Noah’s Ark Baby Shower & Party Design Tips!

Hey party peeps!
Today I’m sharing my Noah’s Ark Baby Shower & Party Design Tips! This shower was featured in my Look for Less post this week on Hostess With The Mostess where I shared my Top 3 Look for Less tips. If you missed it, you can click here to check it out.

As a party planner and designer I have a few tips that I use in most of my party designs and today I’m sharing 5 of them. Let’s go!

GIRLFRIEND’S PARTY DESIGN TIP #1:
USE CREATIVE WAYS TO INCORPORATE YOUR THEME!

I LOVE coming up with creative ways to interpret a party theme!  I usually don’t like to use the most common or expected ways.  For example, in this Noah’s Ark themed baby shower design, I didn’t use any water or an ark in any of the party’s decor.  Instead I used these creative ways to interpret the theme:
• blue glass gems to symbolize the water
• modern water drop on the fronts of the fondant animal’s onesies
• two of every animal used in the decor
• wavy patterned tablecloth to bring in the watery feel of the ocean

GIRLFRIEND’S LOOK FOR LESS PARTY DESIGN TIP #2:
USE ITEMS FROM THE BABY’S NURSERY TO DECORATE THE BABY SHOWER!

Want to save a BUNCH of money on decorating your baby shower? Create the shower theme around your new baby’s nursery and you SCORE! Pull out items from the room that room that you can use like:
• lamp as a centerpiece
• stuffed animals
• crib bumper to wrap your sweets table

GIRLFRIEND’S LOOK FOR LESS PARTY DESIGN TIP #3:
USE FONDANT AS PARTY DECOR!

I use this tip all the time! In fact, I think 3D fondant pieces are like little pieces of custom art! Even though they are edible, they harden enough that you can use them in your party decor! The great thing is that they are totally custom which gives your event a high-end look. Here I used matching 2 by 2 fondant animals created by Lynlee’s Petite Cakes to keep with the Noah’s Ark theme. I asked for each pair of twin animals to have on a baby onesie with a modern blue waterdrop and the other just a diaper. How cute are these! Here I used the twin baby lions in the centerpiece of a dining table.

GIRLFRIEND’S LOOK FOR LESS PARTY DESIGN TIP #4:
MIX & MATCH DIFFERENT TEXTURES & PATTERNS FOR VISUAL INTEREST!

When I design baby showers I ALWAYS use soft plush fabrics like baby blankets, stuffed animals and plush bedding to keep the look and feel cozy like a baby but I like to add in unexpected contrasting textures for a whimsical look. Here I used:
• 2 matching silver metal giraffes
• iron candlesticks to hold the fondant lions
• glass martini glasses and acrylic trays
• zebra printed pillows
• shimmery blue wavy fabric on top of brown plush blanket on the dining table
• linen stuffed animals and baby bumper
• silver bamboo textured chargers
That may sound like a lot of different textures, but when put all together right, the look is AMAZING!
Being able to mix and match patterns and textures is definitely a skill, that you should play with before you actual shower day. Don’t overdo it and use things in moderation. I am constantly setting something up, stepping back and looking at it and then editing myself by taking things away.

GIRLFRIEND’S LOOK FOR LESS PARTY DESIGN TIP #5:
USE MODERN BABY ELEMENTS THAT MATCH YOUR SHOWER’S DESIGN & COLORS!

As part of my inventory I stock up on silver and acrylic baby items as they are timeless decor and can be added to any baby shower theme to give it that high-end polished look. Here I used:
• silver baby booties
• silver rattles
• silver and acrylic pacifiers

GIRLFRIEND’S LOOK FOR LESS PARTY DESIGN TIP #6:
MATCH YOUR SWEETS TO YOUR SHOWER’S THEME AND COLORS!

This is where you can get really creative with sweets! I am not a baker so I turn to the pros to help me with any designer sweets like these fabulous animal cake pops by The Gourmet POP! I can however, decorate a store-bought sweet with either a printable label or tag or edible embellishments like candy to make them match. This tip also applies to party favors. If your party favors or sweets don’t match your party’s decor, simply place them inside a bag or box that does match and display them that way so they match. For this Noah’s Ark Baby Shower I used these sweets:
• Animal Cake Pops 2 of each animal displayed 2 by 2 on top of a sea of blue gems
• Bailey’s cupcakes
• Milk and Cookies bar with Tagalongs, Thin Mints and Samoas Girl Scout Cookies

WHERE DID SHE GET THAT?
3D animal fondant toppers: Lynlee’s Petite Cakes
Animal cake pops: The Gourmet POP
Photography: Stay Classic Photography
Linen stuffed animal lions and giraffes: Pottery Barn Kids
Linen animal crib bumper: Pottery Barn Kids
Mod lamp base & Ikat dot lamp shade: PBteen
Shimmery blue wavy fabric: JoAnn Fabrics
Metal giraffes: TJ Maxx

That’s it! Do you have any party design tips you want to share? Leave a comment below…I’d love to hear them.

Hope you found some inspiration for your upcoming baby shower!  Want more party tips?  I’m giving LOADS of details on my event planning biz in my new E-zine “The Girlfriend’s Guide to MY Party Planning Biz!  Available for presale now here.  

WANT TO GET MORE TIPS?  Be sure to SUBSCRIBE to my blog so you can get all my blog posts delivered right to your email’s inbox so you won’t miss a thing!  Subscribing is easy!  Just enter your email address in the above right corner of this page and be sure to confirm your email once you get our confirmation to your inbox!  That’s it!

Cheers!
Tonya