Birthday Party Bootcamp

I read about this event coming up a few weeks ago and was super excited to join in the fun. It was definitely geared towards birthday parties for little ones but I was excited to check out local vendors, support them, and learn a few tricks of the trade. I feel like I came away with so much more. 

The event was being held in the OC Mix Market, which is located in the SOCO shopping center in Costa Mesa. I hadn't been there to check out the Mix Market, but I heard great things about it. That place is so cool, and I'll talk about it in another post. 

The event had hourly demonstrations and in between them, you could wander the market and meet with vendors. There were free samples of cupcakes, pushcakes, cotton candy, and ice cream. I was so into this event. 

The event was put on by Saige Nicole's Clothing and The Pantry with help from Lemonade - An Event Company.  They did a fantastic job of bring OC's finest in party vendors to this event.

The room was set up with three party themed tables. Saige Nicole's Clothing provided all the party outfits. They were all super cute and matched the theme perfectly. This number was for the Rainbow Themed Party. Saige Nicole is located right inside of the OC Mix Market. Wendy, the owner, was so helpful and sweet. She did a great job at this event and I can't wait to see more of them. She gave a seminar on how to create original themed birthday party outfits for your kids.

BubbaSweets provided the first demonstration, giving people DIY ideas to incorporate themes into their baked goods as well as some professional tips on getting cake pops to look perfect. I'm sad we didn't get a picture of her outfit, she looked so cute, like a cupcake. She had samples everywhere and they went fast. I grabbed a red velvet and it was delicious!

The cake was provided by Sensitive Sweets who was also on hand to discuss how to create a gluten free menu at a birthday party and other dietary restrictions which was super interesting as so many children have major restrictions now-a-days. While working at the preschool, on birthday party days, students with dietary restrictions usually just had to have the regular snack, Sensitive Sweets is perfect for those students!

Next, Nicole from Lemonade- A Event Company, gave a demonstration/class on how to keep a theme present throughout and entire party. She also spoke about how to pick a theme and the first steps to execute a well themed party. She talked about marinating on your theme and how to think outside of the box.

For this rainbow themed party she included bright colors, colored water, and multi-colored treats.

Eva, the owner of The Pantry, spoke on the importance of labeling and realizing how not everything can be DIY. She emphasized how it's important to know your limits and to hire professionals when you've reached those limitations.

I loved the cake pops inside of the ice cream cones, how cute are those?! And the cotton candy is tulle since real cotton candy doesn't stay pretty outside in the elements of a party. Great idea to keep it looking good for pictures and such.

These pictures were of the "Ice Cream Themed Party."

 

The ice cream was provided by Sweet Lucies. I have met the owners of Sweet Lucies before, they are such a great couple and their backstory is just too cute. They started this whole thing for their daughter, how sweet! Their ice cream was amazing, as usual. They had their cookies and cream and vanilla bean flavors to sample. (I tried both).

These adorable push-up cupcakes were brought by Pushcakes in the Banana Split flavor. Kristin is the original creator of these tasty treats which are great for parties because if you don't finish your cake, you can just put the lid back on it. Perfect! You can order these and she will customize the labels for the outside to fit in your party's theme.

Lastly, there was the cookies and milk table. The Pantry supplied the cute straws and name tags for the milk and cookies. Eva also touched on some DIY decor such as the cupcake garland. 

All of the cotton candy was supplied by Dolly's Sweet Dreams Cotton Candy and she came with her super cute cart and was making up free cotton candy to everyone. How cute would this be at a little girl's birthday party!

I don't have any pictures but Haute Body Couture was doing face painting for the little kids and my husband was AMAZED by the quality and quickness she could face paint these squirmy excited kids. She really was the best face painter I had ever seen!

Lastly, Dez and Tam from Dez and Tam Photography were on hand to discuss how to get those great shots at a birthday party. Super sweet couple and they are planning on putting the tips that they gave at the camp online for all those who couldn't make it so make sure you keep checking back.

We had such a good time and met so many great people/vendors. I learned so much and I am super excited about planning my husband's 30th birthday. Check out these vendors for your next birthday bash! I can't wait for the next event they throw, which I was told will be in May!