Party Planning--- A baby shower!

Trying to plan a baby shower on a budget?? Here are a few things that might help!

1) Buy a little at a time. Instead of buying everything for the shower at once, but a few things every time you go to the store. It will be much easier on the pocket book if you spent $5-$10 every week instead of $100 or more at once! Buy things that will keep well and store them in a safe place! One idea is to get a tote and keep it accessible to add items as you find/buy them.

2) Purchase items at discount stores. All your party supplies don't need to be purchased at a party supply store. Try dollar stores, dollar sections, Wal-Mart, Big Lots, etc. They have great deals! You can purchase things such as streamers, balloons, table cloths, basket fill, place settings, and more and save a big hunk of change! You will definitely want to check the durability and quality of some of these--- you don't want Aunt Betty trying to eat cake with a broken fork!

3) Plan early. Decide on a theme early in the game and plan quickly. This will allow more time to buy in advance and to shop for good deals! For example, if the baby shower will be in the middle of the year or later and you know you're hosting a bunny or duck themed shower, you can take advance of Easter deals for some decor or favors.

4) Use games as part of your gift. If you're playing a memory or pricing game, use the items to memorize or guess the price of as part of the gift you're giving the mom-to-be. Use a game that incorporates baby bottles to start off the mom's needed supply.

5) Utilize some of the decorations as the gift, also. You can hang a clothesline full of baby clothes, display clothes as a centerpiece, decorate with stuffed animals/books, fill baby bottles with tissue paper or candies, and more. Get creative! Centerpieces definitely make the atmosphere of the room, but you can still save money on them!

6) Add some pizazz to your table by placing a piece of colorful scrapbook paper that corresponds with your themes/colors at each place setting. It's cheaper than place mats and can be tossed after the shower. Also, shop for cheap material (by the yard or in the scrap bins) that matches or looks good with your colors or theme and can be used to spruse up your tables!

7) Design your own invitations (and other necessary paper products.) Design companies can charge as much as $2 for an invitation, so they can become a big part of your budget. Take a few hours to learn a design program such as Photoshop or something as simple as Microsoft Picture It! Premium (found on most Dell computers). Then look around online for an inspiration of what you want your invite to look like, decide on a size, create a design, buy some cardstock and envelopes (found at an office supply store) and you're ready to go!

8) Make your own food! Some caterers will charge $5 or more a person for a shower's meal--- and most budgets won't allow for that! Make ham salad/egg salad sandwiches, serve veggies & fruits, chip and dips, cheese ball and crackers, etc. Of course a cute baby shower idea is to serve a themed meal-- all the same color, baby themed or baby sized.

9) Use the theme of the nursery as the theme of the shower. Then ask the mom if she has already purchased decorations that can be used to help decorate the shower.

10) Make your own cake-- or cupcakes! A bundle of cupcakes can be dressed up by placing them in a shape that correlates with the shower--- a fish, a monkey head, a baby's rattle, a duck, a teddy bear, flowers, etc. You can also decorate each cupcake to look like a cute baby's face!

11) Host the shower from your home or privately owned facility instead of renting a hall or banquet room. Of course, the area will need to be large enough for your guest list and have a flow that will work for a party of this nature.