Chocolate Baby Shower Party Favors

When it come to holding a baby shower for someone, choosing fun party favors that are unique and different is important. We have a couple of great Chocolate baby shower party favors that you are not going to see at everyone else’s party. Simple and easy to make and they taste awesome! Give them a try!


Chocolate Dipped Pretzel Sticks

1 bag of candy chocolate disks (pink, blue, white or milk chocolate)
1 bag of salted pretzel sticks
(optional) colored sprinkles
skinny plastic candy bags for packaging

Follow the directions on the pack of chocolate candy disks to melt the chocolate in your microwave or on the stove top. Once it has been melted, dip approximately 1/2 to 2/3 of your pretzel stick down into the chocolate. Once coated hold the pretzel above your dish for 30 seconds to allow the excess chocolate to drain back into your dish. If desired, roll your chocolate dipped pretzel stick into some colored sprinkles. Lay your pretzel sticks out onto wax paper or a nonstick silicone mat to firm up. You can speed up this process by placing the tray in the refrigerator to chill. Once firm package the pretzel sticks into food safe bags and tie them shut with baby shower theme'd ribbon.


Chocolate Dipped Marshmallows on a Stick

These days you can now purchase marshmallow puffs in a variety of pastel colors. If you are throwing a baby girl shower...look for pink or look for blue for a baby boy. If you can't find the colored marshmallows...stick to white.

bag of jet-puffed marshmallows (white, pink or blue)
1 pkg. wooden lollipop sticks
1 bag of chocolate candy disks (white, milk chocolate, pink or blue)
1-2 pkgs. colored sprinkles
1 pkg. food safe storage bags


Melt the chocolate in your microwave or stove top according to package directions. Place a lollipop stick into the bottom of each marshmallow puff. Dip each marshmallow into the melted chocolate and then hold it above your container for 30 seconds to allow the excess chocolate to drip back into the container. Roll the marshmallows in colored sprinkles. Lay your chocolate confections on waxed paper or on a nonstick silicone baking mat to firm up. Once firm package them in food safe bags and tie them shut with pretty baby themed ribbon. ************************************************************************************** Barb Ireland is the founder of Make A Diaper Cake Biz, http://www.makeadiapercake.biz. You learn how to make a diaper cake, or start your own diaper cake business at her site. Articles are free to be reprinted as long as author’s bio remains intact.Copyrights 2000/2013 **************************************************************************************

Baby Shower Trends for Baby Girl Showers

When it comes to baby showers there is a trend for new moms that are expecting a baby girl.  These ideas can be certainly used and tweaked for little boy’s too.  We don’t discriminate!  Here are some great tips you can look at when planning a baby shower this year.

These days you will find that the majority of baby showers being thrown this year have at least one diaper cake on display as the main party table's centerpiece. These are great because you have no need to buy expensive throw away decorations and it becomes part of the gift.  The diaper cakes look so darling in pinks, yellows and lavender.

*Many party goer’s are now seeing cup cake cakes instead of a full-size baby shower cake at today’s baby showers.  This cuts down on the cost and leftovers and a lot of women are watching their weight and pocketbook too. You can find them in a variety of designs and colors or make your own.
To keep costs down many party hosts are making do-it-yourself table centerpieces (the diaper cake), party favors, party decorations and even hand making the party invitations to save a bunch of money.

*If you are doing a DIY type of theme, why not ask the guests to either bring a homemade baby gift or if purchasing a store-bought give to package it in a homemade gift box or gift bag?

*A trend we are seeing more of in 2012 is the guys! Back in the old days you only found women and girls attending baby showers but these days many of the guys are showing up on the invite lists and having a great time right along with all of the girls.

It’s easy to keep costs down by doing a lot of the shower ideas yourself and with our great tips and how-to’s to help you make the gifts and decorations, you are going to have a fabulous shower to remember!

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Barb Ireland is the founder of Make A Diaper Cake Biz, http://www.makeadiapercake.biz. You learn how to make a diaper cake, or start your own diaper cake business at her site. Articles are free to be reprinted as long as author’s bio remains intact.Copyrights 2000/2013
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Personalized Baby Shower Gift Ideas

People love getting personalized gifts and when it comes to baby shower gifts, new parents are thrilled to receive a gift that has been carefully selected, just for their new bundle of joy. By taking the time to have something personalized, you have raised that gift to a new level. Here are some great ideas for wonderful baby shower gifts and any new mom or dad would love to have.

* Piggy Banks - Purchasing a piggy bank that has been beautifully personalized with the name of the new baby is always an appreciated gift, especially when you tuck in a few dollars or some coins to get the child started on their college savings plan before they are even born.

* Personalized Baby Dinnerware - You can get a sipper cup, bowl, plate and even baby feeding utensils personalized with the new baby's name which is a nice practical gift that will be used over and over again by the new mother during baby's feeding time.

* Personalized Baby Clothing - All new mom-to-be's appreciate cute clothing for their new bundle of joy and you can get t-shirts, onesies, hats, bibs and sleepers that have all been personalized with the baby's name.

* Keepsake Box - A gift that is often overlooked for a baby shower gift is a personalized keepsake box that the new mom can store all of her baby's little treasures inside like the birth certificate, birth announcement, birth photos, locks of hair, etc.

* Personalized Embroidered Baby Blanket - Every new mom will tell you that they can never have enough baby sized blankets so why not treat the new mom to a beautiful personalized baby blanket or throw blanket.


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Barb Ireland is the founder of Make A Diaper Cake Biz, http://www.makeadiapercake.biz. You learn how to make a diaper cake, or start your own diaper cake business at her site. Articles are free to be reprinted as long as author’s bio remains intact.Copyrights 2000/2013
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Baby Shower Baby Bottle Party Ideas

Baby bottles are a very versatile item to have at your baby shower. They come in handy when using them for decorations or to help facilitate a baby shower theme game. They also make a great gift too, for after all of the festivities are over, your new mom-to-be can keep all of the baby bottles and use them once her new baby arrives.

Here are some nifty ideas on how you can use the baby bottles at the baby shower party.

* Fill up a few baby bottles with pink or blue colored candies. Set them out onto the tables as table decorations. Guests can eat the candies and the new mom can keep the bottles after the party is over.

* Fill up a few baby bottles with some cute diaper pins and place them out onto the tables as table decorations. During the party you can use one of the filled baby bottles as a baby shower game and have all of the guests try to guess how many diaper pins are in the bottle. The guest who guesses correctly will win a prize. The new mom gets to keep all of the diaper pins along with all of the baby bottles.

* Fill up a few baby bottles with water and use them as flower vases on the tables at the baby shower. You can fit a few nice freshly cut flowers into each bottle but make sure you cut them down to proper size so that the bottles don't tip over. Once the shower is over, your new mom-to-be can keep the flowers and the practical baby bottles.

* Fill up a few baby bottles with colored baby theme confetti that you purchased from a party supply store. If you are having helium balloons as part of the party decorations you can tie them around the baby bottles and sit them on the party tables.

What a simple and fun way to use baby bottles at a baby shower! Your new mom to be is going to love your thoughtfulness and creativity!

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Barb Ireland is the founder of Make A Diaper Cake Biz, http://www.makeadiapercake.biz. You learn how to make a diaper cake, or start your own diaper cake business at her site. Articles are free to be reprinted as long as author’s bio remains intact.Copyrights 2000/2013
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Baby Shower Decoration ~ Another Wreath!

With so many baby shower decorations on the market today {and the cost factor}, making your own is not only cost effective but easy and fun too!

Supplies you'll need:

• About 6 yards of baby shower themed ribbon { 2 inches wide}
• One inch wide coordinating ribbon ( Hanger)
• Rose petals {100}
• Ink ( Chalk ink works best) or acrylic paint, small spray bottle
• 9 inch Styrofoam ring
• Small straight pins
• Large corsage pins
• Glue gun
• Mixed embellishments of flowers, half back pearls, any kind of bling ,small fabric butterflies, boa.
• Scissors, and a lighter

 Click on any picture to get a lager image.


To began, prepare your flowers.If your going to use paint take your small spray bottle and fill it almost to the top with water, add your paint however much you want {less makes the paint lighter) and shake well.Find something to put the flowers in and spray away using a paper plate to lay them on to dry { foam plates work best and they won't stick} If using ink go ahead and ink them up. Set aside to dry. You can use your heat guns { or blow dryer to dry them} Or do this step the day before you plan on making your decoration.

Whatever you choose {Ink or paint} make sure to cover any surface your working on. I use a craft mat they clean up easy.

While the flowers are drying , begin working on the ring.Start with centering the hanger using  the smaller ribbon.

Either mark it or just go ahead and pin, or glue like the photo below.

Snip off a bit of your larger ribbon now and lightly run your lighter along it's edge to keep it from fraying.Center that end right onto the two smaller ribbons you just pinned {Hanger} Take a bit of glue and glue it down over the two ends sticking out.Pull the two small ribbon apart so when you warp the lager ribbon up and over it as the large goes between the two small ribbons like the photo below.

Bring large ribbon over to the top and glue secure.Wait for glue to set and dry, and grab a hold of the hanger to move those ribbons out of the way and start to wrap all the large ribbon around the ring making sure you position the ribbon at an angle at each wrap.You should use a bit of hot glue like every fourth wrap to help tack the ribbon to the ring.

Now your ready to add your flowers. Start at either end { top or bottom} make your first flower by taking a bit of glue and applying to the ring and using the very end of the rose petal to do so. Once you do this work around inside of the ring first adding petals then working your way around the ring, just keep gluing them any pattern you wish!

Don't worry about getting every spot, once your finished you can look it over and add more petals in spots you missed by simply pulling apart the petals and inserting another one in,or you can fill them with boa! So pretty that way!

 After you've laid down the boa, add your butterflies. If you wish to color them do so along with your petals. Take a small straight pin or corsage pin and stick it thru the butterflies middle and insert this into the boa and Styrofoam ring.The corsage pins with the pearl tops work really good when you want the butterfly to sit up higher and you won't need to cover the pin head.

Now your ready to add the rest of your embellishments!

Here i used the lager flowers to cover the inside of the rings petals.
You can also now use them anyway you'd like adding flat back pearls to the centers of the flowers, fill in empty spaces and so on! Put a couple of the embellishment flowers onto the other side to even out the structure of the ring.Best of of all use what you'd like for this decoration! All you need is the basic know how! ENJOY:)

************************************************************************************** Barb Ireland is the founder of Make A Diaper Cake Biz, http://www.makeadiapercake.biz. You learn how to make a diaper cake, or start your own diaper cake business at her site. Articles are free to be reprinted as long as author’s bio remains intact.Copyrights 2000/2013 **************************************************************************************

Tips on How to Have a Frugal Baby Shower

Every pregnant mom-to-be deserves a nice baby shower but it doesn't have to be expensive and lavish. Here are a few frugal baby shower tips to help save you some money when planning a baby shower for your mom-to-be.

* Instead of purchasing already made baby shower party invitations make them yourself or print some off of the internet. When possible, hand deliver the invitations to save on postage.

* When purchasing for baby shower party supplies check out your local dollar discount type of stores. We went into one last week and found: balloons, streamers, plastic tableware, candles for table centerpieces, party favors and you can purchase some really nice items there to use for prizes won from the baby shower games.

* Head to a craft supply store and purchase supplies to make party favors, table centerpieces and party decorations. Enlist a few friends to help you one afternoon to make up the favors and decorations that you will need.

* Instead of having food delivered or catered, make it yourself or ask some of the party guests to bring a dish. If you don't want to do those options then keep it simple with cake, ice cream and a few beverages.

* Don't rent a venue to hold the baby shower in. Ask around and see if someone will offer up their home or place of business. If that doesn't work, contact a few churches or your local fire hall and offer a donation to them for a few hours of space in their location.

* Don't hire or rent entertainment for the party. I once attended a baby shower that had 3 different entertainer's doing different things throughout the party. Most of us at the party felt it was over-the-top and not needed. Keep it simple and let mingling with guests and the party games be the only entertainment.

* When it comes to the baby shower cake you can save money by purchasing one from your local grocery store's bakery department. If you walk into a regular bakery you are more than likely going to pay top dollar for a cake so save money by purchasing one from the grocery store or bake it yourself.

A baby shower is meant to be a fun time, not something to stress over. So let the fun happen naturally and save some money while you are at it.
************************************************************************************** Barb Ireland is the founder of Make A Diaper Cake Biz, http://www.makeadiapercake.biz. You learn how to make a diaper cake, or start your own diaper cake business at her site. Articles are free to be reprinted as long as author’s bio remains intact.Copyrights 2000/2013 **************************************************************************************

How to Make: Quick & Easy Homemade Baby Shower Invitations

Here is a quick and easy way to make your own baby shower invitations so that you can match the theme of your shower to the invitation. It is a great way to save money and people love seeing the creative ways to make homemade cards.

Supplies Needed:

*White Blank Note Cards with Envelopes

*Various sheets of 12x12 baby themed or pastel colored scrapbooking paper

*Glue sticks

*Baby themed sticker packs

*Party date rubber stamp with ink pad

*Embellishments: satin ribbon, mini silk flowers, buttons, beads, charms, etc.

*Liquid glue pen (only if adhering any of the above embellishments)
Scissors and Ruler

* You will need to decide if you are going to cover just the fronts and backs of your note cards with pretty scrapbooking paper or if you are going to completely cover them, inside and out to determine how many sheets of scrapbooking paper you will need.

* You can find rubber stamps in the rubber stamp aisle at your local craft supply store that will have: Your Invited To A Baby Shower, Date and Time on them and you can use that to stamp the inside of your invitations. If you are trying to be frugal, you can certainly handwrite it out.

You will want to measure your note cards and cut out blocks from your scrapbooking paper to fit over top of the areas you want to cover up. Use the glue stick to on the back side of the scrapbooking paper and place the paper on top of the card. Let dry. Once you have your card covered with the desired amounts of paper it is time to decorate the front cover. You can use flat baby themed stickers or get really fancy and purchase some baby themed 3-dimensional sticker embellishments. To jazz up your invitations even more, glue on some satin ribbon trim, ribbon bows, beads, buttons, etc.

Use a rubber stamp on the inside of the invitation as an outline for you to print in your party details...or just simply do it all in your own handwriting. I would suggest that you use black ink which shows up really well against printed or pastel colored scrapbooking paper. If you have any leftover stickers you can use those to decorate the envelopes.

Just remember...the more embellishments and stickers you add onto your cards, the more it can raise the weight of them which would cost you more to mail out your invitations. Just something to keep in mind when decorating your invitations.
************************************************************************************** Barb Ireland is the founder of Make A Diaper Cake Biz, http://www.makeadiapercake.biz. You learn how to make a diaper cake, or start your own diaper cake business at her site. Articles are free to be reprinted as long as author’s bio remains intact.Copyrights 2000/2013 **************************************************************************************

Altered Crocheted Booties~ Easy!

Did you know altering baby items is so simple? You can take a plain item such as a pair of crocheted booties and turn them into something fabulous!

Cute huh? Well did you know a little lace or ribbon, needle & thread, hot glue and some tiny pearls could make this pair of booties "cuter".




These booties are available for purchase HERE
Yes, you can!


I turned these plain white crocheted booties into a nice little Keepsake Gift for the new Mom to be.Using Lace , my hot glue gun, needle and thread and tiny pearls.


I glued on the lace ( you can sew it on as well) doing so with three layers for the bottom and one layer for the top of booties. I sewed two small lace flowers, sewed those on the booties and glued pearls onto the flower.These are not washable and only a keepsake, but you can certainly sew everything and make the functional.



OR, you can bling them up like this pair below , it's totally up to you and what you have on hand!

************************************************************************************** Barb Ireland is the founder of Make A Diaper Cake Biz, http://www.makeadiapercake.biz. You learn how to make a diaper cake, or start your own diaper cake business at her site. Articles are free to be reprinted as long as author’s bio remains intact.Copyrights 2000/2013 **************************************************************************************

FREE Diaper Cake Instructions! Learn to Make a Diaper Cake Today!

How To Make A Three Layer Diaper Cake Using Baby Blankets

For this and most of the cakes I make, I use a 40 x 40 baby blanket to achieve a bottom layer of 12 inches round. To start, lay the blanket (with the inside facing up) out in front of you leaving any decals for the last fold. Begin folding the end near you, then keep folding and smoothing out any bunches or wrinkles as you go.

Stand this layer up and make sure the height measures 5 to 5 ½ inches exactly (very important). At this time you can also measure the width, which should be around 12 inches. To do this you simply take your measure tape and measure the top of the template sideways. Adjust the length by bringing one end into (see picture below) the “ring”. This will help you by adding more or less to meet the 12 inches for bottom layer.

Once measurements are right, go ahead and pin both ends together using a corsage pin.

Now you can add your diapers by inserting them one at a time overlapping each other until you fill this layer.
Note: Always pack diapers in tightly, this will help stabilize your cake and insure its roundness. You can use packing paper in the middle instead of diapers to fill and pack tight. Make sure to push “out” to help form the diapers which helps make the template to take on fuller, rounder look.

You can use a cake plate or whatever you choose for the bottom BEFORE you start to work on the other layer.

This layer should be no higher than 5 inches (you don't want a cone appearance) and 8 inches wide. Once you have adjusted this layer like the bottom layer, pin the ends together & fill with diapers.

Note: It's always a good idea to stand up the second layer onto the bottom layer while holding ends together to get an idea of how much room you'll have on all sides (like picture above) for product, or whatever, before pinning. Repeat step one for filling the inside of layer two.

I used a bear for the top layer, so if you'd like to do so as well follow these instructions. If you choose not too, then just repeat instructions for layer two. I usually dress my bears with oneies or craft store outfits for bears.

In this case you need to either take out some diapers from second
layer so the bears legs can rest there from layer three & fold one in the middle for bear to connect with.

Fill about five diapers into the third layer then set in bear. You may also want to tie off the bottom of a oneise to insure a good fit, or omit all of this and just stuff the bears butt into third layer… either works. See pictures below.

So now the cake should look something like this! Adorable, if I say so myself – but for now it’s onto the shred and adding your embellishments!

Now go ahead and mix your shred if you haven't already (a good idea is to use colors that are in blankets, toys, bibs and so on)
Start adding at the top paying special attention to filling around the bear, this will help keep bear from moving and look fuller & rounder. Continue on adding shred to all layers. Shred not only gives more “wow” factor to your designs, but this also helps keep the cake stable and the layers secure within themselves. No need for dowels or any of that stuff.

This style is old school (I began making diaper cakes in 1999 but it's a favorite design because it’s one I taught myself. There were no instructions back then). Please don’t misunderstand. It’s not that the “spiral or rolled” kind are not nice; they are! These are just more compact and you can do so much more with blankets, whole baby suits, toys avoiding the issue of falling apart.

The most important factor is you just want to create and make this all fun!

Barb Ireland ©2011

************************************************************************************** Barb Ireland is the founder of Make A Diaper Cake Biz, http://www.makeadiapercake.biz. You learn how to make a diaper cake, or start your own diaper cake business at her site. Articles are free to be reprinted as long as author’s bio remains intact.Copyrights 2000/2013 **************************************************************************************

Unique Baby Gifts to Make

The announcement of a new baby on the way starts the hunt for the perfect baby gift to give the new mom. For those women that are crafty, making a unique baby gift is on top of their list. I think it starts a bit of competition since everyone wants their gift to be unique and not duplicated by others.

At MakeaDiaperCakeToday we offer you a ton of resources so that you can learn how to craft a darling baby gift that is sure to make the new mom super excited. One of the tutorials for a great baby gift is, of course, a diaper cake. This is an art of sorts, but with some direction and help, you will find that making a diaper cake is a relatively simple process and something that a new mom is going to love! Plus, it is so cute she may want to display it for a bit before taking it apart for use.

We also have some great tutorials for making decorations for your diapercake too. Gorgeous flowers you can craft and ribbons make the outside of the diapercake beautiful and special. You can even match it to the shower theme for display purposes.

All of these are going to make your gift recipient very happy. So glad you joined us here! We love helping you create and make a wonderful, unique baby gift that you will be proud to giveaway.

Hand dyed Shabby Chic Fabric Flowers And Lace Sale

You can add these affordable flowers and laces to your diaper and towel cake creations.The lace is one yard, enough to make a couple of lace flowers.



Hand dyed and handmade , baby gifts here http://yardsellr.com/yardsale/Barb-Ireland-189006

Flower and lace only here http://copious.com/profiles/barb-ireland
{MORE COLORS COMING}

If you'd like a custom order just shoot me an email.. i can do just about any color.
Save yourself some money by making your own flowers..also coming soon, lace and ribbon, cheaper than the store and free shipping.

Are Diaper Cakes Just for Baby Girls?

I have been writing about diaper cakes for so many years. As the originator to the craft of making diaper cakes years ago and having been duplicated by hundreds, I think I know quite a bit about them. One thing that is curious to me is that many moms think about using a diaper cake for a centerpiece or a gift when it comes to baby girls. Are diaper cakes just for baby girls or are they okay for baby boys too?

I am not sure why this phenomenon has occurred. I think that we have about as many boy children born as we do girl children. Maybe it has to do with what is “cute” so maybe the diaper cakes are thought of as more girl focused and boys are supposed to be tough and rugged and we don’t think of cakes. Trucks, Trains and Planes and all things like that.

Once thing I do know is that a diaper cake as a gift for a new mom is just as darling if she is having a little girl as it is if she is having a little boy. Plus it is so much fun building and decorating them. They also are great to fill the middle with necessities for the baby’s needs. You can put baby booties, socks, t shirts and other great items your new mom will need.

Decorating your diaper cake is easy with some sweet ribbons, flowers, and other crafty additions you can make or buy at a craft store. They make a darling baby shower centerpiece for the new mom to take home. What a memory!

So regardless of whether your diaper cake is for a little girl or a little boy, check out our tutorials and articles on the best way to build your diaper cake and how to present it. Have fun!

************************************************************************************** Barb Ireland is the founder of Make A Diaper Cake Biz, http://www.makeadiapercake.biz. You learn how to make a diaper cake, or start your own diaper cake business at her site. Articles are free to be reprinted as long as author’s bio remains intact.Copyrights 2000/2013 **************************************************************************************

How To Make a diaper cake - Rolled style

Hello there, I'm bumping up some old videos here to help those in need of find instructions.Youtube is a wonderful place to find great instructions.

Pink Baby Shower Wreath

With loads of bling!

Okay so I finally got around to designing the second Baby Shower Wreath or decoration. If you'd like to get a "leg up" on your competition you must think outside of the box. Don't just follow the trend, be a trend setter :) Let's face it there is plenty of room for all who sell online, "but in order to turn heads" dream up creations no one else is doing.










If you'd like to make something like the one above though, it's simple.
Here is what you need:
Glue gun
Wide wired ribbon about 2 to 3 inches
BLING - If you'd like to know where to purchase the bling blast me a email at makeadiapercaketoday@gmail.com
Booties
Plastic flowers
And some kind of coordinating ribbon tie at the top
Corsage pins

The most time consuming part is wrapping the wide ribbon around the Styrofoam ring.You can simply secure the start of the wrapping part by using a corsage pin, use a bit of glue to help secure the ribbon as you go.The rest is just about how you'd like to decorate it.. HAVE FUN.

************************************************************************************** Barb Ireland is the founder of Make A Diaper Cake Biz, http://www.makeadiapercake.biz. You learn how to make a diaper cake, or start your own diaper cake business at her site. Articles are free to be reprinted as long as author’s bio remains intact.Copyrights 2000/2013 **************************************************************************************