How to Host the Best Tropical Themed Baby Shower

This post may contain affiliate links, but all opinions are my own. Please read my disclosure policy for more information. 

When the sweet mommy-to-be first said that she wanted a Tropical themed baby shower, I knew I was out of my element. Aside from a Hawaiian luau before my high-school graduation, I had not come close to attempting a tropical themed party! She decided she wanted the focus to be flamingos and pineapples, so I at least could narrow down the focus of my decor! It also helped that her shower was in April and every store buyer had decided that they also loved pineapples and flamingos. I started searching Pinterest for inspiration, as we all do at some point during the day, and I started to get an idea of what I wanted to do. Here are my top tips for hosting a tropical baby shower!

The biggest focal point of the baby shower decor was definitely the tropical balloon arch! This was so much fun to make and was a huge hit! Find everything you need and how to make the balloon arch here!

Tropical Themed Baby Shower

The Centerpiece! I wanted to make décor for the shower that would also act as a gift. The diaper cake was actually very easy to make and it looked wonderful as the centerpiece for the sign-in table! It was also stuffed with 96 diapers and topped with an adorable stuffed flamingo. Learn how to make this diaper cake here!

DIY Tropical Diaper Cake

I absolutely LOVE the custom door wreaths for the hospital door to welcome visitors to meet the sweet new baby! They look great at the shower and even better on the hospital door! They are also super easy to make. Check out my how to build a tropical themed diaper wreath here!

Tropical Themed Hospital Door Hanger

One of the other hostesses was handling the food and I knew it would be absolutely delicious and adorable! I wanted the plates, napkins, cups, and straws to really make a statement and fit our adorable theme. I really hit the jackpot with Etsy, Amazon, and Target!

Napkins: I found these adorable pineapple napkins on Amazon for $12 for as package of 20! The pink Flamingo napkins came from the Target dollar section and the green and pink flamingo napkins came from Papyrus.

Plates: I purchased the pink plates from Hobby Lobby and found the adorable palm plates from SPSweet Creations on Etsy!

Pineapples and Flamingos Party Decor

Cups and Straws: I am still obsessing over these flamingo stork straws! They are just too perfect! I found these at Paper Trail on Etsy! I bought the pineapple cups from TipTopSupply4U on Etsy!

Pineapple Party Cups

The mommy-to-be got her very own gold pineapple tumbler! I found this at Target and for all of my essential oil lovers, the inside is stainless steel, so you can add your favorite oils to your beverage! I thought this really put the whole tropical theme over the top!

Pineapple Baby Shower Decor

I wanted to really pull in the tropical theme with the serving platters with tropical palm leaves. Amazon has a pack of artificial palm leaves for only 11.99! 

Party Shower Food

I wanted pineapples incorporated in as many areas as possible! I found some beautiful pineapple vases, but they were crazy expensive! So instead, I cut out a pineapple and spray painted it gold! It really did look lovely with these tropical flowers! I wish I could tell you that I was able to use the pineapple after I cut it out, but it was more like pineapple pulp when I was finished with it. Maybe it will be edible the next time I try to make a vase.

Pineapple Flower Vase

I taped palm leaves to the strings of these 36” balloons to help tie in the Tropical theme. Iove these balloons, but they can be SO expensive! Even after you purchase the balloon, you still have to pay for the helium and most party places charge $15 per balloon! That is just insane! I found a pack of 10 on Amazon for only $13.99! I took them to Kroger’s floral department and the inflated them with helium for only $5 each! I was thrilled! They really make the perfect statement piece!

Flamingos and Pineapples Baby Shower

One of my favorite things about Etsy is how you can customize so many things! I messaged the shop that designed the shower invitations and asked if they could make this guess the date sign to match the invitations and they, of course, were happy create a custom listing! I had it printed at a FedEx Office and purchased a frame at Michaels. This example is an 11×14. I also bought a pineapple stamp from Hobby Lobby and had the guests stamp and initial the day they thought the mommy-to-be would go into labor. This was a great activity and looked great with the décor! Then, the mommy-to-be can display it in the baby’s nursery or use the frame for a different picture.

Baby Shower Guess The Date Print

I love the idea of a guestbook, but if we are being totally honest, most guest books just end up on a bookshelf collecting dust. I found this sweet children’s book on Amazon about Flamingos and decided this would be the perfect guest book. Each guest wrote the baby a sweet note in the book and it looked fantastic on the sign-in table!

Baby Shower Guest Book Idea

One of our closest friends gave us a wine basket for our wedding gift. Each wine bottle represented a milestone we would reach together in our first year of marriage. We are STILL enjoying this beautiful gift. I saw the same idea on Etsy from Lush Label, but for Mommy Milestones. It looked amazing on the gift table and it was a huge hit with the mommy and daddy-to-be. See the full supply list here!

Mommy Milestone Tropical Themed Baby Shower Gift

The mommy-to-be found these delicious sand dollar cookies online and thought they would make the perfect favors! I found this recipe from Mamma Miss and they turned out great! I wrapped two in cellophane and tied it with a bow and these adorable favor tags from Peekaboo Chew Prints! I also had these printed at FedEx Office on a heavy cardstock.

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How To Make A Tropical Themed Diaper Cake

Tropical Themed Diaper Cake DIY

This post may contain affiliate links, but all opinions are my own. Please read my disclosure policy for more information. 

One of my favorite things to do when planning a baby shower is to incorporate décor that the mommy-to-be can use later. One of my go-to staples is the diaper cake! It looks fantastic as a centerpiece and it is so easy to incorporate into any theme. You can buy pre-made diaper cakes on sites like Etsy, but making it yourself will save you a lot of money and you can really customize it to the theme of the shower. Trust me, if I can make this, you can too!

Tropical Themed Diaper Cake Supplies

Here are the supplies you will need to get started:

Fabric. I found mine at Hobby Lobby, but Jo-Anne’s also has a lovely selection. Don’t forget to use your 40% off coupon for Hobby Lobby or any of Joann’s weekly coupons!

T-pinsI purchased mine from Target, but you can find these anywhere!

Diapers (I used 88 size 1 diapers). On top of getting 5% off of your purchase with your Red Card, Target will price match. So if you find a better deal on diapers, just let them know! You also never know what deal Cartwheel has, so make sure you check that!

Ribbon. I bought mine from Hobby Lobby because, well, I love it there.

Flowers. I bought my flowers from Hobby Lobby and Michaels. Hobby Lobby puts all floral 50% off every other week and Michaels is always having sales on different flowers. If you can catch them right before a new season, this is a great time for deals on flowers.

Stuffed FlamingoThe flamingo for this diaper cake came from Amazon.

Rubber BandsI purchased an assorted pack from Target.

Hot Glue GunI bought mine from Hobby Lobby, but you can find one at any craft store. Or, if you would like it delivered to your door, Amazon is a fantastic choice. 

Scissors.

Now that you have your supplies, let’s get started!

Step 1: Assembling the cake!

How To Make a Diaper Cake

Roll each diaper like a fruit roll-up and wrap a small rubber band around the top and a small rubber band around the bottom. Take a medium sized rubber band and wrap it around 3-4 diapers. Repeat this step. Take the rubber band wrapped around one set of diapers and wrap it around one of the diapers in the first set. This will connect the two sets without stretching one rubber band too thin. I made this mistake during my first attempt and was popped in the hand while diapers fell to the ground. Good GRAVY! 

See examples 1 and 2 above on how to connect the diapers. You will take the rubber band wrapped around example b and put it over one of the diapers in example a to connect the two. From here, it is very easy to move the diapers around to make the round shape for the diaper cake.

Continue this until the first layer of your cake is formed. I used a round cake stand to help me make sure the bottom layer was round, but an actual cake pan would help hold the diapers in until you have all of them wrapped with rubber bands. Once the bottom layer is formed, start making the middle and top layers. Or, top layer if you are sticking with only two tiers. For the example pictured, I used 48 diapers for the bottom layer, 25 for the middle layer, and 15 for the top layer.

Step 2: Frost Your Cake!

How to Make a Diaper Cake

This part was the hardest part for me. I tried this two different ways. For the first try, I measured the length and circumference of each layer of cake. I cut the fabric a bit longer for the length to make sure it would go over the top of the cake and under the bottom to cover the full side of the cake. I used the t-pins to secure the fabric to the diapers. This worked pretty well, but I didn’t leave enough fabric to cover the full top of the layer, so it looked a little sloppy. I tried to cover it with flowers, but I didn’t like how that looked either. I also LOVED the flamingo ribbon, but I thought it made it look way too busy.

Tropical Themed Diaper Cake DIY

I just didn’t like the way that looked at all. So I started over.

It just looked unfished. So I tried a different approach. This time, I measured the layer from one side to the other to make sure the fabric would completely drape over the entire layer. For all of my bakers out there, this would be the same way you would cover a cake with fondant. This made the top of the cake look absolutely perfect! I used the t-pins to secure the fabric underneath the cake. However, the sides of the cake weren’t as smooth because the fabric was bunching more due to the roundness of the cake. In the end, I decided I liked this approach the best.

Step 3: Apply the Finishing Touches

DIY Tropical Diaper Cake

I started the décor process by adding ribbon to the bottom of each layer. I really love how the hot pink really pops on the lovely greens. I measured the circumference of each layer and cut the ribbon just a bit longer. I used the hot glue gun to secure the ribbon to the cake. You don’t need to glue the entire ribbon, just each end of the ribbon. For a cleaner look, fold each end of the ribbon so that the frayed ends don’t show. Once you add the ribbon, place the flowers on the cake. You can hot glue the flowers to the fabric or just stick them in the cake. Once your flowers are settled, top with your adorable flamingo!

Diaper Cake Tropical Baby Shower Centerpiece

It really was the perfect centerpiece for this tropical themed baby shower!

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