Woman who ‘invented' gender reveal parties has something to say

'Who cares what gender the baby is? I did at the time .. we didn't live in 2019'

Photo: Magda Ehlers/Pexels

It’s 2019, and by now, we all know what a gender reveal is.

Expectant parents will cut into a cupcake, open a box of balloons or crack a bat into a ball and inevitably cheer when they notice the contents of the cake, box or ball -- obviously, pink icing in the cake would mean they’re having a girl, and blue balloons would signify a boy. For a lot of people, it’s just another fun way to celebrate pregnancy and the new addition to the family.

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In case you’ve ever wondered, “How did it all start?”, or even if you’ve never asked yourself that question, we’re here with an answer. Jenna Myers Karvunidis, of the blog and social media following High Gloss and Sauce, in 2008 cut into a cake with her family, which revealed pink frosting.

"I mean, gosh, I just like to throw parties," Karvunidis told NPR. "I just thought it would be really fun for everybody in the whole family to find out."

This was well before Instagram or Pinterest. But before we knew it, gender reveal parties started popping up, slowly but surely.

Fast forward to today, and gender reveal parties seem to be pretty common events. In 2017, one even ignited a 47,000-acre wildfire in Arizona.

Karvunidis has heard it all: the good and the bad. And she made headlines again last week when she addressed her role in the phenomenon.

On Facebook, she wrote, “... I've felt a lot of mixed feelings about my random contribution to the culture. It just exploded into crazy after that. Literally - guns firing, forest fires, more emphasis on gender than has ever been necessary for a baby.

"Who cares what gender the baby is? I did at the time because we didn't live in 2019 and didn't know what we know now - that assigning focus on gender at birth leaves out so much of their potential and talents that have nothing to do with what's between their legs.

"PLOT TWIST, the world's first gender-reveal party baby is a girl who wears suits!"

And there you have it. The post, by the way, has gone viral.

Here are some Instagram posts below, showing the "girl in suits," Bianca Karvunidis.

Jenna Karvunidis confirmed this is an account she manages.

“So if anyone tries to slide into a 10-year-old’s DMs, I will end you,” she posted with a smiling emoji.

The viral Facebook post is below, as well.

A weird thing came up on Twitter, so I figured I'd share here. Someone remembered it was me who "invented" the gender...

Posted by High Gloss And Sauce on Thursday, July 25, 2019
View this post on Instagram

Blazer obsessed #girlsinsuits

A post shared by Bianca Karvunidis (@bianca_k_actor) on

View this post on Instagram

#girlsinsuits #suitup

A post shared by Bianca Karvunidis (@bianca_k_actor) on

 

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