S’mores got their start as sticky, gooey, handheld campfire treats, but events have reinvented them in many ways friendlier to guests, such as this example of a lollipop version at the Engage!14 Wedding Summit dessert party.
At the Watermill Center’s benefit in 2015, Great Performances created dishes that would allow guests to easily roam—all self-serve options designed to be hand-held and didn't even necessarily require plates. Among them was fried chicken served in waffle cones.
At a September event, Preston Bailey transformed the new Four Seasons New York Downtown in celebration of his relationship with the property. As part of the event’s catering options, the hotel supplied tiramisu served as grab-and-go offerings.
Rather than the traditional bowl of splash-prone red sauce, New York’s Elegant Affairs offered a neater take on spaghetti and meatballs, using mess-free form topped with a micro meatball and marinara and sprinkled with parmesan.
Mary Giuliani Catering and Events in New York created a catering option of one-bite paella with shrimp and chorizo with sips of sangria, a take on the hearty rice dish.
Salad can be messy, with the risk of oily dressing ending up on clothes and hands. Occasions Caterers in Washington created a wedge salad bite hors d’oeuvre, served on a fork, that tidies up salad service.
Always a crowd favorite, hummus can get messy when served as a dip. At the 2014 Washington Humane Society's annual Fashion for Paws runway show, hors d'oeuvres during the reception included beets and hummus on pita points as a tidy alternative to service at a station.
A popular alternative to soup in a bowl, with all of its messy slurp potential, many caterers offer inventive soup shooters. One example: Chicago’s Boutique Bites' artful soup shooters with popcorn and truffle oil.
Air Events Global is one of the newest entries in the “sharing economy.” It’s an online marketplace for planners who have event work that needs to be done and freelancers who are looking for such work. The system covers all types of services, such as general event staff, catering assistance, entertainment, and more for both corporate and social events. Planners post jobs, including details about the location, time, and rate they will pay, and then they can communicate directly with freelancers whose profiles match their requests. Payments are held in the platform’s secure system until the job is completed. Both clients and freelancers can leave reviews in the system. Air Events Global will be available starting Friday.
Robocop meets photo booth with this unique event offering from Coco Events. The robot entertainer, inside a suit with a built-in screen and camera, can interact with guests throughout an event venue, allowing attendees to snap photos and share and email them. A separate print station is also available. Pricing is available upon request.
American Eagle Outfitters celebrated its 40th anniversary at its AE Studio concept store, a remodel of its Union Square location, on October 24 in New York. The event, which was produced by Shadow, offered guests glowing cocktails in branded drink pouches from Peter Callahan Catering.
The Modern Day Briefcase from the Breton Company combines the convenience of a backpack with the look of a satchel. It features two leather handles, padded shoulder straps, a padded laptop sleeve, and eight internal pockets and is made from water-resistant waxed cotton. The briefcase is available in two sizes: regular (17 inches tall by 12 inches wide) and small (15 inches tall by 11 inches wide); pricing is the same for both sizes, at $199 each.
Sugar Paper’s signature pens, $40, are vintage-inspired and come in three colors: black, white, and pink.
Sugarwish’s new Santa-Gram gift option, from $18.50, looks like it’s straight from the North Pole with festive packaging. The online candy company offers more than 80 sweet and savory options, including nuts, dried fruit, gummy Santas, holiday mints, reindeer corn, and more for recipients to choose from. Earlier this year, Sugarwish launched a corporate gifting platform that allows companies to include logos on their gifts.
The Holiday Sparkler Kit, $132.50, from Mouth includes the ingredients for a sparkling cocktail with Blanc de Blancs champagne, a craft gin, limoncello, a floral liqueur, and a set of stemless champagne flutes.
The CTO: Chief Tasting Officer gift set from Mouth contains spiced candied pecans, a D.I.Y. cold-brew kit, a grapefruit hibiscus cocktail mixer, and more, and is available in two sizes: small, $79.50, and large, $146.25.
Good Karmal sells gourmet all-natural caramels that are wrapped in a paper printed with a fortune, which can be customized with logos, marketing messages, and more. Past corporate clients include Nike, Microsoft, and Facebook. Pricing starts at $12 for a sampler of six caramels.
Available for nationwide delivery, Black Seed’s original hand-rolled bagels, $60 via goldbely.com, can be shipped as a carbo-loaded package containing a dozen bagels with cream cheese and classic smoked salmon.
Inspired by its location in California wine country, Tote&Able designed its wine and beverage canteen, from $21, to hold 750 millileters (a full bottle of wine) or 25 ounces of water. The heavyweight cotton canvas canteens roll up when not in use and feature aluminum carabiners to attach to a belt, backpack, bike, or purse. There is a minimum for custom orders of 48 pieces, with a one-time setup fee and no custom print charges.
Specializing in personalized gifts for men, Swanky Badger offers a selection of practical options, including phone wallet cases, $29.99, for iPhones and Samsung Galaxy phones. The cases are available in brown, white, gray, blue, and black and can be embossed on the front or inside.
Monogram note sets, $32, from Sugar Paper feature black ink on a bright white card with a gold border, paired with a white envelope with a black-and-white pinstripe liner.
Janet Helm designs custom tartans for big-name clients like Coca-Cola and the City of Vancouver. The one-of-a-kind patterns are used to create items such as scarves, umbrellas, blankets, commemorative plates, and more. Her signature lambswool tartan scarves with fringed ends are also available in a variety of existing patterns. Pricing is available upon request.
Clava’s leather drawstring wine pouches, $60, can be embossed with a monogram or a phrase for an extra fee. An embossed mini leather gift tag, $10, can be added for even more personalization, with options like “Thank You” and “Salut!” The pouches are available in 13 colors.
Causebox, a subscription box service geared toward women, contains five to eight seasonal lifestyle products, such as jewelry, homewares, skin care products, and accessories, from brands that focus on ethical and sustainable production, donate a percentage of profits to charity, or aim to inspire and empower others. The boxes cost $54.95 a quarter for quarterly membership or $49.95 a quarter for an annual membership; the boxes are delivered four times a year.
In March, Taylor and Hov Events and Design in Washington gathered event planners and industry professionals for a brunch designed around the fictional “llamacorn"—a llama-unicorn hybrid. The menu included rainbow bagels, cocktails, and snacks, such as rainbow-colored pancake sausage and bratwurst bites served with maple syrup.
