Nautical Inspired Baby Boy Shower

My sweet friend Lindsey is pregnant with her first baby and they’re having a BOY!

It’s been a long pregnancy, with the last couple of months being quite complicated and resulting in some pretty strict bed rest, but that little man is still baking away!  Which is a good thing!

Remember Becky who did my business cards?  We partnered on this shower for Lindsey and her babe.  Becky did the food and drinks, and I was in charge of decorations.

I wanted to keep things fairly simple, but masculine for little Brody.  Inspired by nautical parties I had seen making the rounds on Pinterest, I took some elements (bold colors, strong graphics, neutral textures and crisp whites), and left behind some of the more “theme-y” ideas (anchors, sailboats, whales).

Bright yellow flowers were a prominent element.

I had 6 of these arrangements sprinkled around the rooms.  I love the messy flower arrangement against the formal straight lines of the square vase.

The song “You are my sunshine” is a family tradition for Lindsey, so Becky incorporated some of that in as well.

Becky is a really good cook, so she pulled out all the stops for this one.

She also happened to know that one of Lindsey’s favorites is lemon flavors…which worked well with our yellow and blues.  Because yes, the food totally has to match the party colors.

To try and “boy” things up without resorting to baseball playing bears, I tried to incorporate heavy textures like burlap and thickly woven baskets wherever I could.

Lemon curd cupcakes stacked high on a burlap runner.

Did I mention the food has to match the party?  (I love that Becky also believes this.  Because then I don’t seem nearly so crazy.)

These were decadent.  I may have eaten three.

Also, there is no way to eat these gracefully. You have to kinda stuff these into your mouth as quickly as possible.  Which is basically my favorite.

Also in keeping with theme were these mini lemon cheesecakes with sugar dusted blueberries.

You knew there had to be bunting, right?

To mix it up a little, I sewed the triangles on their sides rather than the usual pennant style.

I’m kinda in love with how they turned out.

And I wish I had made more.

(Although the pictures don’t do justice of how MANY of those little triangles there are…millions.  Or it felt like it when I sewing…)

There’s my partner in crime, Becky.  (Who is also pregnant.)

Lindsey took home the little flags for Brody’s nursery.  I’m kinda flattered she wanted to use it!  And not jealous at all at the thought of untangling all of that when she gets home!

Since Lindsey was on such strict bed rest, we threw the shower at her mom’s house (where she has been staying).  It’s a great house with a big, open floor plan, but it can make it a little difficult to decorate what amounts to a kitchen, living room, and dining room.  Things get a little spread out, so I added a few things to the mantle.

Rolls of twine are always a great decoration just plopped up there.

And aqua mason jars.  Of course.

Fruit infused water and lemonade in pretty bottles.

No party is complete without a little Lisa Leonard.

These were actually lined up on my kitchen windowsill…I grabbed them at the last minute on my way out the door and I’m so glad!  They were perfect!

Sunflowers are a manly flower, right?

My new favorite party idea is dipped/painted flatware.  I was so excited about this.  Took me all of five minutes to paint the handles in coordinating colors and it was darling.

I originally wanted to use real flatware like this, but my local Goodwill somehow had 758 butter knives and 4 forks.  No, literally.  FOUR.  But the plastic turned out cute too.

 But I didn’t really think through presentation…I should have displayed them more creatively (maybe just lining them up on the tablecloth?) rather than just plopping them into plastic cups.  I think the impact was lost.  Which is a bummer.  Stinks.  They were so fun!

(Mental note: don’t be lazy next time.  Paint both sides of the handle so that it’s a better coat of paint.  I didn’t notice it when they were laying flat to dry.  Boo.)

More food.

And even more.

And cute lidded cups with paper straws with washi tape flags.

Because it would be a crime for people to drink out of red solo cups, right?

Congratulations dear friend.

You’re a good mama already.

Keep that baby baking and save me a squish when he gets here!

Oh, and I got him green chucks.

Because I couldn’t not.

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jeannett

I'm a mom to four. A wife to one. I believe in story. I love telling you about mine and would love to hear yours. There's really no sense in wasting our suffering and not sharing in each other's joy. We're all in this together...even if it doesn't always feel like it.

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