Natalie’s Magical Monster Garden Baby Shower

Flowering for any occasion is magical with Native Poppy but it's even more magical when we get to flower for our faaaaavorite mama to be, Native Poppy founder Natalie Gill.

The theme for this baby shower: “Monster, but make it cute.”

- Meg Blancato, Vice President of Native Poppy

If you haven’t heard the news, Natalie is expecting her own little ghoul this January and we. can’t. wait. to meet her! We asked Natalie a few questions about her plans as a new mama in 2023, her thoughts on becoming a working mom, and her favorite deets about her magical garden party that you, too, will gush over. Plus, we’re sharing Meg’s masterful planning behind this adorable monster party, and the rad vendors we worked with to make it all happen.

Let’s monster mash our way through this fabulous fete!

Q: Hey Natalie, what were three favorite moments from your baby shower?

Natalie: “Oh my god - well for starters it was all a surprise to me. Meg planned everything and when I walked in I was overwhelmed with how perfect it was. It was quirky, silly, cute, and laid back, my perfect baby shower.” 

"1. I obviously loved the cocktails even though I didn't have one - the garnishes made me laugh. It was nice for Steven to be there, participating in his favorite way - making drinks for our friends.” 

“2. The cake was incredible.... I wish I had some now.”

Meg: “The cake was something I knew we had to have. I had it pinned for years and VG’s did an incredible job bringing it to life. Plus it was soooooo good!”

Natalie: “And... 3. Bex in costume - dead!! Meg’s son, Bex, arrived decked out in a blue monster suit and was the cutest monster at the party. Just look at that furry ball of cuteness.”

Q: What are three things you're looking forward to most with baby girl?

Natalie: “I'm looking forward to seeing how this huge life shift affects my creativity. I always feel most inspired after going on a vacation or trying something totally new so I'm hoping getting to start seeing the world through my child's eyes will feed my creativity and also help me start seeing everyday things with a renewed awe. I am looking forward to teaching her to be brave and take chances- that for the most part in life things always work out better than you could hope for and taking the first step toward things is the hardest part. I also want to teach her that failure and frustration are as important as the successes in our lives- I believe that's where we really learn to grow.”

Q: What are some key takeaways that you've learned being both a bad-ass girlboss / business owner and expecting mama?

Natalie: “I suppose in some ways the last 9 years of being in business have been culminating in allowing me to be able to step away for something like a maternity leave or even just a long vacation! I have always strived to build a business that not only could support me but also a community of artists and doers. I now have a team of over 20 people who keep everything at Native Poppy growing so I feel incredibly safe to step away and focus on transitioning into motherhood. My advice would be to take the risk to invest in other people to help you- I remember how scary my first hire was. It was so emotional to delegate and relinquish control but I quickly realized if you hire the right people they will far outpace you at the insights they can bring to the table. If you want to build something big you just can't do it alone.”

Q: How about flowering for future baby showers - did this spark a new light in how you wish to see becoming mamas celebrated?

Natalie:  Flowers just always make everything more special and celebratory. So I would just want to make sure we know what the vibe is for the party so we can do our job to help communicate that. It can be so much more than just pink or blue flowers- send us your invite, what you're planning on wearing, or a pic of the baby's nursery and we can create flowers that help tell that story.”

Q: So who planned this adorable baby shower anyway?! 

Natalie: Well Meg insisted on throwing me a baby shower. I didn't want to make my friends celebrate me again - I had just had a bachelorette party and wedding within the last 12 months but her going to all that effort really made me feel so loved.”

Meg: “Since I’ve known Nat, she’s loved putting googly eyes on things, and has an ongoing soft spot in her heart for monsters and funky little characters. I suggested a theme because I had been low-key planning her shower for years, and already had one in my back pocket: monsters, but make it cute.

Q: What inspired this magical monster theme and what was your first step in planning? 

Meg: “The first thing I finalized was the color palette. With so many wild and unique components, I wanted a consistent color palette to unify everything. Lavender and peach are Nat’s favorite colors (and the trademark of her now famous January wedding) so they had to be included, and then chartreuse felt like “monsters”. I added hot pink in honor of baby girl, and because I firmly believe pink is always a good idea."

“The process with Marissa from Sifted and Sugared was a fun one- I sent her my moodboard and a few requests, but then she designed them all completely on her own! I didn’t see them until we picked them up, which was this cool surprise. And she completely nailed it! Everyone at the shower couldn’t stop raving about how beautiful the cookies were (and delicious).”

“Cassie from Peanut Press is a design Queen, and the artist behind the invitations, signage and photo wall graphics. She’s also a good friend of ours, so we asked for her styling magic on the invitation flat-lay!” 

Q: Where did you get those adorable monster cut-outs that are present throughout the yard?

Meg: “To really bring the monster focus through, I wanted little monster character cut-outs throughout the party. Everything online was either too elementary looking or too aggressive, but didn’t have the bandwidth to create monsters from scratch. I decided on a semi-homemade approach. I ordered these monsters online, spray painted them each with different solid colors in our color palette and then added googly eyes and simple paper cut out mouths. I looooove how they turned out, and my daughter still has one in her room.”

Meg: “I got to have a lot of fun with the flowers by selecting bright colors, funky textures, and unique shapes. Each arrangement was a color and ingredient blocked sculpture - little floral monsters in their own right.”

Natalie’s mom, sister, and step-mom put together the most beautiful grazing boards with the cutest monster moments sprinkled throughout!

Meg: “Rentals from Adore Folklore created fabulous and comfortable sitting areas for people to relax and enjoy the garden. I was so excited to have the peach bar, too!” 

Meg: “Above all, I wanted Natalie and Steven to enjoy a relaxing afternoon with their nearest and dearest in a beautiful setting, and I think we were able to make that happen!”

Ohhh - you definitely made that happen! I’ve photographed a few baby showers before, but showing up at Natalie’s made me feel like some kind of paparazzi during a celebrity event - seriously! Want Native Poppy to flower for your special day? Visit our website or email info@nativepoppy.com and we’ll create floral magic for any event!

-Liz

Florals + Styling: @native_poppy, @megblancato  

Photography: @lizmmarie

Signage: @peanut_press

Rentals: @adorefolklore

Cookies: @siftedandsugared 

Cake: @vgsbakery