Planning a baby shower is becoming as complicated as preparing for a wedding, it has been claimed.

Celebrity party planner Mindy Weiss told the LA Times that it is no longer enough for high-profile mothers-to-be to hold a simple celebration, nowadays there must be a theme, expensive gifts and an elaborate show-and-tell.

"Right now, it's a big deal to open gifts and pass them around and ooh and ah," she said.

Ms Weiss helped Nicole Richie plan her Wizard of Oz-themed baby shower, complete with an edible sweet-edged yellow brick road.

Even the invitations are becoming more elaborate, according to Lehr & Black's Michelle Black, who told the newspaper that there is an increasing trend of crystal or pop-up cards, rather than traditional pink and blue shades.

Jamie Lynn Spears celebrated her second baby shower this weekend, held at her fiance's family home in Mississippi.

The 17-year-old recently hosted a party at her mother's home which big sister Britney attended.