Baby Shower - For Mommy

I always like the idea of baby showers that pamper the Mommy to be. By the time the baby shower roles around they are really close to their due date and could use some pampering! This is also a great idea for a mom that already has children and doesn't necessarily need a baby shower. For instance, one of my friends has a little boy that has just turned one and she is having a second boy in October. She has alot of the necessities for this second baby, already. But, she could definitely use some pampering!

I found a great post, for this kind of baby shower, @ http://rowdystroudy.blogspot.com/2010/09/pamper-mom-baby-shower.html . This includes recipes for facials, scrubs and masks. I want to try them whether it's for a shower or not! This is such a great and inexpensive way to have a girl's night and shower combined.

Since this shower is all about mommy don't forget to make the gifts all about her too. Putting together things she would love is a great way to make her feel special. Also, bringing meals (like this breakfast gift basket above) is a great way to help her relax in the coming days.

Another fun idea is each guest doing a few scrapbook pages. Then the busy mom just has to add photos and comments later. This would be a great way to help mom organize her pictures and memories.

 

For the decor and food I think pretty and calming is a great way to go. I found this beautiful dessert table @ http://www.hwtm.com/index.cfm?page=albums/view_album&albumid=2786&categoryid=27 . This would be great for celebrating and pampering the mommy to be!

This shower theme could go so many different ways and can be really tailored to the mom to be. It can be a great way for her to unwind with her friends. Don't be shy about asking everyone to pitch in for this event. Then it won't be stressful for anyone!







Baby Shower - Children's Books

Before April ends I thought I would look at a couple more shower themes. I have a few friends that are having babies in the fall and thought it would be fun to look at some ideas for their showers. One of the biggest reasons I started thinking about this was an adorable theme I found on the Hostess With the Mostess blog @ http://blog.hwtm.com/

This shower's theme is children's books! How cute it that? I still love children's books myself, and thought this idea was genius. You could go so many directions with this shower theme. You can pick any books you want and make it gender friendly or gender neutral.

One of the first things that caught my eye was how easy this cake would be. It's stacked sheet cakes with the names of the books. They used fondant to make some of the critters and characters from the books they chose. It's such a cute, inexpensive, fun, easy cake!

They stuck with finger foods, and matched them to books. This is such a unique and cute idea. They kept with the book theme on the tables as well. Decorating each table to go along with the book that was at that particular table.

The second website I found with this theme was @ http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/a-bookish-baby-shower-117730 . They did these adorable cupcakes that would also be a cute and inexpensive dessert. I don't love games at showers, but I do love trivia. This shower's game had sentences that described children's books. The guests had to figure which children's book was being described. More fun than the usual shower games :)

This last shower I found @ http://www.aestheticnest.com/2011/01/party-golden-books-baby-shower.html was perhaps my favorite. I love Golden Books and I also loved the vintage and modern look that this shower's decor combined. These cupcakes are yet another inexpensive, but adorable dessert idea. Plus, the website provides the printables for the cupcake toppers and the cupcake wrappers!

Another great idea from this shower was inviting the guests to bring a book for the baby. They could pick up the above sticker (printable provided at website) and personalize the book. This is such a great idea! It allows the child to have a book collection started, as well as, being able to see the who the book is from. Love it!

One More Wedding...

Ok before I leave behind the posts on bridal showers I have one more. I don't have any particular friend in mind, I just simply love this idea.

On pinterest I have come across the theme of "Travel Wedding". I love to travel, so I thought this was a fantastic idea! Since not everyone would want a themed wedding though, I thought it would be a great idea for a shower instead. Especially if you used the destination of the honeymoon for the theme. Also, this is a great theme for a couples shower vs. a bridal shower. The travel theme can have enough masculine touches to be a comfortable event for the groom and his friends as well.

I think this DIY banner, I found on pinterest.com, is so cool! It is also really versatile because you can do any kind of scrapbook paper and use any colors! Great idea.

I really like this idea, from pinterest, of using a suitcase for cards from the guests. A sign or banner would also be cute and show the guests what the suitcase is for. So fun!

To begin with, I found this great tutorial @ http://kristasewinspired.blogspot.com/2011/10/vintage-paper-flower-tutorial.html#comment-form . I thought this would be a fantastic (and inexpensive) way to do flowers for a shower. But, instead of using book paper you use maps...

Like this!

I found this second way to use maps @ marthastewartweddings.com . This would be a really simple centerpiece. You could use coffee cans and secure the maps around them with scrapbooking tape. 

Another centerpiece idea I found @ http://www.theloveliestday.com/2010/08/fun-filled-travel-themed-wedding.html . Is simply using postcards! How cute is that!?

The brochure style invitation (at the top left) is a great idea for an invitation. It gives the guests an idea of where the couple is going on their honeymoon and what the shower theme is. I found this picture @ http://blog.invitationconsultants.com/2010/05/destination-travel-themed-bridal-shower.html . This invitation would be super easy to put together with Microsoft Office 2010's Publisher program. The templates makes it simple to put together a brochure. 

This second type of invitation I found @ http://greenhornliving.com/2012/02/01/a-vintage-travel-themed-bridal-shower/ . Is also an inexpensive but cute idea!

I love this cake I found @ http://www.coquetteanddove.co.uk/search?q=Stamp this is such a cute idea, to use colorful stamps as garland on a simple cake!

I also like this idea from http://www.hwtm.com/index.cfm?page=albums/view_album&albumid=285&photoid=6867 to put a simple cake on a suitcase. This could be a really inexpensive way to decorate not only the cake table but also around the shower. Picking up old suitcases at flea markets is a cheap way to decorate!

My last find @ http://www.thesweetestoccasion.com/2010/09/vintage-travel-inspired-wedding-ideas/ was this super cute dessert table. I really like the little details.

I could go on and on with this theme. I found tons of really great ideas online. It is a great theme that can be tailored to the couple and place they are going. Besides the fact that it's fun!



Weddings = Brunch!

I have a friend that is a country girl. She would love to have her reception in a barn, which would be so fun! I found a fun idea, for her shower, while looking online... brunch! I love breakfast food and brunch is a fun idea!

I found a post @ http://www.thesweetestoccasion.com/2011/01/wedding-brunch-ideas/ for having a brunch. How cute are these pancakes! I also love the idea of a pancake station, with various toppings.

This second idea of a bisuit bar that I found @ http://ellybevents.com/blog/tag/inspiration-station/ looks so good! I also really like the vintage decor and fresh flowers.

When I found this last post @ http://www.jepromets.com/2011/05/brunchinspired/ I just loved everything about it! I really like the fresh flowers, big and little chalkboard. The way the food is laid out is great as well.

Combining vintage, rustic and pretty colors for the decor is the way I would go with this. I think the idea of brunch for a bridal shower would be a great way to relax and have fun for the bride and her guests.

Weddings = Ooo La La!

My next friend hasn't set a date but is pinning her thoughts on a wedding, in the next few years. This is one of my closest friends, I wanted to mix an elegance with fun for her shower ideas. She and I both share a love for movies. So, I decided that would be a really fun place to start... a movie night.

I found this table and dessert ideas @ http://blog.hwtm.com/2012/02/parisian-girls-night-bridesmaids-movie-viewing-party/ . I really like the idea of the popcorn holders! The themes is "parisian girls night + Bridesmaids movie viewing". My plan is to stick with the glam of the parisian girls night but have multiple movies and maybe games. The desserts look really easy and cute. Plus, the printables are available on the website! Hurray!

The second site I found @ http://voices.yahoo.com/movie-themed-bridal-shower-397998.html gives alot of great tips for putting together a movie night themed bridal shower. Very fun ideas!

I want to add more color to the shower then just black and pink. My friend is leaning toward several bright colors, which she would use all of, whenever she marries. I thought these finds @ http://blog.weddingwire.com/index.php/weddings/bridal-shower-ideas/ were not only great colors to throw in, but also some great ideas. I love the advise box and the recipe cards! This promises to be a fun night :)

Weddings = Winter Inspired

One of my friends is getting married in December. I'm not sure what her colors are so I looked at winter bridal showers. There's some cute stuff out there!

I love the colors here for a winter bridal shower. I think for this one the invitation, meringue tower and cupcakes are so pretty! I found this @ http://blog.weddingpaperdivas.com/winter-bridal-shower-inspiration-board/ . This was a great find for me because it gave me something to start off from.

My second find was a post @ http://blog.hwtm.com/2012/02/vintage-gothic-wedding-dessert-table/ Although colors and the gothic theme would be changed, I loved alot of the ideas that I found in this post. The ideas used at this shower are affordable, but look very classy. I love that combination! Besides, I found a tutorial @  http://www.youtube.com/embed/MHYX0qXDVy0 for making a ruffle cake, it's not very hard!

I love this last find @ http://03388df.netsolhost.com/WordPress/?p=793 , of course I love anything photography based, but I thought this idea was really cute. The decorations were also simple, easy but elegant. All in all, a great find!



Weddings = Grey and Yellow

I have several friends that are looking to walk down the aisle in the near future. SO I decided it would be fun to find some ideas for their showers.

I began with checking out their ideas on pinterest and then went off to scour the web for ideas.

One of my friends is planning on using yellow and grey for her colors (so cute). So I began with my favorite go to blog for event planning, The Hostess with the Mostess. I found a great post on a "romantic yellow and grey shower" @ http://blog.hwtm.com/2011/05/romantic-yellow-gray-dessert-table/ . I loved this because it could be done inexpensively and the colors could be fine tuned for the particular bride. So fun!

The second blog I found @ http://eastcoastwedding.blogspot.com/2011/03/yellow-grey-wedding.html is actually for a wedding, but I thought it would work great for a shower too. Except for the cake the shower look easy to pull off and really pretty. Not to mention, I really liked the photographs on the suitcase and the tree with notes from the guest. But, I especially love the cupcakes with the books for pedestals! Plus, my friend loves to read.

The last blog post I found @ http://blog.hgtv.com/design/2011/08/16/entertaining-with-the-color-of-the-month-hosting-a-party-say-hello-to-yellow/ has really great ideas using alot of fresh items. My friend is planning on getting married in June so getting the fresh flowers would be no big deal. So pretty!