Babies are so much fun and what is more fun than celebrating the mom to be! Here is a fall theme baby shower on a budget!

Set a Budget

The first step to planning a party of any sort is to set a budget. How much can you spend? The most expensive part is always the food because everyone likes to eat! The time of the day also sets your budget. Depending on the time you can either serve brunch, lunch or just appetizers. Also doing a charcuterie board makes things less expensive. A little bit of everything. If you are hosting, many of your close family and friends will offer to bring a dish. Accept! Why not. The more the merrier and easier on you. And figure out how many people to invite!

Where to Celebrate?

Where should you celebrate? My sister did not want anything but being her first baby I still wanted to do something small amongst our family and a few friends. I opted for a just girls shower for a more intimate feel and decided to celebrate at my mom’s place. Celebrating at home makes things more affordable, comfortable for the mom to be and gives a more relaxed atmosphere.

Choose a Theme

Go with the time of the year. I chose a fall theme for my sister as the baby shower was in October. Fall is fun to begin with and incorporating fall decor with baby is twice the fun. You will also find lots of fall decor in store this time of year. Which means lots of sales! Amazon sells party decoration kits for reasonable prices.

Things to Buy/Make

Invitations

This one is awesome because there are many ways to make and send invitations without spending any money. I made mine on Canva and sent a group text message with the invite. You can also hand design a card if your artsy, take a picture and text message, email or post the invite on social media.

Before shopping check what you already have that you can house. Such as a cake stand, food board, etc.

Budget and Total Cost

• Invitations $0
• Party Favors $34
• Food $80
• Dessert $25
• Decor $22
• Plates and cups and serving items

I spent about $200 or less on food to make a charcuterie board, apple cider, dessert, decorations and party favors.

Food

For food I decided to make a charcuterie board. My mom made a lasagna and a few family members and friends each made a dish.

Dessert

Cake is always the tradition but staying on theme I made pumpkin spice cupcakes, instead of buying them at a bakery. Instead of a cake I opted for apple cider donuts to make a donut “cake” and added the cake topper on top. This was less expensive, unique and went perfect with my theme. For 2 dozen donuts it was under $25 and they were huge!

Decorations

For $15 on Amazon, I was able to get a decorating kit with balloons, 2 garlands for the wall, a cake topper and cupcake toppers. I also bought a wooden pumpkin From Michaels and painted it myself. The pumpkin was used for the guests to sign something sweet for the mom to be.

Party Favors

Favors are a fun part of a baby shower. There are so many fun ideas on pinterest. I opted for blue and brown nail polishes to match the fall colors and blue for baby boy. I was able to find “baby boy” ribbon for a $1 at Michaels. What a deal!

Plan Ahead

Lastly, plan ahead and get a headcount on who is going. Therefore, you can plan on how much food and party favors you need. And of course to have enough space and seats for everyone. Again, the time of day matters because you can serve just appetizers and dessert, if you plan it after lunch time. The number of guests is also important. The smaller the crowd, the less you will spend. You can also plan baby games without spending a ton or skip it all together like I did.