45 Woodland Baby Shower Ideas for a Cozy Forest Party

01 A moss, birch and honey palette that suits any baby

A woodland baby shower palette is moss green, birch white and bark brown, with one warm accent like honey or rust. None of it says boy or girl.

1. Moss, birch white and bark brown, with one warm accent

• Moss green (#7E9A6A) for the runner, the greenery and the napkins
• Birch white (#F6F1E6) for the tablecloth, the cake and the paper
• Bark brown (#4A3B33) for the lettering, the wood and the baskets
• Pine (#3E5A33), a deeper green, for ribbon and a few leaves
• Honey (#E3B45A) as the one warm accent: the candle glow, the twine, the favor tags. A fox lead can swap it for rust (#D4783C).

What tells a forest from a safari? Shade and ferns: woodland is cool greens, foxes and owls under the trees; safari is acacias, tall grass, lions and giraffes under the sun. Our safari baby shower ideas take the other road.

2. Real ferns and cedar from the florist

A few stems of real leatherleaf fern and cedar from a florist, or a grocery store’s floral counter, smell like a forest and beat any printed cutout. Ask for about 16 stems: 10 along the food table and 2 for each of the 3 guest tables.

They aren’t in the totals: no store we checked priced them online, and florists price by shop and season, so ask. With pets, check each plant first. The ASPCA lists the Boston fern as non-toxic to dogs and cats, and the asparagus fern, which isn’t a true fern, as toxic.

02 Woodland baby shower decorations in five spots

Decorate five places guests actually look: the door, the food table, the gift table, a photo corner and the guest tables. Greenery, real or faux, does most of the work.

Total: $126.42. Not included: real greenery, AA batteries, a paint marker, tape and removable hooks. The centerpieces have their own list below.

3. A “Welcome to the woods” sign at the door

A sign on an easel by the door: “Welcome to the woods. A baby shower for Maya & Jordan,” with your own names, in bark-brown letters on kraft.

• Buy: a 20-by-30-inch foam board ($1.99) and a beechwood floor easel ($11.99) at Hobby Lobby. Wrap the board in kraft paper from the roll ($5.99), taped at the back.
• Make: letter it in pencil, then go over it in a dark brown paint marker, the day before. Tuck a fern frond behind one corner.

4. A moss runner with wood slices under every platter

A moss runner down the middle of the food table, and a wood slice under every platter, like a clearing set for a picnic.

• Runner: USMOLA’s artificial moss runner, 12 by 71 inches, $14.99 on Amazon.
• Wood slices: a 9-pack of 8- to 10-inch slices with bark, $35.99 on Amazon. Six go under platters, with a parchment round between wood and food; one to three go to the centerpieces.

5. Battery fairy lights in glass jars

Three jars of warm white fairy lights between the platters, glowing like fireflies.

• Buy: Hobby Lobby’s warm white fairy lights, 50 tiny LEDs on 9 feet of wire, $3.99 a string, each coiled into a 32-ounce mason jar ($3.79).
• Good to know: they run on 3 AA batteries, not included: put fresh ones in the night before.

6. A paper-leaf and fern backdrop for photos

A sheet of kraft paper on the wall, covered in paper leaves, with a faux fern spray at each side and a chair in front.

• Buy: two 34-inch fern sprays at Hobby Lobby, $6.99 each. The leaves come from the kraft roll.
• Make: tape a 6-foot length of kraft paper to the wall. Cut about 60 leaves, 3 to 5 inches long, from the rest of the roll, draw a vein down each, and tape them on in overlapping rows, the evening before.

7. A basket with a plush fox on the gift table

A small willow basket for cards, with a plush fox sitting beside it to guard the gifts.

• Buy: Hobby Lobby’s oval willow basket, 7 by 6 inches, $6.49, and its 8-inch orange plush fox, $4.99.
• Good to know: the fox is labeled for ages 4 and up, with small parts, so it’s decor for the shelf, not a crib toy.

8. Felt or paper toadstools on the guest tables

A few felt mushrooms scattered around each centerpiece, red caps and white stems, like the forest floor.

• Buy: a 12-pack of mini felt mushrooms, $6.67 on Amazon. Paper ones, cut from scrap cardstock, cost nothing.
• Toddlers: leave them off any table where toddlers sit. Small decor goes straight into small mouths.

03 Woodland baby shower centerpieces you can make the night before

Each woodland centerpiece takes about 10 minutes: a wood slice, moss and battery candles; a birch-bark paper vase of ferns; or a stack of picture books.

For 20 guests, plan three tables of six to eight, so three centerpieces. Make one of each, or three of the same. All three are made the night before and wait in a cool room.

Total: $42.00, plus 1 wood slice from the decor list (3 if you make three). A second paper vase costs $10.54 more: a jar, two sheets and three fern picks.

9. A wood slice, a cushion of moss and three battery candles

• You’ll need: a wood slice from the 9-pack, Hobby Lobby’s three ivory LED pillar candles (4, 6 and 8 inches, $15.99 for the set) and its preserved sheet moss ($8.99).
• Make: stand the three candles on the slice, tallest at the back, and tuck torn pieces of moss around their bases. Ten minutes.
• Good to know: the candles take 9 AAA batteries, not included. Their remote runs on a coin battery, and Hobby Lobby’s label warns that a swallowed one can cause death or serious injury: keep the remote in a drawer.

10. A birch-bark paper vase of ferns

• You’ll need: Hobby Lobby’s 32-ounce mason jar, 7 inches tall ($3.79), two 12-inch sheets of its birch-bark scrapbook paper (69 cents each), its 250-foot spool of jute twine ($2.99) and three of its faux fern picks ($1.79 each).
• Make: trim both sheets to the jar’s height. Wrap one around the jar, lay the second over the seam so no glass shows, and tape the ends. Tie two loops of twine around the middle and push the fern picks into the jar. Ten minutes.
• Real ferns? Use them the morning of, in water: the paper is outside the glass.

11. A stack of picture books with a small wooden animal on top

• You’ll need: three picture books with forest animals on the cover, from your shelf or a used bookstore, and one of Hobby Lobby’s six painted plywood woodland animals, 2 to 3 inches ($3.49 a pack). The other five go to the kids’ scavenger hunt.
• Make: stack them biggest to smallest, spines facing out, and stand the animal on top. Five minutes.
• After: the books join the storybook corner and go home with the family.

04 Fox, deer, owl or hedgehog: pick one lead animal

12. One lead animal, in three places

Pick one animal to lead and repeat it three times: on the invitation, the dessert table and the favor tags. More than one starts to look like a toy shop.

The others can still show up once, in the baby animal game or on a cookie. Here is what each lead brings to the party.

Fox

A fox themed baby shower trades the honey accent for rust (#D4783C).

• Dessert: fox sugar cookies, iced in rust and white
• Favor: trail mix in paper cones, tagged “For the trail home”
• Game: pin the tail on the fox

Deer and fawn

A deer themed baby shower uses caramel (#C98E5A), with white dots like a fawn’s spots on the sign.

• Dessert: the tree stump cake, with a few white frosting dots on the side
• Favor: wildflower seed packets
• Game: name the baby animal, where “fawn” is one of the answers

Owl

A baby shower owl theme keeps honey (#E3B45A) as the accent.

• Dessert: owl sugar cookies, with honey-colored eyes
• Favor: honey sticks tied with twine
• Game: gift bingo, called “Whooo’s gift?”

Hedgehog

A hedgehog lead brings walnut brown (#6E4B35) and the coziest favor.

• Dessert: acorn bites, with a tiny hedgehog drawn on the sign beside them
• Favor: hot cocoa kits
• Game: what’s in the burrow?

05 Woodland baby shower food for 20 guests

A woodland menu for 20 is four small bites, one warm dish, fruit and a trail mix bar, plus two drinks. Most of it is made the day before.

You’ll need two slow cookers: one keeps the chili warm, the other the cider.

For quantities beyond this menu, by guest count and time of day, see our guide to how much food a baby shower needs.

13. Tomato-and-mozzarella toadstools

A half cherry tomato on a mozzarella ball, with white dots on the cap: a red-and-white toadstool you can eat.

• Buy: a 12-ounce pack of cherry tomatoes ($5.99) and one 8-ounce tub of BelGioioso fresh mozzarella ciliegine ($5.99), about 24 cherry-size balls, at Hy-Vee.
• Make 40: halve 20 mozzarella balls crosswise and stand each half on its flat side for a stem. Halve 20 tomatoes, set a half on each stem, cut side down, and dot the caps with store-bought mayonnaise from a toothpick.
• When: the morning of, then keep them covered in the fridge until guests arrive.
• Good to know: BelGioioso’s label lists “Cultured Pasteurized Milk.” The FDA’s pregnancy warning on fresh cheese is for queso fresco and its kind, even pasteurized, not for mozzarella like this.

14. A pinecone cheese ball with almond “scales”

A cheddar cheese ball shaped like a pinecone, covered in rows of whole almonds, with a sprig of rosemary on top.

• Buy: two 8-ounce bricks of Philadelphia cream cheese ($2.98 each), an 8-ounce bag of shredded sharp cheddar ($2.48), a 16-ounce bag of Blue Diamond whole almonds ($8.99) and a party-size box of Ritz ($6.98).
• Make the day before: beat the softened cream cheese with the cheddar and a pinch of garlic powder, shape it into an oval, wrap it and chill it overnight.
• The morning of: press almonds in at an angle, in rows from the bottom up, so they overlap like scales. Save the rest of the bag for the trail mix bar.

15. Pigs in a blanket, served as little logs

Cocktail sausages wrapped in crescent dough, piled like a woodpile on a wood slice.

• Buy: a 14-ounce pack of Hillshire Farm Lit’l Smokies ($5.99) and two cans of Pillsbury crescent rolls ($3.49 each).
• How many: about 35 links. The label counts seven servings of five.
• Make: cut each triangle of dough into three strips and wrap one around each sausage, the morning of. Bake as the can directs and serve them steaming hot, 165°F.

16. A build-your-own trail mix bar

Six bowls and a stack of cups: guests scoop their own mix, a ½ cup each, the serving Betty Crocker gives for its Chex party mix.

• Buy: a 16-ounce bag of pretzel twists ($2.99), a box of Rice Chex ($3.99), a 10-ounce bag of raisins ($4.29), a 10-ounce bag of M&M’s ($6.48) and a 6-ounce bag of dried cranberries ($3.99). The almonds come from the cheese ball bag.
• Set up: the almonds and the M&M’s go last, each in its own bowl with its own scoop. Label them “tree nuts” and “milk, soy, may contain peanuts,” so a guest with an allergy can skip them.
• When: fill the bowls the morning of. Giving trail mix cones as favors? Make 11 cups more, a ½ cup for each of 22 cones.

17. Mini cups of chili or soup for a cold-weather shower

Chili in small paper cups, with cheddar and sour cream on the side. In warm weather, skip it and add a second fruit.

• Buy the chili: 2 pounds of 85% lean ground beef ($7.99 a pound), a yellow onion ($1.49) and two packets of chili seasoning (99 cents each).
• Buy the cans: two of dark red kidney beans ($1.49 each), two of diced tomatoes ($1.48 each) and a 15-ounce can of tomato sauce ($1.48).
• Buy the toppings: an 8-ounce tub of sour cream ($1.58) and a second bag of cheddar ($2.48).
• Make the day before: brown the beef with the onion to 160°F, the FDA’s number for ground meat, add the drained beans, the tomatoes, the sauce and the seasoning, and simmer 20 minutes. Cool it and refrigerate it.
• The morning of: reheat it on the stove to 165°F, then keep it warm in a slow cooker.
• Soup instead? Any thick soup works the same way, a ½ cup a guest.

18. Berry cups from the “forest floor”

Strawberries and blueberries in clear cups, with a mint leaf on top if you have one.

• Buy: 2 pounds of strawberries ($4.99 a pound) and two pints of blueberries ($6.99 each).
• Make: wash the berries the day before, then hull and halve the strawberries and fill 20 cups the morning of. Keep them in the fridge until serving.

19. White-chocolate pretzel rods that look like birch twigs

Pretzel rods dipped in white candy melts, with short dark lines drawn across them: birch bark you can eat.

• Buy: a 12-ounce bag of Snyder’s pretzel rods ($3.99), a 12-ounce bag of Wilton white candy melts ($3.99) and a 12-ounce bag of semi-sweet chips ($3.99). The chips also make the acorn stems and glue the meringue mushrooms.
• How many: 1 or 2 a guest. Dip the whole bag.
• Make the day before: dip all but the last 2 inches of each rod and let it set on parchment. Melt a handful of chips, pipe short, uneven dashes across each rod, and store them airtight.

20. Warm cider and iced herbal tea in mason jars

Two drinks: cider warm in the second slow cooker, and a caffeine-free mint tea on ice. Serve them in mason jars if you have them.

• Buy the drinks: a gallon of Musselman’s 100% apple cider ($8.99), whose label reads “Pasteurized Apple Juice,” and a 20-bag box of Bigelow Mint Medley caffeine-free herbal tea ($4.49).
• Buy the water and ice: a 24-pack of water ($3.99) and two 20-pound bags of ice ($5.99 each).
• How many: plan 1 to 2 eight-ounce drinks a guest an hour, the count Cooking For Crowds For Dummies gives, and 1 to 2 pounds of ice a guest, Reddy Ice says. That’s 40 to 80 drinks for two hours, and 40 pounds of ice.
• When: brew the tea the day before and chill it. Warm the cider an hour before guests arrive.

Total: $167.41, about $8.37 a guest, before tax. Hy-Vee’s online prices vary by store. Not counted: pantry staples, like mayonnaise and garlic powder, and cups, plates and napkins.

Cooking for a guest who is pregnant, or for allergies and other diets? Our menu guide lists the foods to skip and how to label a buffet. Nothing on this menu is on the FDA’s pregnancy list: the cider, cream cheese and mozzarella are pasteurized, the cheddar too if its label says “pasteurized,” and the sausages and chili are served steaming hot.

The make-ahead plan

1. 1
   Two days before

   Shop, and bake the sugar cookies (see the desserts below).
2. 2
   The day before

   Make the chili and the cheese ball, dip the pretzel rods, wash the berries, brew the tea, bake the cake layers and the meringue mushrooms, and ice the cookies. Make the sign, the backdrop and the centerpieces the same evening.
3. 3
   The morning of

   Make the toadstools and the acorn bites, scale the cheese ball, fill the berry cups and the trail mix bowls, wrap and bake the pigs in a blanket, frost the cake, and reheat the chili.
4. 4
   During the shower

   Bring the food out in small platters, swap them rather than topping them up, and throw away anything that has been out of the fridge for 2 hours.

The rest of the to-do list, from the invitations to the thank-you notes, is in our baby shower checklist.

06 A tree stump cake and three forest desserts

A naked cake with rosemary “pines” reads as a tree stump with no fondant work. Three small desserts go around it: acorn bites, meringue mushrooms and cookies.

21. A naked “tree stump” cake with rosemary pines

Two chocolate layers with a thin, scraped coat of vanilla frosting, so the dark cake shows through like bark. Rings drawn on top, rosemary sprigs standing around the base like little pines.

• Bake it: two boxes of Betty Crocker Super Moist chocolate fudge mix ($1.77 each), plus the eggs, oil and water each box asks for; a dozen eggs is $1.99. Two tubs of vanilla frosting ($2.18 each) and two packs of fresh rosemary ($2.99 each).
• One box a layer: a whole box in one pan needs a 9-inch pan at least 2 inches deep, and a longer bake than the box gives. Wilton’s chart says 40 to 45 minutes at 350°F for a 9-inch layer 2 inches deep. Start checking at 35 minutes: it’s done when a toothpick in the center comes out clean.
• Or buy it plain: Hy-Vee’s bakery sells a plain double-layer 7-inch round, 8 to 12 servings, for $28.99. Order two for 20 guests ($57.98) a few days ahead, scrape most of the frosting off the sides with a bench scraper, and decorate them yourself. The totals use the baked version.
• How many: Wilton counts 24 party slices for a two-layer 9-inch round, 4 inches high.
• Decorate: frost thinly and scrape it back. Drag a fork in circles on the top for tree rings. Stand rosemary sprigs around the base and set three meringue mushrooms at its foot.
• When: bake the layers the day before and keep them tightly wrapped; frost the morning of.

22. Acorn bites: a chocolate kiss on a mini vanilla wafer

A chocolate kiss for the nut, a mini vanilla wafer for the cap and one chocolate chip for the stem.

• Buy: a 30-ounce party pack of Hershey’s Kisses ($14.92), which also fills the acorn jar for the game, and a box of Nilla mini wafers ($4.99).
• Make 40: unwrap 40 kisses. Melt a few chocolate chips and use a dab to glue the flat side of each kiss to the flat side of a wafer, then glue a chip, point up, on top of the wafer. Fifteen minutes, the morning of.
• Label: milk, wheat, soy and egg, from the wafers’ “Contains” line.

23. Meringue mushrooms

White meringue caps on meringue stems, dusted with cocoa: they look like they grew overnight, and they’re crisp all the way through.

• Buy: a 4-ounce tub of Wilton meringue powder ($7.99 at Hy-Vee). It also makes the cookie icing.
• The meringue: Wilton’s basic recipe. Whip ¼ cup of meringue powder and ½ cup of water on high to soft peaks. Add 1⅓ cups of granulated sugar a little at a time and whip to stiff peaks, about 4 to 5 minutes, then 2 teaspoons of vanilla.
• Make 24 the day before: pipe 24 domes, about 1½ inches wide, and 24 short stems on parchment. Bake at 250°F for 45 to 50 minutes, until the outsides feel firm and crisp, then turn the oven off and leave them in for an hour.
• Finish: glue a stem under each cap with melted chocolate and dust with cocoa. Store them airtight: humidity softens them.
• Label: egg, from the meringue powder, and the chips’ “Contains” line.

24. Fox and owl sugar cookies

Cut-out sugar cookies shaped like a fox face and an owl, iced in rust, honey and white.

• Buy the dough: three pouches of Betty Crocker sugar cookie mix ($3.69 each), plus the butter and egg each pouch asks for.
• Buy the cutters: R&M’s 3½-inch fox face and 3¼-inch owl ($7.99 each on Amazon).
• Buy the icing: 2 pounds of powdered sugar ($2.99) and a 4-pack of Wilton gel colors ($5.99). The meringue powder is the tub from the mushrooms.
• How many: Betty Crocker’s cutout recipe makes about 24 three-inch cookies a pouch; with these 3¼- to 3½-inch cutters, a few less. Three pouches cover 20 for the table and 22 favor bags.
• Bake two days ahead: roll the dough ¼ inch thick, cut, and bake at 375°F for 7 to 9 minutes.
• The icing: Wilton’s royal icing, made twice. Each batch is 4 cups (about 1 pound) of powdered sugar, 5 tablespoons of warm water and 3 tablespoons of meringue powder. Beat to peaks, 7 to 10 minutes on low in a stand mixer or 10 to 12 on high with a hand mixer.
• Ice the day before: outline first, then flood. For flooding, stir in 1 teaspoon of water a cup, then ½ teaspoon at a time, until a spoonful dropped back in the bowl sinks after a full count of 10. Let it dry overnight. Mix orange from the red and yellow gels.

Total: $79.80, before tax, at Hy-Vee and Amazon. Not counted: butter, oil, sugar, vanilla and cocoa from your pantry.

07 Woodland baby shower games, with the rules

Six woodland games, each under 15 minutes: four for the whole room and two for kids. Every one has the materials, the steps and how to pick a winner.

Pick two for a two-hour shower. For games for couples and a mixed crowd, see our baby shower games for couples.

25. Name the baby animal

A card with 20 forest animals and a blank beside each. Guests write what each baby is called, like a kit or a fawn.

• Players: everyone, alone or in pairs.
• Time: about 5 minutes.
• You’ll need: one printed card a guest, with the 20 animals below, and pens.
• How: no phones. When time is up, guests swap cards and mark them while you read the answers.
• Variant: two scrambled columns to match, for kids.
• Winner: the most right answers. Tie? The first to call out what a young fish is called (a fry), a question that isn’t on the card.

The answers, and the tie-breaker, come from Merriam-Webster and the National Wildlife Federation.

26. Woodland gift bingo

A bingo card guests fill with the gifts they think the family will open. Call it “Whooo’s gift?” if an owl leads.

• Players: everyone, while the gifts are opened.
• Time: as long as the gifts take; stop at 15 minutes.
• You’ll need: a blank 4-by-4 grid a guest and pens.
• How: guests write 16 gifts in the squares (diapers, a board book, a swaddle, a bath towel…) and cross each off as it’s opened.
• Variant: forest bingo. Guests fill their 16 squares with any of the 24 words below, and you draw them from a bowl and call them out.
• Winner: the first full row, column or diagonal; at 15 minutes, the most squares crossed off.

27. What’s in the burrow?

Ten baby things hidden in a pillowcase “burrow.” Guests reach in without looking and guess each one by touch.

• Players: everyone, one at a time, as the bag goes around.
• Time: about 10 minutes for 20 guests.
• You’ll need: a pillowcase, and a numbered card and a pen a guest.
• The ten things: a pacifier, a sock, a teething ring, a baby spoon, a bath toy, a washcloth, a board book, a bib, a mitten and a diaper, all new.
• Not in the totals: the ten things come from the hosts’ own gift, so they go to the family after. Or borrow them, and give them back.
• How: each guest gets 30 seconds to feel inside and write down all 10. Then pull them out one by one.
• Variant: play in teams of two, one feeling and one writing.
• Winner: the most right answers.

28. How many acorns are in the jar?

A jar of chocolate kiss “acorns” and a slip for everyone’s guess. The closest guess takes the jar home.

• Players: everyone, as they arrive.
• Time: a minute to guess; the answer comes near the end.
• You’ll need: a 16-ounce mason jar ($3.29 at Hobby Lobby) filled with kisses from the party pack, slips, a pen, an envelope and a kitchen scale.
• How: one guess each, with a name on the slip.
• Variant: closest without going over.
• Winner: the closest guess. Tie? They share the jar.

29. A forest scavenger hunt for kids

A picture list of forest friends hidden around the room. Kids find each one and check it off.

• Players: kids 3 and up, alone or with a grown-up.
• Time: 10 minutes.
• You’ll need: the five other wooden animals from the centerpiece pack, the plush fox, and a card with a drawing of each and a crayon.
• How: hide them in plain sight, at a child’s eye level but away from the food and the stairs. Kids check each one off and leave it where it is.
• Variant: for kids 5 and up, add “find something green, something round and something soft.”
• Winner: everyone who finds them all.

30. Pin the tail on the fox

A big fox drawn on kraft paper, and paper tails to pin on with your eyes covered.

• Players: kids, one at a time.
• Time: about 10 minutes for 10 kids.
• You’ll need: a 3-foot fox drawn on the kraft roll and taped to a wall at kid height, a tail for each child cut from the same roll and colored rust, painter’s tape and a soft scarf.
• How: write each child’s name on a tail with a loop of tape on the back. Cover their eyes, turn them once gently, and point them at the fox.
• Variant: for the littlest, no scarf: they just close their eyes.
• Winner: the tail closest to the right spot.

08 Two quiet activities for guests who’d rather not play

Not everyone wants to play. A wishing tree and a storybook corner let guests join in when they like, and the family keeps both.

31. A wishing tree hung with kraft-paper leaves

Three birch branches in a heavy vase, and a basket of kraft-paper leaves beside them. Guests write a wish and hang it.

• You’ll need: Hobby Lobby’s three birch sticks, 3½ to 4 feet ($8.99), a heavy vase or a bucket of stones, about 30 leaves cut from the kraft roll, a hole punch, the jute twine and a few pens.
• Set up: punch each leaf and thread a 6-inch loop of twine through it, the night before. Stand the branches near the door, with the leaves, the pens and a small sign.
• After: the leaves go in an envelope or an album for the family.

32. A storybook corner

A chair, a lamp and a basket. Guests bring a picture book with a note inside, and drop it in the basket instead of a card.

• You’ll need: a basket or a crate, a comfortable chair and a reading lamp, near the gift table.
• How: ask for it on the invitation, so guests can shop ahead. The family reads the notes later, and the books start a shelf.

More ideas with no winner and no pressure, from a note station to a recipe box, are in our guide to things to do at a baby shower besides games.

09 10 woodland baby shower favors, with what each costs

Ten woodland favors, from seed packets to maple syrup, each with its cost per guest and a tag line you can copy.

Pick one, two at most. Each count below makes 22 for 20 guests: about 10% extra, for a guest or two you didn’t expect. Set them on a tray by the door, out of toddlers’ reach.

33. Wildflower seed packets

• Cost: 95 cents a packet: a pack of 20 filled wildflower seed packets is $18.99 on Amazon, so two packs ($37.98) for 22.
• Prep: none.
• Tag: “Plant a little wild.”

34. Honey sticks tied with twine

• Cost: about 44 cents for two: 50 clover honey sticks, a teaspoon each, are $10.99 on Amazon, enough for 22 bundles of two, with the twine you already have.
• Prep: a minute a bundle, any day before.
• Tag: “Sweet of you to come.”

35. Fox or owl cookies in kraft bags

• Cost: about 75 cents a bag and tag, plus one of the fox and owl cookies from the dessert budget. Hobby Lobby’s kraft bakery bags with a window are $3.99 for 6, and its 12 kraft tags are 99 cents. For 22: four packs of bags and two of tags, $17.94.
• Prep: a minute a bag, the morning of, once the icing has dried overnight.
• Tag: “Thanks for coming to the woods.”

36. Trail mix in paper cones

• Cost: about $1.44 a cone: 50 small kraft cones are $9.99 on Amazon, and a second set of the trail mix bar’s five bags ($21.74) fills 22, a ½ cup each.
• Prep: fill and fold them shut the morning of, with a batch without the almonds or the M&M’s, made first.
• Tag: “For the trail home.”

37. Hot cocoa kits

• Cost: about 56 cents: a Swiss Miss envelope with marshmallows (8 for $3.49 at Hy-Vee), a 4-by-9-inch cello bag (50 for $1.99 at Hobby Lobby) and a kraft tag. For 22: three boxes, a pack of bags and two packs of tags, $14.44.
• Prep: a minute a bag, any day before.
• Tag: “Warm wishes from the woods.”
• Good to know: marshmallows are on the CDC’s choking list for young children, so these are for the grown-ups.

38. Cedar sachets

• Cost: 79 cents: 24 red cedar sachets, 3 by 4 inches, are $18.99 on Amazon.
• Prep: tie a tag on with twine, any day before.
• Tag: “A little forest for your drawer.”

39. Small wooden animals that double as place cards

• Cost: 58 cents: Hobby Lobby sells six painted plywood woodland animals, 2 to 3 inches, for $3.49. Four packs, $13.96, cover 22 seats, with two spares.
• Prep: write each guest’s name on the back, or on a kraft tag tied around it, the day before.
• Tag: “Find your forest friend.”

40. Mini potted ferns

• Cost: about $8.13 a fern. A 3-pack of live Boston ferns, rooted in 2-inch soil plugs with no pots, is $22.99 on Amazon. Add 2½-inch nursery pots (50 for $9.99 on Amazon) and a 6-quart bag of Miracle-Gro indoor potting mix ($5.97 at Home Depot).
• For 22: eight 3-packs, the pots and the bag, $199.88. The most expensive of the ten, for a small guest list.
• Prep: order them a week ahead and pot them the day they arrive. Keep them in bright, indirect light and water them. The ASPCA lists the Boston fern as non-toxic to dogs and cats.
• Tag: “Thanks for helping this forest grow.”

41. Small bottles of maple syrup

• Cost: about $2.37: a 2-ounce swing-top glass bottle (30 for $29.99 on Amazon) filled with pure maple syrup ($21.99 for 32 ounces at Hy-Vee, so 2 ounces is about $1.37). For 22, add a 12-ounce bottle ($9.99): $61.97 in all.
• Prep: fill them with a funnel the day before, about a minute each.
• Tag: “Sweet things are coming.” Under it, copy the syrup label’s “Refrigerate after opening.”

42. Bookmarks with a pressed fern

• Cost: about 16 cents: Hobby Lobby’s 50 paper bookmarks, 2 by 6 inches, are $1.79, and Avery’s 10 clear self-laminating sheets, 9 by 12 inches, are $9.99 on Amazon. One sheet covers the fronts of eight bookmarks.
• Prep: press small fern fronds in a heavy book for about a week, lay one on each bookmark and seal it under the clear sheet. Two minutes each.
• Tag: “Saving your place in the woods.”

10 Woodland invitation wording, and one to explore

A woodland invitation needs the names, the date and time, the place, the RSVP date and one line of forest charm. Send it four to six weeks before.

43. Woodland invitation wording to copy

Swap your details into the brackets. More are in our baby shower invitation wording guide.

44. An invitation guests open like a storybook

Rather send a link than a card? Woodland Friends, our woodland baby shower website, opens like a pop-up storybook onto a forest. A fawn, a fox and a hedgehog keep the date, the place and the RSVP date behind their doors. Guests reply at the Forest Post, for 1 to 12 people at a time, and an owlet carries each reply to the hosts.

Build and preview it free with your own details, then publish for $29, once, with no subscription and no ads. The example is filled in with fictional details.

11 A woodland shower in any season

Woodland works all year: fall leaves and warm cider, snowy birches and cocoa, spring moss and wildflowers, or a shady summer clearing. A few swaps change with the season.

45. The same forest in any season

• Fall: scatter a few dry fall leaves on the runner, serve the warm cider and the chili, and give maple syrup.
• Winter: stand the birch sticks in a bucket of white stones, set out a hot cocoa bar instead of the tea, and give the cocoa kits.
• Spring: add a jar of grocery-store wildflowers to each table, swap the chili for a second fruit and the cider for iced mint tea, and give the seed packets.
• Summer: make the spring swaps, then hold it indoors or in deep shade, set the toadstools and berry cups on trays of ice, and give honey sticks or cedar sachets. Above 90°F, food can sit out only one hour, not two, the FDA says.

Whatever the season, send the invitations four to six weeks ahead, with an RSVP date one to two weeks before the shower. Our baby shower agenda puts the games, the food and the gifts on a two-hour clock.

Torn between a forest and a pumpkin patch? Our fall baby shower ideas build the party around pumpkins instead.

12 Questions