Retro Rainbow Baby Shower {Part 1 – Table & Decor}

So….. I’m extra excited to share this post because it’s been LONG time coming! This is a theme I designed back in early May – a “Retro Rainbow Baby Shower” with a fun mix of sunshine, rainbows, and throwback inspired elements like retro candy, color blocked gold chargers and DIY sequin-embellished disco baby roller skates, which now double as one of my favorite pieces of office “decor”. ;)

Pretty much the very next minute after this project wrapped though… life, work, and [insert all of the above] happened. There just always seemed to be something more pressing to tend to (as is often the case when it comes to “your own” projects… I’m sure many of my fellow creatives can relate), so Retro Rainbow sat patiently in a folder on my Mac, just waiting to one day see the light of day again.

Well… TODAY is that day – so here we go! If you like what you see, you can find the printables right here, and please stay tuned for Part 2 (dessert table & treats).

PARTY HIGHLIGHTS TO LOOK OUT FOR:

– Quilt-batting “cloud” centerpiece + rainbow button “rain drops”
– A (super easy) alternate centerpiece idea made from printable paper clouds
– Color-blocked chargers and glasses (made with painter’s tape & spray paint)
– Party Favors: Retro candy packaged in mini glittered baby bottles with printable flags
– Chair backs decorated with ribbon & glittery hearts (+ a cloud for mom-to-be’s chair!)

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PARTY DETAILS:

I wanted the vibe of this Retro Rainbow Baby Shower to be playful and happy… something that would put both mom-to-be and her guests in a “shiny happy” mood the minute they arrived! Bright colors, metallic gold, glitter and fluffy white clouds took center stage. The printable paper details played a huge part in bringing this theme to life – through elements like framed prints, party flags, and bold patterned papers used as napkin rings and dessert tray liners.

I hope this theme makes you happy too! If you know a mom-to-be that would love to be showered with sunshine and rainbows, the entire printable collection (+ coordinating items like invitations & name banners) can be found right here.

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TABLETOP DETAILS:

Centerpiece Design A:
– “Bubble” vase (from HomeGoods) spray painted gold & decorated with large candy dots
– DIY clouds made from quilt batting and felt
– “Raindrop” button strands made from buttons, fishing line, and mini glue dots
– Smaller bud vase (from Ikea) spray painted gold & white
– Framed prints, glittered pacifiers, & extra quilt batting around the base

Centerpiece design B:
– Printable “You Are My Sunshine, Baby” paper clouds attached to wooden dowels
– Dowels inserted into foam filled vase & covered with quilt batting
– Glittered acrylic pacifiers around the base

Place Settings:
– Color blocked acrylic charger plates
– “Double dipped” (Dollar Tree glasses spray painted with white and gold)
– Utensils adorned with glittered mini wooden hearts
– Retro Orange Cream Soda Bottles + stripey straws embellished buttons
– Patterned paper “napkin rings”
– A special glittered initial used to distinguish mom-to-be’s place setting

Etc:
– Inexpensive sheet from Target used as “table cloth”
– Chairs decorated with bands of ribbon + glittered hearts
– Mom-to-be’s chair had a special cloud + glittered heart chair back design!

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PARTY DECOR DETAILS:
– Wooden shadow boxes (from Michaels) painted two-tone with craft paint
– Wooden letters (from Michaels) spelling BABY painted two-tone with craft paint
– Vases decorated with large Candy Buttons
– Glittered acrylic pacifiers
– Framed Prints embellished with buttons and glittered hearts
– Onesies embellished with ribbon, buttons, glittered hearts, & printable paper details

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DIAPER CAKE:
This diaper cake was super easy! Two wooden shadow boxes painted two-tone with craft paint were used for the main “structure” of the diaper cake. The largest box was filled with diapers and then another layer was added around the outside. The smaller box sat on top of the larger one & was filled with more rolled diapers. The cake was decorated with rick rack and sequin ribbon + fabric flowers & buttons.

Diaper Cake Topper:
These “disco baby roller skates” were fashioned from inexpensive baby shoes from Target (I just bought the cheapest ones I could find) + gold spray paint & sequins. Two sets of wooden craft wheels were also spray painted gold and embellished with buttons, then hot glued to the bottom of the shoes. For the finishing touch – a little printable “This is how I Roll” batter was attached to the shoes with wooden dowel!

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VENDOR CREDITS & RESOURCES:

– Graphic Design / Party Printables: Jenn Sbranti / HWTM (Available on Etsy)
– Theme Design, Styling & Photography: Hostess with the Mostess
– Candy Buttons & Cosmic Rocks used in favors: Candy Warehouse