim her.
Many such gatherings take place during New and Full Moons, since the phases of the moon reflect the female body’s monthly cycle.
Some studies have shown a synchronous relationship between women's menstrual cycles and lunar rhythm, and while the theory hasn't been confirmed by science, most women have stories of syncing cycles when they live in close quarters. Maybe you experienced it in your college dorm, if you lived just with women. It was probably pretty wild to watch how your cycles all began to sync up as time went on!
If you've ever read Anita Diamont's book, The Red Tent, or watched the TV adaptation, you know that women gathering together during their “Moon time” was what the red tent was all about.
So when it comes to planning a bridal shower or bachelorette party, why not tap into this ancient feminine power source when it’s time to honor your favorite bride-to-be?
Whether you’re a bride planning your own bachelorette party or you're the maid or matron of honor excited to create a magical experience for your soul-sister, embrace your inner Moon goddess in order to plan something magical, unique and different.
Here are 5 of the best, most creative ideas for how to plan a Moon goddess-themed bachelorette party worthy of your favorite bride-to-be.
1. Choose a date on or near a Full Moon.
This is a party, and Full Moons are party times!
Each month, the Moon cycles through eight phases as it waxes and wanes. And according to astrology, each Moon phase embodies a different energy.
In planning your Moon goddess-themed bachelorette party, you want to harness the energy of a Full Moon. New Moons draw us inward, whereas Full Moons are considered times of high vitality and creativity. And isn’t it fun to picture yourselves dancing wildly under a brilliant Full Moon somewhere?!
One hot trend these days is “destination” bachelorette parties, where you have several days together away from the daily grind during which you can focus on having fun and celebrating the bride. But even if you can't afford to travel or take time off, you can still draw on the Full Moon vibe for an evening or overnight "Moon Goddess Gala".
2. Include games and activities based on the element of the zodiac sign associated with the closest Full Moon.
Full Moons occur when the Sun and Moon are in opposite signs of the zodiac. For instance, in 2019, the Full Moon on March 20, will be in Libra, with the Sun in Aries, and the Full Moon on June 17, will be in Sagittarius, with the Sun in Gemini.
So, if you really want to go to town playing with Full Moon magic, do some research on the energy of your chosen Full Moon and plan your bachelorette party games, activities and location accordingly.
More simply, you can consider the elemental energy of your Full Moon's zodiac sign and play with that — both literally and figuratively:
- Fire signs (Aries, Leo, Sagittarius): Fire energy is both creative and risk-taking, so coloring or bungee jumping would both fit the bill. Or, plan a bonfire and pass out sparklers!
- Earth signs (Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn): Earth energy is about honoring your body and your connection to nature. Plan a hike or a trip to a mountain resort, and definitely organize some spa time!
- Air signs (Gemini, Libra, Aquarius): Air energy celebrates your minds and how you communicate. It's hard to imagine a bachelorette party being very intellectual, but how about a trip to a winery where you get to drink while you learn stuff, or a breezy twilight sailing cruise?
- Water signs (Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces): Water energy taps into your feelings and your intuition. Plan a river cruise or a beach party, and bring a tarot deck or goddess cards for some playful divination.
3. Plan luscious self-care activities to nourish your inner Moon goddess.
Women are notoriously bad at nurturing ourselves, as most of us have been taught to take care of everyone else first. So what better time is there to reclaim some love for yourself than during a bachelorette party?
Whether you’ve planned the party on one of the earthy Full Moons or not, you can always incorporate simple self-care practices into the line-up.
Here are just a few ideas:
- Give each other hand massages, or create a “massage line” where you stand in a circle and give each other shoulder and back massages
- Take a trip to your favorite nail salon before having a fabulous meal
- Take everyone to a group workout class — like yoga, a Nia Technique class, or cycling — to get sweaty and healthy together
- Collect a bunch of yummy essential oils and make your own bath salts or oil blends
- Book a cooking class at a local healthy gourmet cooking school
4. Honor the sacred space you create together and do something special there.
This is where you can really celebrate your inner Moon goddess with the bride as the head priestess!
The word "goddess" gets thrown around a lot these days, but it's important to remember the original meaning is “female deity."
Somewhere in the midst of all the festive party activities, you can create your own ceremony or ritual to commemorate the powerful life passage the bride-to-be is about to embark on.
Here’s what this kind of sacred ritual might look like:
- Gather everyone in a circle surrounding a little altar where you've placed a picture of the bride and groom, their wedding invitation, and a cool image or two of Moon goddesses. You can also include symbols of the four elements to represent your divinely feminine connection to nature. For example, you may choose a beautiful candle representing Fire, a shell from the bride’s favorite beach representing Water, some “love incense” representing Air and a rose quartz crystal heart representing Earth.
- Pass a special object (maybe that rose quartz heart?) around the circle. As each woman holds it, she can introduce herself, talk about her relationship to the bride-to-be and share what she loves most about her. Make sure that object ends up with the bride last, as it will then have been imbued with all of your loving energy for her!
- Do some kind of fun craft project together, like making those bath salts or doing some mandala coloring, so all of the participants have a take-away from the bachelorette party, too.
- Another powerful idea is to pass a large (unlit!) candle around the circle, inviting everyone to carve a wish, word, or symbol for the bride and her marriage into the candle with an old pen or another carving tool. Since it can be hard to read the carved messages, someone can also jot down notes about the meaning of each wishes for the bride to keep and read later. Every time the bride lights the candle, she’ll think of her friends and the beautiful wishes you made for her.
- Now that you’ve done all of your magical work, have a little Full Moon dance party! Put on some great music and give everyone a chance to boogie with the guest of honor!
- Finally, rein the energy back in and allow the bride an opportunity to say something, thank everyone, and maybe offer any special bridesmaids gifts she’s prepared. And remember, those can be sitting in a secret bag on the altar the whole time, getting filled with all of the luscious energy of your women's circle!
5. Make it a PJ party!
Didn’t you love pajama parties as a kid? A PJ party is simply the perfect way to unite these Full Moon goddess ideas in one big celebration.
Obviously, if you’ve planned a destination bachelorette party, you already have a built-in PJ party — now you just have to be intentional about what you want to do there.
Definitely plan your fun night out, then pull in the Moon goddess-themed ideas outlined above and snuggle up for an intimate slumber party.
You can all retire to one person's hotel room in your PJs (preferably not the bride’s room, so she won't have to deal with clean-up), play your bachelorette party games, sit in your sacred circle and dance around until you're exhausted and ready to tiptoe back to your own rooms to sleep.
Of course, you can have just as much fun if you stay in town as long as you can find somewhere you can all crash.
The women in my own family have done this once a year for 10 years now and, fortunately, one of our houses has enough beds and couches to sleep all nine women comprising three generations! I’ve also facilitated PJ parties in church basements with sleeping bags and gym mats. It's all about getting creative!
Do some Googling, check out Pinterest and heart-storm with your fellow bridesmaids, and you’re sure to come up with even more Full Moon goddess-theme bachelorette party ideas than those I’ve shared here.
It doesn’t matter which location you choose or how long the party lasts — there are plenty of magical and creative ways to honor your inner Moon goddess.
She loves women’s circles and quiet conversations as much as she loves nightclubs and wild dancing.
So have fun creating a fabulous blend of both during a Full Moon for your favorite goddess-like bride-to-be and her bevy of adoring bridesmaids!
Life and Relationship Coach, Deborah Roth, M.A., is a Counseling Astrologer and Interfaith Minister who leads women’s New Moon Circles and Full Moon TeleMeditations every month and loves designing creative, meaningful rituals for individuals and couples to re-energize mind, body and spirit, and enhance their relationships. Visit her website, Spirited Living, or email her to schedule an introductory coaching session.
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