There’s not much I love more than a good party. Nevermind a party in honor of my firstborn daughter = now, that is heaven! I used to think I could hold my own in the party sector, that is, until I met Jacquelyn Kazas of Beijos Events. Now SHE, she knows how to party. I was trying to throw a very tricky kind of shindig… a Disney themed birthday:) I don’t know a 3 year old girl alive that is not obsessed with Disney princesses. It’s unanimous. However, how do I say this… Disney themes can go really wrong, really fast. I enlisted help.
I decided after much thought and deliberation that the only way was to do a VINTAGE DISNEYLAND theme. It would hit all the highlights of Scarlett’s obsessions as well as showcase our favorite place to go together, Disneyland.
When Scarlett turned 2, we took a sharp and I mean SHARP turn into princess land. It was as thrilling for me as it was for her. We bought every dress with all the fixings. I watched as Scarlett experienced the magic and confidence that comes from wearing something special. When she put on those dresses, shoes, handbags and jewelry, she felt like a million dollars! That, my friends. is a life lesson I can get behind and celebrate.
Jacquelyn and I, over many nights of intense party planning text message sessions, put together what I think turned out to be the CUTEST Vintage Disneyland themed birthday party.
Vintage Disney = Cinderella + Sleeping Beauty. Snow White did not make the cut because she doesn’t match. We went with pale pink and baby blue. From there, I had a few details I couldn’t go without. One of which were the personalized Mickey hats. I knew that the font would support the vintage feel and that the photos of the girls in their hats would be priceless. Another detail = authentic Mickey balloons from Disneyland. Each girl left with one and the party felt a bit like Main Street with so many floating around. (You should have seen us a couple nights before the party trying to hunt down 12 pale pink balloons- it’s not as easy as you think and walking around with them made us look like we were trying to recreate the movie UP. Don’t get me started on how I fit those suckers into my SUV!) Finally, a couple other must have details = authentic pale blue and baby pink cotton candy and Mickey shaped Rice Krispie treats on a stick. Scarlett and I eat those every time we go to Disneyland.
There are front men and women who always come with a pack. Gem and the Rockers, Bennie and the Jets, and then there’s Jacquelyn and her party brigade. She packs a punch with a lineup of vendors that will wow you every time. The creativity and magic starts with Jacquelyn and then the team executes her vision seamlessly and with such fun!
Party people are alike – we want to have a GOOD TIME! I needed a venue and I thought of the cutest party store in Long Beach, Wildchild Party. Jolie, who is the front woman for Wildchild, did not disappoint. She was a dream to work with and after the party I left wanting more lol. She really did feel like a friend, not just a vendor, during the setup and cleanup. Her store could not be cuter, the merchandise makes you want to have excuses to throw parties – “…a cactus party?! Oh, I’ve always wanted to throw a cactus party!!!” You get the idea. All of the tabletop and paper products were from her store and she also did the best balloon arch which really makes any party, truly. Definitely invest in balloon arches people.
Next in Jacquelyn’s line up of importance, florals. MV Florals also did the summer solstice dinner club party on the beach and come to find out she also worked on my wedding flowers as well. I love her style and she couldn’t be sweeter. The florals came in geometric gold vases that everyone attending wanted to take home. So much interest in the vases! She also did pink flowers that turned out to be whimsical and also a little grown up which was a nice edge to the party. Again, a princess party themed in cotton candy pink and baby blue could make you want to puke real fast. The flowers helped to ground the party with greens and a bit of sophistication. Again, do not skimp on balloons or flowers.
Great Dane Baking Co. has long been my go-to for cakes and all desserts. They are hands down the best in this area. Their pricing is amazing and their product cannot be beat. Their buttercream frosting is to die for and their cake is so fluffy and delicious. The team ( I love Natalie) is a dream to work with- they are so talented, they can create anything your Pinterest heart desires. They did the cake and the Mickey shaped pink and blue macaroons- which by the way, had buttercream frosting filling. My mouth is now watering.
Rentals can be a make it or break it part of the party. Unless you have loads of furniture in a storage unit somewhere, you’ll need a great rental company so your furniture matches the theme. In this case, clearly, I needed pieces with a vintage feel. We got two really great Eames looking chairs for the princesses to sit in, lots of throws for the girls to sit on during story time and a hair pin table for the girls to sit. I love Adore Folklore, they are so easy to work with and have a really cute selection.
Our calligrapher, Poppy Jack Shop, not only made great welcome signage for the party but also acrylic cut outs for the girls place settings and sticker decals for the walls. She did the best invite as well. My inspiration started with the Disneyland sign with flags but she was able to take that and transform into our color story of pale pink and light blue while keeping with the vintage Disneyland feel. One of my favorite details from the party were the invitations because we stuffed them with giant circular pieces of nude and gold metallic confetti so it felt like a party when you opened the invite.
The princesses were a crucial part of this party!! Let’s just say that as I began my search I quickly came across some princesses that could have been my mom’s age and haven’t seen a gym or a vegetable in a very long time lol. I wanted to make sure that was not going to show up as Cinderella for my angel’s party. I got several referrals from friends but a trusted friend sent me to Party Princess Productions. I couldn’t totally tell from their online presence how good they would be but let me tell you they delivered! The princesses, Cinderella and Aurora, showed up in character, remained in character the entire time, couldn’t have been prettier, their makeup was on just right and their costumes were great. I was really impressed with how they handled the girls who were just in awe of them and I must say their singing voices were fantastic!! They did a wonderful job. Two thumbs way way up. I highly recommend them. We got GoldenBooks storybooks for each girl to be gifted by the princesses and they were all personalized with a sweet ribbon by Poppy Jack.
Both of my girls were dressed from one of my favorite stores to shop, The Tot. Follow them and one of the owners, @naseebs, on Instagram. They have great customer service and do a great job at showcasing what’s in store on their Instagram to take the leg work out of it for you. Yoli + Otis makes the striped rompers- I love the shape and the style- it felt perfectly vintage and candy striper almost for the theme and the grey and white was perfect- complimented the color scheme and also my daughters’ coloring.
Just days before the party, my unselfish party planner, gave me the cutest idea that she was planning to do for her son’s party. (Thank you again J! – a true friend right there) She had me take photos of Scarlett in black and white -some with her Mickey hat some without – for these giant blown up photo strips that we plastered on the welcome wall under a neon lit sign that said “let’s party”. It was SO STINKING CUTE. The photos I took just one afternoon with my camera, edited them in VSCO and uploaded to Social Print Studio. Such a good idea. So glad she gave it to me. Turned out SO CUTE. I loved seeing her little face all blown up that size.
Stelle Audio provided a MiniClutch speaker in pink as well as a white Audio Pillar for the music. Music can be one of the most overlooked aspect to any party. Not in my case. I work and work on a playlist until I can get it just right. These speakers are my absolute favorite because they do not detract at all from the scenery like most speakers but quite the contrary, they are sleek and stylish and the sound quality is amazing!! I use them at home and at my office and I never party without my Pillar. I kept the playlist active of course on my Spotify so for future vintage Disneyland party planners… look no more. I wanted it to sound like Disneyland and I wanted to only have old school Disney playing. There are a few songs that I love more than others so I repeated those on the playlist several times over so that they were sure to play during the party.
The morning of her party, I posted a photo of her with the lyrics from “When You Wish Upon A Star”…
When a star is born
They possess a gift or two
One of them is this
They have the power to make a wish come true
When you wish upon a star
Makes no difference who you are
Anything your heart desires will come to you
Needless to say it was a very happy Birthday for my star, Scarlett. ⭐️ Thank you to Jacquelyn and her party brigade for making it happen.
See below for details on all the vendors!
Styling/Design – Jacquelyn Kazas of Beijos Events – www.beijosevents.com – @beijosevents
Concept/Mama to Scarlett – Alatheia Hart of Art of Being Female – www.artofbeingfemale.com – @artofbeingfemale
Venue/Balloons/Tabletop – Wild Child Party – www.wildchildparty.com – @wildchildparty
Photographer – Meilani Cottrell – @rad__man
Calligraphy/Invite/Signage/Cake Toppers – Poppy Jack Shop – www.poppyjackshop.com – @poppyjackshop
Florals – MV Florals – www.mvflorals.com – @mvflorals
Rentals – Adore Folkore – www.adorefolklore.com – @adorefolklore
Cake & Macarons – Great Dane Baking Company – www.greatdanebakingcompany.com – @greatdanebakingco
Custom Confetti – The Confetti Bar – www.theconfettibar.com – @theconfettibar
Princesses – Princess Party Productions – www.partyprincessproductions.com – @princesspartyproductions
Audio Clutch & Pillar – Stelle Audio – www.stelleaudio.com – @stelleaudio
Cotton Candy Holders – Hart Concrete Design – www.hartconcretedesign.com – @hartconcretedesign