Meet the Just Add Bubbles Team

Christine Finke  

Creative Director & Event Designer

My formal education includes a Bachelor’s degree in Fashion Merchandising & Buying.  Little did I know that my degree and experience in NYC would actually prepare me to do work that truly expresses who I am: a creative and detailed woman with a passion for fashion, color and décor.  My background in fashion helped me to hone my skills as a designer and to develop my ability to draw inspiration from all sources and put a fresh spin on things.  I enjoy sharing my artistic originality to create the right event for you.  Of course my love of food, wine and fun make me the perfect contributor to the Just Add Bubbles team.

I am also passionate about volunteerism.  For the last six years, I have served on and held the Chairperson title at the elementary school’s Teacher Appreciation Committee.  It has been my privilege to make sure the teachers and staff feels special all year long.  This, of course, is accomplished with food and fun.  Now, this may not sound like much to you, but in my neck of the woods, we do it BIG.  My duties culminate every spring with a week-long celebration that we like to call TA Week.  During this event, my committee and I transform the drab school utility room into a vibrant, upbeat party venue.  Each day of the week has its own theme, color scheme, culinary adventure and yes, sometimes costumes.  It’s no small fete producing a daily event for eighty staff members with limited time and space!  But this is what I love!  I have a passion for the little details that make events truly special and unique.

Oh, and by the way, if you need a little help planning your outfit for the upcoming soiree, I’d be happy to help with that too!  After all, I do love my passion for fashion!

 

Kate Duffy

Chief Merry Maker &

Chef

Well, I have said it before:  I want to help people eat, drink and make merry. When I look back over the last twenty years or so, it is very clear to me that the times I have been in full alignment with myself have been during times of eating, drinking and merry making.  Even mastering those many hospitality jobs in college (read cocktail waitress/bartender) prepared me to do the happy work I am doing today.  Yet it took me some time to understand this.  

In 2000, I gleefully abandoned attempts to support myself with traditional business types of jobs and somehow got the chef/owner of a bistro to hire me to cook in his kitchen. Despite the burns, cut and physical challenges of the job, I was in heaven.  I was working in an extremely fast-paced, hard core kitchen full of grizzled veterans, who were unsure of me and my lack of experience.  As time went on, my skills developed I  earned their respect and they began teaching me the tricks of the trade.  (This, of course, was only after months of making me do all the gross and really hard jobs that all rookies should do.)  I hung out there for five years learning everything I could about food safety, food prep and service.  In October of 2005, I traded in my chef coat for onesies and diapers and welcomed my daughter into the world.  Fast forward to 2012 and it's time to birth more creativity.  That little baby is off to full time school and this little mamma is ready to put her chef coat back on and get to work.