Making A Diaper Cake on a Budget

When I received my latest baby shower invite, I instantly freaked.  Money has been so tight lately and you can't go to a shower empty handed.  I am also not really the craftiest person nor am I very creative...but with the Internet I can learn to do pretty much anything.  I immediately started surfing the net for inexpensive baby shower gifts.  I came across some really neat ideas.  So I took inventory of all my craft supplies to see what I could make for nearly nothing.  I had most of the supplies to make a tutu and a diaper cake.  And bonus M was able to help create this wonderful gift!

Supplies needed to make a diaper cake:

Diapers (I used a pack of 40) 

3 big rubber bands

Cake pan

Ribbon (what ever colors you choose)

Optional:

3 receiving blankets (I used M's gently used ones but you can purchase blankets from the Dollar store)
Embellishments

I used a few different tutorial to make my cake.  They all rolled each diaper individually.  This seemed like a ton of work.  So instead I wrapped them around an empty paper towel roll.  I liked that the edges of the cake were smooth and easy to work with with.  I was able to use less diapers and this way they did not get all bent out of shape.   This also meant that I only needed 3 rubber bands - one for each tier.

After securing each layer with a rubberband I decided to wrap each in a receiving blanket.  This is not necessary but I used organic diapers and they were an ugly yellow/brown color.  I used double sided tape to tighten the ribbon around the blanket.

I used a thick pink ribbon and thin ribbon for both the top and bottom layers.  And to give the middle layer a little something different I used thick ribbon and a baby hairband.

For embellishments I went to the dollar store!  I found Baby gel, a teddy bear topper, pack of pink blocks, diaper pin table scatters.  The dollar store had so much more.  They have lotions, shampoos, stuffed animals, etc.  I found the baby shoes and picture frame in M's baby stuff that we never got a chance to use when she was an infant.  

I had a hard time deciding how to decorate this cake; I am so indecisive. 

The picture to the left was the first arrangement and the picture on the right was the finished product.

Super easy and made for less than $15!  If you off brand diapers you can make one for $10.