A baby shower, with a vintage twist

So, finally... the baby shower I hosted a month ago.  You may have read about the making of the invitations (here or here).  I love planning and giving showers, baby or bridal.  When I heard my niece was pregnant last fall, I knew I wanted to give her a shower... and I wanted it to have a vintage theme.  They knew early on that they were having a boy.  These Martha Stewart hanging paper rounds were perfect in color and hung above the desert buffet. (Actually since I liked them so much, they're still there).

Last fall, I started collecting any vintage baby items I came across at thrift stores, antique stores or yard sales.  There are quite a few baby vases out there, usually very inexpensive.  I found many for $.29 to $.49.  I also went through my cupboards and pulled out items from my own children's baby days... their silver baby cups, diaper pins and a few little clothing items.  Dusted off the two little, child sized chairs I own, which also happened to be the perfect colors of white and aqua blue.  I picked up a crib sized chenille baby blanket for $5.00.

I had a vintage baby book... I took a picture of the cover and had photos printed in 5 x 7 size.  These became the covers for the game books.  A number of years ago, I attended a shower where the host put all the games to be played in a little book.  I loved this idea and have used it at every shower I've had since then.  I tied the booklets together in the corner.

One of my favorite shower games is "present bingo".  You play it as the gifts are opened.  It really keeps the guests involved in the gift opening... no getting distracted. Of course you do have to make each card different, not too difficult with a computer.  Some items are specific, some very generic.  If it's a large shower you could have more specific items.  The guests get to mark off one square per opened gift.

Then another personal favorite is the "tray game".  I filled a vintage metal tray with a large assortment of new and vintage baby items.  You allow the guest time to view the tray and then you remove it from the room.  The guest that can list, on paper, the most items wins.  And a little hint, if you ever play this game, COUNT the items first.  It will help you remember them!  At the end of the game, all the new baby items went to my niece to take home.

Another spin on this game is to have the mother or bride to be carry the tray around.  Have them leave the room with the tray... then you ask the guest questions about the mother or the bride!  What color is their shirt... do they have earrings... is their hair up or down... etc.  It really throws people off that have played the actual tray game...

One of the vintage items for the tray game, diaper pins.  I've had these pins for over 23 years.  They still come in handy!  And I love the little bear, duck and piggy.

No shower is complete without a desert buffet. 

I used my cake stands and my little white chair to add height.  Of course we had the incomparable Martha Stewart sugar cookies, cute little green and polka dotted Cath Kidston paper plates, pastel Hersey kisses...

and a variety of mini cupcakes... frosted in icing flavored as raspberry, blueberry and lemon.








The beverage tray included iced tea and bottles of sparkling lemonade.  Three flavors of regular, pink and french berry required little tags to identify them.  I used vintage baby cards that I picked up in a package at a local antique store for $.99.  The argyle print plastic (new) flower pot served as an ice bucket.

And no vintage themed party would be complete without these cute paper straws I purchased on Etsy.  You can get them in every color imaginable... what fun to use and to display in a milk glass vase.

Another view of the food table, of course I forgot to take any pictures with the actual food in place.  Keep in mind that this shower was at 6:30 on a Tuesday evening, and I do work full-time... so a few things slipped my mind!  Following the mini everything theme, we had mini quiches (frozen from the store), pasta salad served in mini paper cups with mini spoons from IKEA, sandwiches of ham and cheese in puff pastry (thank you Barefoot Contessa), and fresh tomato pizzas.  Everything was cut and served as bite size, or tea sized on cute rectangular blue paper plates.

Here you can see said cute paper cups used for the pasta salad... I think they're meant for cupcakes... and the cute blue paper plates.

Planning where all the serving plates will go.  I tried to add height to this table as well.

An adorable pair of baby shoes I picked up for $.50 at our local antique store.  They looked very cute on the table.

A vintage flower vase, filled with blue napkins from IKEA.  Best place around for paper napkin selection!

An adorable little blue rocking horse.  I actually paid $2.99 at the antique store for this one, but it is very cute and couldn't be passed by.  I picked some plastic cake decorating items at Michael's when I was in Toronto.  Since i decided against using them on the actual mini cupcakes, I sprinkles them around the table.  Under the horse, and covering the table is my grandmother's white linen damask tablecloth.

A couple of years ago I purchased a HUGE lot of vintage cake toppers and decorations on eBay for under $20.00 with shipping.  Just about every imaginable cake decoration was in this lot from Christmas, to Father's Day, to wedding toppers.  These two vintage, still in the package, baby rattles were in that lot.  They too looked cute hanging out on the table.

 For take home favors I had little blue paper bags for cookies and cupcakes.  I also planted sweet peas, in streamer blue, in little brown paper pots.  I punched a couple of holes at the rim and added a little aqua ribbon.  Speaking of sweet peas, another vintage baby vase.  Since real sweet peas weren't in season yet, it's filled with faux flowers from IKEA.

And of course, I couldn't end the post with a picture of the real star of the evening...

my great nephew, Lincoln.

linking up to

Handy Man, Crafty Women
Wicked Awesome Wednesday

My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia
Tuesday's Treasures



Between Naps on the Porch
Tablescape Thursday


Common Grounds

Vintage Inspiration Friday


Brambleberry Cottage

Time Travel Thursday


Beyond the Picket Fence

Under $100 Party


Colorado Lady

Vintage Thingie Thursday