November 16th, 2014
The Klein family of Chappaqua, New York, celebrated daughter Lily’s Bat Mitzvah at Camp Starlight in Starlight, Pennsylvania.
Lily loves camp; particularly Camp Starlight where’s she’s gone for five years. So when it came time for her Bat Mitzvah, it was a natural choice for her to celebrate there. Camp Starlight was transformed into Camp StarLily for the weekend!
Pictured above L-R: Dad Andrew, Sister Madison, Bat Mitzvah girl Lily, brother Zachary and Mom Marlo.
Photography by Chad Kraus Photography and the rest of the vendor information is listed at the bottom of the spotlight.
Mom Marlo built a Website that had all of the information for the Bat Mitzvah weekend. She and Lily decided that a fun and “campy” way to invite Lily’s friends was with a water bottle with the Website’s URL imprinted and delivered in a customized box.
Starlily.com had all of the details for Camp StarLily Bat Mitzvah weekend
With the help of 4imprint.com, Mom Marlo created the water bottle and box and hand delivered all the boxes to the guests
Together, Marlo and Lily stuffed each water bottle with shredded blue metallic paper to make the bottle shine
Camp Starlight is a 385-acre campus surround by the “endless mountains” of Pennsylvania. Camp StarLily weekend started with lunch for 90 of Lily’s friends upon arrival at Camp Starlight.
Lily greeted the buses filled with her friends with open arms
Her guests were so excited to arrive!
After finishing lunch, Color War broke out. Counselors threw Color War sheets off the roof of the dining hall naming the blue and white teams
Big sister Madison rode in on a decorated golf cart
The “Color War Spirit” announcing teams
Back at the bunks, every guest found a bag with their name on it, a color t-shirt for their team, water bottle and bandana to get ready for Color War!
Lily was partial to Team Blue!
Kids enjoyed the friendly competition
Tug-of-war was a big hit
The White team celebrated their victory!
Blue or White, they were all there to celebrate Lily
Team bonding
A custom Camp StarLily flag was raised before the weekend festivities began
Lily’s sign-in pillow, created by The Pieced Palette, was waiting on her bed. As a surprise for her arrival, her bunk was decorated with lights and a special photo blanket of her and all her camp friends
Lily brought her sign-in pillow to breakfast the next morning for friends to sign
Lily’s entrance to her party was awesome! Thanks to Camp Starlight, she entered in a golf cart that was “pimped out” in blue and white. Her friends lined up to greet her as she came around the corner
Lily sparkled in her party dress from A Step Ahead Fashions. Lily’s hair and make up was done by Mom Marlo
Lily danced in her blinged-out Converse
Jeffrey Craig Entertainment rocked the camp! The kids enjoyed the party SWAG…
…and, Lily enjoyed the horah
“Selfie” fun with a few friends!
Lily’s friends presented her with a special gift
Lily and her besties
Instead of a traditional Bat Mitzvah cake, Lily opted for Baked By Melissa cupcakes spelling out “Lily” on platters. The cupcakes were shipped frozen to Camp Starlight, what a great idea!
After the dance party, Lily’s friends went back to their bunks to change out of their party clothes. They were surprised to find a sweatshirt on their beds; blue for boys and white for girls. The evening ended with pizza and s’mores around the campfire and a fireworks display over the lake
The fireworks over the lake was a beautiful end to a wonderful day
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The kids wore their StarLily sweatshirts to breakfast the next morning, white for girls…
…and, blue for the boys
Camp Starlight has a charity they started called Stack The Caps. They collect new hats for children with cancer. For her Mitzvah Project, Lily collected over 1500 hats that were donated to Maria Ferari’s Children’s Hospital in Westchester, and Sunrise Day Camp
Some advice from Mom Marlo:
“I did everything myself. The key is start planning early and do a little each week. Make lots of lists and stay organized. You don’t need a party planner. Learn to ask the vendors lots of questions and take their advice; they have done it before.”
The following vendors helped to make Lily’s Bat Mitzvah special. If you call any of them, please let them know you read about them on MitzvahMarket.com.
Venue: Camp Starlight, 877-875-3971
Photographer: Chad Kraus Photography, 917-532-3478
Party Planner/Decor: Mom Marlo
Music Entertainment: Jeffrey Craig Entertainment, 800-690-9370
Invitation Website: Mom Marlo
Water Bottle Box/Water Bottle: 4imprint.com
Cupcakes: BakedbyMelissa.com
Sign-In Pillow: Jane Sheinfeld, The Pieced Palette, 914-420-1746
Custom Blanket: Collage.com
Custom Flag: North Star Flags, 800-958-3009
Color War Items: Party City
Dresses for family members: A Step Ahead Fashions, 203-329-2959
Transportation: Leprechaun Coach Buses, 800-MAGIC17
Party security: Provided by Camp Starlight
November 14th, 2014
Photo Credit: Chad David Kraus Photography
You’ve probably been planning your child’s Bar or Bat Mitzvah from the day he or she was born. You’ve imagined this day over and over and finally it’s almost here. Now it’s time to plan for the first dance! Sort of like at your wedding when you did a mother/son or father/ daughter dance but this time it’s with your own little one (who may already match or exceed your height!).
Have fun picking the perfect song. Here are some of our favorites for this special dance:
November 12th, 2014
By Gail Slogoff
Who isn’t head-over-heels in love with confectionaries of all kinds – chocolates, licorice, gummies, lollys, caramels, truffles, fudgy, nutty, gooey sweets? If you are like most adults, you were probably obsessed with candy as a child, mostly because you weren’t allowed to have it as much as you wanted. And, of course, you try to keep your own offspring away as much as you can to protect their pearly whites.
But forget all those rules when planning your child’s Bar and Bat Mitzvah party. Today people are coming up with all sorts of creative ways to incorporate such delectable delights into a Bar/Bat Mitzvah party so that kids and adults can get their sugar fix.
You can use candy as an overall theme, as creative, decorative and edible centerpieces and as a giveaway or exit treat. You can have an elaborate candy bar, use it in your candlelighting ceremony, as place cards or napkin rings (think candy necklaces). You can even hire a vendor like Spin-Spun to make unique flavored gourmet cotton candy (watermelon, blue raspberry, salted caramel, etc.) on the spot, creating both entertainment and an oh-so-yummy indulgence at the same time.
Courtesy of Spin-Spun
CANDY FOR DECORATION
Candy is colorful, pretty, and fun, and you can use plenty without breaking the bank. Even when using real flowers in centerpieces, it can be a good idea to incorporate some less expensive decor instead of trying to fill your space with blooms
alone. Candy can do the trick without looking cheap. You can fill clear vases of differing sizes with colorful jellybeans or M&Ms on tables and then add coordinating flowers and balloons. Or fill almost anything including sand buckets, sneakers or gumball machines with your favorite sweets on each table. It’s not only colorful, but fun as your guests can help themselves to some extra treats during the party. You can go over the top when decorating with candy. Glue your child’s favorite bars onto oversized wooden letters for their initials or make marshmallow or lollypop trees in flowerpots with toothpicks and Styrofoam balls. Pinterest has tons of ideas and you can even find tutorials online with simple DIY instructions to help you create the more complicated ideas. Kendall Gnat had a candy theme using a lime green, purple, hot pink and blue color scheme. For the kids, bags decorated with a gumball pattern were used as place cards and were later used to carry home prizes given out during the celebration. The adults got silicone bracelets that looked like candy dots as place cards complete with gumball name tags. Candy was everywhere. Ceramic letter bowls spelled out “Kendall” and were filled with colorful candy Sixlets around the cake. Clear candle holders filled with candy acted as holders for the candle lighting and huge inflatable lollypops were also decorative props.
Courtesy Zeligson Photography
CANDY PARTY FAVORS
Think of candy as great party favors that can decorate your venue and then can be taken home by your guests to indulge at party’s end. The sweets from Treat House are one such example. Inspired by a charitable school bake sale, New York’s premiere gourmet crisped rice emporium provides a wide range of classic and innovative flavors, including birthday cake, caramel sea salt, chocolate peanut butter and mint chocolate chip. These even come topped with extras like chocolate covered pretzels, pieces of bubblegum, glazed fruit and more. They can be individually wrapped in the shop’s signature containers with your own logo attached. Other offerings perfect for inclusion in any party include Treat Pops, Breakfast Bars, ice cream bars and homemade flavored marshmallows. You’ll also be treating others while indulging in their goodies: ten cents of every treat purchased is donated to the Food Bank for New York City.
Custom crisped rice from Treat House make your party truly sweet
WHAT TO DO WITH LEFTOVER CANDY
For Kendall’s Mitzvah Project, the family made centerpieces for their Kiddush luncheon. They were candy themed and included a Candyland board game, candy paper pads, pencils, cards and of course lots and lots of candy, including M&Ms and giant gumballs. Kendall then donated them to Jewish Family and Child for children living in shelters, and broken homes.
Another great idea is to include your leftover party candy in care packages that are sent to soldiers serving their country far from home. Operation Gratitude and Operation Shoebox are two organizations that ship packages to the troops. Make sure it’s heat-resistant candy only; chocolate melts, you know! And don’t forget to include a handwritten letter of support to really put a smile on a soldier’s face while indulging their sweet tooth.
CANDY BUFFET
The candy buffet is everyone’s all-time favorite party trend. In fact it has become a staple at most Bar and Bat Mitzvahs these days. The Candy Isle is a distinctive concept that literally brings the candy store to you. This first of its kind “store” can serve as your Bar/Bat Mitzvah candy buffet with 18-36 bins of your favorite candy set up in many configurations, including a multi-sided kiosk, allowing accessibility to many guests at one time. Guests scoop their chosen candy into a container that is personalized for your celebration and becomes their take home favor.
Courtesy of The Candy Isle
DIY CANDY BUFFET
If you’re trying to tighten the budget, you can always go the DIY candy buffet route and still have an impressive array of deliciousness.
Here are six steps to guide you through the process:
1: Decide on a theme and colors to give your table a cohesive look.
2: Choose the types of candy you want. To make it simple, think about how much you want from each of these four categories:
• Bulk loose candy: sold by the pound
• Individually packaged candy: offer one per guest
• Designer candy/sweets: offer one per guest
• Display candy: used for decoration & filler
3: Set up the table with appropriate containers. When doing a color-coordinated candy table, always use clear containers so the color shows through. If you offer bulk loose candy, be sure that you use containers with a large enough opening for a scoop to fit in and short enough so that guests can actually reach to the bottom.
4: Figure out how much of each kind of candy you will need. The general rule of thumb is to order approximately eight ounces of candy per guest.
5: Design your table so it’s a show stopper. When your guests enter your party space, the candy buffet should be a WOW FACTOR! The first things they will notice are the tablecloth, backdrop, centerpiece and the artful display of colorful candies,
so make sure it is fabulous and matches your party’s color or theme.
6: Finishing touches: What is a candy table without a little bling? Glam up the table and embellish the containers with bows and ribbon, confetti, balloons, photos and more. Be creative.
THE PARTY’S OVER
After a night of candy, candy and more candy, consider what Kendall Gnat did…. she gave out custom toothbrushes to all her guests.
Resources:
Treat House: www.treathouse.com, 212-799-7779
The Candy Isle: www.thecandyisle.com, 203-506-5319
Operation Gratitude: www.operationgratitude.com
Spin-Spun: www.spin-spun.com, 312-880-7786
Operation Shoebox: www.operationshoebox.com
Covered In Candy: 646-234-9635
This story is from new 2014 Mitzvah Market Magazine. If you would like to request a free copy, click here.
November 12th, 2014
Invitations & Calligraphy By Andrea is your one-stop-shop for all your printing needs for your child’s Bar Bat Mitzvah celebration.
No minimum is required and they can print with a 1-2 day turnaround.
They offer customized invitations, beautifully addressed envelopes, place cards, direction cards, personalized stickers for favors, stationery, thank-yous and more.
Meet Andrea!
All invitations come in various sizes, fonts and colors: 4 by 6, 5 by 7, 6 by 9, 4 by 9, or 6 by 6
Torah place cards
Many fonts and styles to choose from to match your invitation
Call Andrea at 516-794-7259 or email her at invitebyandrea@aol.com to set up an appointment. She can help you with wording and creative artistic designs. Visit her Website here.
November 12th, 2014
Tie A Bow, an event planning firm in Dallas, Texas, created an ESPN SportsCenter theme using inspiration from this sports loving Bar Mitzvah boy.
Owner Jennifer Barry Watkins hit this one out of the park with lots of great detail.
Held at Bent Tree Country Club in Dallas, Texas, the celebration featured an appearance by the Mavs ManiAACs – a popular male dance troupe that is part of the Dallas Mavericks entertainment.
Beginning with the awesome basketball jerseys the family wore, this party was an all-star event from start to finish!
Check out the details below:
Great team spirit as guests were asked to wear their favorite Jersey. Pictured above is the Bar Mitzvah family modeling what they wore!
Guests enjoyed this fun vignette at the entrance to the ballroom
The backdrop consisted of two ten foot light up wall panels with Mason’s sports photos
The place card display was on a table with sports paraphernalia
Baseball cards were used as decor elements on the adult highboy tables for the cocktail hour
Centerpieces were on light up acrylic cubes designed to mimic a trophy
Kids’ tables featured flags from major sporting events
Great signage for an entrance…
The Bar Mitzvah boy ran through paper for his intro like a real football game
Mason’s friends served as the cheering squad
Mason threw out the first pitch of the night to his Dad
Surprise! Mason had no idea the Mavs ManiAAcs were coming
The ManiAACs doing their thing
An awesome dessert presentation and ending to a great night
We thank Tie A Bow for sharing this sports fanatics Bar Mitzvah with us. Venue: Bent Tree Country Club, Music/DJ: Disc Jokey’s Etc, Special Entertainment: Mavs ManiACCs
November 12th, 2014
By Chloe Cornell
Recently I went to my friend Liv’s Bat Mitzvah, which had a graffiti theme at Yotel, located at 570 Tenth Avenue in New York City.
They hired a graffiti artist who created amazing graffiti on a ton of canvases that they hung around the room. The artist also designed pillows, which were on couches and chairs throughout the party. The room looked so cool. A lot of the sayings were a play on Liv’s name – such as “Liv 2 Party” and “Just Liv it.”
Here are some other details I thought were great:
Graffiti pillows were placed throughout the room
There were also life-sized sticker photographs (fatheads) of Liv on the walls
The kids’ party room had a lot of great activities that incorporated the graffiti theme. They had a backdrop of a brick wall with graffiti and a giant picture of Liv that kids could pose in front of
Liv’s family loves to play ping-pong, so this was a great personal touch! They had mini ping-pong tables set up with paddles that had “Liv 2 Party” in graffiti writing on them
Charm station
Another fun element was the “Liv for Charms” station where you could pick out a jeweled keychain to hang on your backpack. They also gave us a crystal letter of our first initial to add to it
Another station that was a particular hit with the boys was the human bowling ball – you get strapped into a ball and then someone rolls you until you knock down three giant pins. I didn’t try this activity, as I didn’t think it would work well with my dress – but the line to participate was the length of the room!
The giveaway bag featured the tagline – “Liv 4 Swag,” and inside were sweatshirts with her graffiti logo
They gave out cool T-shirts, Beanie hats and sweatpants on the dance floor which all had the graffiti sayings and logos on them
At the end of the celebration, there was waffle cabin, where you could have regular or chocolate covered waffles, and bagels to take home for the next days’ breakfast. On the bag for the bagels it read, “liv4myjewishbreakfast,” “liv4sunday2chill,” “liv4bagels,” “liv4sleepinglate,” and “#breakfastbyliv”
In addition to the clever theme and décor, the party was non-stop fun and everyone had a great time. We got a lot of take home gifts to remember the night for a long time.
Vendors:
Pillows, Stickers, Charm Station: Pilot Consulting, smorrispilot@yahoo.com
Music Entertainment: Total Entertainment
Party Planner: Gourmet Advisory, Melissa Rosenbloom
Logo Liv2Party: And That
About Chloe
I’m a 7th grader and live in Westchester, NY. I love tennis, soul cycle, fashion, hanging with my friends, and traveling around the world. Camp Vega is my summer home and my favorite place on earth! I founded the company #Kindnessistherealcool for my Mitzvah Project, and invite everyone to visit us on Instagram @kindnessistherealcool and join the movement. I am very excited to celebrate my Bat Mitzvah in March, 2015.
Read blog post #1 here
November 10th, 2014
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November 9th, 2014
Buying a Bar and Bat Mitzvah child a special tallit is something many families will do. Some try to match color and fabrics to what the guest of honor is wearing or even to their celebration theme.
Tallit by Ina Bearak Helfand specializes in custom tallit and works with each family on choice of style, color and fabric fashioned to your personal taste.
Made from the finest silks, wools as well as other exotic fabrics found from all over the world, Ina loves designing a tallit with a person’s interests and fabrics of loved ones or where their personality comes through.
Did you know that the tallit is the only “accessory” mentioned in the Torah?
The ties used in this design belonged to the Grandpa for a young lady who wanted to feel the presence of her late grandfather at her Bat Mitzvah. Culling through his ties, the family chose a lovely combination to create a wonderful memory and keepsake
Three rows of music and three rows of ribbon were essential to designing this musical tallit with silver grosgrain accents and the tzitzit and musical Atarah (around the neck)
This creation series shows the many color possibilities available in creating your own designs
Your ideas are welcome, so email Ina at sewcool39@aol.com or call her at 914-245-3173.
November 9th, 2014
Words Of Wisdom
By Dr. and Mrs. Mitzvah (aka David and Danielle Ockman, “Favor It Things“)
We celebrated our son Blake’s Bar Mitzvah on October 11, 2014 and can’t wait to share all the details in our Mitzvah Family Spotlight story – coming soon!
Here are some things we would like to share about our experience:
TOP 5 THINGS TO REMEMBER
- Start planning early—-it’s never too early
- You are the parent, you make the decisions
- It’s ok to make your reception as small or as large as you like! Celebrating a simcha is a mitzvah!
- Have a B’mitzvah “day of coordinator”—you cannot be dealing with all the details that day
- Things may be forgotten, no one will notice
TOP 5 THINGS WE LEARNED ABOUT PLANNING A B’MITZVAH RECEPTION
- Tradition should be respected, don’t be “so unique” that you drop the things that make it a b’mitzvah (this is not a birthday party!)
- Involve the older generations, bring the history and the future together at the reception—it is a gift to be able to honor grandparents and great-grandparents
- Bring the WOW factor—keep guests intrigued
- End the reception before it ends itself, don’t let it dwindle down
- Leave the guests with one last surprise before they leave
ABOUT DAVID AND DANIELLE OCKMAN
David and Danielle Ockman love South Florida and reside in Deerfield Beach with their 12 year old son Blake, and 7 year old daughter, Skylar. Blake’s B’mitzvah is scheduled for October, 2014.
David is a licensed clinical psychologist practicing in the field of addictions for over 20 years and Danielle is a Social Worker and the Dean of Students at a private Jewish Day School. Danielle’s passion for making people treats lead her to preparing “specialty and custom” chocolate and edible B’mitzvah favors for “Favor It Things.” David and Danielle have become known in the B’mitzvah community of South Florida, as they host the Facebook group, “South Florida Bar Mitzvah and Bat Mitzvah Planning Group.” Some consider this group to be the B’mitzvah hub, bringing parents and vendors together for a “virtual B’mitzvah showcase” everyday. Since starting the FB page, David has been called “Dr. Mitzvah” and the couple continue to talk many B’mitzah parents down off the ledge!
Catch up on what you might have missed:
Blog post #1 here
Blog post #2 here
Blog post #3 here
Blog post #4 here
Blog post #5 here
The Ockman Bar Mitzvah Family Spotlight story
November 9th, 2014
The Feldman family from Charlotte, North Carolina, celebrated their son Joshua’s Bar Mitzvah at Providence Country Club in Charlotte, North Carolina. Joshua’s mother Stephanie, a designer of invitations, party decor and favors, was excited to finally create those items for her own child! Joshua is an ice hockey player for the Charlotte Junior Checkers. Originally from New York, his favorite team is the New York Rangers.
Pictured L-R: Dad Ross, Bar Mitzvah Boy Joshua, Mom Stephanie and Brother Jack.
The photographer was Wayne of St. John Photography and the rest of the vendor information is listed at the end of the spotlight.
The invitation was designed and assembled by Mom Stephanie owner of Cutie Patootie Creations. The navy pocket invitation included a service card, accommodation card, celebration card and response card
Family and friends gathered at Temple Beth El to watch Joshua become a Bar Mitzvah 
Joshua’s needlepointed kippah and tallit bag were handmade by Grandmother, Joan Feldman
The family looked great dressed for the occasion. Dad’s suit came from Saks 5th Avenue, Joshua and Jack’s shirt and pants were from Nordstrom as was Mom Stephanie’s navy blue gown. We love that she did her own hair and makeup! The family outside the Providence Country Club
The theme of the party was the New York Rangers. It turned out fabulous, thanks to the creative design eye of Mom Stephanie owner of Cutie Patootie Creations.The backdrop of the escort card table was the Madison Square Garden jumbo-tron designed with Joshua’s photo
The escort cards were New York Ranger tickets with the all time greatest players with their jersey numbers as the table numbers
The front and back of the place cards
Mom Stephanie collaborated with party planner Kelly from Head over Heels Weddings and Events to create an ice type feel for the room. The table linens were pewter and the
chairs were covered in white
Ice Sculpture centerpieces were very “cool”
Each table featured a hockey player with their jersey number as the table number
Custom Gobo with Josh’s logo
The entire room was draped in white with blue up-lighting throughout
Concession sign for the kids’ buffet
Cutie Patootie designed all the details for the party including the clever wording on the custom cocktail napkins
Elegant menu for the adults
Custom dessert station toppings
The frame around the sign-in board was created using hockey sticks and the matting was purchased from Michael’s
Joshua was involved in most of the design decisions except for this surprise candle lighting 6 foot long ice sculpture was designed by Mom and hand carved by Artisan Ice Sculptures.This was a surprise for the Bar Mitzvah boy!
The Feldman Family candle lighting
Joshua surrounded by his hockey teammates
All of the great hockey themed favors came from Cutie Patootie. including this hockey puck squishy in silver custom tins
A table scape with party favors displayed beautifully and an amazing jumbo-tron
Customized Hershey chocolate bars with Josh’s logo
Some advice from Mom Stephanie:
“Enjoy the process as it is a once-in-a-lifetime event! Don’t lose focus about what this event is really about and most importantly, the more you stress, the more your child and immediate family members will stress! Just remember HAVE FUN!!!!”
Vendor Directory
The following vendors made Joshua’s celebration special. If you contact any of them please make sure they know you read about their services on MitzvahMarket.com
Venue: Providence Country Club, 704-846-8475
Party Planner: Kelly, Head Over Heels Wedding & Events, 704-840-6415
Invitation/logo: Mom Stephanie, Cutie Patootie Creations, 704-776-0738
Photographer: Wayne, St. John Photography, 704-889-7800
Videographer: Rob, Visual Impressions, 704-525-0190
Decor Design: Mom Stephanie, Cutie Patootie Creations, 704-776-0738
Music: DJ Big Bad Ben, 800-242-1243
Photo Booth/Draping/Lighting: Charlotte DJ and Events, 888-623-5737
Favors: Mom Stephanie, Cutie Patootie Creations, 704-776-0738
Centerpieces/Candle Lighting: Artisan Ice Sculptures, 704-569-9392
Food Signs/Sign in Board/Table Numbers: Mom Stephanie, Cutie Patootie Creations, 704-776-0738
Mom Stephanie’s dress: Nordstrom
Suits for Family Members: Brooks Brothers and Nordstrom
Hair/Makeup: Mom Stephanie did her own!
