Inspiration Archives - Cupcakes and Cutlery

Adult Halloween Party Inspiration

October 2, 2012 By Sharon Garofalow Leave a Comment

I’m craving an adult Halloween party that is grown up, sophisticated. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t really like Halloween. But I think a more arty, avant garde approach would make it tolerable. P.S. that gold pinata is a DIY from A to Z Celebrations. Totally go make one.

Black diamond glasses . gold tray . tablescape . black glitter art installation . gold masks . cherry cocktail . gold leaf white chocolates . black and gold lamp . white wig with mask . black horned mask . champagne with sparklers . worm noodles . spider candlestick holder . black cake plate . gold pinata

Best place online for party supplies

May 21, 2012 By Sharon Garofalow 2 Comments

Did you guys know that Koyal Wholesale is the best place to buy your party supplies online? And just because their name has the word “wholesale” in it that does not exclude the rest of us. They will sell to the public too. I recently found them through Instagram. When I found out they were local (Corona, CA) I just about flipped my lid. I had to go check it out myself.

Koyal Wholesale is currently expanding their offices and moving in to a brand new show room. The day that I came to visit, employees were hard at work setting up all the products. When finished, the areas will be made up of themed items to make browsing easier. But they literally have everything! You could put together a complete dessert buffet (including some candy!) with decor and scoops right from their enormous supply of party products. See those cute striped things at the bottom left of the photo? Those are adorable “sweets” bags for your guests to carry their candy around in.

Not only do they carry the most popular party supply items, but they carry everything in a ton of different colors. From paper straws, favor buckets and glitter washi tape!!!! their selection of colors is unparalleled. And Koyal Wholesale is a one stop shop so when you are looking for that perfect glass vessel for an integral part of your party decor, you just need to come here and you’ll find what you need.

While most of the stuff is ready to use, they also have tons of options and products that you could jazz up any way you might want it. I’m simply dying over that gold glitter tree. I don’t have any idea what I would do with it, but doesn’t every party need one?

I am super in to acrylic right now and they have a bunch of options to choose from in the cake/cupcake stand arena. And how cute are those colorful cupcake wrappers? Koyal Wholesale also runs DressMyCupcake.com for all your cupcake needs!

Koyal Wholesale is the largest supplier of wedding and event supplies in the nation and I believe it! Not only do they carry an enormous amount of party supplies, but they also do their best to share ideas and inspiration on how to use them. They have a little photo studio in the offices so they can produce product images and how-to videos. So cool!

I tried my best not to get too crazy as Maya, manager of Dress My Cupcake, walked me in to their warehouse but it is literally like my candy store. Everywhere you looked there were party supplies! As they are still getting settled in their new arrangement, some of the unpacking had yet to be done but it is literally rows and rows of party supplies in one giant warehouse. I’m pretty sure I was acting like a geek about it but they were gracious and didn’t laugh at me. Seriously! How awesome would it be to work here everyday!

The warehouse reminds me of a hobby store on crack. Everything is grouped together and displayed so that pulling orders is easy. It took everything in my power to not grab that shopping cart at the end of the row and scoop everything off the shelves.

If you haven’t checked out Koyal Wholesale online you definitely should. The new showroom is set to open the first week of June! So not only can see things in person before you buy them but you can also pick up your order instead of having it shipped (for those of you local, they are one exit past the 15 fwy off the 91 – SUPER easy to get to!)

Follow Koyal Wholesale on Twitter, Facebook, KoyalTV, their blog for more inspiration and ways to use their products in your parties and search for them on Instagram at KoyalWholesale.

Follow Dress My Cupcake on Twitter and Facebook

Thank you, Koyal Wholesale, for letting me come down and invade your space! So fun! This is not a sponsored post. I received no compensation. I pretty much forced myself on them.

Inspiration Board Challenge – November 2011

November 9, 2011 By Sharon Garofalow 1 Comment

I don’t even know how I “met” Amanda of I Go You Go. I say “met” because although we have been trying to meet in person for a month, we still have not managed to do it. :( If you know her blog, you know that she is a girl of many talents. And although she talks about healthy living and foods on her site I know she can get down with me and some calorie packed dessert treats. And that is why I like her. She seems super fun loving and I hope we can make that meet up happen really soon. For now, she is the next participant for my monthly Inspiration Board Challenge.

In case you aren’t familiar with her blog, I’m going to share some of the things I love about it. One of the recurring posts that Amanda does is called Event Envy (under the “party” tag) where she shares awesome parties that she has found around the web. She has such great taste. I always look forward to seeing what new fab parties she will find. I am going to be honest though and tell you I am not fond about her “Workout Wednesday” feature (found in “fitness“). It always reminds me that I’m not working out and then I feel bad and go eat a cookie. But she always wins me back with her shoe love.

And you have to check out this super fun trailer trash party Amanda threw for her husband.

She also has tons of awesome recipes on the site that we should all try to cook our way through. Go check I Go You Go out now!

Follow her on Facebook.

photo via DVF

How gorgeous is this inspiration item? I first saw this Darla top in a DVF catalog and fell in love with the colors. I wouldn’t say that green is my favorite color but if you look around at my belongings, especially items to be worn, I sure do own a lot of green…But I love it mixed with a glittery bronze and of course a little black never hurts anything. This color scheme would lend itself so well to any kind of event. I can’t wait to see what Amanda comes up with!!! Check back near the end of the month to see what she shares.

Who would like to participate next? Email me, cupcakesandcutlery@gmail.com

Sharon

All photos except the DVF top via I Go You Go

Light up your next event with DPS and The Event Company {Orange County Resources}

November 8, 2011 By Sharon Garofalow 1 Comment

Allow me to introduce you to some awesome companies, DPS and The Event Company. Owned by Anthony Dever, DPS provides sound, lighting and production services which means they help put together some amazing fashion shows, concerts, large corporate parties, and most recently handled the cooking demos with our Queen Bee, Martha Stewart, at several Macy’s locations. They are local to Orange County but spread their amazingness to the surrounding counties as well. Check out their blog to see some of the ridiculously cool things they’ve been up to recently. A few months ago they moved their offices to a new location. They decided to throw an open house for their clients, friends and family and I was lucky enough to attend with my husband.

Sensing that their services would be perfect for the wedding and event industry, they rolled out The Event Company. Providing lighting, cinematography and live music talent, they can totally take your private event to the next level. Both companies work from their new offices in Irvine and the space is truly gorgeous! Totally sleek and chic and just from walking in, you immediately want them to take over and produce your event (I mean, I don’t really have any events to produce but you know how my head works, I started trying to come up with things…) They had this gorgeous purple and white dessert table set up in the front room by Cookielicious. It was the perfect, delicious welcome.

The party, coordinated in part by Callie of The Event Company, was mainly held in the warehouse space at the back of the offices so there was this industrial, chic feel to the party. The decor was handled by Larissa of Inviting Occasions and was GORGEOUS! This picture does not do it justice. It was simple, elegant, totally cool with just a few florals. Simply stunning.

The food and bar were done by 24 Carrots Catering and I was blown away. For a hearty appetizer/meal, they had a create your own slider bar. There were bunches of toppings and at least 8 different sauces for you to choose from. This would be a totally fun idea to recreate at home. And for desserts they dazzled with some molecular gastronomy. I’m a wanna be foodie and adore the Top Chef franchise but this was the first time getting to actually try some. You all should have this at your next party!!!!!! So fun! For one dish, they did some sort of an inside out cheesecake pop. Forgive my lack of knowledge on what was actually happening but here is my take. They had some dough balls, dipped them in a cream cheesey/whipped creamy mixture then dipped it some super scientific solution (maybe just dry ice? I’m not a scientist. I just don’t know). They came out all frozen and fun. And were quite delicious as well. But my absolute favorite was the Dragon’s Breathe Caramel Corn. They dipped a ladle of caramel corn into a very mysterious foggy mixture and then served it in these adorable wood dishes (similar dishes can be found here). Watch the video below of my husband eating it to see why they called it Dragon’s Breath Caramel Corn:

Not only was this super fun to eat, it tasted amazing. I wanted to eat gallons and gallons of the stuff but was minorly self conscious of the smoke coming out of my face. They also had a signature cocktail that was super yummy which tasted like and orange creamsicle.

images are mine

I didn’t bring a legit camera to the event so these are the photos taken with my husband’s iphone. I was absolutely mesmerized by this light ring hanging over the stage. For real. It was perfectly timed to the music and was like nothing I have ever seen. In talking to other party goers I learned that the strings can actually be hung in a number of ways including straight down as a curtain which can then be programmed to display words! Oh the possibilities! DPS seems to be on the cutting edge of not only what is advanced, technologically speaking, but also what is crazy cool.

Anthony had this insanely good recording artist play the party. His name is Jasper Sawyer and I’m so grateful to have been introduced to his music. Everyone on stage was so talented and it was a really great show!

Check out this DJ booth created by DPS. I wish there was video of it, the totally unique ways that it could be customized for an event are crazy. From the colors, words, etc. it can totally sync up with the music and create a really cool vibe for your event. And DJ Kevin Scott could be the best DJ ever. He played a cool mix of music that appealed to everyone at the party. That can be really hard to do when you’ve got the too cool for school, an older generation and those just looking to dance. But he killed it!

I love when good humans give birth to good humans. We met Anthony’s parents at a birthday party for him a while back and they were awesome. You can tell that Anthony gets his love of music from his mom who my husband and I bonded with over new wave music. I adore his sister, Nicole (in the middle in blue) she is absolutely the life of every party. And his wife Courtney (on the end) is such a sweetie (Oh and a talented interior designer. I’m guessing she had a hand in the pretty new office.) Anthony is the real deal. He is so good at what he does, his happiness is infectious and he is a good person. In talking to some clients at the party, they all echoed those sentiments and raved about working with both companies. While some of their services might be too large for your next home party, keep them in mind for your company holiday parties and for the next time you need to throw a concert in your back yard.

Check out the DPS blog for the cool things they have been a part of recently.

Check out The Event Company’s blog and lighting gallergy to see some of their wedding work.

Social Media Details:

DPS {Facebook} {Twitter}

The Event Company {Facebook} {Twitter}

Sharon

All images are by Reza Allah-bakhski except the crappy ones noted as mine

Guest Posting on Celebrations.com – Part 3 {Drink up!}

November 5, 2011 By Sharon Garofalow Leave a Comment

I’ve really enjoyed sharing some tips with you guys over on Celebrations.com! Today they are sharing my ways to keep bar costs down while entertaining. Check it out here!

In case you missed them, see all the posts here:

Part 1 {simple diys and ways to jazz up your decor with things you already own}

Part 2 {a dinner buffet, easy dishes that everyone will love}

Part 3 {A budget bar, how to stretch your drink dollar}

Sharon

photo is mine

October Inspiration Board Challenge – Final Board

November 3, 2011 By Sharon Garofalow 1 Comment

Remember this Mini and Maximus shirt? Yup, it was the inspiration piece I sent to Taryn of Formal Fringe to create a mood board for.

Taryn says:

I know this is a kid’s t-shirt, but I can’t help but imagine it being worn by a playful women on a milestone birthday, worn tucked in to a glimmering sequined skirt. The glitter and glam carries into the whole fete through metallic details on escort cards, plates, envelopes and even in the drinks! The decor of the room is neutral, weaving tones of gold, copper and silver with modern black and white. It’s the perfect state to crown her the official V.P. of Fun for the night!

Photo Sources:

Metallic china patterns, Martha Stewart Weddings
Netural Tassle Garland – CONFETTISYSTEM
Mojito with edible glitter – Fashionably Bombed
V.P. of Fun t-shirt – Mini & Maximus
Metallic Sequined Bell Skirt – J.Crew
Black and white lounge – Rue Mag
Golden feather envelopes – Furze Chan
Metallic graphic escort cards – Martha Stewart Weddings

Thank you so much, Taryn for putting this board together! I love your idea of pairing the Tee with a gorgeous, shimmery skirt. And those metallic stars in the drink are making me SO happy! This would also make a rad New Year’s Eve theme. I wish I had the energy to throw a blow out party for the last big holiday of the year.

Can you believe it is November already!?! Let the Christmas shopping commence! I heard Christmas music while shopping at Michaels today and I didn’t hate it…