Sprinkling Baby B

 This past Sunday there was a "sprinkle" for my cousin Crystal, who is due in March with her second baby.  Her first baby is 6, (almost 7 I think! where does the time go!) so we are very excited about this new addition!  (Okay I would have been excited regardless of her older child's age, because babies are always exciting!)

Her friends had an amazing idea for this Sprinkle, to hold a Refind Salvage Rustic Sign Workshop.  First of all, for those who don't know, a Sprinkle is kind of a low key baby shower when someone is having their second (or third or fourth...) baby.  

I have always wanted to do one of these workshops and it was so much fun! First of all, it was held at the Elora Centre for the Arts.  This used to be Elora Junior Public School, which was where I went to school until Grade 4.  It was so neat to go back into the building, and actually create my sign in my old Grade 2 classroom!  This building is really neat and is a great atmosphere for these workshops.  It's an old building, with nice hardwood floors and huge rooms.  It has so much character.  The room was set up with a big table in the middle for our signs, but also had a nice little corner with some seating where Crystal could open some gifts.

 It takes about 3 hours to make the signs, but there are breaks in there as you need to wait for paint to dry and such.  So we could chat and snack and take our time.  It's actually really low key, and although the Type A in me found some aspects stressful, it really was pretty simple.  Mandy, the owner of Refind, made the whole process fun and easy!  Everyone's signs turned out really well!

The great part about these workshops is that you get to pick your own sign.  So you aren't stuck with something that you really don't want because everyone can choose a sign that suits their home or their personality.  

 I would highly recommend attending one of these workshops with a friend or two or if you have a lot of friends then you can book your own private workshop like we did!  

Making a Diaper Cake

So as much as I want to be a crafty person, I'm really not.  Usually my DIY projects and Pinterest projects are fails.  So why I got it in my head that I should make a diaper cake for a work shower, where my diaper cake would be the centre of attention, I don't know. 

Luckily for me, and for the mama to be, it turned out pretty well.  And if I can do it, you can do it too!

What you need:
Diapers - I used a box of size 2 because I heard that some babies don't fit in newborn and size 1's for long.
Small elastic bands
A few large elastic bands
An empty paper towel roll
Double sided tape
Ribbon
Other decorations if wanted
A platter or cardboard for the bottom of the diaper cake

First things first, you need to roll those diapers.  I rolled them up so that the white side was out and the top of the diaper was in the middle.  This made them look more uniform.  Just roll and throw an elastic around each one.

Then I set my paper towel roll in the middle and started building the diapers around it.  Each time I completed a circle of diapers, I put an elastic band around the entire circle.  (You may find it easier to put the elastic band around the paper towel roll or the existing circle of diapers and then to insert new diapers into it, otherwise you might have diapers falling everywhere!)

 Do this 3 times on the bottom layer and then add 2 rounds on top of that, and one more round for the top layer.  I actually did 4 rounds on my bottom layer as I wanted a ledge to set additional gifts on.  But it's up to you.

 Then wrap ribbon around the middle of each layer to cover up the elastics.  Attach it with double sided tape.  Add other decorations as desired.  You can either use a platter to support the bottom or cut a piece of cardboard in a circle.

Another thing that I thought was a great idea was to use a bottle of wine for the centre instead of a paper towel roll for the new mom and dad to enjoy after the baby is born.  They will probably love you for it!

And voila! You have a diaper cake!  It wasn't too hard and everyone will be very impressed by it!  The entire thing probably cost me less than $40, but the diapers were about $30 and I still have leftover tape and ribbon for future projects.  (Get your supplies at Walmart if you aren't super concerned with the quality, much cheaper than a craft store like Michael's!)