January 25, 2010
Guesting: Greedy Girl Takes on Alt.
I’m that girl who takes her camera everywhere. And then snaps approximately two photos because she’s too busy having fun and otherwise occupied to be bothered with digging her camera out of her bag. Lucky for me, my friend Caroline (aka Greedy Girl) joined me on our trip to Alt. And snap away she did…
well. we made it. to the summit and back. altitude design summit, that is. and, aside from a couple suitcases bursting at the seams with summit goodies, we brought back enough business cards to fill a rolodex, enough inspiration to keep us busy on our blogs for a long time to come, and — even better — new friendships with some pretty talented people. i think surreal was probably the word used most to describe the vibe at alt. dooce, oh joy and apartment therapy‘s maxwell in the flesh, under one roof? wow. and that is only the tiniest fraction of talent. we met the names that often go unrecognized behind the very recognizable blogs we read every day. and that was surreal.
1. en route. bright and early. seriously early. i’m barely asleep by this time every night.
2. mountains were everywhere. they told us we were lucky because salt lake citians often can’t see the peaks, thanks to an unfortunate inversion layer. i felt lucky.
3. our first glimpse of the famous people: allison of petit elfant, nicole of making it lovely, jaime of design milk (and art milk) and karey of mackin ink (and t.ruffle girls). want to know their blog recs? here you go. thanks, famous new blog friends.
4. the grand america hotel. truly amazing. already planning the return trip to alt next year just to stay there.
5. kelly. you know her, right?
6. opening party night, old hollywood style. there was bread pudding. and an open bar. i was happy. we loved the cigarette girls walking around with their trays of movie theater candy. (here is our grand, red carpet entrance. note to self: shiny doesn’t photograph well. don’t be awkward. and find your neck. also, you can’t tell, but kelly was rocking some serious goldenrod tights. if she didn’t seem like such a light sleeper, i would have gotten into her suitcase at night and stolen them.) {Note from Kelly: That’s possibly the worst photo of me ever taken in the history of my life. Ugh.}
7. takashi’s. super sushi.
8. kelly and me at takashi’s. my disclaimer: i’d been up since 6:30 a.m. (okkkk, 7, since kelly knows my snoozing ways) and hadn’t even had a deodorant refresher. i was seriously haggard.
9. snow. our last night was met with a fun 3-piece jazz band (playing jay-z!) in the hotel lounge with a fire. it snowed. i was happy.
xx caroline duke (aka greedy girl)
Check out some other last words about Alt 2010 here:
+ not martha
+ Making It Lovely
+ sfgirlbybay
+ mint
January 25, 2010
Voodoo Doll Kit.
Not all of us have a valentine come February 14th, some of us have pent up aggression and bitterness instead. Which means we probably need Louella Press’ letterpress voodoo doll kit. Each one is perforated and comes with its own accessories, like six pearl-tipped pins for doing your dirty work.
January 25, 2010
The Perfect Bag.
Last Wednesday night, after hours of whittling down my packing list for Alt, I managed to cram everything into a carry-on bag. And came to the maddening conclusion that I have become a high-maintenance traveler. I was in Salt Lake City for just over 48 hours, how in the world could I require more than would fit in a carry-on?!
And then I saw this. The Perfect Bag. (No, seriously, that’s really what it’s called!) And I decided that if this were my bag I could make two weeks worth of stuff fit inside just to have the pleasure of toting around something so chic. Hop on over and take the 360º tour. {seen on Neatorama}
Posted In grand design, travel
January 25, 2010
Win It: Strawberry Luna.
I’ve been stalking Strawberry Luna (aka Allison) for a few years now. I can’t get enough of her style and once I found out she’s based out of my hometown – Pittsburgh, PA – I was a total goner! All the work for Strawberry Luna is designed and hand screenprinted by Allison herself. And yes, they’re all for real, live shows and real, live bands. Talk about a dream job. And this week Allison is giving away this beauty to one of you!
To Enter, Tell Me:
1. Your favorite band. Ever.
2. Your email address. (In case you win. Those who do not will sadly be disqualified.)
3. Do it all before Monday, February 1st at 9am CST.
PS: Congratulations to Heather, the winner of last week’s Bread of Many giveaway!
Posted In paper goods, posters, win it
January 25, 2010
Monday Goodness: Picked Up.
I was so caught up with panels and learning and meeting people Friday at Alt that my Happy Weekend post 100% slipped my mind! But I still wanted to share some of my favorite posts from last week, so here are am few tasty links to help ease you into your Monday…
Calligraphy + tattooing = this beauty
A few great roundups of beautiful valentines – parts 1 + 2
DIY Valentine’s Day goody bags for all of your sweet treats
Be sure and get a valentine! Join the 2010 Valentine Swap.
I’m on the lookout for a reason to make some of these fun confetti containers
Dying to try my hand at this Mondrian Pound Cake!
Posted In downloads, make it, monday goodness
January 22, 2010
Alt Summit (Cont.).
Day 2, 10:45 am MWT
Alt is turning out even better than I imagined, if that’s even possible
The early bird panel yesterday – How to Find the Best Design Sites – with Nicole Balch of Making it Lovely, Allison Czarnecki of Petit Elefant, Jaime Derringer of Design Milk and Karey Mackin of Mackin Ink was wonderful. And hanging out with all of these women (and a few guys, too!) that are my own personal design crushes has been nothing short of empowering.
This morning I had my own moment of celebrity awe while listening to the keynote breakfast – Why Design? – with Heather Armstrong of Dooce, Jean Aw of NotCot, Grace Bonney of Design*Sponge and Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan of Apartment Therapy. I even got to sit about 2.5 feet away from Heather’s husband, the infamous Jon.
My own panel – Designer vs. Design Blogger – was during the first breakout session. I got to speak with an amazing group of women, too. Joy Cho of Oh Joy!, Jaime Derringer of Design Milk and Rachel Jones of Black Eiffel. It was thrilling to hear about how the others balance their lives and how design impacts both areas of their lives. And as a surprise to even myself, I wasn’t even a bit nervous.
Next I’ll be hitting up Build Your Brand and Your Business with Emily Goligoski of The SanFranista, Victoria Smith of SFGirlbyBay, Gayla Trail of You Grow Girl and Sarah Jane Wright of Sarah Jane Designs to hear about how they started out and turned a nothing business into a big something. After that is the Keynote Lunch with artists Erik Natzke and DJ Earworm. Then the last breakout session (I’m still undecided), the closing session and the Blurb Meetup and Happy Hour. Whew.
They have us running non-stop, but I wouldn’t change it for a thing. If you weren’t able to make it out to Salt Lake City this year plan on signing up for Alt 2011 for sure!
Posted In shameless plug
January 21, 2010
Salt Lake City : Alt Summit.
{via ffffound, no source}Day 1, 10:35 am MWT
I must really, really love design because I’ve been up since 3:45 this morning. My journey to Alt began in Oklahoma City at 6:30 and after a swift connection in Denver, I arrived in beautiful Salt Lake City around 10:30.
As I wait in the SLC airport’s Starbucks for Greedy Girl to arrive (the silly thing booked a different connecting flight out of Denver than me) I’ve made a few observations:
- There’s an oddly disproportionate number of attractive people here.
- This is the best music I’ve ever heard played at an airport Starbucks, and I’ve been to my share. It sounds like they’re sharing my iTunes.
- I haven’t seen any celebrities making their way to Sundance. Yet. But I have seen a few too many people trying too hard to look like a celebrity.
- I should have packed more shoes. I forgot the ones I wanted to wear Saturday night.
So as you can see, so far so good! After checking into the hotel I’m off to the early bird lecture, How to Find the Best Design Sites. Then tonight it’s off to Speed Networking and the Hollywood Opening Social. If you’re not already, follow me on Twitter for more updates throughout the day!
Posted In shameless plug
January 20, 2010
Off to the Alt Summit.
Bright and early tomorrow morning I’ll be off on my way to the Alt Summit in cold and snowy Salt Lake City! Three days of being around fellow design bloggers and trailing after my own design crushes is in store, along with some great panels, networking and (of course) celebrity watching. (Sundance is going on right now, after all…) I swear I feel like I’m gearing up for a trip to sleepaway camp! If you’re headed to SLC as well, you can catch me speaking on the Design vs. Design Blogger panel taking place Friday morning at 9:45. If you’re not, check back here for sporadic updates of all things Alt!
Posted In shameless plug