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Entries in Birthday (8)

Tue, February 9
8:12PM

Bangalore: Birthday Cakes

A Bird….A Plane… or Superman!


 

You name it and these two ladies can make it! Birthday Cakes in any shape, size character and flavour. Shoba Rai has been baking ever since she can remember and what sets her apart from other, also very good bakers, is her creativity and her zest for trying new things.

She sources the best ingredients and is constantly on her toes to innovate and excel, which she does. So now, you don’t need to panic if there is a request for a Transformer, Lightning McQueen, Tinker Bell or as in my son’s case, for a Dinosaur cake! And we are not talking the regular garden-variety rice paper printed sheet on top of a cake - that’s easy peasy (for her, I mean). Her cakes are 3 dimensional, colourful and yummy to boot. She uses biscuits, candy, marzipan, butter icing, sugar icing and other wonderful delicacies to create that perfect work of art complete with textures and colours.

Entirely separate from Shoba Rai but on the same lines, Lisa, who runs ‘Minelli’s’ has just relocated from Dubai and brought her baking expertise to Bangalore (Lucky us!). Lisa too churns out the most amazing ‘Cakes by Design’ and uses sugar craft, fondant and butter cream icing for decorating.

She also makes quiches, (her quiche is to die for!) bakes, pies, desserts and starters on occasion.

Of course they need not be only for birthdays, for your weddings, anniversaries, baby showers retirements,…..any occasion you can conjure up.

You can contact these creative ladies for further details:

Shoba Rai :- 9845351353

Lisa Colaso-Govias, ‘Minelli’s’ :- 9740792412; 91 80 25307768 

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AuthorSwati | CommentPost a Comment | | |
Tue, February 2
1:03PM

Ask the Mums: Reader Query

Looking for interesting goody bag items

Hello,

My wife and I are planning for my kids birthday and we came across your great website. We are looking for your expertise to help us find good gifts to be filled in the goody bags for children, both boys and girls in the age range of 1 - 15. Budget upper limit per goody bags is Rs 400. We already have the chocolates and the bags, looking for another 3 gift items.

Rajesh & Deepa

Hi Rajesh & Deepa,

First off, thanks for giving us a chance to  talk about one of our favourite topics - goody bags or return gifts! We’re always on the hunt for meaningful and useful gifts that don’t break the minute they come back from the party and are things the kids would want to actually use and play with long after. Your budget lends itself to some really nice gifts and you can even do 1 or 2 big items rather than 3 or 4 smaller - don’t try to go for quantity over quality.

Okay here goes, the links go to some of our older posts which give you more details.

1-4 year olds

Option 1
- Sing Along CD, details here, Rs.99 at Crosswords

-  Karadi Tales Rhymes or Audiobook Rs.125

- Tulika Books, details here, Rs.50 - Rs.200 at Strand or major bookstores

- Jump Start Baby computer CDs (about Rs.200) at Crosswords

- Hand puppets, beautifully made animals, maharajas and ranis etc. Rs.150-Rs.200 at Windchimes, #24, Hutchins Road, Cooke Town, Bangalore. Ph:080 2546 0697

Option 2

If you’d like to go for just 1 item, slightly higher priced then consider 

- Fisher Price Doodle Pro fpr 398/- details here OR Pooh or Disney princess Dart board for Rs.399 at the  Hypercity, Vashi sale. 

Throw in a bottle of bubbles with any of the above options (about Rs.50 at any toy shop) and you have an entertaining and enriching goody bag.

5-10 year olds

- Dora or Ben10 Projector watches (Rs.150-200) at Sona, Hill Road, Bandra
- Games like Uno Junior (Rs.59), Uno Regular (Rs.99), Jenga Junior from Funskool (Rs.149)

- Tulika books (look for titles for slightly older kids)

- Scrap book with stickers, coloured pages and space for photographs (Rs. 200) at Sona

- Craft kits from Rs.150 upwards - clay moulding, mosaics, activity cases, stencil books, warli art, shell work, beads…Hobby ideas  and Dhoop in Khar have a great range

A bottle of bubbles or a wooden top along with any of the above and you’ll have grateful parents thanking you for providing their kids with hours of occupation! 

10-15 year olds

This crowd is a little hard to please especially since you’re going for gender neutral gifts. Stick with just 1 big item gift so you give them something really nice.

- Board games - (Classics like Monopoly Rs.398, or traditional ones from Kreeda avaialable at Dhoop in Mumbai or Landmark in Bangalore)
- Funskool Rubic cube (Rs. 249), Cup and Ball from KEC (Rs.250)

- Scrap book

- A gift certificate from Reliance Time Out so they can choose their own CDs, books or games.

All board games and more are also available at shops like Sona, Hill Road, Bandra opposite St. Peters church. There are a few other toy shops on this strip who coordinate entire parties from gifts, and may provide good discounts on bulk purchases. PartyHunterz in Bandra on Ambedkar road is also a good place for exciting options, but a little expensive. Partymania (next to Tom’s Cafe, Frazer Town) in Bangalore also caters to various theme party needs. A lot of fun wooden puzzles handcrafted in Chennapatna are available in front of Cauvery Handicrafts on MG Road, Bangalore and make great goody bag stuffers.

Happy Shopping!

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AuthorPriya | CommentPost a Comment | | |
Mon, January 18
6:00PM

Baby Couture

My sister claims that I buy clothes for my daughter because I hardly fit into anything anymore; that of course is far from the truth, albeit not too far. My daughter will let me dress her for just about 6-8 years (if I am lucky), so right now I can get away with all the frills and bows one needs in a lifetime. So, sad as it may sound, the birthday party ‘frock’ has to be as cutesy as my baby.

I have found the answer to that annual search for the perfect birthday party dress. ‘Jingle Bells’ has been a popular store for birthday party accessories and arrangement, now they do clothes too. Their new store has one of the widest selections of party wear for kids, especially girls and they also do custom outfits. Their forte is western wear with an emphasis on dresses and gowns, though my personal favourites have been a-line cut, shin length, satin dresses with just a hint of embroidery around the neck. The in-house tailors are meticulous about sizes and leave margins for your growing princesses. They stock the prettiest buttons, bows, frills and lace this side of town, so go have a look.

They also stock hair accessories, jewelry and shoes. These outfits can be excellent for weddings and ethnic events since they are way more comfortable than salwars and lehengas and just as pretty.

Customized outfits for kids start at Rs.1600. Open from 10:30 am – 8 pm. GF 10, Mega City Mall, Gurgaon. Ph: 0124 4146414

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AuthorParul | CommentPost a Comment | | |
Mon, January 4
4:00PM

Unique, interactive, kids birthday party entertainment.

Favourite hobby presented as party entertainment - Hobby Ideas style.

If kiddy birthday party brainstorming = stress then a good place to head to is Hobby Ideas – India’s first craft and hobby store. They have party supplies, options for giveaways, themes and even an in house birthday party consultant.

My chat with Rita the consultant at the head office revealed a gem of an idea. They offer a one hour workshop that can be conducted during the party for kids aged 3+. The type of project can be based on what your child fancies and you need to head to a store to view the entire range and choose a favourite.

Some of the interesting projects are photo frame making, decoupage, fabric painting, puppet making, bead craft, moulding and painting, paper craft, origami, canvas painting and scrap book making.

Ideally you should fix the workshop 2 weeks before the party date. Hobby Ideas provides all the materials required for the workshop and one teacher attends to 10 kids. You will need to supply water for painting, newspaper and other odds and ends. Clarify all these nitty, gritty details when you place your order so you don’t have to run around at the last minute. These fun hobby workshops can be conducted in store as well.

Hobby Ideas - Mumbai, Kolkata, Baroda, Surat, Bangalore, Pune and Ahmedabad
www.hobbyideas.net.
Mumbai - Rita – 022 23522466.
In store workshop minimum amount Rs. 5000/-
House workshop Rs. 7,500/- minimum + Rs. 150/- child.

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AuthorPriya | CommentPost a Comment | | |
Thu, July 16
11:31AM

Party in a Box - literally!

A one-stop shop for themed birthday favours

I like to believe that I’m the queen of thrift; I don’t always pinch pennies, I just feel I should get more for my money. Over the last year I have rethought buying the ‘Made in China’ labels when it comes to the kids - especially the toys, tattoos and sippers. This decision becomes harder when it comes to birthdays, especially big ones that mean goodies and return gifts that run into 20-30 pieces.

After a harrowing last year where I did goody bags which included a colouring book, crayons and candy for 42 kids of assorted ages (and none looked to thrilled with what they got!), I made it my mission to find a store that gives me trendy, fun and customisable by age return gifts - either Indian made or imported from countries with better track records. 

Thats when a friend suggested ‘Party in a Box’ in MGF Mega City Mall. Party in a Box imports over 4000 products mainly from the US. So there I was stuck between plastic pineapple sippers and adorable picture frames - unicorns for girls and soccer for boys. Huge synthetic balloons, banners that run across an entire living room and inflatable palm trees were just a few of the cool things available. They also stock napkins, plates, paper cups and plastic cutlery in smaller packs with themes like beach vacation, tropical fun and fairytales instead of the usual licensed characters like Dora, Ben 10, etc.

I love the name and I suspect have now developed a mild obsession with the place!

Party in a Box

Open from 11 am - 7:30 pm. FF 32A, MGF Mega City Mall, MG Road, Gurgaon. Or call Gaurav Chadha - 0124-4229790.

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AuthorParul | Comment1 Comment | | |
Fri, June 26
12:00PM

Reality Check: Party Capers

Toddler party - food for thought

 

Birthday parties for babies can be daunting. Options are plenty based on budgets and how much energy and effort you want to expend planning them.

Most invitees to a toddlers birthday will be in the range of ages 4 months to 3 / 4 years for sure. So here are a few tips and observations to keep in mind when planning a party for the young, uncoordinated, limited attention span tots.

• Games need to be quick with minimum complexity.
• Cake cutting should ideally be a quick sing song and cut. Avoid the long drawn out photo shoot with the family and cake – it gets too tedious for the ‘eager to lick off the icing’ tiny invitees.
• No activity should involve staples. Especially on the return gift bags.
• Beverage cups should be of a sturdy quality to encourage toddlers to drink from cups unassisted without the cup caving in from the tight grasp of the little hand.
• Keep aside some of the décor and balloons for the toddlers to play with from the beginning not just to be had when the party is over.
• With games and also with drinks eliminate providing too many options / choices. Just one type of juice or one type of soda makes life easy for all.
• Keep a lot of water accessible– boiled, filtered or mineral.
• Plan for a huge mess.
• Have fun finger foods – sandwiches, cake, cheese and mashed corn balls, chips and dip, French fries, Pickwick wafers, mini pizzas……

Have fun.

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AuthorPriya | CommentPost a Comment | | |
Mon, June 22
6:00AM

Baccha Party: Delhi + NCR

Happy Birthday 

I have always been super keen on ‘birthday parties’ whether they are for the adults of the family or the kids, everyone deserves a special time on their special day. Only thing I am not keen on is an over the top, elaborate kind of do where the kids tend to get sidelined and the performances take centre-stage.

I prefer the kind where the kids make the party a smashing hit! My daughter’s first birthday was more for us than for her, she napped through most of it, so I was glad I didn’t go all out but by the second and third birthdays I was seriously looking for a one stop shop for return gifts, piñatas, puppet shows, painting and crafting activities and maybe even balloon crafts.

I found Usha Bhargav, the passion behind ‘Happy Birthday’ party services. Firstly she has a fabulous selection of return gifts, I prefer wooden learning toys over Chinese made water bottles and she stocks both. Her ideas are great, her decoration styles and services are very trendy and most of all, she can source just about any activity you can think of for your little ones ‘special day’. She is based in Gurgaon but has clients all over Delhi & NCR.

Call Usha on – 9811055349.

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AuthorParul | CommentPost a Comment | | |
Mon, June 1
6:00PM

Candy Burst: Delhi + NCR 

 Birthday cakes and other desserts

 

Kids ask for the strangest things - especially if you make the mistake of asking them! We have always felt that it’s never too early for an opinion, so when our daughter turned 3, we asked her which cake she wanted. We were expecting the usual suspects, Barbie and the like, but what we got for an answer stumped us completely. She wanted a cake made of candy. To be honest it was an adorable request, one that her little mind comprehended as a possibility and fortunately for us, we knew just the place.

This outlet does some of the world’s best chocolate desserts, yes the world’s best. I had seen their folder of cakes and I was personally keen on an octopus sitting on a mantle covered with starfish and shells (all edible) but our little girl would have none of the usual stuff. So off I went to Sweet Obsession to discuss this cake. Our daughter was thrilled at being able to mix her two favourite foods, cakes and candies and the kids at the party found it unique too. This year she would like a castle and I know just the people to order it with.

Check out Sweet Obsession for some of the most eclectic birthday cakes and birthday decorations. You could even consider catering for the party with them since they have an extensive Italian and Mexican menu.

Open from 11 am to 11 pm, 7 days a week, stroll into Sweet Obsession at the Shopping Mall, Arjun Marg, DLF Phase I, Gurgaon or call Dushyant at 9810267333.

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AuthorParul | CommentPost a Comment | | |