give with joy // the blog: DIY Baby Shower {part one}

Have you ever helped with a baby shower? I have - this past weekend was my very first time and I had a blast preparing a celebration for the little Evan! I had the honor preparing invites and decorations for my sweet friends baby shower! It was a bit overwhelming at first, especially if you enjoy craft projects as much as me - I need to hone in on a theme....

- Here's part one of my guide in planning a baby shower -

I started my plan with an inspiration board based off of the baby's nursery and the invite ---->
Don't know where to start? Think about the baby's nursery, colors in the room and if the room isn't ready ask the soon-to-be parents what they imagine.

I always like to be resourceful. For my wedding, I only made or purchased decorations that I knew could be gifted or used in my home. That's the same concept I used when deciding what to create for the shower. Ultimately, I wanted the soon-to-be parents to use the decorations in the baby's room.

Here's the document I created to help me do my shopping!

- Garland -
I made felt garland from little felt pom-poms I purchased from Hobby Lobby. I strung the felt pom-poms through a needle and thread.

- Hoop Art -
I hoarded lots of fabric that would look great in a little man's room. The mom-to-be painted the nursery a light green/grey, so I think these colors will look great in his room!

I took fabric and adhered it to embroidery hoops. On a few of them I added felt whales. I purchased felt, made a whale cut-out and hot glued them to the fabric hoops...easy as pie, eh?

- Yarn Pom-Poms -

I was really into garland for the shower. The host of the baby shower had a home with large windows and spaces - garland was the perfect solution!

I purchased yarn, wrapped it around my finger a few times, tied it in the middle and cut through all the loops. Here's a tutorial - I have yet to perfect the yarn pom-pom - I'll get there ;)

After I made a dozen or so I strung them through embroidery thread.

- Monograms -

My dear friend, Rachael, helped me with these lovely letters. Take cardboard letters, hot glue a little stuffing on the front surface and wrap with fabric. I used my hot glue to adhere the fabric to the letters. Rachael would also tell you to "wrap the letters as if you were wrapping a gift."

The stuffing adds a softer look to the letters - perfect for a baby's room!