Some friends of mine told me about this Oprah’s Favorite Things party idea, with the premise that we all get ideas for great products from our girlfriends. So the three of us threw a party to do just that. We each invited four people and told each guest to bring a friend {my favorite way to get a good mix of people at a party}. One of the hosts, Kim, told me about Paperlesspost.com for the invitations which proved to be super convenient and adorable; all sorts of digital stationary, fonts and colors to use, as well as reporting of which guests are attending and which guests are bringing friends.

Each guest brought their favorite thing x3. For example, one guest works in the sun and shared her ultimate favorite sunscreen for the smell and shimmer. She brought three bottles of the sunscreen to share. As each guest arrived, they received a number that would ultimately be the order in which they got to pick their favorite thing. We went through the numbers three times, each guest picking one item each time through. We had reusable bags lined up for each guest to pick so they could take home their favorite things in style!

Here’s a list of the things everyone brought. It was definitely a good mix of gifts and everyone was excited to try something new!

1. Homemade Necklaces       
2. Orgins “Piece of Mind” serum
3. “European Wax Center” Gift Certificate
4. Donna Karen Cashmere Mist Deodorant
5. Nalgene bottles w/ Luna Bars & Crystal Light
6. Jillian Michaels Workout DVD
7. Benefit Blush: Benetint
8. Eucerin Moisturizer & Lindt Chocolate
9. L’occitane Hand Lotion
10. Pinkies Nail Salon Gift Certificate
11. The best Tupperware “Rubber Maid Premier”
12. Real Simple Magazine
13. Paul Mitchell Hairspray
14. Hawaiian Tropical Sunscreen: Shimmer Effect
15. Forever 21 Jewelry
16. “East of Eden” Book
17. Nalgene bottles & she recommends the attachment

For this party, I used real dishes because it was a ladie’s-night-out “heels required” party. Seemed only right to have some fabulous dinnerware. The crystal plates were my mom’s from when she was younger and they are the perfect party plates. The silverware is both from my kitchen as well as some very cool pieces picked up at the Goodwill for 15 cents each. The goblets were mostly found at garage sales, with a few borrowed mixed in. I spent no more than $4 on the purchased goblets, which is easily how much I could have spent on throw-aways, but now I have dishes for the next party too!

Nutella-swirled cupcakes-in-a-jar were a hit. Vacuum sealed cupcakes in quilted jelly jars were the perfect compliment to the food. Recipe found here.

Free Download {PDF}

Bunny Poop {used with Whoppers}
Bunny Babies {used with marshmallow bunnies}
Bunny Tails {used with cotton candy or marshmallows}
Chick-a-dees {used with Easter grass and peanut butter Easter M&M’s}

If you’re not a designer

When creating favors or labels or anything from scratch… think simple. Simple makes a statement, even with the irreverant “{bunny} poop” favors. Simple goes a long way.

It all started with these adorable invitations

by Gracie Girl Notes. This Pennsylvania shop has fun prints and cute shapes for invitations, announcements and thank you cards. I provided the wording, and Bevin came up with the adorable concept of the little elephants with heart cardstock and kraft paper invitations. They really were cute and professional, and even better – I didn’t have to spend ANY time on them! She sent a proof via email before she shipped them out, so I was confident I was getting the perfect invitation. {Plus anybody that packages with Divine Twine is alright in my book}

Then came the sponsors

Several items were donated from companies that got me through the rough transition into new-mommyhood. You know how moms talk – we know who’s pooping, who didn’t nap, and who’s cutting teeth. It used to drive me crazy when I didn’t have kids and the conversation would continue at-length on any of these subjects. But now I get it – we’re all trying to be the best moms we can and it takes experience from our peers and the help of quality products.

A few things I was able to share

We bought at least 6 different brands of bottles for my underweight one-month old. Some bottles came out too fast, others too slow and frustrating. Some had him swallowing too much air, making an achy belly and big spit-ups. With a baby with colic, anything that could lessen the symptoms was a lifesaver. Switching to a more sensitive formula combined with these Tommee Tippee bottles made such a difference. He was less gassy, happy with the flow, and less starving! 9 months later he still loves them, and they are easy to hold in his big paws. By four months, he was holding them on his own.

And with colic comes LOTS of tears. I’m a firm believer in Dr. Karp’s “Happiest Baby on the Block” method that can get any crying baby soothed as long as there is no medical problem. I’m having flashbacks as I type this. It seemed like a century, but with the three months of colic came nights in the laundry room with the dryer on, running water to soothe cries and many many swaddles. These Aden + Anais swaddle blankets were the only ones sufficiently big and stretchy to pull tight enough for him to be sufficiently womb-like. They are definitely on my ‘must-have’ list for new moms {I even took mine to the hospital from day one}. They just made such a huge difference in our baby when he was little. Now that he’s older, they stay around covering a sleeping baby in the stroller, or as a blanket to crawl on.

When people tell me their babies wouldn’t take a pacifier, it almost doesn’t register. I can’t even IMAGINE. I got Owen sleeping 10 hours consistently at 3 months old using his favorite thing in the world: his Nuk pacifier. He is still happily using his pacifier at night, or when he’s embarrassing me with his volume level at a restaurant. He will only spit it out for two things: his bottle or his toothbrush. My only regret is that I didn’t know about these sports ones. Owen came home from the hospital wearing my baseball outfit from my birth, and this baseball binky would have topped it off!

You might remember Nicole Hoxie Photography doing my newborn’s pictures. They turned out better than I could have imagined, and I’m so lucky to have such great pictures. It’s so fleeting, they only stay that tiny for such a short time! Nicole is so crazy talented, you’ll notice that if you visit her home. Quilts, clothes for her kids, decor – all handmade! This is a diaper clutch that she designed and created – a perfect fit for a few diapers and wipes, and other essentials. Just in case you don’t feel like lugging your entire diaper bag, or you can leave it with the sitter while you’re away. She has created so many beautiful diaper clutches and you can buy them here.

Also pictured is a Baby Carrier Cover by Kukuku. No longer in stores, but a lifesaver for a chilly baby while he’s in your front carrier {works great with Baby Bjorn, Ergo, and other similar baby carriers}. My baby never liked to sleep, but I’ve managed to lure him to sleep with the fuzzy fleece lining of this cover and a little back rub.

In light of the rough first months, a one-of-a-kind frame like this one found it’s way to my doorstop {You can see my post about it here}. This frame was created by Face to Face Framing using reclaimed barn wood. They have an impressive Etsy shop with really amazing woodwork and home decor. Brigitte sent me one of these frames with a photo of my little one and it has got to be one of my most prized possessions. You can’t bottle that new baby smell or hang on to that feeling when your baby cozies up to your neck for the first time, but my frame with my baby’s little toes is as close as it gets. {Also pictured is my ‘Love Print‘}

Also from Face to Face Framing is this fun burlap pillow. I’m so jealous that they create these fun pillows – I would LOVE to do this {read: I would love to procrastinate on my daily house-wifing and work-from-homing duties to get involved in yet another project}. So cute!

And lastly, who knew it would be so hard to get back on the wagon? I went without a hairbrush and mascara for probably a good month after baby. So much feeding, diaper changing and soothing, all I ever wanted to do in my spare time was SLEEP. But the pieces had to be put back together, and if I was going to wear a pony tail, I was at least going to throw on a pair of earrings! :) These cute hoops are from a local brand, Twisted Silver. I’m seeing their cool jewelry more and more and my friends and family grow their Twisted Silver collection!

The baby food was provided by three great companies that I LOVE. How did anyone raise children without this stuff? He may have his sleeping faults, but Owen is an exceptional eater. I always have a few of these food pouches in my diaper bag in case our errands run long or he’s just a hungry dude. His legs start squirming at the very sight of these, and he loves that he can suck it out of the top all by himself! Plum Organics, Revolution Foods {who has the CUTEST website} and Ella’s Kitchen all have a version of these baby food pouches and they are a lifesaver. It’s organic {don’t roll your eyes}, it’s sneaky {crammed with veggies, but you’d never know it!} and fun for the baby’s to eat {Look ma, no spoon!}.

And lastly, just a few party details

Raffle tickets made using Just Something I Made‘s Vintage Frame graphics {Fun to use for quick projects like this}, and napkin flowers from Design Editor’s Tutorial here.

Brought a rug {Pottery Barn – circa 2009} and some toys for little crawlers.

Penants made from a less-than-favorable book and some scrapbook paper {Sorry for the backlighting here, you can see great penants from the Crafting Chicks here}

Food for kids and mommies {Weight Watchers Chicken Salad recipe here – I added slivered almonds and Fuji apples}

A little something extra for the mommies {when they’re hands aren’t full}

And the guests of honor!

Owen all dressed up for the event {hang on little buttons!}

If you haven’t read the book, this will look cookoo-balls to you. But just to clarify: the main character’s favorite dish was lamb stew. I just couldn’t do it {bleck}, so I made chili instead. “Tracker Jacker” brownie bites, “District 12 Bread” and “Sleep Syrup {homemade root beer}” were on the menu, served with “Cornicopia weapons” for spoons. And who could forget the “Sponsor Gift” of “Deadly Berries” for a party favor.

My inner dork THRIVED.

Then I found an adorable button mold via Bake It Pretty and created these little desserts {$4 to make the candy buttons} {how-to here}

I made candy kabobs for the favors using the buttons and scrap fabric {$4 for the skewers and pretzel bags + candy}

More scrap quilt fabric cut with pinking shears for tabletops {free} and a collection of jars for candlelight {I cleaned out my fridge and got 9 jars – embarrassing! The others were from family that I asked to save their jars, and my sister found some very cool ones at a garage sale for cheap}.

Scrap fabric to decorate $1 large water bottles

Hanging hooks on the railing let the guests’ gifts become part of the decorating {$3 for 9 “S” hooks}.

It was a hit!

This is all going somewhere – my “Cute As A Button” themed baby shower post is coming up next. But these were the main attraction – little button-topped desserts. All the supplies needed to make these little buttons are at Bake It Pretty – and for cheap cheap! {Super cute baking supplies available here – even ready-made sugar buttons!}

These are tubes of candy! Mmmm… To make the buttons, all you do is melt the candy writer {$1.75} in some warm water…

Squeeze the candy into the button mold {$2.25}, tap out the air bubbles and set in the freezer for a minute before popping the buttons out.

You put them on delicious homemade cupcakes or cookies, but I {“she who does not bake”} put them on Safeway’s yummmmmy frosted brownie bites that my mom found.

$4 to make these buttons, and you can keep reusing the mold. I LOVE when beautiful things are also cheap and easy!