Meet Andrea Zuchowski, Product Marketing team member.  Andrea is the person who brings you the Everyday Catalog (among other things). She works in the Indianapolis office and has a secret place where she hides when she wants to complete work without interruption (the rest of us can’t figure it out).  Many of us anticipate her arrival each morning to see what her shoes will look like that day – she has quite the collection!

Describe yourself in 140 characters or less. I’m a people pleaser who loves to entertain and hang out with friends.

Who or what inspires you?  I’m inspired by all the bloggers who create amazing parties with such unique themes for their children. Walt Disney World also inspires me – how they’ve perfected scene setting by evoking all the senses. Whether it’s the perfectly, or in some cases imperfectly, manicured landscape, the use of scents, or the sounds while strolling through any of the four theme parks–all designed to work together to shape your experience.

Describe your go-to party outfit.  It’s all about the shoes, shoes, shoes! And, I love to dress up an outfit with a fun signature party ring or a wild necklace. My shoes and jewelry are great conversation starters!

If you could choose one celebrity to show up at your party, who would it be, and what kind of party?  That’s easy – Kenny Chesney and his guitar for the perfect sunset beach party!

Three party supply must haves and why?  Of course the obvious are food, drinks, and music – essentials to keep your guests happy and moving. Décor and the right scent is next to help craft the perfect atmosphere. I always think that décor is to satisfy the host/hostess and not something the guests should really notice, again, it’s all about creating the atmosphere. You want your guests to walk away at the end of the party remembering they had a great time and that they knew the specific theme but not because of one particular decoration, but everything together as a whole. The décor is there to transport the guests into a specific party frame of mind.

Best party sound track?  That’s impossible to commit to. For outdoor summer parties my husband and I rely on Jimmy Buffet and Bob Marley. More often though, we have our DJ friend spin house music and as the sun drops the beats get a little heavier for dancing.

Describe 3 favorite things about your job.  I love that most days it feels like we work in Santa’s toy shop, it’s really rewarding to see the finished party goods come to life after months of development. Also we work in such a great team environment where everyone really jumps in to help each other when we’re in crunch time, there are no silo job responsibilities, we all wear many different hats. Last but not least, I love the constant challenge to dream up and develop new products. It keeps us sharp and the atmosphere fun!

Indoor or outdoor parties?  Why?  I’ve hosted large parties both indoors and outdoors and I can’t say that I have a preference.  It usually depends on geographic location and time of year. I love hosting Halloween parties in the Midwest because of the crisp, cool weather but that really lends itself to indoor parties. I try to make the event special by paying close attention to how the rooms are staged and making sure guests are greeted with the ambiance to set the tone of the party. Although the party is inside I decorate inside and out and greet my guests with Halloween music from the porch. Once inside the door, guests hear traditional Halloween music and can grab their favorite drink and snack.  This ensures good traffic flow that encourages everyone to mix and mingle. Downstairs is where the real Halloween fun begins with lights, fog machines and Halloween dance music. I have friends who DJ so they really set the tone for the night. In my perfect world I would love to be able to host the party outdoors as well, with the pool open and brimming with fog to tie the whole experience together!