A shower for Ashley

Finally I am taking the time to write a detailed post on Ms. Ashley Ryen’s shower. The party was gorgeous and came together with a lot of planning from Ashley’s mom, Linda and myself. I know everything looks fancy pants but I promise, this is all doable. So brace yourself for pictures galore and a break down of my favorite party tricks.

 Let people know where they are headed. Signs directing guests to the party don’t have to look like signs directing customers to a yard sale. The balloons were $1 each with helium. The sign is cardboard, covered with pretty paper and hot glued to a stake. When planning a party, hot glue becomes your BFF.

Not all gifts need to be wrapped. Linda and I purchased this sign from Chocolate Butterbean, a shop we know Ashley loves. The poms are from Martha Stewart’s line at Micheal’s, etsy and some are handmade by Linda.

Now for the main event. This is what Ashley walked into. The Chiavari chairs were rented, the vases belong to Linda, our friends and me. Sometimes, you have to beg and borrow to get what you need, but please don’t steal. The flowers were from Art in Bloom. We used gold paper napkins from Party City and the gray chevron table runners are from a shop on etsy. Linda made the poms to the side and the signs in the back.

The gift table was my favorite part of the decor. The linens were $10 at Party City. The poms were the same combinations of Martha, etsy and Linda’s crafty ways. Also, try wrapping your gifts to match the decor of the party. This adds a little something to the table and everyone loves a gift in pretty paper.

The cake was made by a full-time fireman/part-time baker and it was 100% delicious. We wanted a gold cake plate but couldn’t find one (at least not one that was cost effective). So  we bought gold paint that, after 21 days of drying, is dishwasher and food safe.

Instead of cups we used lemonade bottles. The bottles and tall straws were purchased from Sweet Lulu. I wish I lived in their stock room. I would do nothing but plan parties morning, noon and night. The labels were an etsy purchase. I used a rectangular hole punch, gold paint pen and coral satin ribbon tied in a bow to give these bottles a bit of whimsy.

The trick to making the food look oh so fancy, use similar dishes. We used all clear platters. Not everyone has a million platters to choose from so plan ahead and borrow, borrow, borrow. Just be sure to wash and send it back in better shape than you received it. The second trick, use labels. Linda added poms to picture clips and I created signs using scrapbook paper from various craft stores. Ashley’s sister-in-law 😉 Carol added her amazing penmanship and WHAM, labels. So easy, but such a difference.

The little things make all the difference when planning a party. We cleared off the shelves to add personal touches. Ashley’s baby dolls from when she was little, cardboard letters covered in pink and gold scrapbook paper, more poms, plastic vases from Party City and coral roses from Linda’s garden. The baby shoes were a gift Linda bought for Ashley and the Vivienne sign was made with painted wood letter and hot glued to fishing line. Another trick to decorating, include your invite. You worked hard to send out all those suckers. Display them in all their glory.

We are almost done, I swear.

Every party needs a favor table. The sign above was made from a piece of cardboard, craft paper, ribbon and cut out letters. The table cloth is from Home Goods and the runner was custom made on etsy. The animal cookies are from Target and were put into a Home Goods container. We made a sign using scrapbook paper, gold paint pen and ribbon to jazz up the outside of it.  One of my favorite ideas came from Ashley’s pinterest. I stamped “ready to pop” on all of these chevron bags and then filled them with Good People Popcorn (had to get a Detroit company in my Livingston County shower).

Finally, I had custom Thank You cards made for the mom to be. We stamped and added a return address label to make life easier. Just like the invite, I wanted to display these cards too. What better way than at the favor table?

Thank you for taking a peek at my longest post to date. Remember, for a great shower, plan ahead and use lots of little details. If you put a lot of love into planning, your mom to be will feel it.

Love you Ms. Ashley Ryen and I cannot wait to meet Ms. Vivienne Ryen.

With love from Detroit,

Callie