Baby Cakes and the Great Multi-Tasker

I know it’s cliché to talk about how women live their lives in constant multi-tasking mode and men don’t. I know it’s easy to get a laugh (from women) when we talk about our mono-tasking male counterparts and compare them to our schedule of emailing while talking on the phone as we’re agreeing to bring dinner to a friend, while checking the reviews of the newest appliances (or checking facebook), while running two loads of laundry right after we clicked on the dishwasher, while grass stains are soaking in stain remover, and we’re answering the kids questions with nods and kisses, while we’re thinking about what to make for dinner that could feed two families, simultaneously noting to ourselves that the kids have dentist appointments and we should schedule our gynecologist appointment…shiver…we toggle over to check craigslist for said appliance to see if we can get it cheaper and then we remember to pay the electric bill, tell the kids to practice their piano and/or read…but stop arguing, mentally noting husband’s keys on the desk so when he can’t find them you can tell him where they are, and picking up toys with your toes, all while feeling guilty that we didn’t have time to workout yet, but so desperately want to eat ice cream. 

Did I say mono-tasking male counterparts? That’s totally unfair, they are multi-tasking…they are watching baseball, soccer, golf and wipeout all at once all while nodding their head at you and repeating word for word your last sentence without actually comprehending it (HOW DOES HE DO THAT?).

Well in honor of our multi-tasking-ness, I present to you the diaper cake. This little project served two purposes, I needed a shower gift (and my friend really wanted diapers) and I needed a craft post. And might I say that this turned out even better than I thought it would.

I looked for instructions on how to make these cakes and there were many that said to roll each diaper individually and rubber band them, but as a parent, I probably would have shot my friend that gave me 84 diapers all individually rolled up and secured with a rubber band. So, I found this way to do it and I love it.

To make this cake you will need:

84 pack of #2 Pampers (her brand of choice and #2 so that it could be useful a little later, but be decorative right now).
4 yards of 2 inch ribbon
4 yards of 1 inch ribbon
4 yards of 3/8 inch ribbon
Flowers
4 yards of scrap ribbon (to hold the diapers till you get the nice ribbon ready)
A paint stirring stick (free from the hardware stores)
Double sided tape
Glue gun and glue
A can of soup
Optional: a pizza plate

I made a 3 tier cake and the ratio for diapers is 1:2:3, so that means 14 diapers for the top tier, 28 for the second tier and 42 for the bottom. If we were going to do a 4^th tier we’d need 56 more diapers.

I started with the bottom layer first. I took the diapers in groups of three and wrapped them around the can. I faced the front side in because it had a graphic and I wanted my cake to be mostly white. I proceeded to wrap the diapers around the can but left 6 out to be the filler in the middle. Click on the images for a larger view!)

When I got all of them around the can, I didn’t worry too much about the spacing…YET. I wrapped a piece of scrap ribbon around the diapers. Then I adjusted the diapers so they were all spaced evenly (just tug those diapers).

When it was all even, I took out the can in the middle. I took the 6 diapers and stacked and rolled them and placed them in the middle where I took out the can.

I repeated the process for the other two tiers. For the middle tier, I kept 4 diapers out to fill the middle (OH, I did use a skinnier can here). 

For the top tier, I didn’t use a can, I just bunched them together and I kept 2 diapers out for the middle.

Now it’s time to join the layers. You can use a dowel, but I just used something I had around which was a paint stick (plus their free). I placed the stick in the bottom tier being careful not to rip the diapers. Then I set the middle layer on and the top. I adjusted the layers so they looked even.

Then I stuck the 1 inch ribbon to the middle of the 2 inch ribbon with double sided tape.

Next, while keeping the scrap ribbon on, I wrapped the layers in the double ribbon and secured it to itself with the hot glue gun trying very hard to not damage the diapers. Then I took off the scrap ribbon and evened it all out.

I decided that I needed one more layer of ribbon, so I added the 3/8  inch ribbon after and I snipped the plastic flowers and poked them into the top taking extra care not to rip the diapers.

You can add toys, booties, bottles (for the middles), etc. to make it truly customized to your mom-to-be…on the other hand, she might just want a bowl of ice cream.