After months of lockdown and restrictions, in-person baby showers seem a thing of the past.
That doesn’t mean you should give up on the idea of celebrating!
More and more mums (and hosts) are now switching to online baby showers, which can be a great (and equally enjoyable) alternative.
So get ready… this Virtual Lockdown Baby Shower “how-to” guide gives you tips and ideas on how to throw your baby an awesome lockdown baby shower.
VIRTUAL BABY SHOWER? THAT’S A DATE!
Everything begins with… a date!
Considering current lockdown restrictions, this part should be pretty easy… but nevertheless important, so set the date for the baby shower as soon as possible.
But what about invitations?
After all, this is still a celebration! You certainly don’t want to send out a plain email or text!
Here you have a few options
- I love Greeting Island because it offers virtual Baby Shower Invitation cards that can be downloaded, printed or used to create an online event (including guest list, RSVP…) that you can share with guests. The website includes free and premium options https://www.greetingsisland.com/invitations/baby-shower/theme-virtual%20party
- Green Envelope includes guest management and other advanced tools. It is great if you are planning a bigger event and want to keep things as easy (and quick) as possible, but it does not offer free options https://www.greenvelope.com/baby-shower-invitations
- And of course, Canva is another popular (and free to use) option https://www.canva.com/search/templates?q=baby%20shower%20invitation great if you have time to tweak the design of your favourite template (and the skills required to do so!)
Moving on, you might want to consider setting a dress code too, as these days it’s nice to have a reason to dress up a little rather than sit there in PJs or a onesie…unless that’s your thing of course!
Now, since what we are organising is a virtual celebration… let’s talk technology!
CALL ME! THE BEST PLATFORMS FOR YOUR VIRTUAL BABY SHOWER
Obviously, you are going to need some software/platform to organise your live online meeting.
- Facetime allows up to 32 friends at once, but it is unfortunately limited to Apple devices only (iPhone, iPads…)
- Zoom is a new integral part of life in lockdown, so there is a chance pretty much everyone you know will have that installed in their laptop, tablet or phone.
But.. the free version comes with a 40-minute cap for 3 or more participants.
That really might not be enough if you are planning on inviting a few friends.
- Another all-time favourite is Skype, another software many of us are familiar with.
The free version of Skype allows you up to 99 people, which should definitely be enough for your virtual baby-shower. - Alternatively, Google Meet has a limit of 25 people maximum and only requires you to sign up for a free Google account (which you probably already have).
WHAT ABOUT GIFTS?
Obviously, it’s not going to be possible to hand over physical gifts to the mum-to-be at her virtual baby shower, but you have a couple of possibilities here.
1. WISHLIST!
You could encourage the mum-to-be to create a wishlist of gift ideas.
If you go with something like Amazon, this allows guests to purchase a gift and it gets delivered straight to the new parents’ house (which solves another problem). Or you could organise a collection towards a specific big-ticket item if that’s more her bag.
2. LET THE GUESTS DECIDE
Leave it to guests to individually post or deliver gifts to the new parents’ home.
This gives everyone the chance to choose a present which they personally choose and endorse.
If you are looking for ideas from local companies, here are two of my favourite:
- Hattie & Bella (https://www.facebook.com/hattieandbella/) for 3D casts, raised impressions and handmade personalised silver jewellery and gifts. We make a variety of keepsake products including 3D casts, raised impressions, a wide range of jewellery and gifts made from 99.9% pure silver, stainless steel and leather.
2. Byron & Medina - High quality baby & Toddler toys and clothing
https://www.byronandmedina.com/
3. Hello Poppet stocks all sorts of baby things including clothing, soft toys and books, teethers, cellular blankets plus much more (www.hello-poppetuk.com)
3. GET THE OTHER PARTNER INVOLVED
You might organise a group gift and get it delivered before the day of the celebration, asking the other partner in for a surprise delivery during the baby shower!
SOMETHING SPECIAL FOR THE MUM
Whichever option you choose, I would always recommend adding something special for the mum-to-be herself.
Her little bundle of joy will always get lots of gifts, but what about the mama?
She certainly deserves to be pampered!
A few ideas:
- Soul Organic (https://www.soulorganic.co.uk/nom-nom) is an independent apothecary featuring hand-picked organic and vegan beauty, wellbeing and home products from independent British brands. They have an entire section dedicated to MOTHER AND CHILD, but also Skincare, Bath & Body…
- … which takes us to the second idea.
How about a fluffy dressing gown, cosy slippers, and some bath goodies.
Imagine how the soon mum will feel the moment she finally gets to go and run a bath, light some candles and just relax for a bit! - Yummy Scrummy Crafts also has a selection of handmade melts and gift boxes for pregnant women, ideal for baby showers https://www.facebook.com/Yummy-scrummy-crafts-1727193114203967/
WHO WANTS… FOOD (AND BUBBLES)?
Ok… virtual baby shower doesn’t mean NO food (or drinks)!
That mama is hungry, but these days and even a trip to the supermarket to tame those pregnancy cravings is fraught with stress!
You may want to consider asking guests to pitch in and order a selection of foods and maybe a bottle of alcohol-free bubbles to be delivered so the parents-to-be have something to enjoy during and after the party.
You don’t need to go overboard (you’re not feeding the whole gang) so you’ll only need a few small but select options for your favourite mum-to-be.
Also, encourage guests to enjoy their favorite drink and sweet treat during the party, and ask them to share the recipe with the group.
… LET THE FUN BEGIN
It’s perfectly possible to have fun at a lockdown baby shower, you just need to know the right games.
If you have time to do so, you can create some printables that you can share with your guests, for example for baby-bingo, baby-related anagrams, predictions and so on.
My go-to-choice, however, would be to use one of the ready-to-share bundles from Etsy like https://www.etsy.com/listing/926668786/virtual-baby-shower-games-package-for which includes:
1. Baby Facts
2. How Big is Mom-to-be's belly?
3. How Long is each animal Pregnant for?
4. How well do you know the Mom-to-be
5. Baby around the world
6. 2 Truths and a Baby Lie
7. Baby bump or beer belly
You can also browse Etsy here https://www.etsy.com/search?q=virtual%20baby%20shower%20games&ref=auto-1 for more ideas or search Pinterest for free Printables.
One word of caution: it is way too easy to spend hours browsing, remember that opening gifts, catching up and a few introductions will already take quite a while… so you won’t need to entertain guests with games for hours!
WHAT IF I DON’T HAVE TIME TO PLAN?
If you are already juggling homeschooling, endless Zoom calls for work and the normal family routine and the idea of adding more tasks to your to-do-list gives you shivers… I’ve got your back!
There are now websites that help you organise your Baby Shower beginning to end. One of the most popular is https://webbabyshower.com
And last but not least… don’t forget to ask your guests (including the mama-to-be) to send you selfies or even just screenshot that you can then combine in a slideshow or simply keep on a folder and share with mum and dad!
It will be a beautiful way for them to remember that, even during lockdown, you were able to create something special for them and their little one.
Got suggestions of your own? I’d love to hear from you either on my Instagram Photography by Edina or Facebook Photography by Edina.
Share this story
