Seriously. It was a fantastic party! Really amazing. And it would have been equally great for girls or boys. If you live anywhere in the metro Denver area, bookmark Sticky Fingers — if not for a birthday party, then for their kids cooking classes — they are a class-act all the way around. Here’s the report:
About an hour before the guests arrived, Sticky Fingers showed up to prepare the space. They brought balloons. And the most colorful assortment of kid-friendly kitchen ware. I couldn’t stop taking pictures. (You can click the photos to see them bigger.)
Once the guests arrived, it was time to decorate chef hats. With stamps, stickers, markers, ribbons and every other sparkle-rific material.
When the chef hats were sufficiently glamorous, it was time to get down to cooking (after thorough hand-washing of course). The recipe was posted on an easel and the kids made the gnocchi from scratch. At each step, the Sticky Fingers girls gave kid-friendly, patient, cheerful instruction (“When you’re using a knife, make a bridge with your hand and then cut under the bridge…”). The guests measured ingredients. Cracked eggs. Grated cheese. Mixed. Kneaded. Rolled and formed. (For those of you who are worriers, please note that there were at least 3 additional hand-washing sessions throughout the cooking process.)
While the gnocchi boiled, they worked in teams using morters and pestles to crush lavender, then mix it with honey, oil and vinegar for the pasta topping.
The gnocchi finished cooking just as the dressing was complete. Then it was time to feast. It was a pretty exotic meal as far as kid food goes — Parmesan and Ricotta Gnocchi over Peaches with Prosciutto and Parmesan plus Honey Lavender Dressing. But the guests loved it!
As everyone finished their meal, we brought out the pretty cupcakes and sang Happy Birthday.
For party favors, Sticky Fingers brought laminated recipe cards featuring Olive’s special recipe. And we included ruffle-y aprons as well (Bonus: I went to Jo-Ann’s to pick up fabric to make aprons, but found these cute red and white ones for $2.50 each. Yay! Because, really, I was out of time and not looking forward to a late night sewing aprons…)
While we opened presents, the Sticky Fingers girls cleaned up every last crumb and loaded up their car. (Best part of hiring out your party!) Olive was super pleased with the whole thing. So were the guests. So was I.
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Do you mean Sticky Fingers the barbeque chain? Or is something else?
Hi Neva. I'm referring to Sticking Fingers Cooking — a company here in Denver that offers cooking classes for kids.
Lovely! It looks like everyone had so much fun. The hats are adorable.
Gabrielle: That party looks amazing! I want to have one of my own. :-) I'm glad Olive had a great birthday.
{ Lindsey }
http://greatfullday.blogspot.com
What a cute company. As the owner of a small cooking school I love to see other companies profiled. This looks like a wonderful company and I love that the cooking instructions were written on the easel..great tip!
Wow. That is SUCH a cool party!!
I loved teh pictures, thanks for sharing!
Sarah M
looks so fabulous! i want them to come to my party
What a fun party idea! Love all the colorful cooking tools. I wish we had something like Sticky Fingers around here. I'll have to file this idea away for future use. Thanks for sharing.
Wow, sounds and looks amazing!
Liked the idea, loved the execution. This had to have turned out exactly how it looked in your head. Also, the 2nd to last photo just made my afternoon…what a ham!
wow that looked like so much fun, and they cleaned up! wow.
the pictures are amazing and the kids looked so pleased. Very cool idea for those who are going to do the extra something special.
I would like to see your take on a diy of birthday party ideas/inspiration
What a sensational party! I love how they were all so willing to try the "exotic" foods (helped I am sure by the fact that they made it themselves).
Looks like Olives party was fabulous!
most fantastic party concept ever! happy birthday, olive!
Sticky Fingers needs to open up in Northern VA ASAP. Wonderful photos. Glad everyone enjoyed themselves.
I would like to have this for my own party!
I will recommend it to my family I Denver that actually have little kids.. not just dream I could have that much fun!
I've also recently come across a sewing school that offers private parties for kids. What great ideas away from the conventional birthday parties…
That is AMAZING.
I want to have a party there and I'm 34!
Nice find with the aprons!
Fun pictures! Such great ideas! Thanks for sharing
Looks so great Gabby – happy birthday to Olive! I can't believe she and Daniel are already 8 – wasn't it just yesterday that we were big and pregnant? :)
So just out of curiosity – how much does it cost for someone to come to your house and put on a party like that? I love the idea.
What a fantastic party idea! Too cute!!! Now if I only had kids, so I could host a similar party…hhhmmm.
Awwww. Your pictures make me miss Oscar! And the rest of you, of course.
Where did you find those cute aprons?
Are you allowed to share the recipe? Because it sounds delicious! My kind of party!!
This…is SOOOO Design Mom! Tres cool!
These are all great ideas… do you happen to remember the brand of the aprons you found (can’t find them at Jo-Ann’s)? And any suggestions on where to find the chef hats or children’s cooking utensils at a reasonable price? I’m doing the same idea for my son’s 3rd birthday and as a do-it-yourselfer I’ve been searching for good leads (which brought me to your blog!!)