DIY Ideas From My Baby Shower

My baby shower was three weeks ago and it was a beautiful day. The people, the weather, everything. Although it would have been less stressful to not have known about it, that’s just not in my nature. So not only did I want to know when it was, I also had to plan and decorate it as well. And THAT was so much fun for me. I looked for months on Pinterest searching for ideas from centerpieces to ceiling lanterns. After talking with my friend Becky about it one night, she mentioned I should do a surf themed shower, and that’s how it all began…

I knew I wanted colors like turquoise, brown, and cream, but finding the right shade of orange and green was a little trickier because I really didn’t want it to look too bright or circus-y. But that’s what Pinterest is for.

I found this great site that sold party supplies for a lot cheaper than the well known suppliers. What I loved about them was that they had about 8 shades of each color, from Caribbean blue to navy blue and so on. You could also choose the size; I decided on 20 in diameter paper lanterns. In retrospect, I would have ordered a variety of sizes and hung them at different lengths, but they look super pretty anyhow.

My friend Becky also happens to manage a bar and was able to get her hands on dozens of empty liquor bottles. When I told her my idea for the centerpieces, she dropped off 3 cases of empty bottles to my house one day, and because I’m such a procrastinator, they stayed outside my house for a good 2 months until the weather became nicer and I finally decided the time had come to decorate those bad boys. I bought spray paint and Goo Gone remover at Michael’s craft store. I had read someone else’s blog post about how miraculous this Goo Gone was, so I thought this would be a cinch. No way. This was such a pain in the ass. Although they came out so so great, you would have to pay me big bucks to do this again. Perhaps it was the quantity that put me over the edge. Or the fact that I was 9 months pregnant when I did this. Either way, it was an arduous task and not one for the well-manicured. Luckily for those brave ones who would like to do this anyway (and it really was not that bad, just tedious), I documented the progress in photos, so please enjoy.

When picking bottles, try to choose ones that only have a front label – it’ll save you some time! These bottles were left to soak in a cooler overnight. The longer they soak, the easier your job is.

After you scrape off what you can, apply the Goo Gone and let it sit for a few minutes. I poured my Goo Gone into a spray bottle for a smoother application.

Treated with Goo Gone. Scraped and then scrubbed with soap and warm water. Oh vey!

When spray painting, less is more. It’s a lot easier to apply multiple coats than to wipe off drips and try to even out the paint.

Initially I was just going to spray paint and that was all. However, I find the more you tap into your creativity, the more ideas begin to flow. So when the bottles were dried, I started playing around with the supplies I had in my house. All of these shells are pieces that I have collected along the way, some here at home in Rockaway Beach, but mostly brought back from Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and Panama.

I came across very eye-catching surf board banners during my search, but each time I had to just keep saying to myself, I can totally make that. And so…I did.

I bought a book of craft paper at Michael’s craft store. Then, I drew a picture of a surf board on card stock, cut it out, and traced it onto each patterned piece of paper. Next, I punched two holes into the top of each surfboard. Lastly, I weaved twine through each piece.

All of the painted shells were done by the talented and adorably cute Justin!

No party is complete without cake. Or in my case, cupcakes! I ordered these cupcake holders on Amazon, but also came across them in Party City for a fraction of the price. The candy surfboards were also ordered on Amazon. With a little crushed graham cracker acting as sand and some shredded coconut for white wash, these darlings were complete.

Unfortunately, I don’t have a close-up of the cupcakes with blue icing and coconut, but you could imagine for yourselves!

All in all, it was such a special day. I’m not always comfortable being the center of attention, but my friend Jean was right. She said there’s something really sweet and special about a baby shower, and she assured me that I could handle it. Well, I was overwhelmed with joy and love that day. I may not be able to handle another party centered around me anytime soon, but give me a job as planner/decorator, and I’m in! Here are some other pictures from this beautiful day.

Justin must’ve painted about 50 shells, but with the craziness of the day, I never got a chance to take photos of some of my favorites. However, our cousin Jackie sent us a pic of a couple of them!

These were created by my thoughtful friend, Jenn.

…and these by my other sweet friend, Lauren.

This amazing clothes line was created by my group of friends and completely made my heart melt.

❤