In The Works: Vintage Sports Baby Shower

This Saturday is the big day! It will be my first official event as PartyCraft, and the first time getting paid to do what I love! Designing and decorating parties has been a passion of mine for years now, and to be able to make a hobby into a profession is what I dream of.

As I've said in previous posts, this event is a baby shower for a family friend who is expecting her first baby boy in January. The shower is being held at a restaurant in Long Island, and Jake, James, and I will be traveling 6 hours to get there!

The baby's nursery is vintage sports themed, so the mom-to-be wanted her shower to reflect that. Since this will be a traditional all female shower, I wanted to make sure the sports elements were obvious but without being too masculine. I stuck to reds, blues, and whites to emphasize the sports theme, and incorporated some greys and browns to add a vintage feel.

I wanted to share a sneak peek of some of the decorations I've made, but I'm saving the rest for after the shower. After all, part of having a baby shower is not knowing exactly what your shower will look like so you have that surprise factor when you arrive. Here are a few of the things I'll be bringing to New York this Saturday:

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These paper fans were really easy to make, and serve as a great way to tie the color scheme together.

1. Paper Fans

Paper fans are so simple to make and are made from very inexpensive materials. The only things I used to make these fans are decorative paper and hot glue. I made them in a few different sizes and colors, and plan to add them to a backdrop. These fans are fun to use because of their layering potential to add depth, and the color possibilities are endless, especially with patterned paper.

What can't you do with mason jars?

2. Mason Jar Centerpieces

I saw these cute sports themed painted mason jars online and thought they were perfect for the occasion, so I made some myself and tied these blue and burlap bows around them to add a feminine touch. The materials I used were acrylic paint, sandpaper (to add a vintage feel and bring out the lettering), and ribbon. Then I found an array of fake flowers in white to act as centerpieces and add some more femininity to the masculine-colored jars.

The large jars I left unpainted and filled with shelled peanuts as an ode to the classic baseball snack food. This was another online inspiration that felt perfect for the theme.

This could easily be hung in a nursery, kids bedroom, or dorm room.

3. Pennant Flag Banner

This is the finished product from my previous step-by-step tutorial for making pennant flags. I love the color combination and think it really lends itself to the vintage theme. Felt and hot glue are all that make up this decoration, although creating and cutting out the letter stencils can be time consuming.

4. "Mint Box" Favors

Something I haven't shown before, here or on my Instagram page, are these adorable table favors! Instead of collecting a matchbox at the end of your dinner as a keepsake, this is a "mint box" to enjoy as a refreshing favor after your meal. I created the stickers and spent A LOT of time tying all those teeny-tiny bows to add to the fronts. I found a big bag of "Thank You" mints online and attached them inside using double sided tape. Little details like these are what excite me and I think they add an extra special touch to an event.

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There are a lot more decorations traveling with us to New York this weekend, and I can't wait to see everything put together. Driving six hours and setting everything up while juggling a 15 month old will be an experience in itself. Luckily we'll have Jake's mom there to help wrangle him.

Look for a followup post next week to see everything in action and find out whether we survived the toddler travel.

Until next time!

xo Miche