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This is a guest post by fellow blogger Terri Brown of www.thestrawberryfountain.com
Hosting an eco-friendly baby shower is a wonderful way to celebrate the arrival of a new baby while minimising your environmental impact. Whether you’re hosting the baby shower for your eco-conscious friend or family member or are planning one for yourself these top tips of what to do, and what to avoid doing, will help you through a great party that is not only eco-friendly but also great fun.
Send out digital invitations
Everyone has a phone or computer these days so why not send out digital invitations instead of paper ones to reduce waste, you could use text, whatsapp or simply emails. If you want to be a bit fancier then there are several online platforms that allow you to create beautiful and personalised invitations with a group page, a fun count down and even the ability to upload pictures after the event too.
Tie the baby shower with gender reveal
Gender reveal parties are also a big thing these days – however, they can also be quite wasteful based on how people decide to reveal the baby’s gender. People often opt for blue or pink confetti shower, balloon release or pain cannons – they are all fairly bad for the environment and totally unnecessary. Especially, given that gender reveal party will be a SECOND party to celebrate the baby’s arrival. And of course it’s yet another expense. So, I say, skip it and reveal the gender at the baby shower – but still, skip the balloon release.
Opt for reusable decorations
Use reusable or recycled decorations wherever possible. If you have the time you could even make the decorations yourself. Try and avoid things like balloons and plastic plates, foil banners and anything else that will need to be binned after the party as this is just wasteful and will have a negative impact on the environment.
Games and activities
All good baby showers have fun and engaging baby shower games and an eco-friendly baby shower is no different. You just need to be a bit more mindful when planning and choose games that don’t generate a lot of waste. For example, opt for activities that involve minimal materials or use eco-friendly materials like recycled paper. Some good eco-friendly baby shower games include
- Guessing the weight and length of the baby
- Having a baby related quiz
- Asking all the guests to send a digital picture of them as a baby and then get guests to guess who is who
- Baby name competition
The party food
If you are already eco-friendly then chances are you grow your own food, so why not incorporate this into the menu. If that is not an option then try and serve organic, locally sourced, and plant-based food options. Avoid over buying and if there is food left over encourage your guests to take doggy bags home with them to avoid waste.
Eco-friendly gifts
Let the guests know in advance that this is an eco-friendly baby shower and encourage them to be eco-friendly when it comes to giving a gift. This could mean that you create a gift list to prevent unwanted gifts or duplicates resulting in waste or that you encourage them to by sustainable gifts, second-hand presents, gifts like a baby swing you can donate or re-gift when the baby outgrows them, or even have a no-gift rule.
By incorporating these eco-friendly ideas, you can create a memorable baby shower that aligns with sustainable practices and helps promote a healthy planet for the little one to grow up in. You may also find that you are able to encourage some of the attendees to start taking a bigger interest in sustainable living and eco-friendly lifestyles too. Thoughtful options like baby gift baskets filled with eco-conscious items can also help inspire guests to give more intentionally.