Picture a Saturday afternoon in 1955. A dozen women in their good dresses crowd into a neighbor’s living room, the coffee table is buried under pastel boxes, and the mother-to-be sits in the best chair trying not to cry over a hand-knit blanket. For many American families, that was the baby shower.
Postwar showers were small and homemade. The hostess was usually a friend or relative, the guests were women from church or the neighborhood, and almost everything in the room was made by hand. If you’re planning a 1950s-themed shower today or just want to remember the ones your mother and grandmother attended, these five details are what made them stick in people’s memories.
Detail #1 – The Mother-to-Be’s Shower Outfit
The guest of honor’s outfit set the tone for a 1950s baby shower. Maternity clothes of the decade leaned modest and soft: loose smock tops worn over skirts, Peter Pan collars, small bows at the neckline and gentle prints in pink, blue or mint. When Lucille Ball’s pregnancy was written into I Love Lucy in 1952, viewers saw that kind of loose, modest style on television.
For a themed shower today, the mother-to-be doesn’t need a costume. A dress with a soft collar, a floral print or a bow at the neckline is enough to nod to the decade while staying comfortable for a long afternoon.
If she’s shopping for something new, browse a few collections with special occasions in mind, such as the maternity clothes from PinkBlush , which include dresses designed for life’s special moments. Have her try the dress on sitting down as well as standing, since she’ll spend most of the party in a chair opening gifts.
Comfortable flat shoes finish the look. Most 1950s photos show the guest of honor seated anyway, so nobody will notice what’s on her feet.
Detail #2 – Handwritten Invitations and a Ladies’ Afternoon
A 1950s baby shower started with a handwritten invitation. Hostesses wrote each card by hand or used a printed card with blanks to fill in, and many invitations had a stork or a tiny pair of booties on the front.
The party itself was usually a ladies’ luncheon or afternoon tea held in someone’s home, not a restaurant or hall. Guests arrived dressed up, stayed for two or three hours and went home with a story about the cake.
To capture that feel today, put these details on the invitation:
- Date, time and the host’s home address
- The guest of honor’s name and expected month
- A request to reply by phone or mail
- Any gift registry or color theme
Write each invitation by hand. It takes an evening, but guests notice. A card that someone took time over sets the expectation for the whole afternoon.
Detail #3 – Handmade Decorations in Soft Pastels
Handmade decorations gave every 1950s shower its own look. Few families bought party kits. Instead, the hostess and a couple of friends spent an evening cutting and taping paper until the living room looked like a nursery.
Because nobody knew whether the baby would be a boy or a girl, many hostesses mixed pink and blue or chose neutral yellow and mint green.
Crepe Paper Streamers
Twisted crepe paper was the backbone of the room. Hostesses twisted it across the ceiling and looped it along the mantel and the gift table.
Storks, Umbrellas and Paper Cutouts
The stork carrying a bundle was the most popular motif, along with open umbrellas for the “shower” itself. Hostesses cut them from construction paper and pinned them to the curtains and the front door.
A Candlelit Table
Many shower tables had a pair of candles beside the cake or punch bowl. If you use them, the U.S. Fire Administration advises that you keep lit candles 12 inches from things that can burn, and crepe paper burns fast. Set the streamers well away from any flame before guests arrive.
Top Tip: Make your paper decorations two or three days before the shower and store them flat in a box under a bed. Crepe paper wrinkles and fades if it sits in sunlight, and cutouts curl in damp air. Hang everything the morning of the party so it looks crisp when the first guest walks in.
Detail #4 – Gifts Wrapped With Full Ribbon Bows
Gift presentation was half the fun at a 1950s baby shower. Guests wrapped practical presents, such as receiving blankets, diapers, booties and bottles, in pastel paper and topped each one with a generous bow, so the gift table looked like a bakery window.
Opening the gifts was the main event. The mother-to-be unwrapped each box in front of everyone, a friend wrote down who gave what for the thank-you notes, and some hostesses taped the bows to a paper plate to make a hat for the guest of honor.
A full, soft bow depends on the ribbon you start with. Look for a ribbon wide enough to make generous loops and with enough body to hold them, such as the satin-finish D. Stevens ribbons from Michelle’s aDOORable Creations. Tie one test bow before wrapping the whole stack, so you can check the loop size against the box.
Match the ribbon colors to the room’s pastels and keep the paper plain so the bow does the work. A box wrapped in pale yellow with a white satin bow looks right in any 1950s photo.
Detail #5 – Party Food and Shower Games
The food at a 1950s baby shower was dainty and served on the good dishes. Most hostesses set out a spread like this:
- Finger sandwiches with the crusts cut off
- A molded gelatin salad on a lettuce leaf
- Sherbet punch in a glass bowl
- A frosted layer cake or petits fours
Food sat out for most of the afternoon, which is the one detail worth changing. The USDA advises that you never leave food out of refrigeration over 2 hours. Set out small platters instead and refill them from the fridge.
Games kept the afternoon moving. A favorite asked each guest to cut a length of string or ribbon they thought would fit around the mother-to-be’s waist, and whoever came closest won a small prize. Other hostesses ran word scrambles of baby names or a race to diaper a doll with a cloth diaper and safety pins.
Plan Your 1950s Shower Around One Detail
You don’t need all five details to give a shower that 1950s feel. Pick the one that matters most to the mother-to-be, whether that’s the dress, the decorations or the bow-covered gift table, and build the afternoon around it. Start this week by writing out the guest list by hand, the way a 1950s hostess would.
Frequently Asked Questions
What did women wear to a 1950s baby shower?
Guests wore their good dresses, and the mother-to-be usually wore a loose smock top over a skirt or a soft dress. Peter Pan collars, small bows and gentle pastel prints were common.
What decorations were used at 1950s baby showers?
Hostesses made most decorations by hand from crepe paper streamers and paper cutouts of storks and umbrellas. Many mixed pink and blue or used neutral yellow and mint green.
What food was served at a 1950s baby shower?
Typical menus included finger sandwiches, molded gelatin salad, sherbet punch and a frosted layer cake or petits fours. Everything was usually homemade and served on the good dishes.