Gia Russo, lifestyle expert and Martha Stewart Living alum visits ABC7 News Sunday Morning and explains some baby shower props while offering viewers tips on how to throw a baby shower on a budget.Tips for throwing the perfect shower:
" Create an unforgettable baby shower by weaving a common theme throughout the shower from the invites, to the menu, to the color scheme and gifts.
Throwing a really memorable baby shower is all about the special details and having a theme helps create a way to highlight those details.
" Giving a favor or goodie bag to guests as they leave is another way to make your shower special and memorable. Try weaving in goodies that connect back to the shower theme, you can even coordinate colors that tie back to the ones you featured at your shower.
" You can create a theme for gifts the guests bring as well - ask each guest to bring a special gift celebrating all the wonderful "firsts" mom-to-be will soon be sharing with her little one. To help bring these milestones to life, assign guests a gift that falls under a "baby's first" category - such as baby's first bath, first steps, first day at the beach, etc.
" Create activities for your guests - having something fun for them to do makes the shower more enjoyable for everyone. Create a mini-spa experience for your guests by offering on-site manicures, pedicures and massages. Invite your guests to create a special scrapbook with Polaroid pictures and handwritten messages from the shower. Another fun idea is to have guests create personalized quilt squares and have them sewn together to present as a gift to the guest of honor at the end of shower.
Tips for throwing a baby shower on a budget:
* Overall budget: Team up with friends and family members of the mom-to-be to share costs
* Invites: Create homemade invitations on your computer OR cut the cost of printing & postage by emailing online evites.
* Food: Have each party-goer bring a dish OR plan the party at a during the mid-afternoon with a menu heavy on * creative finger foods & snacks.
* Entertainment: You can find many games and activities available in printout forms online like bingo. Encourage playful competitiveness among game participants with prizes all of which you can find at your local discount store scented candles, picture frames, etc...
* Gifts: Recruit your crafty friends to create homemade gifts for the mom-to-be and party favors for the guests.
Sunday, from 2-5pm, there's an exclusive baby shower at the Peninsula Hotel for a local winner of the Ultimate babyGap Shower contest, babyGap's first national contest for expectant moms. The contest, which ran from Sept. 1 through Oct. 6, 2005, invited customers across the country to enter for a chance to win a special baby shower celebration for an expectant mom. Ten winners across the county were recently announced and will be awarded an extravagant and luxurious baby shower celebration for a special mom-to-be and 30 guests.
The 10 baby showers will be created to provide mom and guests with a spa-like experience. Each baby shower will include a GapMaternity wardrobe and styling session for mom-to-be. There will be special treats for guests including spa treatments such as foot massages, manicures and pedicures, as well as gourmet food, delicious drinks and decadent desserts.
Gia is known has half of "the MiGi girls." Gia, along with Michele Adams host the Fine Living show The Art of the Party and have authored several books including Baby Showers (published by Chronicle Books). MiGi's strong design background and contemporary style made them the perfect pair to help babyGap design and produce the Ultimate babyGap Showers for 10 lucky winners.
Stumble It!
