How to Make a Diaper Cake!

In honor of baby Greenlee coming VERY soon....here is my last post about Summer's Shower.... The infamous diaper cake. Hopefully you all will enjoy, learn, and attempt!!

STEP 1: pick out the diapers of your choice. I went with Huggies Organic diapers (of course) and I got the newborn size because I figured a new baby might be a cost shock at first -- she can use them imediately. These diapers were less than $20 for a pack of....err....I think 52 and Target.

STEP 2: Everybody (record scratch) get your roll on!

I chose to start at the *ahem* crotch end and work my way up (sorry...I couldn't think of a cleaner way to say that). Roll them as tight as you can!!!

STEP 3: SECURE!!!

Do this with a regular sized rubber band...simple as that!


STEP 4: Making the base

Get a larger rubber band for this step. You'll want to secure abotu 5 diapers together. Make sure you only pull this rubber band over the diapers. don't continue to wrap...you'll want it a little loose. Then stick a baby bottle in the middle and the "backbone." I stuck a few Snickers in the bottle as a little treat for the momma later.

STEP 5: making the base pt. 2

Continue sticking the rolled diapers in the large Rubber band ring to make the extended base. make it as wide as you like (my suggestion is to use 5 diapers for the top of the cake...so make sure you have enough for that). Then, repeat for the middle layer!

(yes, I know it's off center, but I didn't correctly anticipate how many diapers I needed and guess what....it still turned out ok)

STEP 6: Choose your ribbon colors!!

Just go nuts on this part. I've seen some great looking diaper cakes with think brown ribbon and a pink thinner ribbon layering it. I wanted to keep my cake simple with the theme, so I chose a soft green. Use this to cover up the rubber bands...might I suggest using double sided tape??

STEP 7: Pick your "topping"

Some diaper cakes I've seen have a bear sitting on top, or a bottle, or a kid-sized basketball. Again, I wanted to compliment my theme. So I found some beautiful fake green hydrangias (sp?) at Hobby Lobby that fit the top of the cake PERFECTLY (it didn't hurt that they were 50% off!). Then I used some wire cutters to cut of the stem and stuck that sucker right in the middle of the top layer.

STEP 8: Adding your decorations

Again, make this as fun as possible and with your theme! For baby boys, you can stick little tenis shoes, baseballs, etc. For girls, teddy bears, tiny ballet shoes, etc. I've seen some really cute cakes where the person turned it into a gift basket and added pacifiers, bottles, baby food and have it draping off the cake. Again-me-theme...plus I wanted to tie in black from the picture frames used for decorating without looking too "dark" So I kept it simple and made it personal.

So there ya have it folks!!!! what do you think? Was this "how to" helpful? Would you like to see more "how-to's"? Did it wear you out like it did my baby girl??Leave a comment and let me know what you all think!! Peace and Love!

Greenlee's Shower breakdown

As you probably already know, November 15 was Summer's baby shower. Theme: Go Green for Greenlee. Mission: accomplished. Here's the breakdown.

First we have the lovely gift table. From the left: the Japanese cherry blossom I brought from my home (it sets upon my dresser). I wanted to bring in nature as well as serenity and I thought it added a lovely touch. Right in front of it is the box that I made for Summer (you can see it's purpose later on in this post)...but here's the close up.(for Greenlee Elizabeth Colclasure)...yes, I realize that the last initial is suppose to be the bigger one in the middle, but give me a break...at one point I was tested for Dyslexia.

On the far right of the table is a Live Oak Tree. This was our one of the hostesses gifts to Summer (the other was a diaper changing table)...we are planting it in honor of Greenlee at Beaverfork lake (the place where Jordy proposed to Summer). I'm so excited about this! In Columbia, Missouri (where my family use to live) there are so many beautiful walking trails (the town promotes health and nature and I freaking love it) and many families have planted trees in honor or in memory of loved ones. I brought the idea to a gentleman that works for the city of Conway and he loves the idea so much he actually wanted to call the newspaper and make it a tradition in Conway. I will actually speak to him tomorrow so I will let you know how that turns out later...neat, huh?

To the left of the tree on the table is the diaper cake I made and a little sumpin-sumpin for Greenlee's nursery.

For the record, the diaper cake was made from Organic diapers. I've had a lot of people asking how I made this so I'll have a post all about it coming soon!

Next we have the guestbook, or lack-there-of.

The lovely framed note in the back reads: "Instead of a guestbook, we would love for you to write a shor letter for baby Greenlee to read for years to come; as a record of your attendence on this memorable day" yes I know I'm a cheeseball. All paper used here is made from recycled material and eco-friendly...thanks Staples! After each person wrote their note, they dropped into the vase. Now, that is my vase that I love a lot...so THAT'S why I made that box for Summer. Now she has a neat little place to keep and protect the letters for a long time. For the record....OVERWHELMING response....she L.O.V.E.D. it. Oh, I almost forgot, that is a 3D sonogram (sp?) of baby Greenlee framed on the right. Recognize that print around it? It is the ribbon from the diaper cake...and made quite a lovely border as well as tying in the decorations.

Next we have the party favor table.

I don't remember what this note said, but it was along the lines of, "We are so 'fortunate' to have you celebrate this joyous occasion with us...etc." Anyway, the bamboo plant is from home, as well. I love it and it is perched right beside me on the desk. The fotune cookie idea actually came from this website. If you do the math...those were WAAAAAAY to expensive to order...so We had a little DIY action! (FYI Catherine actually is the one that made these). First, We bought a regular bag of fortune cookies at Kroger. Then,, we dipped them in white almond bark...melted of course, with a small amount of green food coloring added. Finally, we sprinkled pearl sprinkles over them...Ta-Da!! I think they're 5 kinds of cute, and the guests loved them!

Finally, we had the food table.

First of all, we used all organic foods, except the cake...but the pregnant lady needed a cake. We had a fruit and veggie platter. I would suggest that you all seek out your local farmer's market for this. Most products sold there will be a cheaper option for organic food and will support the local economy. However, our farmer's market is only in service from May to September (bummer)...no worries! Kroger came through for us! (FYI Christine made all of the food and was accepted into culinary school...yay!) We also served organic apple cider and "tulip water." It consists of regular tap water, sliced oranges, an tulips...except we couldn't find tulips so we used lilly petals. It was awesome! I drink a lot of water and it had just a slight hint of orange flavor. Here's a closer look

We were also fortunate enough to find organic plates.

and they were on clearence!! schaweet!! We were lucky to find these. The best way to host a party and "go green" is to use real dishes...we just didnt' have the resources. As for the lovely decorations in the middle that I worked so hard on: I spray-painted a bare tree branch black and stuck it into a square vase the I etched a "G" on. Then filled it wil pale decoration rocks from Hobby Lobby to keep it still. To bring in the "baby" part into this room (considering it was separated from all the other decorations) I made the tree into a mobile by cutting out felt birds, stuffing them for a pillowy effect, and dangling them from the tree
So that's it folks! Don't forget to check back with me for the "how to make a diaper cake" post. What do ya'll think of the shower??? Any more suggestions for future baby showers?? Show some love!

BIG REVEAL: Summer's Shower

Ok kiddos....I don't like posting on the weekends, but a promise is a promise. So here are the pictures of "Go Green for Greenlee" stay tuned next week for the breakdown.