I never had the chance to attend summer camp as a kid and it has always been one of those things that kinda bugged me. I mean who doesn’t want to leave home for an extended period of time, eat non-stop junk food and return home with a bag full of memories and new BFF’s?! Ummm…hello! I do!
ALT Summit was most definitely the summer camp I never had, minus the uncomfortable sleeping bags & mosquito bites, PLUS a whole lot of partying, excessive amounts of glitter and nonstop fun!
Let’s just say, I had the time of my life!
I thought I’d highlight some of my favorite moments from the week as well as give you a glimpse into the awesomeness of ALT with some instagram pics. If you are a blogger, wish you were a blogger or just want to surround yourself with super inspiring women (and a few stylishly fab men), then you best get yourself to ALT next year!
Now for the recap!
CAT GOT MY TONGUE MOMENT: meeting jasmine star. this talented gal not only inspired me to follow my dreams, but to stick with them. upon meeting her i hope i ended up sounding more like a blubbering idiot than a creepy psycho stalker.
HIGHEST HIGHLIGHTS:
– finding some super rad ladies to share a last minute room with on Tuesday night! katie, brianne & brittni YOU saved me!
– the mini parties! 6+ rooms with different themes in each one?! an event designers dream!
– keynote session by ben silberman, the founder of pinterest. talk about inspiring!!! whoa!
– tiptoeing through the slushy snow with danae on our way back from thrifting.
– girls pow-wow on night 3 with amy, megan, colleen, amanda and erin.
FAVORITE QUOTE:
– ” do one thing perfect. ” – ben from pinterest
NEW BFF: the ladies of blog brunch. after many many months of tweeting back and forth it was such a joy to finally meet these gals in person!!
WORST AND MOST EMBARRASSING MOMENT: saving my laptop from plummeting to its death by allowing it to slam into the top of my foot instead. i then limped around on it all day before finally succumbing to going to an uber sketchy urgent care facility to make sure it wasn’t broken. good news… it wasn’t broken. bad news… my taxi driver ended up being totally off his rocker, nearly killing us both in a drive by screaming match with another cabbie…good grief!
HEY! I CAN DO THAT MOMENT: upholstery 101. oh my word! i learned SO SO much in this class, hilariously taught by the fabulously crafty caroline. goodwill chairs better watch your backs…i’m coming to get YOU!
BEST BITE: that crazy amazing strawberry shortcake of a dessert on thursday! not only gorgeous but SO scrumptious!
SPEAKER CRUSH: total tie. anne and ben. these two folks knocked my socks off with their unwavering inspiration! i think i teared up about 10,000 times between their two presentations. so inspiring!!!
MOST TALKED ABOUT PEEP: mrs. muffin! from the moment i met muffin i knew i adored her. we both ending up commiserating over our registration hiccups and her name kept popping up all over the place during the conference. makes sense…she’s a total riot!
HEY! I LEARNED SOMETHING TIDBITS:
– consistency and originality of content is key!
– editorial calendars are a MUST.
– backup all of your blog’s content on an external hard drive on a monthly basis.
– if you intend to have guest bloggers or contributers create a “set of guidelines” for them so they know what you expect from them.
– use a pneumatic staple gun vs. an electrical one when upholstering furniture.
– never blog about products you wouldn’t use. your readers will read right through it. also, tell a story in relation to the product.
– it is SUPER important to pick advertisers/sponsors that reflect your brand.
– giveaways aren’t as easy as they look. make sure to get legal advice in relation to sweepstakes rules.
– have debriefing sessions with sponsors – you want it to work for you AND for them.
– cold emails aren’t successful. get to know your fellow bloggers via twitter & social networking.
– if comments section of your blog is driving you mad, try turning it off.
– use your blog as leverage for something bigger.
– do what you love. give it a fair shot. don’t be afraid to fail. then…try something else.
– NEVER eat lunch alone.
– look bigger than you are. a professional looking blog is tres important.
– one word: feedburner.
– if you have a killer idea, execute the bare minimum. don’t wait! you can always go back and add to it later.
PROUDEST MOMENT: trying an oyster for the 1st time. i know! it doesn’t sound that impressive but thanks to liv i actually overcame my fear and swallowed one of those slimy little suckers!
I MISS HOME MOMENT: on saturday i nearly fell out of my chair when i heard someone shout “it’s snowing!” sure enough – there they were – those BIG HUGE rocky mountain snowflakes that made my heart whimper: “i miss you colorado!“
I HEART VINTAGE MOMENT: decades. decades. decades. OH. MY. GOSH. This place made me feel like i had died and gone to vintage heaven…NO joke. the entire shop is so perfectly organized i almost called home to tell adam i’d found a new place to live.
MOST SHOCKINGLY RAD MOMENT: seeing all the attendees decked out in white at the winter wonderland party. it was quite the sight to see!
FAVORITE THING I LEARNED ABOUT MYSELF: i may not always have the perfect thing to say, but if i put myself out there great things happen.
Yahoooooooo for ALT!
bow tie & bustle: the blog 