On today’s episode of the Craft Industry Alliance podcast, we’re talking about craft parties and events with my guest Christie Troxell.
Christie is a master maker and creative professional specializing in the craft and party industries. In 2012, she founded Ritzy Parties and grew a five-star business creating immersive, over-the-top celebrations for luxury and corporate clients nationwide. Christie also works closely with dozens of major global creative brands, retailers, and manufacturers as a strategist, designer, trend forecaster, and social media partner.
This episode is sponsored by The Academy for Virtual Teaching.
A community of creative entrepreneurs, building proficient, profitable, and professional online teaching businesses.
A tablescape from one of Christie’s Easter parties.
We begin this conversation with Christie describing what Ritzy Parties is all about. Christie explains that when you throw a party, you put a “bubble” over everyone who’s there, making them feel immersed in the scene and cared for down to the last detail. She calls this “engineering memories.”
Next, we talk about what Christie was like as a kid and why her first career was in the corporate world. Christie has always been highly creative and a maker, but those skills weren’t always the ones at the forefront for her professionally. That all changed when she created Ritzy Parties and also when she began collaborating with brands to create digital content and to demonstrate how to use their products.
A scene from one of Christie’s parties with a sweets theme.
For many years, Christie was part of a group of bloggers who created content for Oriental Trading Company. It was during this time that she learned to photograph her work and became connected with other highly creative women driven to do the sort of work she wanted to do.
Christie began attending conferences like Snap! and then attending trade shows including the Craft and Hobby Association shows. Through these in-person experiences, she connected with brands and began demonstrating how to use their products. We talk about what makes a demonstration successful. (Christie did several demonstrations in the Craft Industry Alliance booth at h+h americas 2023 and had a line of eager participants the entire time!)
During this conversation, we reference:
- vFairs virtual reality event platform
- Oriental Trading Company and its blog, Fun365
- My Mind’s Eye paper crafting supplies
And, of course, I ask Christie to recommend great stuff she’s loving right now. Christie recommends:
- water marbling supplies from Deco Art
- MadeTV network
- Christie’s upcoming Society of Wildflowers conference July 17-24 in Laguna Beach, California
Keep up with Christie on her website and on Instagram.