I squealed when I saw my friend’s baby shower pics on Facebook. Maybe it was because I’m way past being in the know and this was my first time seeing this kind of DIY iron-on decal-ing.
Or, maybe it’s because baby onesies are just so cute.
DIY parties converted me years ago. I balk at bridal and baby shower games. Back in my day, where I’m from, showers were more of a drop-in occasion. Bring your gift, watch her open it, and stay long enough to eat your cake square and nuts. My first full-length, stay two hours and play silly stuff was an eye-opener. What was the point?
Gradually I came to see that the shower event was not just about gifts, but truly about community and celebration. If done right, the gifts weren’t the only takeaways. The event itself was a memory made.
Several years ago, I hosted a DIY baby shower with a sweet Sunday School teacher and her elementary-age students. It was a tie-dye party and we decorated everything – shirts, bloomers, socks, hats.
But tie-dye is MESSY. It’s also not so fashion-forward with most young moms right now.
These iron-ons? They can please any and everyone.
Just pick a theme. You can find the decals online or in craft stores. All ages can join in the fun, mixing and matching colors and designs. It’s basically a quick-step process. Choose the decal, choose the clothing item, and apply. So far, so good – even for a non-crafty like me.
(I’m even thinking of cute brother/sister sets and daddy/son phrase combos to do above and beyond the onesies.)
My friend’s setup looked so simple!
And then I notice the contraption on the table. I don’t own a heat press. I don’t even own a hot glue gun!
I go to Amazon and study ALL THE MODELS until I settle on the one for me. But in my studying, I discover that my onesie decorating possibilities would be nearly endless if I would just buy a cricut and create the decals myself. (Only recently have I stopped calling those things CRY-CUTS. Since learning they’re really crickets, I’ve felt more craft-enabled.)
While considering the cricut, I fall into Pinterest, lose one hour of my life, but not my grocery budget! (Only because I refuse to memorize my credit card number.) I text a friend some decal pics and ask about the heat press. She answers. You can just use a regular iron to apply those things.
Does she even know how much that would ruin? I can’t have the ironing board set up in the living room. There’s no way to camouflage it with the theme. Have you ever seen an ironing board mixed in with any sort of party décor? And would I iron all of them or would the guests take turns ironing their own? And I wonder how much a good iron costs? This whole thing is really adding up, but I’m committed now.
My friend texts back. Who’s pregnant?
This is when I decide that young moms-to-be are having all the fun. I’m going to make graphic tees for the 13-year-old, I text back.
No. No, you are not. She answers.
And she is so right. I am not going to do any sort of DIY party. But you could! You could do this with just a few supplies. Or, you could find a crafty friend who already owns a cricket and a press and hire her. And I heard she didn’t even make a mess.
Have you hosted or been to a DIY onesie shower? What was your experience?
