Dessert Table: Starry Night Baby Shower

I love a co-ed baby shower, because let's face it, there isn't a lot for the father-to-be to do while the bun's still in the oven. A sophisticated, but fun, co-ed shower helps get dad excited and geared up for the little one's arrival. 100 Layer Cakelet featured this Peter Pan dessert table for a baby shower designed by Sugar & Fluff. Photographer Richelle Dante's pictures make the sweets look delicious.

That starry cake is a great compliment to the gold stars hanging from the ceiling. Cupcakes, macarons, and chocolate chip cookies are yummy companions.

I love that each guest had a mint green macaron waiting at their plate. What a sweet way to start a meal.

Swing by 100 Layer Cakelet to see the entire event.

Guest Desserts: Nicely Neon

As an 80's baby, I'm well-versed in everything neon. And while it was fun then, I must admit that neon looks much better this decade, especially when paired with neutrals. Mariana from Yum Eventos in Argentina sent this cute display of electric hued sweets for a baby shower that she styled.

From Mariana: This is a baby shower I put together for a very intimate get together for a glowing mommy to be with this fashion forward and trendy neon party. Fun fluorescence! Mixed with bold brights, chevrons, saturated stripes, and washi tape. I styled it together with bright whites and a contrasting neutral beige so that the colors would pop even more. As well as neon washi tape accents to coordinate with the graphic decor.

More From Mariana: The dessert table included sparkling water (H2oh baby).  Mini glasses with striped straws and coordinating flags.  Triangle shaped brownies to go with the chevron pattern on the invites.  Delicious lemon cupcakes with meringue topping.  Dulce de Leche Alfajores, a typical Argentinian tasty treat.  The backdrop was created with a neon string heart, tassels in neon, brown and a bright turquoise.  All put together with a neutral background (very simple kraft paper! total DIY). 

Favors wrapped in mini glassine bags with a coordinating printable tag was a tassel jewelry piece that could be used as a bracelet or a cute accent necklace for the party. 

Thank you for sharing the creative design with us, Mariana! If you'd like to submit a recipe, dessert table, or other sweet treat for Guest Desserts, be sure to check out how.

desserts & styling: Yum Eventos
printable paper goods & decor: La Feliz Celebrations

Sweet Idea: Virtual Baby Shower

A bunch of food bloggers across the blogosphere decided to throw a virtual baby shower for fellow blogger Maria of Two Peas and Their Pod. Each blogger baked or made a baby-themed treat for the shower, and shared the pics and recipes online to help Maria and her hub welcome their new baby.

These elephant cookies and favor bags from Sweetopia are too cute. You can even download the labels for yourself.

TidyMom created these cake balls.

I Am Baker contributed this cute cake.

Sweetapolita created these pea cookie pops. Adorable, right?

These aren't all of the sweets at this onine-only party. Be sure to check out everyone's dessert contributions.

TidyMom - Blue and Chocolate Cake Balls
i am baker - Baby Pea Baby Shower Cake
Brown Eyed Baker - Pavlova
Picky Palate - Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookie Sandwich
What’s Gaby Cooking - Coconut Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing
Cookin’ Canuck - Nutella & Cream Cheese Swirled Blondies
Kevin and Amanda - Baby Blue Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookie Cups
Sweetopia - Decorated Sugar Cookies
Mountain Mama Cooks - Lavender Shortbread Cookies
Sweetapolita - Decorated Sugar Cookies
RecipeGirl - Baby Button Cookies
RecipeBoy - Mud Cups with Gummy Worms
Add a Pinch - Blackberry Tartlets
Dine and Dish - Oven Baked Cinnamon Apples
Vintage Mixer - Mint Chocolate Pudding Shots
Dorie Greespan - French Lemon Cream Tart  

Dessert Table: It's Raining, It's Pouring

Yesterday, I shared Part I and Part II of my Ribboned Romance dessert table with you. The pom cake toppers I used there, along with the handmade poms that  Lisa of Simply Fabulous Event Design created sent me on a search for other ways to incorporate tissue paper into dessert tables. I came across this baby shower dessert table on Somewhere Splendid and immediately loved the tissue paper clouds and simple desserts.

Don't worry about spending time cutting those little clouds and raindrops. Fiskars makes the craft punches you need to create perfect clouds and raindrops in seconds.

Aren't those cloud cupcake toppers adorable?

Guest Desserts: Long-Distance Baby Shower

Today's Guest Desserts feature comes from Oslo by way of San Francisco. Even though Truc Luu of Treats lives in California and works in Finance at Gap, Inc., it's obvious she has a creative side as well. Inspired by some of my designs, the party invite, and some brown and pink ribbon, she set out to create a dessert table for her friend's baby shower in Norway.

According to Truc, baby showers are an emerging trend in Norway. Many Norwegians believe it's bad luck to give a baby gifts before birth. In this case, mom-to-be Elin didn't put too much stock in the superstition.

To ensure a picture perfect creation, Truc enlisted the help of some talented friends. Her Gap, Inc. co-worker, Michelle Padilla of NM Designs created the candy and dessert labels, while friend Anne-Marie Rabe photographed the design.

Truc made most of the desserts, including the cake layers, in San Francisco and shipped them in three checked suitcases during her trip to Oslo. Elin's friend Silja worked with Truc to make the cupcakes, brownies, and macarons once she landed in Oslo.

I love this color palette, and the crisp, white plates really pop against the dark brown tabletop. I think it's amazing that Truc was able to plan and execute this design from thousands of miles away, and I can't wait to see the designs she creates in the future.

Truc asked for some feedback about her design, because she plans to create another table for the baby's Christening. With so many family members and friends spread all across the country, and even the world, it's just a matter of time before all of you aspiring dessert table designers find yourselves creating your own long distance design. So, I thought I'd provide a few general tips as well.

1) Send pictures, measurements, and color swatches to any of your faraway collaborators to be sure that you're all on the same page. When I designed this table for Nonpareil Magazine, I worked with French miniaturist Stephanie Kilgast of Petit Plat via email to make sure that her miniature dessert table was a perfect replica of the full-sized Alice in Wonderland design I created. 

2) Make sure you get a full, straight-on shot of the entire table. It will be an invaluable addition to your portfolio. You might have to move some furniture to get a wide enough shot of the design, so arrive early to set up and take the shots. Replace everything to its proper position, and be careful not to break anything.

3) Have a backup plan in place in case some of your platters and dishes break or your luggage is lost during the trip. It may be difficult to find replacements once you get to your destination.

4) Be sure to wipe plates to remove any chocolate smudges and use a pastry brush to remove crumbs from hard-to-reach places. Check the tabletop for any spilled sugar or debris prior to taking your photo. I know it sounds nit-picky, but your clients will expect you to be a perfectionist with an eye for detail. Your portfolio will benefit from your precision.

Do you have a dessert table, recipe, or DIY project to share? Visit the Submissions page.

Dessert Table: Out of This World!

The Sweetest Occasion featured this baby shower's outer space dessert table yesterday. Emily of Paper Tiger Press designed this table to celebrate a friend's soon-to-arrive new baby. The father-to-be daydreamed about being an astronaut when he was a kid, and loved the idea for his son.

A gold star bedazzled a light teal backdrop set the stage for lots of glittery treats. I like that Emily opted for this more sophisticated shade of teal than traditional powdery, baby blue.

Clear risers virtually disappear on the display. From afar, it almost looks like the desserts flanking the diaper cake are floating in, well, space.

The red and white spaceship on the backdrop is a cute touch, and it lends an unexpected pop of complimentary color.

Be sure to check out The Sweetest Occasion for more yummy pics, and come back later today for a second post with other kid-centric dessert tables.

Dessert Table: Parisian Circus Baby Shower

If you've ever wondered what a Parisian Circus would be like, and who among us hasn't, then this dessert table will give you the sense of being there. Alchemy Fine Events designed this spread for a co-ed baby shower in New Orleans.

Glass risers mimic shelves in a patisserie display case and virtually disappear, letting the desserts take center stage.

Graphic black and white stripes are softened by pale yellow, blue, and pink accents. Graphics for the labels were created by Alchemy Fine Events.

This event didn't just stop at the dessert table. Check out the Lolliblog to see the inspiration boards, graphics, and invitations that brought the Parisian Circus theme to life. You can also see the completed event here and here.

So, what's your favorite part of this design?

event design: Alchemy Fine Events and  Canvas & Canopy

Dessert Table: Elephants Go Girly (Finally!)

I realized earlier in the year after posting this and this that elephants were increasingly popular for baby boy's showers. Style Me Pretty recently posted this dessert table that proves they are even popular for girl-themed showers.

I love the pattern on the linens and the gorgeous flowers in shades of pink and orange. Powdered donuts, cheesecake bites, and cupcakes make for simple, tasty sweets.

Be sure to check out more photos from the event here.

Images (Gertrude & Mabel Photography)

Dessert Table: Baa Baa Baby

This little lamb themed baby shower by Delphine Ephemera is too adorable to pass by without a closer look. A citron, lemon, and lime color palette make the gender neutral event lively and youthful, which is perfect for a baby celebration. Custom lamb labels turn candy bars into conversation pieces. Gummies, meringues, and cupcakes round out the offerings.

Rain, Rain II

Today's baby shower was a success. Customized linens, favor bags, and cookies delighted guests, while the cupcake tower I crafted took center stage. To see more detailed pics from this event, check out the website.

A lot of ideas from the inspiration board made the final cut, but some tweaks were made. I worked with two different bakers to alter the color and design of the cookies and cupcakes they typically provide. I wanted a more sophisticated/preppy feel to the table than a traditional polka dot theme tends to have.

To achieve this, I incorporated the ribbon-topped linens and used round candies to represent dots. Choosing this course rather than simply applying polka dots everywhere tailors the table to a young mom-to-be's event rather than a little girl's party. Touches of gold mingled with shades of pink and white to create a full color scheme.

I hope it was worth the wait. Enjoy!

Rain, Rain

Well, May is shower season so it's no surprise that I'm working on a dessert table for a baby shower. Mommy-to-be is expecting a girl, and the host requested a pink polka dot design to match the invites. Check back in for the final result, but for now the inspiration will have to tide you over.