darling diy baby shower

A good friend of mine will be welcoming her first little one into the world next month and we wanted to celebrate this happy time with a few of our  friends. I haven’t had the opportunity to host a baby shower since Pinterest came into existence so I was a bit excited to explore and get inspired.

For the decorations, I came across loads of pom pom tissue cluster photos but I decided to keep it a bit more simple and made this colorful bunting from dyed coffee filters.  It was fairly simple and inexpensive to put together. (That cute striped clothesline is from Dollar Tree!)  I already had the colorful filters at our design studio since we use them in some of our a.i. paper designs.  I draped it all around the house and it really gave the environment a festive feel.

I also strung a little clothesline of onesies with colorful letters taped to them that spelled out ‘baby d’.  These will be used later for an artsy activity.

For food, I went with a sweet salad that included spinach, pears, dried cranberries, chicken, feta and candied walnuts topped with creamy poppyseed dressing.  Since autumn is one of the mom-to-be’s favorite seasons, I also baked up some cranberry orange muffins, mini no bake pumpkin cheesecakes and caramel apple spiced cider.  (Thank you Pinterest!) For favors each guest received a scrumptious fall scented bar of Cellar Door Soap.

Since it was a small gathering, in lieu of games or trivia, I thought it would be fun for Sarah to take home cute onesies made by each of us.

I headed to Joann’s and picked up a pre-bundled quilter’s pack and some EZ Steam fusible web.  There were loads of cute fabric collections to choose from.  Luckily I found this great gender neutral color selection since the baby’s sex is going to be a surprise.

Next I drew some simple animals that would be cute on a onesie.  Most of these will work well for any gender, but there are even more options if you know the sex.  I love the idea of neckties for a boy and strings of pearls or fun flowers for a girl.  You can print the above traceable patterns HERE.

Next just select your pattern and trace it on the fusible web.  Peel off the back side of the fusible web and adhere it to the back side of the fabric, then cut out your pattern.  I washed the onesies prior to applying the fusible fabric so there would be no shrinking surprises.

Peel off the other side of the fusible web (this can be tricky sometimes so I recommend using an edge of a small sharp knife if your fingernail won’t do)  and place it where you want it on your onesie.  Place a damp cloth over the design and iron it with high heat for 10-15 seconds.  I love how Suzanne added a second layer of patterned dots on her turtle shell and also a couple surprise starfish on the bum.

Having the patterns available makes it easy for everyone to participate even if they don’t consider themselves creative.  We had some crafty chicas in our bunch though… I like how Anna added the water under her whale and Steffanie cut out a play ball for her pooch.  She also sneaked in a surprise dog bone on the back side.

They all turned out so stinkin’ cute and now Sarah has seven adorable onesies for her brand new babe.  It turned out to be a delightful fall crafternoon with great girlfriends.  Now we can’t wait to see the little Desjardine in some of these designer onesies soon!

Like to get a little crafty now and then or plan festive parties that will be remembered? Stay in the loop by signing up to receive our gems we found on the web in your email inbox!