Throwing a Botanical-Themed Moving Shower

July 29, 2019

Throwing a Botanical-Themed Moving Shower

My big sister bought a house!!! We have been SO excited for her all summer, and she finally got to move in this past week! YAY! We spent the week helping her paint every single wall, change out light fixtures, spray paint hardware, clean, and move! We're pooped, but it was so fun! We'll see if I can put a post together of some before and afters!

Earlier this month, I was able to throw her a little party to help celebrate her big move! Her closest friends and family wanted to bless her with some gifts as she starts this new chapter in her life, and it was SO FUN!!! This post is all about the details, because you know how much I love details!

My sweet cousin, Nina, drove all the way from Denver to be here for the weekend of the shower. She was SO helpful with party prep, and I literally couldn't have done this without her!

1. Centerpieces: I wanted to go with a botanical theme for the shower, and I thought long and hard about how to implement that into each aspect of the decor. For the centerpieces, I had a vision of all different sized glass vessels (mason jars, vases) with just a couple of big greens. So, I went around my yard and clipped some big ol' hosta leaves and ferns, filled the jars with water, and stuck them in! We arranged the jars on the food table and the coffee table! Here's a tip: to make the leaves glossy, rub some coconut oil on them!

2. Balloon banner: Balloon banners are a super fun, trendy, and EASY way to make a big impact in your party decor! To make it even easier, I bought a balloon pump from Amazon so I didn't have to blow up each one! I also got this balloon banner "tape" to stick the balloons in. It makes it super fast and fun to put one of these together.

My cousin Nina is a party planner extraordinaire and gave me a couple of tips for balloon banners: 1) Make sure you vary the size of your balloons. You can do this by blowing them up in different sizes or buying different sized balloons. 2) Balloon banners aren't just for balloons! Since we went with a botanical theme, Nina thought it would be cute to add some of the leaves from the centerpieces into the banner. We just stuck them right in there! And, oh my. SO CUTE!

I ordered the white balloons on Amazon and the confetti balloons were from Dollar General!

3. Party Favors: Since this was a moving shower, I wanted each guest to be able to take my sister's new address with them! I got the idea for these succulent favors from Janna at Yellow Prairie Interiors (follow her on Instagram, you won't be sorry!). She did these favors for her daughter in law's bridal shower!

I got these succulents on Amazon, then Nina wrapped each one with tissue paper and twine, and we stuck in a little skewer with her new address attached to the top. I made the little address design on Canva, printed them out, cut them out with a circle cutter, and then we attached them to the skewer using washi tape! So cute!!

I gave my sister the extra circles for her to stick in thank you notes so people who didn't come to the shower, but still sent a gift can receive her new address!

4. The food: we kept it simple with the food. I made Caitlin's favorite--rhubarb crisp with ice cream-- a veggie tray, a dip, and then my mom brought a cheese ball (the recipe comes from Joanna Gaines's cookbook) We had lemonade, water, peach tea, and coffee to drink. I found the botanical plates and pink napkins at Hobby Lobby!

5. Miscellaneous Details and Tips:

-We had each guest address a thank you note on their way in. This makes it so simple for Caitlin to get her thank you notes out even during the craziness of moving!
-Have someone take pictures of the party and all of the details. Did I mention my cousin Nina is a party planning pro?! She offered to take a bunch of pictures of everything, and I'm so thankful! I didn't have to worry about it as I was playing host, and they are so fun to look at!
-Welcome your guests! I had a little sandwich board sign that I wrote "Welcome to Caitlin's Shower" on so guests knew they were in the right place
-Have a schedule planned out, and be flexible! I had one simple game planned for after we ate, but I also just wanted to allow plenty of time for everyone to chat.
-Make everything as purposeful, meaningful, and personal as possible! On the welcome table, I had Caitlin's favorite scent of candle burning (Capri Blue, Volcano) and I also had a bunting made up of a
picture of almost every place she has lived--including her new home!
-Do as much as you can ahead of time. It's inevitable--you're going to be cutting it close, so the more prepared you can be, the better.