Gender Reveal Ideas for Modern Parents
Ready to find out whether it’s a boy or a girl? Here’s how to have an exciting reveal.
The moment you find out you’re going to be a parent, you start dreaming up all that they’ll be. What they’ll look like? What will their little personality be like? And let’s not forget all of the special milestones to come. It’s a really exciting (albeit nerve wracking) time. And perhaps the biggest question on most expecting parents’ mind—are we having a girl or a boy?
Many expecting parents cannot wait to shop for tiny baby clothes, choose colors and decor for the nursery and perhaps most exciting, decide on a name for their baby! In most pregnancies, you typically find out the biological sex of the baby between 18 and 20 weeks pregnant. It’s possible to find out earlier on via a simple blood test if your healthcare provider requests it and there’s even an at-home test you can take if you’re really anxious to find out. Even though you’ve heard the heartbeat and seen the little bean shape on the ultrasound, for many parents, finding out the sex makes things feel even more real (even if it’s not what you were expecting).
Before you jump into what type of gender reveal you’re going to have, you’ll need to decide for whom the reveal is going to be a surprise. Will the surprise be for yourselves? Or do you already know and want to share the exciting news to your favorite people? If it’ll be a surprise for everyone, you’ll want to let your ultrasound tech know ahead of time so they don’t accidentally reveal it to you and spoil the surprise. They’ll be able to write the gender down and hide it in an envelope for safekeeping (which you’ll pass on to our cake baker or person who will be helping you coordinate the reveal).
And now onto the fun part! If you need fun yet simple ways to reveal whether you’re having a boy or girl, we’ve got you covered! Most of these ideas can work for both an intimate reveal (with just you and your partner) and with a group if you’ll be throwing a gender reveal party.
1. Balloons in a Box
Instead of popping a balloon, fill a big box with a helium-filled balloon bouquet. When it’s time for the reveal, open the box and out will float a bunch of pink or blue balloons, revealing whether baby is a boy or girl. It’s less messy (and less noisy) and still makes for super cute photos. Just be sure the balloons are connected to a balloon weight so they don’t fly away!
2. Smoke and Confetti Bombs
A gender reveal with a bang! Whether you’re popping confetti or colored smoke cannons, this is a popular way to reveal the gender of your baby, and for good reason. You’ll not only get adorable photos out of it, it’s also just a lot of fun. Nothing says excitement like confetti.
3. Cake Reveal
We’re sure you’ve seen gender reveal desserts before, but we love the more modern all-white cake spin on this traditional reveal idea. With minimal decorating (besides a frosting-piped “coming soon”), the layers of pink or blue frosting within are the star of the show. Some couples simply cut a slice but you can also use champagne glasses to take a scoop. This works at a gender reveal party and it’s also a sweet, intimate way to find out the sex of your baby with just your partner.
4. Golf, Football, Baseball Themed
Are you and your partner huge sports fans? This one’s for you! Hit a special powder-filled ball hard enough to crack it open and watch the colors fly. You’ll need to get a ball made for gender reveals, we found a bunch of options on Etsy.
5. Confetti Balloon Pop
This idea has been around a while, but it’s still just as fun! Have a friend coordinate buying a giant balloon and filling it with pink or blue confetti that parents-to-be will then pop to reveal. And don’t forget to put someone on photographer duty to capture the surprise and excitement once the balloon is popped and the confetti comes floating down.
And that’s not all! Here are a few more fun ideas for revealing your baby’s gender:
- Play a game. Whether it’s tic tac toe to reveal three pink or blue in a row or throwing darts at balloons to see which one holds the colore-coded confetti, playing a game offers some extended excitement.
- A bouquet “first look”. Reminiscent of a first look before the wedding ceremony starts, you meet your partner for an intimate gender reveal where they present you with a gorgeous bouquet of either pink or blue flowers. Such a sweet ode to your wedding day and you can even use your original florist to make it even more special!
- Blind-folded painting. For the artistic types, dress in all white and have a friend hand you paint brushes dipped in either pink or blue paint that you’ll use to paint each other (older siblings will love participating in this too!). Once you’re done, remove the blindfold to see the color. Another sweet spin on this is to paint a canvas together while blind folded, which can double as meaningful nursery decor later.
- Involve your fur babies. A cake reveal but for your dogs (or cat)! Let your pet reveal whether they’re getting a little brother or sister as they dig into a special safe-for-pets cake or cupcake. You can also have a friend attach either pink or blue balloons to their collar and have them walk in the room to surprise you.
Briana Engelbrecht
Assistant Editor
Briana Engelbrecht is Babylist’s Assistant Editor, where she brings her passion for early childhood development and the perinatal period, plus experience as a mom of two to Babylist articles and guides. She’s also a certified lactation counselor. A former preschool teacher, she loves children’s picture books, cats, plants and making things.
