LA West Elite Event at Make Meaning

Loved this event!
For some one like me, who’s all about creativity and expressing myself in a crafty way, this event was right up my alley and I was elated when I was accepted! Woo hoo!
When we got there, we were greeted right away and were quickly given name tags and then appointed to choose a craft; soapmaking, candlemaking or cake decorating.
I had been to Duff’s cake decorating place on Melrose (although, I have to admit this place looked a lot more fun — they had a lot more small items to cut fondant with and more things to help «beautify» your cake — without having to be a free-​hand artist like I feel was lacking at Duff’s place). I kinda wish we did this because people’s cakes were gorgeous but I loved my candle too.
The candle section was so fun! These were mosaic style and the tables were strewn with colorful squares of wax. Again, right up my alley. I love color and anything vibrant and colorful. I loved being able to chose my color combinations (they had a whole bunch!) and I loved the little add ons we were able to add to the walls. I chose a gigantic red wax heart. I also loved the tiny little toppers that we were able to add — hello giant mushroom and gnome! So cute! and so me! After we finished constructing our candle, we were then directed to the scent station where they had a ton of interesting scents — I chose peach! but there were lots of really good scents to choose from.
The food was great and there was lots of it! Chicken Strips and Pulled Pork Sliders from Stacked as well as a yummy red, white and blue salad, which was unique and tasty. I also liked that they had some Strawberry Lemonade for those of us who don’t drink! Thank you! I also really enjoyed the gelato from Paciugo. I already have been to their place a ton of times so it was great to have some delicious gelato for dessert.
All in all, this was a great and super creative event! Thanks so much Brittany B!

Best event I’ve attended! I felt like a kid again! Definitely worth the long drive.
We were given the option to decorate a cake, make some soap, or craft a candle. My sister and her friend decided on decorating and crafting. Considering how much I’ve been eating lately, I opted for the soap making party. I had the chance to decorate four soap bars to my liking! There were so many ways to decorate my soap — little toys, pre-​made shapes, and cut-​out letters. After that, I picked a scent for my soaps (I think I chose Strawberry Daiquiri) My friend and I were overwhelmed by all of the possibilities…
The food from Stacked was delicious. I loved the pulled pork sliders, spicy Mac & Cheese, fried chicken strips, and strawberry balsamic salad with pecans. And the gelato was phenomenal — can’t go wrong with salty caramel and chocolate! On top of that, we were able to sample several wines! We were definitely in for a treat.
The staff was very friendly, energetic and helpful. They were very patient with my indecisiveness with my soap. And they were very fun when they gave me my glitter dragon tattoo. Ahh good times.
Thank you Make Meaning and Brittany for this amazing event.

Great food, great fun, great company!
Make Meaning is a lovely new idea to enter T.O. and I can’t wait to come back. The decoration of the cases looked awesome but arrived too late to try. Instead we hit the candle table and had a blast designing, scenting, and watching the development of our wax creations. The food was great, my favorite was the Dallas and slider. Wineries represented were gracious and generous.
Thanks again Unilocal!Yet another reason I work my butt off to be Elite.

By far the best event I have been to!
The staff was amazing! Helpful, encouraging and full of energy!
The wines were delicious, a taste of each was just enough. I then ventured to try some amazing food from Stacked (which I have eaten at many times). The breaded chicken was tender, I enjoyed the salad, the shrimp mac and cheese and most importantly the pork sliders! And to top it off I had Salted Caramel Gelato (to die for).
The options of crafts was a cake, candle or soap. I chose the cake! I definitely enjoyed this. I wish I had more of an idea before I got there. I really didn’t think it was a real cake!
Another fun option was the free glitter tattoos (originally $ 5). I wish I waited longer than 30 minutes before I went home and showered because my tattoo came off. But it was fun while it lasted!
Overall, I truly enjoyed my experience, it was different and fantastic! I would definitely return.
Thank you for everyone for making this simply amazing!

I felt like I was taking a road trip on my way out to Thousand Oaks for the Make Meaning Event. I began to wonder whether or not the hour and a half commute from the South Bay to the Valley was going to be worth it.
However, once I saw those decorated crisp white walls and rows of tables covered with trinkets that would make any craft enthusiast drool, I knew I should never doubt the worthiness of a Unilocal Elite event ever again… ever. Even if it means driving through the Sepulveda Pass at 5pm.
We were able to pick from three activities: candle or soap making and cake decorating. The staff was super friendly, it was like being at Disneyland. They were cheery, helpful, and even cleaned up after us — willing to take our finished plates of Stacked sliders and gelato cups to the trash.
It was great to experience the Make Meaning store. If ever a friend of mine is thinking of putting on a PG Bachelorrette party I would definitely recommend Make Meaning.

This event was super fun and totally satisfied this desire I’ve had forever to just get playfully artsy-​fartsy with crafty materials. Play-​doh just wasn’t cutting it anymore. Cue this amazing candle-​making, cake-​decorating, soap-​concocting extravaganza of functional arts and crafts.
So I’ve also been wanting to make candles forever, a desire that probably stems from a 4^th grade field trip to a California mission where folks in period attire demoed old-​school candle and rope making techniques. The candles that we concocted at this event were nothing but some modern, gorgeous (most of the time) looking things with an array of bright colors and toppers to choose from. The process of choosing a custom scent, creating the candle, and watching it set was super streamlined, interactive, and entertaining though every step. The Make Meaning staff were friendly and the place was huge, clean, and modern looking. Looks like a fun place for parties!
I couldn’t help but to steal glances over at some of the artistic cake decorations that the table next to me were producing. I’m not exaggerating when I say that some of those cakes looked like they’d put Chef Duff’s to shame. The soap bars with little trinkets suspended within them looks super legit, and I had such a great time sampling all of the great food, drinks, and wine from Stacked, Paciugo, Four Brix, Tierra Sur, and Herzog. Also, I totally dig Stacked’s customizable menu philosophy. You order on an ipad and they subtract/​add costs based on your custom order!
Thanks to Brittany and the staff + vendors who contributed to such a memorable and enjoyable event!

One of THE BEST Elite Unilocal Events yet! If you didn’t make the drive up to TO from LA West, you really missed a good time!
First off, Stacked is one of my favorite burger places around! I say «burger places» because I’ve only ever had their burgers! Now that I’ve tried their red, white and blue salad, the chicken strips, shrimp mac and cheese and pulled pork sliders, I know that the rest of their menu must be good! I think the salad was my favorite taste of the evening, with pecans, blueberries, strawberries, spinach, feta cheese and vinaigrette dressing they used… mmm.
Wine flowed from Herzog Wine Cellars with the freshest sauvignon blanc — it was just released for tasting this week! (and it was gooood!). Four Brix and Tierra Sur also had wine stations that I never got a chance to visit.
Dessert was served in the form of tasty gelato from Paciugo Gelato. I had a mix of the salted caramel and double chocolate.
After these scrumptious tastings, we started our soap projects! My +1 and I made the perfect team, with her creative ideas and my artistic abilities! There were so many fun things on the table that we could use to decorate our soaps, like erasers, little zoo animals, fish, and even gremlins! I however, opted to be more uniquely creative, trying my hand at a Unilocal logo soap (which Brittany B will be receiving for Christmas! — Haha! Yes, I’m striving for teacher’s pet.)
My other soap creations included an island, complete with palm trees, and a barber themed soap.
We had so much fun at this event, and I’ll be looking forward to visiting Make Meaning again to create some holiday gifts!

The Store: COLORFUL~ The decoration of the store, the furniture and the balloons definitely attract my attention right away. Walking into the store… feel like going to a kid’s birthday party! With all the display, I feel like 5 years old again. How exciting~ :D
The Service: All the staffs are super friendly. All have big smile on their faces. Feeling very welcomed! They are all very knowledgeable and informative. They give detail instruction and great suggestions. They told me the most important thing here… JUST TO HAVE FUN!
The Food: I NEVER go home hungry when I come to Elite event! Always have tons of food, drinks/​wines and dessert~
The Parking: Huge mall parking lot. FREE! THANK YOU Brittany B. for giving us detail parking information! Parking lot to the store, only a few minutes walk. :D
Can’t thank Unilocal Elite enough for planning another successful event. I truly appreciate all the hard work you all put in… especially Brittany B.!! You know you are the BEST~

Well, this was AWESOME! It was so much fun to go to the mall I grew up around and play. It was a very fun kid-​like, grown up experience. My +1 and I had a terrific time and closed the place down! We love Brittany B! Honestly, such great stuff you put together! Thank you:)
Making cakes is FUN!!! It worked out perfectly too because I made a baby shower cake that was adorbs! (if a bit kooky). I did notice the pricing for the events is pretty steep to go normally, but if you can afford it easily, it really is a blast and well worth it. Kids will love love love this place. My friend’s daughter had her 11^th Bday here and has been talking about it for 3 months. They have so many doo dads to choose from to put on your cakes — or in your soaps — candles — and what not. I decorated my cake with stars and little candy creatures. I saw some incredibly inspired cakes around me also, and they were all decorated by first timers.
Stacked brought in the food, and I enjoyed the red white and blue salad, it was delicious. I *LOVED* the wines brought in by Herzog. I have recently visited the winery actually but I preferred what they were pouring for us last night — a new bottle — I can not recall the name but it had a big roman numeral on the front of the label, priced around $ 65. Best wine there! They also have a nice sav blanc just released that is $ 11 with notes of tropical fruit. Paciugo had the most delicious strawberry balsamic gelato — OMG heaven!
To top off the evening, I got a sparkly heart tattoo with deep colors — it was grown up enough to wear out in a little black dress and childish enough to be playful and fun.
Really fun experience, playful and good for the soul:)

Candles, cakes and glitter tattoos on a Tuesday night? Yes, please!
What a fantastic event! Make meaning was like my dream 3^rd grade class room! Non stop arts and crafts and add to that the phenomenal food from Stacked and the creamy and delicious pumpkin pie gelato from Paciugo — it was like sensory overload!
We opted for making candles and had a ton of fun making them — it was so cool to see everyone’s creations. I had major candle envy at the end of the night.
The cake table was pretty cool too. Those cakes looked like they belonged on a food network show — beautiful!
The staff was super energetic and helpful and sooooo generous!
I’ve already spread the word at work about this place… the glitter tattoo on my wrist helps get the conversation started!

This event was the best Unilocal event i’ve ever been to!!!
i really loved that it wasn’t just about eating — it was an interactive activity that inspired creativity for everyone. There was great food though too, and wine!!!
i decorated a cake and i haven’t stopped showing people pictures of it. The staff at Make Meaning was EXCELLENT. highly recommend. They were very very helpful and friendly!!!
would definitely have a get together here! in fact, it’s a great idea for a birthday party no matter what age you are!!! Looks like I found what i’m doing next year for mine! :) :)
Thank you to Brittany B and the entire staff of Make Meaning Thousand Oaks!!!

This was such a fun Unilocal event! I felt like a kid again as I was able to indulge in my creative side and create some soap! I came to this event from Santa Barbara with my hubby to the awesome Oaks Mall. This mall has everything and is really nice and well maintained. I decided to make soap. The staff give great intros to the activities and they really help through every step of the process. Melissa was helping us and she was super funny and friendly. I had a blast making the soaps and choosing scents. Wendy was really awesome and we shared our love for Hawaii as we recently came back from Maui and she once lived there.
I really thought the food from STACKED was amazing! The Mac and cheese with shrimp was heavenly!
Gelato?! LOVED every flavor! The sea salt and chocolate chocolate chip is a killer combo!
The Martian wine was spectacular and the ladies were very friendly and poured generously. Overall another awesome Unilocal event! Thanks Brittany! Now please vote for my photos so I can come back here and try glass art!

Another awesome event put on by the one and only Brittany B.
It’s a little jaunt from our typical LA West hood, but definitely worth the trip. I was able to make a candle as tribute to my Canadian friends, enjoy tasty eats from STACKED, wash it down with some of the finest grapes in the southland, and savor sweet & salty carmel gelato for desert. MMMmmmm…
Others were able to make soaps, or cakes, and even mark themselves up for a week with a temporary glitter tattoo of their favorite design.
Definitely an awesome and fun filled experience for all ages. The wife and I can’t wait to go back and try our hands at hand made glass.

I’ve been to Unilocal Elite events for 5 years now and this was one of the best.
The staff was beyond energetic and helpful, the crafting was overly generous, and the food was bomb.
Great music was playing, there were 3 wine tastings, food from Stacked (gourmet mac n cheese with shrimp, amazing chicken strips, a seasonal salad, and pork
sliders), free glitter tattoos, and some of the best Gelato from next door (get the pumpkin flavor!)
They easily gave away about $ 100 worth to guests and it was very appreciated. I decorated a pre-​baked cake and let my creative juices flow with all the included tools, accessories, etc. They even had a goodie bag for us and boxed our cakes. I definitely will return to do this and the soaps or candles!

I’d have to say that this has been one of my favorite Elite events! Brittany sure knows how to plan! From start to finish it was so much fun!
We started out the night with some delicious food from Stacked. There were tasty chicken tenders, pork sliders, shrimp macaroni and cheese and a delicious berry salad with feta cheese. All amazing! There was also delicious berry lemonade that I just had to have four glasses of! Of course there was plenty of wine as well!
After a delicious meal we headed over to decorate cakes! There were other choices such as making soap and candles but being the baker that I am I had to go for the sweet treat! There was colored fondant, plenty of edible decorations, edible cake markers and all sorts of neat cake tools. It was a blast! My cake may have looked like a little kid made it, but I had a great time doing it! I brought my sister and our friend (thanks for letting me bring two +1’s Brit!) and they both had a memorable time too!
We ended the night with some spectacular gelato (chocolate, pumpkin, salted caramel or strawberry vinagrette), some more wine, and really cute glitter temp tattoos!
All in all the night rocked. Everyone enjoyed themselves for sure! Thanks again Brittany for another fabulous Elite event!

I loved this event! I couldn’t decide between making a candle, soap or a cake. I got creative and did a pretty candle… I was thinking Candy Cane :) This store is pretty awesome you can make your own design from candles, cakes, soaps to glass plates, vases, cups to Necklace charms. The gals working here all of them were super nice and helpful. I must return to make my own vase, I had my eye on the sample in there and it looks like something I can do. Also I saw Christmas balls that you can design and decorate!
The food was from Stack! My favorite at the TO Mall. We had yummy pulled pork sliders, mac and cheese with shrimp and a strawberry salad with pecans. As if that wasn’t enough we had a sweet treat from Paciugo Gelato. I had the Strawberry Balsamic Vin Gelato mixed with the Chocolate and it was fantastic. I tried 2 of the the 3 wineries that were there and I loved the Red’s from Four Brix and Tierra Sur– I loved that Cab by Herzog from Napa Valley 2007, I will be picking up a bottle.
This was a really awesome event. Thank you so much Brittany!

Wow, this place is so cool! It’s like Disneyland!
Before, I was debating if I should come or not after finding out that Thousand Oaks is quite a lot commute from Westside! Now that I am here, I can say it’s totally worth it! It’s a free event filled with fun and great catered food! We get to pick soap-​making, candle-​making, or cake-​making and get loose with our creativity! I ended up making the soap. I just stuffed the toys inside, haha. I picked the peach flavor and got to take 4 of my masterpieces home! The goodie bag also contained a rainbow-​colored popsicle!
The red, white, and blueberry salad and the slider was a bomb! Love the salted caramel ice cream!
Thank you Brittany B. for this awesome, fun-​filled opportunity for me and my +1!

I’m not even inside yet and everything looks so cool! It’s a plethora of bright colors and cake! What could be better!!!
The drive from Hollywood was super long but just seeing everything from the outside it looks worth it (even having Tyler mock my directional skills). Elites and their plus ones were treated to decorating a cake, candle making, or making their own soap creation.
[EDIT] finally got inside a little after 630, I was like a kid in a candy store. I knew I wanted to do the cake decoration and almost ran over the friendly staff members getting there (sorry!) Maria was the main girl assigned to our part of the cake making table and she was very friendly and helpful! Tyler decided to make the lumberjack themed cake and I made an Anaheim ducks themed cake. There were tons of decorations on the table too: butterfly’s, various cake toppers (basketballs and soccer balls, mini wine glasses, edible flowers/​bees/​ladybugs), several different colors of fondant and icing. It was a lot of fun making the cakes and the staff was very encouraging (also shoutout to the girl who made the zebra cake– it looked very professional).
Tyler sampled the food, but I didn’t get any feedback on it. The gelato ladies made the mistake of telling me I could have a mixture of flavors and I felt like taking the whole cart. I had the caramel sea salt and the strawberry — both were good but loved the strawberry.
Thanks Brittany for another cool event.

What a fantastic event! We had a wonderful time honing our creative talents tonight. Thank you to Brittany who always puts on amazing events. We started the night with cake decorating at this creative extravaganza. Each person got a pre-​baked fondant cake. We had tons of decorations to choose from to adorn our masterpieces with. We chose colored fondant. We pummeled, and rolled, cut and decorated sugar flowers. All decorating utensils were included plus a great mixture of bubbly staff from Make Meaning. Staff members were beyond helpful and really helped make the night so wonderful. Other tables were making gorgeous candles and fragrant soaps. I felt like a kid in a candy store! Dinner was delicious. I am a big fan of Stacked and thoroughly enjoyed the pulled pork, chicken strips, and Cajun Mac and cheese. We finished the evening with Chocolate Chocolate Chip gelato from Paciugo. Yum! Oh, I almost forgot, we also enjoyed the wine from Four Brix Winery in Ventura. What a great way to end the day!

Thank you Unilocal!for putting on another fantastic elite event!!! The food was delicious and my brother loved his crazy soap with a huge dinosaur protruding from the bar! I definitely let the kid side of me out tonight and it was fun to see other people get their creative juices flowing too.