Monday, August 20, 2012

Handmade Vintage Baby Shower Ideas

For those who know me, this will not come as a surprise. For those who do not know me, I will fill you in....I love a reason to celebrate and throw a party!
It seems that there is always someone in my life welcoming new babies and children into their family, either by birth or adoption, and what better reason to celebrate than the miracle of life!

Today, I want to share a vintage themed baby shower with you. This shower was thrown for a very sweet friend of mine in celebration of their first baby, a sweet little baby boy.  She loves vintage and handmade  things, so deciding on what kind of shower to throw her was pretty easy.
 There were a few of us that took part in throwing this shower for our friend. My friend and I sat sipping coffee and making the invitations...good day.
These are made from natural bi-fold cards.  We cut them in half, making two invitations from one card. These cards come in a package of 50 with envelopes at Hobby Lobby for $6.99.  I also use these same cards to make my handmade banners.
 When I say "handmade", for this shower, it takes on multiple meanings!  We shared with those invited how much our friend loves handmade pieces and encouraged them to make her and baby boy something special.  We all pitched in and I ordered these adorable, vintage inspired suitcase boxes to fill with all her handmade goodies.

The shower was mid-morning so we served brunch: mini pancake stacks with fresh berries and cool whip, spinach quiche, homemade granola and yogurt parfaits, sausage balls, and the most adorable carrot cake muffins. We also had a beverage station complete with juice, homemade coffee creamers, coffee, milk and chocolate milk.  The banner hanging in the back is handmade/sewn from various fabric pieces that I thought would go with their nursery.
Another friend made these cute mini pancake stacks.  I made some simple flags out of toothpicks, initial ribbon, and my glue gun.
Aren't these adorable! I saw the button idea on pinterest one day and knew that if anyone could make these a reality, it was my friend. She did an amazing job!
I made little labels for the food and beverages out of the same natural card stock, coordinating scrapbook papers, and my fine point marker.
Here is our drink station. I love using glass jars, especially for that vintage feel.  We have juice, milk and creamer in glass milk bottles and empty mason jars waiting to be filled the drink of choice.
The banners hanging from above were made from scrapbook papers, stamps, pages from an old children's book and strung with yarn.
A closer look above reveals some yarn wrapped birds hanging amidst the tissue pom poms.  I drew out my bird and then traced it onto some cardboard.  I cut out the birds and wrapped them with yarn, tying them off with a sweet little bow. Then, I took a copper and silver colored marker to color in the small spaces of card board that was not covered in yarn.
This is the wall, opposite of the food table. When making decor for a shower, my goal is always to make things that can be used in the nursery if they so choose. So a good part of my gift to them is the shower decor.  These sweet prints were free printables I found online.  I bought some natural frames and painted them white and distressed them a bit.  The letters are chipboard letters from Hobby Lobby that I covered with scrapbook paper, distressed them with my stamp pad, and sealed with Mod Podge.  And the little birds, I cut out of gray felt and added some stitching detail with my sewing machine.
A closer look at the birds....

We sent out additional notecards with the invitations, asking our guests to write a wish or prayers for the parents to be and their sweet baby boy.  We displayed them with those adorable, tiny clothes pins. I love those little things!
Remember the old baby book I mentioned using pages from for the banners? It was just too good to pass up.
We added little signs with scripture around the room. These were made from scrapbook papers, pen, and attached to a wooden kabob with my glue gun. There are scripture on both sides.
And here is the finished product of our handmade gift! I seriously want these suit cases! My friends made some amazing things to fill these.

Baby Showers do not have to cost a fortune to be fun and special. Handmade showers do take a lot more time and planning, but they are so personal and meaningful, making it totally worth it!

Here are some of the links that inspired me:

And just for kicks- a little shot of reality....
...this is me posting this. My hair is being styled by a certain little boy while I share with you!

Happy Monday! I hope this inspires you and your next reason to celebrate!
-Jenny


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