This past International Women’s Day was a day of gathering for women across the globe. And right in the heart of San Diego’s South Park, networking app Bumble Bizz got together with boutique branding and marketing firm, CTZN FEM, to host a group of female leaders and founders for wine, dinner and meaningful conversation. The event took place at The Rose Wine Bar in South Park, which is female-owned and operated and specializes in natural wines. The wine shop has a beautiful little private party space that was perfect for the small meet-up.

We recently caught up with Madison Marchetti, Bumble San Diego’s Community Marketing Manager, who says, “The evening consisted of an intimate gathering of San Diego’s leading ladies in honor of International Women’s Day – a global celebration of the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women as well as a call to action for accelerating gender parity. The event included dinner and conversation around female empowerment, stepping up and creating a better world.” For more on how the ladies celebrated and future events they plan to host, read on below.

Nog Nog. Who's there? It’s that time of year. Chestnuts roasting. Yule-tide caroling. Jack Frost nipping. Holiday parties galore. Some of our fondest memories at The Venue Report are from when our team is gathered around the table at the annual TVR company holiday party. We take our team gatherings very seriously and have learned over the years that the four key ingredients to a fantastic team party are: good music, good champagne, a good venue and a good team. If we have these key components, then everything else falls seamlessly into place.

The arrival of our holiday party each year marks the passage of thousands of table gatherings from the months before. Our team will have conducted countless brainstorms, meetings, discussions and will have exchanged thousands of ideas, pitches and thoughts with one another over the table. The table is our gathering ground. It’s only natural for us to come together at the end of the year at the ultimate festive tabletop to reminisce and celebrate the table – the source of our ideas and now our festivities, where we are now breaking bread together in celebration we have already broken ground together in progress over the year.

In keeping with the theme of a simplified 2018, gone are the days of a stuffy, perfectly plated dinner to impress your guests. Instead welcome a casual, no fuss approach to your next gathering using this dinner party that served fried chicken paired with champagne (on the floor, no less) as your inspiration. Farra of Hostess Haven imagined and created this intimate, laid back and of course, beautiful dinner party in San Diego at a local wine bar.

Opting for a fantastic finger food inspired menu filled with fried chicken and ice cream, the creative team behind this gathering decided against flowers for the table to make room for, well, more chicken. Guests sat on the floor surrounded by a plethora of pillows to keep the vibe casual and communal. Read on to get all of Farra’s hosting tips to create your own bubbly and finger food dinner party.