How to plan the ultimate baby shower!

Planning the ultimate Baby Shower?

First and foremost

CONGRATULATIONS! You’ve been picked to organise the ultimate baby shower for that someone special, but are you struggling with ideas and inspiration? Have no idea where to even start? Stick with us as we dive in deep to help you plan the Ultimate Baby Shower for your bestie!

Updated August 2024

Start simple and make a list!

To help lessen the stress, try and get some ideas from your glowing friend on what she would want for her special celebration. Then grab your organiser and start with the following headings:

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Location – where is the perfect location to hold a baby shower?

Depending on how big and how many people are to be invited to this special occasion, the venue and location are one of the first things you need to figure out.

If you looking for a budget-friendly solution; then consider hosting in your own home, or if it is not big enough for the party, ask a friend or family member if they could share their house for the occasion. Perhaps if you are in the warmer months, a garden party is the answer!

There are times though that these options are not available. Where does one look then? There are those who opt for a restaurant or cafe, that has a private room that can be rented out, a local community hall or seek out your local hotels and see what rooms they have available to hire for the occasion.

Either way, be it in a private home or a public venue, this is one of the first things you need to confirm and square away.

Themes for your Baby Shower

Oh, this is the fun part! There are a number of creative themes that can make this baby shower wow! Some ideas include:

Boy colour themes can include blues, yellows, greens, whites, orange, red
Spaceships
Dinosaurs
Farm Animals
Zoo
Nautical
Cars, Trucks, Planes

Girl colour themes can include Pinks, purple, yellow, orange, whites
A garden tea party
High Tea
A vintage baby shower
Flowers Galore
Princess Style

Decorations

Time to make the venue pretty! Depending on the decided theme, you can be as minimalist or as overly flourish as you’d like; just make sure you keep your expecting friend in mind when decorating.

Amazon has a range of inexpensive yet modern Baby Shower Decorations – Check them out here!

Important tip: make sure that these don’t take up too much of your time putting them up and taking down (or enlist a crew of helpers). With the decorations, sometimes the easier, the better. The theme and the size of the venue should guide your choices, but remember that these decorations are things that will most likely be used only once.

Food, Cake and Beverages

The cake, food and beverages are next on the list. These days, cakes are easy enough to personalize without breaking the bank and to be able to fit into the chosen theme. If you’re a baker, professional or just an enthusiast, why not have a crack at it. It would be easy to personalize a cake especially if you’re making it DIY, and for sure, your expectant mommy will LOVE it!

A selection of food is a must have for any baby shower – however, it doesn’t have to be a huge spread. Ideas include:

Vegetables and dip
Fruit platters
Cupcakes
Club sandwiches
Bite-size savouries
A selection of cheese and crackers
Search on Pinterest for or ‘canapes’

And last but not least a delicious variety of beverages must be on offer:

Iced Tea
Hot chocolate
Non-alcoholic cocktails
Set up a coffee station
Flavoured chilled water.

Southern Living has a great selection of drink ideas to check out!

Baby Shower Games

There are a lot of baby shower games, and the party paraphernalia that comes with it is usually easy to source.
Some ideas:

-String measurement

All the guests try and guess how big mummy’s tummy is using different lengths of string. Once they’ve all made their guesses, they can wrap the string around the middle of the stomach and see who comes closest. The one that does WINS!

-Diaper game

Whew ok, this one is usually not for the faint of heart…at least with poop. There can be several types of chocolate that are smeared on several diapers. The contestants will need to figure out which one is which through smelling it, touching it and even tasting it. The visual may be daunting, but the game is perfect for blackmail pictures!

-Daddy/mummy training

This game is usually for the first-timers. All the necessities are laid out for diaper changing. The sets will depend on how many are willing to participate; even the mommy to be could get amongst it! Using a timer, a ‘judge” can time how long it will take the contestants to correctly change baby dolls’ diapers. Whoever is the fastest gets a prize.

-Drink up

Another fun game is a drinking one, usually done by the dads (if they are included) but mommies do it as well. You fill up a baby bottle with liquid, it can range from iced tea, water to even beer, and whoever finishes first wins.

-Guess the Baby Food

Have a range of mushed up food in little jars. Everyone gets blind folded and has a teaspoon of baby food. Whoever guesses the most correct is the winner!

These are just some ideas that can be done, but there’s a wealth of other games that you can look up online.

Baby Shower Invites

Make sure that the venue location, date and time have all been confirmed before making and sending out invites.

Another thing that you need to make very clear in the invite to help the soon to be parents is the existence of the Baby Registry and where it is (if they have one). This will be so helpful to those who are trying to figure out what the parents will be needing and avoid double ups. If they can shop through a link online, and have it delivered to their house, all the better, right?

You can use the chosen theme to make special invites if you’d like, and though some mummies-to-be prefer to send e-vites through the internet, some want actual, physical ones that they can put in their baby book.

Amazon has a selection of classic, modern and fun baby shower invites so be sure to check them out!

Party Favors

It’s always nice to end the celebration by giving the guest a little “Thank you” item.

A growing trend in the party favors world is little plants. These can be little succulents or a small pot of herbs, which are easy to take care of.

Cupcakes are usually a popular choice and really who doesn’t like a yummy cupcake to bring home?

Perhaps a little bag of goodies is a way to send your guest off. Bags could include mini creams and shampoos or a mini manicure set.

The Bump has a list of 21 unique baby shower favours worth checking out!

Don’t forget to include a little thank you note to your attached gift!

Baby Shower Gift Ideas

Finally, if the mum to be doesn’t have a gift registry set up you may get a few people asking you want the new parents may need or want!

In this case, it’s best to ask the parents straight out what they need, or would like, perhaps get them to jot down a wish list that you can pull out if need, just make sure you update the list often.

Other gift ideas include:

A skin care gift set so she can pamper herself before the big day
A gift voucher for a favourite shop
A soft luxury robe for those nights mama is up feeding
A diaper caddy can be super useful to keep things organised
A delicious smelling candle (to hide that smell of baby poo)
A Nursing pillow to help get comfortable while feeding baby

So now, you’re ready for the Baby Shower of the year!

Share your ideas below if they are different from ours – we would love to hear them!

Good luck and have a great time celebrating that new life about to come into this world!

Don’t forget to save this article to your party planning board on Pinterest!