Gender reveal parties are all the rage right now. So naturally when our friends told us they were pregnant, the party planning wheels started turning in my head. Cameron, “The Dad,” is part country, part preppy. Allyssa, “The Mom,” is 100% girly-girl and fashion-obsessed. To blend their two styles into a party fit for either a future “Beau or Bow,” I decided to host a country chic event at a family friend’s ranch just outside Dallas.
When guests walked in, they were asked to make their guess – would Baby Carlisle be a Beau or a Bow? If they guessed boy, they pinned a blue mustache on their shirt; if they guessed girl, they pinned a pink bow.
The silver canisters in the “Baby Inc.” basket were used for the actual reveal portion of the event. They’re pre-filled with confetti based on the baby’s gender – more on how they work later in the post.
I wanted guests to have something they could keep after the event, so I had custom koozies made! I love how they turned out – my husband and I use ours all the time.
Behind the baby’s breath arrangement, you’ll see a snippet of the invitation. They turned out great, so I thought it would be a nice touch added to the decor. The burlap/ribbon decor around the glass vase was a DIY project – my husband is a saint for helping me with these all the time.
For the bar area, we offered two types of punch: blue or pink. Each mason jar had blue or pink straws in it to match the drink color…detecting a theme here? Wine, beer, sodas and tea were also available – they just didn’t make the photographs.
Because this was just a gender reveal and not a full shower, we asked that guests not bring large gifts. If anyone wanted to bring something, they could contribute a book to Baby Carlisle’s library.
My husband and I pre-filled the box on the floor with balloons (blue, in this case). We taped it shut until it was time for the actual reveal. To make the box look “neater” in pictures, we added script style words to the side.
An example of one of the 6 tables. We catered Mexican food for the event – hey, whatever the pregnant lady wants, the pregnant lady gets! We used a simple burlap piece as the table runner, then incorporated multicolored tealight candles with handmade floral arrangements. (Flower arrangements are my absolute favorite part about hosting events – I made all the arrangements for this event.)
Here’s where the silver canisters come into play – as you can see, they were pre-filled with blue confetti. As the mom and dad-to-be opened the box of balloons, guests started shaking their canisters. All different shades of blue confetti rained down on them as the balloons floated out of the box. It made for a really cool picture. Plus, the look on Cameron’s face is absolutely priceless…pure happiness!
The last two pictures are of the ranch grounds. We’d been fighting a rain storm all day, and just as it was time to do the actual reveal, the rain clouds moved out. Once the confetti settled, the sun made an appearance to end the evening. It made for a beautiful end-of-party picture.
(Lyric Title: “My Blue Heaven” written by George A. Whiting)
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