Baby in Bloom: A Pink Floral Baby Shower

🕒 Reading Time: 14 minutes

When one of your closest friends is expecting her first little girl, there’s no shortage of baby shower themes to choose from. We considered all sorts of floral ideas, from wildflowers and lavender gardens to bright summer blooms, but we kept coming back to one theme: Baby in Bloom.

Honestly, it couldn’t have suited Rachel better.

Rachel is one of the most nurturing people I know. Before becoming a nurse, she spent years working in care, and looking after others has always come naturally to her. As she prepared to become a mum for the first time, a theme centred around growth, family and new beginnings just felt right.

With a baby girl on the way, we naturally leant into soft shades of pink, cream, white and sage green. There are so many ways you can approach a floral baby shower, but we kept coming back to classic pink roses. They’re pretty, timeless and, let’s be honest, who doesn’t love pink?

With the theme chosen and a colour palette in place, it was time to start bringing everything to life.

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Bringing the Garden Party Indoors

When we first started planning the shower, we had visions of hosting a gorgeous summer garden party outside. Llwyn Country House has a lovely patio area at the front which would have been perfect for afternoon tea, pink lemonade and plenty of sunshine.

Of course, this being Wales, relying entirely on good weather felt a little optimistic!

Thankfully, the venue worked beautifully indoors too. With neutral décor, painted wooden floors and plenty of natural light streaming through the large windows and French doors, it gave us a blank canvas to work with. There were no bold carpets or patterned wallpaper competing with our decorations, which meant we could really make the room our own.

Rather than taking the styling in a glamorous direction with mirrors, metallics and glass, I wanted the space to feel like a proper garden party that had simply moved indoors.

I leant into natural textures and garden inspired details instead. Wooden crates, wicker baskets, watering cans, vintage style jugs and touches of greenery helped recreate that garden party feel indoors.

The thing that really tied everything together, though, was the bunting. I used different lengths of floral and gingham fabric bunting throughout the room, draping it across the ceiling and around the main display areas. Because the room was quite open plan, it helped connect everything together so it felt like one celebration rather than lots of separate areas dotted around the room.

Once the foundations were in place, it was time to start adding all the little details that would bring the Baby in Bloom theme to life.

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Creating Our Indoor Garden Party

With the venue decorated and the bunting in place, the room finally started to feel less like a function space and more like the Baby in Bloom shower we’d been planning for weeks.

Between the colour palette, the floral theme and all the fabric bunting, there was a little nod to the Baby in Bloom theme wherever you looked.

Rather than relying on one large display, we created lots of different areas for guests to enjoy throughout the afternoon, each with its own little contribution to the Baby in Bloom theme.

One of my favourite displays featured a watercolour print created from Rachel’s baby scan by Crafty Chap Gifts on Etsy. I had originally considered placing it near the entrance so it would be one of the first things guests saw when they arrived. The more I looked at it, though, the more I realised it deserved more than a quick glance on the way into the room.

Instead, I created a dedicated display in the main space using wicker hamper baskets, baby shoes, greenery and other garden-inspired props. It became one of those pieces that guests naturally stopped to admire throughout the afternoon, and it felt like the perfect way to celebrate the little girl we were all waiting so eagerly to meet.

As the various stations, displays and floral touches came together, the room finally started to feel party ready. All that was left to do was welcome our guests and start celebrating.

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Welcome Drinks and Floral Touches

The welcome table was one of the first things guests saw when they arrived, so I wanted it to set the tone for the whole afternoon.

In the centre stood a metal water jug filled with long stem blush pink roses and plenty of greenery. Propped against it was a small chalkboard counting down the days until Rachel’s due date. With just 39 days to go, it was a lovely reminder of exactly what we were all there to celebrate.

Surrounding the flowers were jars of pink lemonade, ready for guests to help themselves as they arrived. Served in retro jam jars with striped paper straws and floral ribbons tied around the necks, they felt perfectly in keeping with the garden party theme. Pink lemonade felt like an obvious choice. Not only did it fit the colour scheme perfectly, but it also felt right at home amongst all the garden inspired styling.

The floral details didn’t stop there either. The same pink ribbons appeared throughout the room, tying together everything from displays and activity stations to decorative props. It was a small detail, but repeating the same colours and materials helped everything feel connected.

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Activities and Keepsakes

One thing I wanted to avoid was filling the room with games just for the sake of it. Every activity needed to fit the Baby in Bloom theme and give guests something meaningful to contribute.

Originally, we considered creating an advice tree where guests could hang messages from the branches, symbolising a family tree growing alongside the baby. It was a lovely idea, but the more we talked about it, the more we fell in love with the idea of creating a flower instead.

Rather than using a traditional guest book, guests were invited to pick up a paper petal, add their fingerprint and sign their name. Throughout the afternoon, the petals slowly came together to create one large flower filled with messages from the people who loved Rachel and her growing family most.

Some guests left sweet wishes for the baby, while others shared messages of love and encouragement for Rachel. There were hopes for a happy future, reminders of how loved she already was and heartfelt notes about the exciting journey ahead. Reading through them afterwards felt far more personal than a standard guest book.

Alongside the flower display, we also created a Baby’s First Year Bucket List. Each guest found a card at their place setting and was invited to suggest one thing the new parents should do during their baby’s first year.

Some ideas were practical, some were sentimental and some were just plain fun. Suggestions ranged from taking a monthly photograph to capture how quickly she would grow, to enjoying a picnic in the garden with a tiny sunhat. Of course, there was plenty of advice mixed in too, with classics like “sleep when the baby sleeps” appearing more than once! Once completed, the cards were collected in a large glass jar tied with pink ribbon because even baby advice deserves to look pretty.

Of course, we couldn’t resist including a Name the Baby game too. Partly because it fitted the celebration, but mostly because Rachel is probably the most indecisive person I’ve ever met! If anyone was going to appreciate twenty extra opinions on baby names, it was her.

Guests scribbled their suggestions onto little wooden heart shaped chalkboards, ranging from traditional favourites to some wonderfully unexpected choices. Amongst the Amelias, Avas, Annabellas and Welsh names like Ffion, Efa and Myfanwy, there were also a few suggestions that perhaps belonged several generations ago. Let’s just say the suggestion of Fanny caused more than a few laughs around the room!

One guest came remarkably close to guessing correctly too. Hidden amongst all the suggestions was the name “Aylah” – just one letter away from Rachel’s daughter eventually being named Ayla.

By the time the jars were filling with petals, bucket list cards and baby name suggestions, every guest had left their own little contribution behind. It felt like the perfect reflection of the Baby in Bloom theme: lots of small gestures coming together to celebrate one very special little girl.

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Afternoon Tea and Sweet Treats

No garden party feels complete without plenty of good food, and Llwyn Country House certainly didn’t disappoint. Guests were treated to a traditional afternoon tea filled with sandwiches, pastries and cakes, all served on crisp white crockery and tiered cake stands that suited the Baby in Bloom theme perfectly.

Afternoon tea was always going to be part of the baby shower. It suited the garden party theme perfectly and gave everyone a chance to relax, catch up and enjoy the afternoon together. There were plenty of savoury options, along with homemade scones served with jam and clotted cream, which have always been one of my favourite parts of any afternoon tea.

The dining tables were dressed with game cards, floral details and handmade centrepieces. To continue the garden party feel, I repurposed empty wine bottles as vases, tying them with lace ribbon and filling them with blush pink roses and greenery. I also brought along a few of my vintage teacups and saucers, which I incorporated into the displays alongside flowers, pinecones and candles. They added a little extra character to the tables and helped reinforce the rustic style we’d used throughout the room.

Each guest also found a handmade favour waiting at their place setting. I’ll share more about those later because they ended up becoming one of my favourite details from the entire shower.

While the table centrepieces added plenty of charm to the dining area, the real showstopper was the dessert table.

Positioned against the back wall of the room, it became one of the main focal points of the entire shower. Floral bunting framed the display, while wooden crates, wicker baskets, miniature wheelbarrows, watering cans and plant pots helped continue the rustic outdoor inspired styling we’d created throughout the venue.

Taking pride of place in the centre was a beautiful naked cake made by my sister-in-law Sarah. Decorated with soft pink and white flowers, it perfectly suited the theme. A traditional fondant cake would have felt a little too formal, whereas the naked cake looked right at home amongst all the garden inspired styling.

The cake wasn’t alone either. Guests could also help themselves to homemade cupcakes, strawberry mousse pots, marshmallows, cake pops and chocolate dipped strawberries. It was one of those tables where people kept wandering back for “just one more thing”.

Standing beside the dessert display was a vintage wooden ladder that I’d painted before the shower. Decorated with pink fabric letters spelling out BABY, floral garlands and family photographs, it helped add height to the display while continuing the garden-inspired styling. Along with the watering cans, wooden crates and other rustic props, it helped create the feeling that a little corner of a cottage garden had somehow found its way indoors.

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Celebrating Rachel

While the flowers and decorations helped bring the Baby in Bloom theme to life, some of my favourite parts of the day were the details that felt uniquely Rachel.

One of those was her floral baby bump sash.

Baby shower sashes have become a bit of a tradition, but after searching around, we couldn’t find one that quite fit the theme we had in mind. Luckily, one of our friends is incredibly talented with a needle and thread. Armed with some lace from my craft cupboard and a collection of artificial flowers, she created a beautiful handmade sash that fitted the Baby in Bloom theme perfectly.

We hadn’t known what Rachel would be wearing, and while I had secretly imagined a soft pink dress, she arrived in black instead. As many mums-to-be will tell you, comfort often wins when you’re heavily pregnant! The white lace, soft pink blooms and greenery stood out beautifully against the darker dress and ended up looking even better than I’d imagined.

We also hired a rustic wooden photo backdrop from Quaint Hearted Weddings, which quickly became one of the main focal points in the room. Decorated with white tulle, greenery and pink floral garlands, it was positioned in front of the French doors where it benefited from plenty of natural light.

Rachel loved being pregnant and was excited to capture as many memories as possible before baby arrived. We knew she’d want plenty of bump photos with different groups of friends and family throughout the afternoon, so creating a dedicated photo area felt well worth the investment. As expected, it spent most of the day in use, with guests taking turns posing for photographs with the mum-to-be.

As for entertainment, there was never any question that music would be involved.

If you know Rachel, you’ll know she never stops singing. Years ago, during a girls’ holiday to Rhodes, we all gave each other Greek goddess nicknames and Rachel became known as the Singing Goddess. Whether it’s a road trip, a family gathering or karaoke night, she’s usually the first person singing along.

With that in mind, a music quiz felt like the obvious choice.

One of our friends put together a Baby Tunes challenge featuring songs with words like baby and girl in the title. Guests had to guess both the song and artist from short clips. Rachel should probably have had a huge advantage, but she spent most of the game with her eyes closed singing along instead of actually writing any answers down!

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Rose Scented Party Favours

As guests prepared to head home, they each took away a handmade party favour. Wrapped in cellophane and tied with ribbon, the favours contained a rustic driftwood heart tealight holder and a rose scented candle. They fitted the garden party theme perfectly and looked lovely displayed alongside the centrepieces throughout the afternoon.

Attached was a short poem asking guests to light the candle on the day Rachel’s baby arrived and make a wish for the new family:

Here is a candle that twinkles so bright,

It’s our gift for you to light,

On the day our star makes her way,

Please make a wish on our joyous day.

It was a simple idea, but one that felt like a lovely way to keep everyone connected to the excitement long after the shower had ended.

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What Made the Day Special

What I remember most isn’t the flowers, the cake or even the decorations.

It’s Rachel.

In true Rachel fashion, she arrived before most of the guests. While many mums-to-be would have happily sat back and let everyone come to them, Rachel wanted to be there to greet people as they arrived and thank them for coming.

It was such a small thing, but it summed her up perfectly.

One of the things I loved most about planning this shower was watching everyone contribute in their own way. My sister-in-law made the cake, our resident sewing bee created the beautiful floral sash, another friend put together the music quiz, another collected and set up the wooden photo backdrop, while others brought a mixture of homemade desserts and everyone threw themselves into making the afternoon special.

By the end of the afternoon, it was easy to see why Baby in Bloom had felt like the right theme from the very beginning. Not just because of the flowers, but because it celebrated exactly what we were all there for: a family growing, a new chapter beginning and a very loved little girl on the way.

A few weeks later, baby Ayla arrived, and seeing her name written on one of those little chalkboard guesses suddenly felt very wise indeed!