Monday, October 3, 2011

Baby Shower


Yesterday was the baby shower for my sister Lindi and brother-in-law Mike.  I have been feeling very crafty lately, so I have been busy making fun things that finally made their debut at the shower.  I have wanted to share for weeks, but I didn't want to spoil the surprise before the big day.

My first task from the party planners was a diaper cake.  I have never made one, but Lindi made a cute one for my shower last year, so I thought I could handle it (plus, I had a stack of size 1 diapers left from Scarlett!).  I started looking online and got a few ideas for a non-cake cake, and I came up with this...

 It's a boat! I did the entire construction phase during one of Scarlett's afternoon naps (about two hours).  I found some cute flannel and finished the edges to make a few receiving blankets.  I spruced up some plain burp cloths with anchor-printed cotton.  Then I started building.

I used 2 old postal boxes (leftover from Thred-Up)
I cut the first box apart into a long flat rectangle, then cut curves from the long sides.
I used the sides from a second box to made the bow and stern, attaching with tape.  Since it was not meant to be perfect, I didn't measure much...I just eyed it, cut and taped until it stuck.
I used some leftover batting to pad the cardboard hull, attaching with staples.
I wrapped the largest receiving blanket around, folding like a present to make a flat stern, and fastened it with scotch tape (yes, it held fine).  Then I rolled the diapers, wrapped each with a rubber band and stuffed the boat as full as I could.
Then I laid two of the burp cloths across the top and tucked (I needed that middle seam for the next step).
A third burp cloth became the sail.  I taped two disposable chopsticks together and positioned them on the cloth.
Then I folded and used a few safety pins to secure the cloth.

I stuck the chopstick down through the seam between the cloths and the rolled diapers underneath.  I used a few safety pins to secure the bottom of the cloth to the base.
 This was the basic shape.  Then I used a small blanket as a "diaper" on the bear, a second small blanket rolled up as the life ring and tied ribbons around whatever I could.  I still had a pile of diapers left over, so I stacked them up and wrapped them with the 4th burp cloth to look like a present.  It wasn't sea-worthy, but it was definitely cute!

My other project was favors.  I have been wanting to do Oreo pops ever since I saw them on Pinterest, so I through this was a good opportunity.  Bonus:  Oreos are naturally vegan, as are some semi-sweet chocolate chips, so they fit in with the all-vegan menu! 


I didn't take step-by-step pictures, but I followed this tutorial, and they came out great!  A few tips:
  • Double Stuf Oreos are key!
  • Use the thinner size sticks (there was a thicker "cookie pop" stick that would have cracked the cookies)
  • Dip the sticks in chocolate before inserting in the cookie, and let it set before dipping.  After dipping, lay the pops on parchment...don't try to sit them upright like I did, and waste a bunch of ingredients (though Chris did enjoy his bowl of melty-chocolate covered Oreo bits as a reward for going to buy more Oreos).

Hope someone else is inspired to be crafty!  I have a few other projects up my sleeve for future events, so stay tuned!

7 comments:

~Q said...

That boat diaper "cake" is just amazing and so adorable. It looks like it was a lot of fun to make. The cookie pops look yummy!

Thanks for sharing. :)

jeanette burkholder said...

Thanks for sharing thats so cool that you were able to share your ideas at the shower! Congrats Lindi and Mike!

Kate said...

Super Cute!! You are so crafty and the pops and diaper boat were adorable!

MC said...

wow, you're so crafty. The boat diaper cake non cake is amazing!
Congrats to your sister. I hope she has an easy L&D!

CEZ said...

So adorable! Great creativity Brandi! Everything looked great!Hope your sister had a beautiful shower!

Michele said...

Brandi - you are AMAZING! what a creative and wonderful gift.

alex said...

That diaper cake turned out wonderful!! and so appropriate for Lindi!!!