How to Throw an Eco-Friendly Baby Shower
Whether you are a host or an expecting parent, go green with an eco-friendly baby shower. Eco-friendly baby showers are ideal for parents interested in providing their newborn with only environmentally safe, organic items. Opt to have the baby shower outdoors in suitable weather for a natural setting that goes along with the theme. Encourage guests to dress to the occasion, as well, by wearing eco-friendly clothing or the color green.
- Difficulty:
- Moderate
Instructions
Things You'll Need
- Reusable dinnerware
- Linen napkins, monogrammed
- Organic twine
- Wood clothes pins
- Baby clothes, made of organic cotton
- Glass baby food jars
- Organic soil
- Small flowering plants
- Sprouted wheatgrass
- Square vases or wooden trays
- Blank journal, recycled paper
- Soy-based ink pen
- Organic pureed foods
- Gift cards
-
Inviting Guests
-
1
Send invitations via email. Include a personalized e-vite or create a video for invitees and email it to them. You can also set up a blog for the upcoming baby shower where guests can log on, find the details of the shower and RSVP. Call or email guests with the link to the blog.
-
2
Include a stipulation that all gifts must be organic, such as clothing made from organic cotton, or made from environmentally sustainable items, such as bamboo furniture or cork toys. State that only diapers made from cloth should be gifted, or disposable diapers that are 100 percent biodegradable.
-
3
Ask that all items made from plastic be BPA-free. Request items, such as bottles, be made from glass, which is considered more environmentally friendly since it does not leach toxins when heated. Ask guests to give items, such as furniture, clothing or toys, that are used or secondhand, so as to reduce waste.
-
4
Request all gifts be unwrapped or gifted in reusable containers. Mention to guests they can use reusable shopping bags in place of gift bags, or replace bags with eco-friendly baskets. Ban tissue paper from being used in gifts.
The Menu
-
1
Use real silverware, plates and glassware for serving food. Consider serving food on China plates, if desired, for an eco-friendly as well as fashionable touch. Provide guests with personally monogrammed linen napkins, which also double as a guest gift.
-
2
Serve organic foods that do not contain any pesticides or genetically engineered ingredients. Choose only locally grown produce to reduce the environmental impact found with foods that travel long distances.
-
3
Forgo meats and go with a vegetarian menu that has less of an impact on the environment. Consider having a vegetarian or eco-friendly catering service provide food for the event.
Decorations
-
1
Hang organic twine across the walls of the space for an impromptu clothes line. Pin baby clothes onto the clothes line with clothes pins for decorations -- all of which can be gifted to the expecting mother.
-
2
Fill glass baby food jars with organic soil and small flowering plants. Use the miniature flower pots as decorations. Give the jars as gifts to the guests after the baby shower.
-
3
Purchase sprouted wheatgrass containers at the grocery store; you will need one for each centerpiece. Place the wheatgrass in a square vase or wooden tray. Allow guests to take the wheatgrass home to eat or turn into juice.
Entertainment
-
1
Supply a blank journal made from eco-friendly recycled paper. Ask all of the guests to write down a tip about newborn babies or an inspirational thought in the journal using a pen made of soy-based ink. Gather guests together and read the tips and thoughts aloud without telling who the authors are. Have the mother-to-be choose her favorite message; the author would be the winner.
-
2
Set out samples of organic pureed foods. Play a guessing game where guests sample the foods and try to guess what each of the foods include.
-
3
Give each winner of the baby shower games a gift card to an organic food market or eco-friendly store.
-
1
Related Searches
References
- Photo Credit Creatas/Creatas/Getty Images
