Throwing a Birthday Party or Baby Shower During Lockdown? Here's Help

(Bloomberg) -- New York-based stylist Lauren Solomon, 35, was thrilled to be throwing a baby shower for her best friend, Dior executive Taylor Olson, who’s due in early May. “She already has a boy, but this will be her first girl, and I thought it would be nice for everything to be glittery, pink, and fabulous,” Solomon says.

Adapting her plans to the current lockdown, however, required the help of her go-to party planners, Robbie Zweig and Jared Reichert. They’d just launched a service for the socially distanced era called the Kiki Kit. A customizable party-in-a-box (from $75), it’s not just delivered to the host but to every attendee, along with an appointment time and Zoom ID.

It had “everything from the cocktail to the plate—glassware to headpieces,” says Solomon of her perfect baby shower kit, noting that blue laws required her 12 attendees to spike the enclosed mixers with their own alcohol. “It even came with a Spotify playlist so everyone could dance to the same song.”

Two or three months ago, of course, a virtual bash like this would have been hard to throw—and a slog to attend. But a range of services now aim expressly at helping celebrations continue, Covid-19 notwithstanding, whether you’re raising a glass to grown-ups or organizing a Harry Potter-themed scavenger hunt.

For the Little Ones …

It was supposed to be a once-in-a-lifetime trip for Charlie Jane, from Montclair, N.J., who was slated to spend her 7th birthday swimming with dolphins in the Bahamas. The trip was canceled, so her resourceful mom, 40-year-old TV executive Jen Brown, booked a virtual bash. The Imagination Adventures parties, a riff on those usually thrown in-person by Brooklyn-based Treasure Trunk Theater (from $95), consist of 45-minute shows led by performing artists. Each themed adventure—Charlie chose Harry Potter—leads to the discovery of gifts that parents have hidden at home. “I was skeptical, but the kids did great for 45 minutes, and Charlie said it was her best birthday ever.”

Actor and musician Jamie Kolnick, who normally offers classes for budding rock stars, turned his own product into a virtual party after having to cancel his son Evan’s 2nd birthday bash. Now his private, Zoom-based jam sessions can be booked for a suggested $100 donation on his website or via kidswear company Monica & Andy, which tacks on a box full of its stylish clothes, a home-delivered cake, and other treats for $200.

They’re not alone. For under-5s, performance-based classes are most engaging. The ones from Kids at Work ($200) offer suggestions for ad hoc instruments made from household goods. Chris Palmieri, known for the Emmy-nominated kids’ show Snug’s House, offers remote puppet shows and puppeteering workshops ($100 for 30 minutes). And Broadway-caliber actresses will dress up as any Disney princess for interactive story time through Manhattan-based Kiki’s Faces and Balloons ($175 for 50 minutes).

For Tricky Tweens and Teens …

On April 13, Razz Oppenheimer celebrated his 13th birthday with a trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art … and the Getty Center, plus a few other museums, too. Not physically, of course: The Manhattan teen is currently self-isolating with his family at their home in Maine. Rather, Razz played Escape to the Museum, one of four new hour-long virtual games from scavenger hunt specialist Watson Adventures (from $700). An alternative to the escape-room party that his mom Kirsten had originally booked, the e-version corralled three teams of six people to answer riddles and earn points as they traveled virtually among institutions.

If the canceled birthday treat in question was a trip to Broadway, consider recreating it online via Red Carpet Kids, which has stars from Mean Girls, Dear Evan Hansen, or Hamilton deliver personal performances and lead karaoke singalongs (from $1,200). There’s also a more dance-oriented option: Cristol, the rapper whose hip hop videos have racked up more than 17 million views on YouTube, will personally lead a Twerking House Party via FaceTime or Zoom, then share it with his 40,000 followers on Instagram Live ($750 for up to four attendees; reserve via email).

For a quieter approach, Neon Tea Party ships crafting supplies in advance of 90-minute workshops that focus on such pretty, handmade things as friendship bracelets, pom-pom garlands, or tassel earrings (from $70 per person). A similar offering for grads by Sprinkled With Pink includes Class of 2020 monogrammed bags, jackets, and phone cases (from $45 per person).

Reserved for Those 21 and Up …

Napa’s Chateau Montelena is just one vineyard that’ll have its winemaker walk you through a half-case sampler pack; video-guided flights are also on offer from the Royal Champagne Hotel & Spa in France ($130) and the Chanel-owned St. Supéry Estate (from $210) in Rutherford, Calif. Pair either with a package from fromager Murray’s, which is throwing in plating guides and tasting classes for $120 per person.

But why limit yourself to the prim and proper conventions of pre-pandemic days? This is the Zoom era, during which nothing might feel as appropriate as a virtual songwriting session with Andy Sharpe’s Hawaii-based Song Division. Though he’s normally focused on team building with Fortune 500 firms, now he’s helping friends create Brady Bunch-style music videos out of individually recorded tracks (from $1,900). The less intensive option? Order themed cocktail kits from Paradise Wines & Liquors ($80), designed to pair with a suggested movie that everyone can watch together. (Popcorn and raisinettes are included, too.)

And there’s always the Kiki Kit. After 39-year old investment banker Jonathan Slaughter threw a 10-person Priscilla, Queen of the Desert-themed fete for his fashion designer husband, 27-year old Thomas Widdison, the pair signed up for a bigger and splashier round two. “When you send out a Zoom drink invite, people come if they can,” says Slaughter. “When you send them a party kit in the mail, you get 100% attendance.” 

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.