Mod Monkey Baby Shower – Part 1
categories: baby shower ideas, real parties
These pics are from a Mod Monkey Baby baby shower that I co-hosted for my friend this past weekend. I was in charge of the decor & desserts (my 2 favorite parts!), and you might remember this post where I asked for your help deciding on the shower theme.
Well, Mod Monkey won out…and it actually worked out really well because the baby’s name is Max, so it was also easy to play up the “M” factor in Max, Monkey, and Mom as a key element in the decor.
I’m splitting the recap of this shower up into a few posts or else this one would be a mile long… so to start out, here’s a rundown of the tabletop designs:
There were 3 different tables and the centerpieces all coordinated, but were a little different from each other. All of them featured a round placemat from Crate & Barrel (purchased earlier this year for a different party), a baby item (wash cloths or burp cloths) and framed custom signs I designed to match the party’s colors and monkey theme.
Centerpiece #1 also featured a (never used!) Circo Monkey Waste Basket from Target, which served as an adorable container for an artificial plant from my bedroom, and a small bowl of Banana Runts purchased in bulk from the Sweet Factory website.
The focal point of Centerpiece #2 was a ridiculously cute, mod striped Sock Monkey purchased on Etsy. This little guy actually served as inspiration for the entire party theme!
They yellow vase is from IKEA. It was originally purchased last year for this Momma Bird baby shower. (The faux ti leaves are also from of my regular home accesories, but you can purchase them at Michaels.)
Centerpiece #3 also featured the yellow vase & ti leaf combo, plus a set of color-coordinating burp cloths from Target.
I kept the place settings super simple but colorful….plastic yellow plates from Party City, lime green napkins, turquoise forks, and napkin rings made from strips of 3 different kinds of gift wrap by Elum: Driftwood, Interlock, and Dots. The same gift wrap also used to create table runners and featured in other elements of the party.
The napkin rings also featured a big “M” as the embellishment, which tied into the rest of the custom signage. I was able to fit 16 of them up on an 8.5 x 11 sheet, and printed them at Kinkos along with the rest of the signs.
(I’ll make pdfs of the general custom signs and (that don’t feature Max’s name) napkin ring embellishments available for download in another post so that you guys can print them for your own parties if you want to use this theme.)
The Banana Runts really helped to play up the monkey theme and added a bright punch of color. They were also featured in the shower’s candy buffet, which I’ll go into much more detail about in posts 2 & 3… stay tuned! {You can also check out all the pics in the facebook album.}
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This is SUPER cute. I can’t wait for the napkin ring download. Thank you for sharing your great ideas.
Jul 14, 2009 at 8:43 am -
This is such a cute idea!!!! I talked my co-worker into doing a Mod Monkey theme for her son’s 1st birthday so this blog couldnt come at a better time!!! Thanks again!
Jul 14, 2009 at 9:20 am -
oh wow this turned out so great!
Jul 14, 2009 at 9:27 am -
I love it… we are planning my nieces 3rd birthday in October and you have came up with so many great ideas for us to try to use. Thanks and cant wait for the napkin ring download!! Can you also upload the centerpiece framed art that reads baby or mom…my friend is also having a baby and that would be so cute…thanks again for the great ideas!!
Jul 14, 2009 at 10:06 am -
Love it! I can’t wait to see the additional pictures.
Jul 14, 2009 at 10:35 am -
Your ideas are the best I’ve ever seen! My entire office is addicted to your blog!
Jul 14, 2009 at 10:40 am -
Can’t wait to see the rest!!
Jul 14, 2009 at 10:54 am -
I really look forward to seeing more!
Jul 14, 2009 at 11:25 am
Runts! Gosh, can’t remember the last time I had runts. They are too perfect for your theme. -
I am so lucky that the hostess did my shower! Baby Max already loves his Auntie Jenn!
It was so beautiful and I loved every minute of it! Thanks again Jenn!
Jul 14, 2009 at 3:05 pm -
Why are you so cute? And talented? And sweet? And live so far away?
Love it.
– Ames
Jul 14, 2009 at 3:07 pm -
Love the theme and bright colors! Can’t wait to see more!
Jul 14, 2009 at 4:48 pm -
Just found your blog/site, and LOVE it!! I’ve posted a link from my blog, Paper Paramour, to this posting b/c I thought it was so cute.
Jul 15, 2009 at 8:16 am -
Just beautiful! I love this and you are so awesomely creative!
Jul 15, 2009 at 9:27 am -
SO colorful!!! Love the banana runts as a bright touch! AND THE BLUE STRIPED SOCK MONKEY! Went to check it out….Sold out already! =( So cute!
Jul 15, 2009 at 5:06 pm -
I love this! You are “M”-azing!
Jul 16, 2009 at 12:26 am -
i LOVE these!! this is soooo cute!!
Jul 16, 2009 at 1:09 pm -
This is so cute
Jul 17, 2009 at 1:00 pm
I really don’t think you can go wrong with sock monkeys. -
I love this.My baby has monkeys all over his room and this would be a great birthday party theme for him.
Jul 20, 2009 at 11:28 am -
Absolutely love all the ideas!
Jul 20, 2009 at 12:14 pm -
Hi – Was there an invitation made for the party?
Jul 24, 2009 at 7:01 am -
Hi Harold –
There was an invite made, but it was handmade by one of the other hostesses, so it’s not available for purchase.
Polkadotdesign.com has some great monkey-themed invites though – and they’re really affordable! Just search for “monkey” on their website.
These invites from Tiny Prints are great too:
http://www.tinyprints.com/product/7414/boy_birth_announcements_mod_monkey.html(They’re featured as a birth announcement, but you could totally change the wording to reflect a baby shower or birthday party instead!)
Jul 29, 2009 at 7:30 am -
Hi, I just LOVE these ideas! I am doing a Mod Monkey theme for my son’s first birthday, and came across your blog when searching for ideas online! Thanks so much! Which fonts did you use for the signs and stuff?
Aug 3, 2009 at 8:30 am -
Hi Carrie –
So glad you like everything! The main fonts that I used for the signs were JFRingmaster (the circus looking font) and Arriere Garde.
You can download JFRingmaster for free here:
http://www.dafont.com/search.php?psize=m&q=ringmasterGood luck with the party!
Aug 3, 2009 at 10:07 am
Jenn -
Thanks so much Jenn! I really appreciate it!!
Aug 3, 2009 at 1:33 pm -
As I’m designing my signs with my cool new fonts…I came across another question! How did you do the two tone letters?
Aug 3, 2009 at 8:27 pm -
What software did you use to create the napkin rings and the artwork you framed to decorate the tables. I know you posted the PDFs for the ones you used but I was interested in doing the same thing but in different colors and for a birthday rather than baby shower and was wondering the best way to go about it. Thanks for the information. Your blog is truly inspiring.
Aug 8, 2009 at 12:39 pm -
OMG!!! too cute! A friend recommended me to this website! I am totally going to use this idea! thanks for the awesome ideas! I can’t wait for the napkin downloads too! thanks!
Sep 16, 2009 at 2:55 pm
