Something about the spring season feels very festive. There are weddings, end-of-school parties, birthday celebrations, bar and bat mitzvahs, and simple summer soirées to be planned. Party planning is not my forté so I love the idea of bringing on a professional who can really help to make even the smallest event a special one. When I met Julie Ontaneda of My Classic Party I liked her immediately. She is sweet, open-minded, and laid back – with just the right amount of organized type-a attitude to get things done with very little stress. I loved the idea of having her help throw a large dinner party with a theme. Imagine having friends over and not having to stress about the food, flowers, and table setting? This is Julie’s busy season so give her a ring soon if you need her help in the months to come. Let the party planning begin!
Q&A with Julie Ontaneda of My Classic Party
When and Why did you start My Classic Party?
I started My Classic Party in 2013. I was in banking and knew it was time for me to make a change, but I didn’t know what I wanted to do next. I started thinking about what my strengths are and one of my biggest strengths is planning and organization. Simultaneously, I had 2 toddlers who were going to the same type of birthday party every weekend and I thought there has to be an opportunity to do something more creative around these parties. With the busy lives we lead today, people don’t have time to plan a party that will be remembered – and that is where My Classic Party came in.
What was your background?
I was in the finance industry for almost 15 years. I did both the finance job and party planning for over a year and once the company was set up and running, I left the finance industry.
Have you always loved throwing parties?
I have always loved planning parties and setting up for them. When I was working at JP Morgan, they would let me help with Private Client events which I loved doing.
What types of parties/events do you help to plan?
Everything from larger kids birthday parties to showers, graduation parties, adult cocktail parties, mitzvahs, and even now weddings.
What are some of your favorite unique things you have done for parties you have thrown so far?
I have a few favorites – one was a cocktail party that was decorated as Pablo Escobar’s house. There was an old fashioned car parked outside and the invitations were on balloons that were put in boxes, labeled top secret. It was a really different theme that was fun! Another was a Peppa pig party where the backyard was decorated like Peppa’s house and there was a train taking the kids from their cars to the party area. Another was a Planes themed party where the invites were plane tickets and the area was turned into an airplane, showing the planes movie on a big movie screen. The kids had trays for their food and even warm cloths to clean their hands with after! Lastly I love food trucks – we are using a Peachwave ice cream truck for a wedding this summer.
Who is your ideal client?
The ideal client is someone who has a sense of what they want out of a party and can trust someone else to come up with ideas around it and execute it for them. Also someone who is decisive is great!
What are some favorite themes?
For younger age kids parties, I love doing parties based on books or movies – Guess How Much I Love You, The Hungry Caterpillar, Cinderella, etc. For showers, brunch parties are great with mimosa bars. Really as long as the person picks a theme based on their interests, we can make it great. There was a teen who didn’t know what theme she wanted, so I did a ‘favorite things’ party with all of her favorite things and made a theme that way. The possibilities are endless really!
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