The Goldfields Girl: Baby Shower - An AFE Afternoon Tea

I had the opportunity to style a baby shower at my house a little while ago. My Aunt had wanted to have a small gathering as she will be away when I am due and is likely to miss the birth of baby number two.

I also had some businesses contact me to find out if I was having a baby shower as they were interested in a collaboration if I did. So, as if often the case with these types of things, at the last minute we decided to invite some friends over to eat some yummy food and catch up before I pop.

When I was pregnant with Roo my sister threw me a surprise baby shower (read about it here) which served as a fundraiser for the AFE foundation. I decided, although more low key, that we would do something similar and ask our small group of guests to make a donation to the foundation of what they might spend going out for afternoon tea. This week the head of the AFE foundation contacted me to let me know she was very thankful for our donations and to wish me all the best for the upcoming birth. She also gave an update on some current research they are supporting being done here in Australia. It was so lovely to know that our donation, although not huge was noticed and appreciated (thanks Miranda!!).

It’s the first time I have really entertained inside at home (because its winter!!) so the styling was simple but I was able to get these stunning floral letters from local Bendigo business Faux Floral Co. Hayley, the business owner and creative talent is known for her amazing millinery and stylish head wear but has also been making these pretty floral pieces for hire and purchase.

These letters were so beautiful we used them to decorate our dessert bench but once it was time to eat they worked perfectly as a photo spot against the wall. The flowers are actually artificial – I know right?!! Everyone was convinced they were real, including the Captain who told me he had a heart attack when he received them as he was worried they would wilt on the way home – until he started putting them in the car and realized! The wall became a little bit of a photobooth by the end of the afternoon and if you watched our stories on Instagram you would have seen all of the fun we had in front of them!! I was definitely a little sad to give them back.

Flavour + Heart, another local Bendigo business, made the yummiest macarons. Hayley supplied me with macarons not only at the last minute – but when she was already baking around 1500 macarons for a market in Echuca. Her macarons are divine (I count my self as a major connoisseur) and can be made to order in any colour or flavour! She was recently in Ballarat for the Hank Marvin Bakers Exchange and you can check out her facebook page for up-to-date locations to find her. Hayley gave me plenty of extras too which meant I could save a couple for myself for after the event!

The other dainty desserts were made by myself and my friend Gina (she is an amazing cake maker!!). We decided to keep the colour palette pink, green and cream to be more gender neutral. We all had some fun doing the gender guessing game, however the ring on string seemed to both sway and circle, so we are none the wiser on the gender as we were before. I probably should have taken the opportunity to get name suggestions though as the Captain and I are still undecided. We had chosen a boys name early on in the pregnancy that we both loved, but the name has recently been in the media so now I have been having second thoughts. I thought we would use the same girls name we had chosen when I was pregnant with Roo but I am no longer sure about it either. Anyway hopefully bubba doesn’t come too soon as whatever it is, it may be nameless until we can decide!!

I love traditional yet uncommon names but the Captain prefers anything unusual. Are there any names you can think of? I would love to read your suggestions so please leave a comment!