The Princess & the Frog

With the upcoming December 11th release of Disney's Princess & the Frog, Just Imagine and The Cinderella Company have just added Princess Tiana to our extensive cast of characters. With the dress already in production, we will be set to go in just a few weeks! Please let us know if you would like to book Tiana for your next party.

A Faerie's Dance

One of my dear clients just dropped off two CD's of images from her grandaughter's Tink party a few weeks back. The day was absolutely magical. Both Tink and her friend Rosetta were on hand to entertain the little pixies for an afternoon of faerie fun.

Since faeries love to dance, Rosetta brought her violin with her so she could play beautiful Celtic music for the crowd.

Tink also joined in on the fun.

Very Kind Words

I woke up to find a quick note from one of my clients this morning.

"Terri, it's late and I've been going non-stop, as I'm sure have you. But I gotta tell you Terri...
the party was absolutely maginificent...

I knew it would be good...I didn't know it would be great! You transported all of us--children & grown-ups into a magical world we all dream about. You made it come true. It's really stunning how you create experiences that we can float in. I've been lost in that experience, relishing every memory, since the party.

I have video too, which you can put on the website. Much love and admiration for your genius."

R. Bell; St. Helena

Tinkerbell

Sorry that I have not shared much lately, but October is an insanely busy party month for me.I have a huge weekend ahead of me and the rest of my month is completely filled. However, I want to share a review that came in this morning about my faerie Nicole.

"My daughter really wanted Tinkerbell to come to her party, and that is exactly what she got! I really enjoyed how flexible Nicole was with the needs of the children. She adapted her planned activities to fit what the kids wanted at the time. She really helped make our daughter's party an experience that she and the rest of the guests will always remember."

"We had so many comments throughout the party from our guests asking questions about Tinkerbell. Everyone thought she was great, and was surprised by the quality of her appearance. We were told by a guest that we "set the bar for birthday parties" and we know that has a lot to do with the help of Nicole. Thank you so much!"

Christina McTiernan

Madhatter Tea Party

Back in August I had the opportunity to host one of our Madhatter Tea Parties for a client in Sonoma. The day was perfect and the setting quite picturesque. Sweet Alice was on hand to paint faces, sing, and storytell, while the Madhatter entertained the kids with a zany game of flamingo croquet, musical chairs, and just pure silliness. The Queen of Hearts also made a special appearance! Diane Askew, a local Sonoma Wedding Photographer, was hired by the client to photograph the day. Here are some of her photos. The rest of the pictures can be seen

on the site.

One of Madhatter's calmer moments

Yes, she's wearing an apron!

"Drink me" bottles

Alice and the birthday girl!

Mismatched tea cups, flower topiaries, and red, white and black colors made up the table

Harry Potter is Here!

I just got the photos back from my Harry Potter party last month, and I am so excited with the way they turned out. My Performer Jocelyn, was Hermoine and she did a fabulous job. This party was so much fun to work and plan! Here is a glimpse of that very magical night.

I just loved watching how everyone responded to Hermoine's storytelling.

Mystical Divinations

A wand selects its owner

Professor Snape's Potion's Class

Quidditch anyone?

Slytherin, Slytherin, Slytherin, please!

Wonderfully Wicked!

Are people born wicked, or do they have wickedness thrust upon them? This is the main question in the musical, Wicked. As I get ready to launch my Glinda character next month, I decided to see the musical yesterday. The San Francisco production is playing at the Orpheum theatre at Market and 8th Street. The show is fabulous and a must see! Kendra Kassenbaum and Teal Wicks are amazing as the leads of Galinda and Elphaba. Adapted for the stage from Gregory Maguire's 1995 novel: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, it tells the untold story of the witches of Oz: How one came to be known as good and the other wicked. It also provides some very interesting insight into the characters of the Cowardly Lion, Tin Man, Scarecrow, and of the ruby slippers. I loved everything about this show and cannot wait to take my family back to see it!

Absolutely Alice

It has been an amazing week with all of the glowing emails that I have received about my performer's parties last week. This came in last night from one of our Cinderella clients. Thank you Lindy for sharing.

"Brittany was wonderful as Alice for my daughter's 4th birthday party. She was very professional and on time. The kids had a wonderful time with her and I was able to enjoy watching the kids have a great time at the party. I look forward to working with Brittany and the The Cinderella Company again. I loved that she brought a wonderful "magic" to the party. My daughter was so excited that Alice had come to have tea with her. Worth every penny!

Not just for girls!

Parachute play is always a hit

Truly Tink

Being the person that I am, I pour my entire heart and soul into running both Just Imagine and The Cinderella Company, so I really love hearing back from my clients about their experiences. This is a recent review of my performer Jocelyn and The Cinderella Company: "Jocelyn made a lovely Tinkerbell. She was so great with the kids, and extremely professional with me. She got high ranks all around. Your service is wonderful. I am so very pleased and cannot think of any way to have you improve. You made my child's birthday so special. She asks me everyday when will Tinkerbell come back and when can she go to Neverland to visit with her. You guys are hard to top!"

Wicked

On occasion I will have clients who request multiple performers for their parties. At last week's Alice party, we had Alice, the Madhatter and the Queen of Hearts all together for a zany two hours entertaining children and parents. I have now been hired by a former client to host her children's Halloween party. Due to the ages of the children, I've suggested the lead characters from Wicked: Glinda and the Wicked Witch of the West. My performers Lisa A will be Glinda and Nicole, the Wicked Witch. Both are my singing perfomers and ideal for these roles. Glinda's dress is already in production and I cannot wait to see it. As for our storytelling, so much happened before Dorothy dropped into Oz. Long before the girl from Kansas arrives in Munchinland, two girls meet in the land of Oz. One born with emerald green skin~ is smart, fiery and misunderstood. The other is beautiful, ambitious and very popular.

Amazing Ariel Party

Every now and then a family comes along that melts my heart. Last weekend I had the opportunity to help host an Ariel party in Kentfield for a wonderful family. The party was for a little girl named Summer who turned four years old. When my staff and I arrived to do our setup, the family was busy at work putting the finishing touches on their mermaid's grotto out back. The grotto that they designed and decorated was amazing and I have to share the pictures with you.

The canopied tent was decorated with blue and green tulle fabric draped from the ceiling and billowing blue taffeta fabric on the floor and walls. A small decorated table held a treasure-filled chest, including pretty shell necklaces made by Summer's grandmother. Colorful seahorses and seaweed decor also filled the tent. On the back wall was a decorated mermaid's throne. Directly above the throne hung a beautifully framed painting painted by Summer's father. Look at the wonderful detail in it.

The grotto came in handy for storytime and craft time since it was very hot out that day.

I had a great time watching as the children listened to my Ariel performer, Brittany.

Flamingo Croquet

As I get ready to head out of town for yet another trip, I am finalizing details for all of my upcoming parties that I will have back-to back. Last year I had purchased some plush Disney flamingo mallets for my Alice theme, but unfortunately they do not work well for a game of croquet. So yesterday I had my friend Steve cut out six flamingo templates on his jig-saw for me out of 1/4 inch masonite. Today I will take them to my friend Lisa for painting. I will then attach them to a child's mallet. I'm thinking that I would like to hot glue a wide velcro band to the back of the flamingo and wrap it around the mallet. However, I'm not exactly sure if this will work at the moment. For someone like me who is continually reusing and transporting items, I need to take good care of things so this works better for me. I will let you know how all turns out.

Storytelling Props

Storytelling is a major component for most of my theme parties. Besides having fabulously dressed performers that weave these tales, we also offer a variety of authentic looking props to bring this magic alive. For an upcoming Harry Potter party, I recently purchased some fun trinkets to go along with our Divination's class. You can do the same without breaking the bank by visiting local thrift stores, garage sales or simply asking friends and realatives. You will be surprised at what you find. For this party I purchased a 125 mm crystal ball, runes, and some tarrot cards. A pretty tea cup with tea leaves and a burning candle will complete the scene.

Cinderella's Ball

I am working today preparing for a large Cinderella party that I have this weekend. When it comes to party themes, I am all about the classics. So for this Cinderella party, I will have the performer wear my classic Cinderella gown. This ballgown is absolutely stunning and really creates the"wow" factor. And I am also excited because I just received a new shipment of children's Cinderella costumes in, so they will all be dressed in blue gowns as well.

Snow White Table Design

I am a purger by nature. When something has completed its use in my house, out it usually goes. I am now in the mist of retiring many of my older table settings and princess costumes to make room for the new ones. Yesterday I spent the day with my photographer Sam, who was photographing some of my new designs. Here's a picture of the new Snow White table that I designed a couple of months ago. It will eventually have a few more subtle components added to it, but I was able to put this together for a last minute party. Everything centered around the owl tea set. When I found it, I new that it would be perfect for this theme. The fabulous centerpiece was designed by my favorite local floral designer. I wanted something with a woodland feel to it. The pot looks like a tree stump and there is dried hydrangea, lichen, moss, faux burch, twigs and branches and mushrooms in it. The table linen is a silvery blue, taffeta-like fabric which compliments the plates, owl cups and centerpiece perfectly. I have to say that I really love this design!

The Gown!

While during one of my buying trips a few weeks ago, I found this fabulous gown that I purchased for my faerie Nicole to wear next fall. Unfortunately though, it did not fit as she tried it on during Sunday's photo shoot. I immediately realized though that it was meant for Lisa instead. Look how absolutely beautiful she looks in it. I had tears in my eyes as she modeled it for all of us.

Behind the Scenes

Terri, Jennifer & Snow White

This past Sunday, my CC Partner and I, held our 2nd annual CC gathering at Meadowood Resort, in St. Helena. This is the 2nd year that we've been fortunate enough to meet at Meadowood with our staff. The day was simply amazing. Every now and then the stars will align together and things will magically unfold--this was the case for us. The weather was perfect, the food delicious, and the setting of course stunning. We all felt like kids that were given the keys to Disney Land, as we were granted access to this magical place all day. This year's focus was a photo shoot. Hiring Scott Fischbein, a San Francisco based photographer, our shoot lasted over 8 hours! As we slowly sort through the photos, they are amazing and we cannot wait to add them to our sites.

Fairytale Brought to Life

Rachael Weisz as Snow White

Every morning I wake up to a picture of Rachael Weisz dressed as Snow White. This picture is what I use as my computer's screen saver; I just think it's the best. It is from a collection of photos taken by Photographer Annie Liebowitz, for Disney's Year of a Million Dreams campaign.Below are some others that I really like. Which one is your favorite? And which one do you think is most truthful to their character?

Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens as Aurora and Prince Phillip

Scarlet Johannsen as Cinderella

Julianne Moore as Ariel and Michael Phelps as merman


Jennifer Biels as Pocohantas

Introducing Our Gentle Clown

Up until now, my party themes have been designed for children ages 4 through 10. Lately however, I have been receiving a number of calls for 1st Birthdays and for parties for children 3 and under. So when one of my clients in Sausalito called me and asked if I would provide a clown for her younger daughter's second birthday, I decided to do it. Since I did not offer that character at the time or have a whole lot of time to plan, I immediately conferred with my CC Partner, Jennifer, and the two of us quickly sent the 911 emergency call to our seamstress and the three of us designed a costume together. Here are a couple of pictures from that day.

Just What I Needed

Things did not look very good for me this morning. Between my kids arguing before school, DH getting upset, and computer issues, I just wanted to run and hide. However after fixing the computer and being able to get back online, I opened a bunch of waiting emails. On Sunday, I hosted a Garden Faerie party for a little girl named Nadine, in Marinwood. These are the emails from both her mother and grandmother and thought I would share them because they just made my day--if not week.

"Terri, yesterday I was trying to think of how I could put into words how wonderful you and Fairy Willow made Nadine's birthday party so amazingly enchanting. Our children, our family, our friends were still talking about the party, at home, at work, and after work. I would also like to thank you for allowing the adults to be included in the Garden Fairie fun--this too made the party even more extroadinary. Your company seems to be a gift of just what is needed in the world today, keeping the innocent imagination alive in all of us."

Susan (Nadine's Grandmother)

"Terri, I have to admit when my mom told me about this idea for Nadine's birthday, I was a bit put off. I pictured a fake fairy arriving to greet my girls, and some silly games and that was it. I NEVER in my wildest dreams could have planned a more perfect party, and to have a REAL LIFE FAIRY was just the greatest gift for my 5 and 3 year old. Fairy Willow was just amazing. The girls absolutely loved her, the games, the magic, the face painting. My 3 year old has NEVER sat so still and been in such awe. Her magic fairy she caught in the garden (activity we did) has gone everywhere with her. It slept with her last night, went to daycare today, and the magic she performed last night left them talking till they fell asleep. The stories and experience will last a lifetime. Truly, truly the best birthday ever. And please thank Willow for painting the adult faces too, they absolutely loved being involved. Thank you so much!

Alicia Marie
(Nadine and Kerri's Mom)

A Touch of Magic

My Performer Jocelyn recently hosted a Tinker Belle party in St. Helena. It was a party for one of my close friend's six year old daughter. Another friend of mine, was also at the party with her five year old grandaughter, Erin. Erin had found a pair of gold children's shoes in their garden the very next morning, and having never seen them before, was convinced that Tink had left them there for her. I was told that she could speak of nothing else for days. This led my friend to write some short notes to her grandaughter on Tink's behalf. Shortly afterwards, she rang me up and asked if I would coordinate a special visit by Tink from Neverland. I happily accepted her request.



In the words of my friend, "Terri, as I mentioned on the phone to you, the joy in Erin's eyes when she saw Tink was priceless. I wish that you could have been there. It's all that she has been talking about. This morning she went to the window three times, just to see if Tink was there. And when she was without fever this morning, she told me it's because Tink is watching over her." "Your Performer truly inhibits the Tinker Belle spirit in a beautiful and loving way."
Well done, Jocelyn!

Bringing Fairytale to Life

Running two entertainment companies can be a little chaotic at times, but I truly love what I do because I am constantly creating and bringing fairytale into the lives of children and their families. Through Just Imagine I get to plan and host fabulous theme parties, whereas with The Cinderella Company, I get to create and develop characters for each of my Performers to bring to life. Since these two companies overlap each other, I have the good fortune to work with my Performers on a regular basis which I absolutely love because I get to see and experience first hand the impact they have on our clients and their children. This past week I had the opportunity to work with Brittany. She is one of my main Performers that has been with me since the launch of the CC last August. She never ceases to amaze me. Whether she is Ariel, Belle or Snow White, she just dazzles audiences both young and old whenever she performs. Here she is playing Belle for me for an event that I hosted down in Atherton.