How to throw a baby shower: tips for hosts and mums to be

We’ve teamed up with MyCrib – a modern baby registry that makes gift-giving easier, more personal, and completely stress-free. It helps families avoid duplicates, share their essentials effortlessly, and get exactly what they need, from practical must-haves to meaningful extras.

You can throw a baby shower before or after the baby is born, and they can be heavily themed, complete with decorations and food, or just a get-together with all the mum or mum-to-be's closest friends to celebrate the occasion. Our guide is designed to be a jumping-off point for planning a great baby shower.

And when it comes to gifts, MyCrib is the perfect way to assemble a baby registry. As a universal baby registry, parents can add any item from any store, so mums-to-be can add the changing mat they’d been eyeing up at Mamas & Papas, as well as those cute Next baby pyjamas and a stroller organiser from John Lewis. It’s free, easy to set up and helps loved ones gift with confidence.

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What should happen at a baby shower?

The obvious answer to this one is whatever you want. A baby shower is basically just a party, so you can tailor the experience to your guests and, of course, the mum-to-be. Do they love a round of karaoke? Dust off the old microphone. Maybe you like the idea of trivia questions all about the mum-to-be?

The key here is the theme. This could be anything baby-related, so feel free to get creative. Your theme - if you choose one - will underpin everything from your choice of decorations to the games and food on offer.

Think about the mum-to-be when considering your theme. Do they love books? Maybe a light 'Peter Pan' theme would be perfect. Or maybe you could throw a Bridgerton-themed tea party. You'll know your guests and the mum-to-be, and tailoring to their preferences is always the best way to ensure everyone has the best time.

Most baby showers include a series of games as well as the gift exchange alongside food and chat. How many games you plan for will entirely depend on your preference (and the mum-to-be's energy levels). A good rule of thumb is to plan more games than you'll end up needing just to ensure there's never too much of a lull in the festivities. Keep reading for some game ideas you could try out.

Baby showers are also a great way to give the mum-to-be any gifts ahead of the baby's birth. This is where MyCrib comes in, as you can use it to assemble a baby registry that will help guests find the perfect gift for mum and baby.

How long should a baby shower last?

This is another one that'll be totally dependent on your own circumstances. Typically, baby showers will last for a few hours, starting around mid-afternoon and running into the evening. This, of course, may differ depending on the time of year, guests, venue and more. The best thing to do is to regularly take the temperature of the event to ensure that things don't run too long or get to be too much for anyone involved.

What is the best order of events at a baby shower?

Typically, you'll kick things off with the food. This could be a buffet or, if you're at a specific venue, a meal of some sort. This will then roll into any games you have planned, followed by the gift exchange and then wrapping up with party favours and goodbyes. This structure is flexible, and it's worth talking to the mum-to-be about her preferences (unless it's a surprise, of course) to ensure everything is tailored to those attending.

Who normally pays for a baby shower?

This is the million-dollar question. A baby shower can be paid for by all guests attending or just by the host. You might choose to pool together funds amongst all those attending if you're planning something a bit more extravagant, or maybe involve the family of the mum-to-be.

A step-by-step guide for how to plan a baby shower

Step 1: Pick the host and set a budget

Unlike a wedding or birthday, it isn't immediately obvious who'll host the baby shower. This could be the mum-to-be's best friend or maybe a family member. Either way, figuring out who'll be leading the planning is integral, even if you're only planning a low-key affair. We're guessing that if you're reading this, you'll be the one doing the planning, but we wanted to mention it just in case. Once you've got a host selected, set your budget and figure out how you plan on paying for the baby shower.

Step 2: Plan your guest list

Building off of picking your host, you'll want to pin down the guest list as early as possible. As anyone who has ever planned anything will tell you, getting a group of people in the same room at the same time on the same day can be a nightmare. Having this sorted out before picking things like the venue and budget will really help you with your planning.

You might also choose to set up a WhatsApp chat to keep in touch with the guests you're inviting throughout the process, allowing you to bounce ideas off each other and keep on the same wavelength. This can be particularly useful if the baby shower will be bringing together different family members or friendship groups who aren't well acquainted.

Step 3: Pick your venue

Now you know who's doing the planning and who's going, you can pick out the best venue for the baby shower. As with any big party, the venue will entirely depend on your circumstances. It is quite common to host baby showers in either the mum-to-be's home or the home of the host, allowing you to keep that cosy, maternal atmosphere. That being said, a bigger shindig might necessitate a bigger venue.

It's worth considering whether you want alcohol to be available at the baby shower. If you're holding the shower before the baby is born, then it might be an idea to keep it alcohol-free. Even if the shower is held post-birth, it is probably worth keeping in mind if the mum is able or wants to drink. This may mean the best possible venue is something like a restaurant or a cafe. If you're feeling particularly brave, you could hold it outdoors, but given British weather, that might be a step too far.

Step 4: Pick a date

This is kind of tied in with the venue, as, of course, availability will determine when you hold the shower. Typically, baby showers are held around 6 weeks before the baby is due, with Saturday and Sunday afternoons being the most common days.

Step 5: Pick your theme

We mentioned a theme earlier, but this is entirely optional. If you do choose to go down the themed route, picking it before you send out invites can help you theme the invitations to fit in with the overall vibe of the baby shower. This is the best place to get creative and create something cute and memorable for the mum-to-be. Some theme ideas could include:

• Afternoon tea
• Storybook
• Fairytale
• Superhero
• Teddy bear picnic
• Summer party

Step 6: Set up the registry

Babies come with a lot of stuff, making a baby shower a great place to help out the mum-to-be with useful and practical gifts. Most mums will set up a registry of things they need for their new baby. This is where MyCrib comes in, a fantastic way to build a wishlist of everything mum-to-be might need. Before sending out the invites, you'll want to make sure that mum has a registry set up and ready to go, allowing guests to know what to buy.

MyCrib makes this as easy as possible, just create an account and add on any of the products in their catalog or beyond. For more information on baby shower registries, check out our article dedicated to baby registries, what they entail and if you need one.

Step 7: Send out invites

Now you know your guest list, theme, venue, and date, and you've got your registry set up, it's time to send out the invites.

Thankfully, MyCrib also makes this part of the process super easy, allowing you to send baby shower invites to your guest list from your account.

Step 8: Plan the food

This is another key element of a good baby shower. Depending on your budget and venue, food may already be included; however, if that isn't the case, or you're planning themed food, it's always worth thinking about what people will eat on the day. This is one that can be as lavish or simple as needed and may also be dictated by the theme or the number of guests. There are many bakeries, cake makers and even caterers that specialise in baby showers, offering bespoke, themed food that will elevate the experience.

Step 8: Gather any decorations

Similarly to the food, how lavish the decor gets will depend on budget and space, but it's always worth having some decorations in place to make the experience that extra bit more memorable for mum-to-be. Choose an elegant colour scheme that's in line with your theme and build out from there. Lean on that WhatsApp chat here too by asking for ideas and input to help make the shower as special as possible. Maybe you could gather baby photos of the mum-to-be and fellow attendees to use as part of the decor. Whatever you do, get creative and make it personal.

Step 9: Plan out games and activities

Games are the last thing to consider ahead of the day. These will dictate the flow and running of the event and can be a huge source of laughs on the day. Games could be tailored to the theme, for example, decorating animal-shaped biscuits for a jungle-themed baby shower, or they could be tailored to the mum-to-be. You could do baby-specific trivia or maybe a mocktail-making class. Activities could go for a specific vibe like 'kids birthday' with games like pass-the-parcel or, if the mum-to-be is a foodie, you could do a pizza-making class.

If you're after more inspiration for games and activities, MyCrib have some great baby shower print-out games you can use to get started, as well as an article dedicated to the best baby shower games.

Consider a range of activities of varying lengths to keep things flowing and, as we mentioned earlier, always plan more things than you think you'll need just in case.

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