Adventures at Design Camp

I recently headed out to Austin Texas to attend Design Camp, hosted by celebrity interior designers Lori Dennis and Kelli Ellis. These ladies did such a fabulous job, were super down-to-earth and kept us laughing and entertained the entire time! The 2-day event was jam packed with tons of design info, fun cocktail parties, networking and attendees from all over the country. I had such a great time and made a handful of new friends - everyone was so open and friendly! I loved Austin, but didn't get to see a whole lot of it since most of my time was spent at the conference. I did squeeze in a couple of fantastic dinners, but definitely need to go back to really see the city! Here are some highlights from my trip, including valuable tips and information that I plan on incorporating into my business and blog! Here we go...

Posing with my two new friends, hosts Lori Dennis and Kelli Ellis

With Lori Dennis, fellow design blogger Ashley White of Decorology, and Kelli Ellis

Camp Highlight: Hearing guest speaker Susanna Salk talk about how to get published! Susanna shared some very valuable tips on getting your work out there: 

• Submit your project snapshots to major blogs - bloggers are always looking for fresh content to share with readers! And you never know who's watching.
• If you don't have very many projects to have photographed yet, style a photo shoot in your own home; you can always focus on styled vignettes with accessories / details if you don't have a whole room to photograph.
• Don't be afraid to put yourself out there and share what you've done - take advantage of social media platforms! There has never been a better and easier time to promote yourself as a designer. Editors and bloggers are always on the lookout for fresh faces and new projects to feature.

Camp Highlight: Hearing Ronda Carman, editor of the amazing blog All the Best. Ronda spoke about building your brand and writing a successful blog. Takeaway tips:

• What is a brand? It's collectively what people say, feel, think...about a product, service or company. It isn't what YOU say it is. It's what THEY say it is. 
• Be clear on who you are and what your point of view is - it's all about the whole package! 
• Be different than what's out there - you want to stand out and be original!
• Focus, focus, focus! Avoid being all over the place with your blog and /or business. Be disciplined and innovative on what it is that you're trying to accomplish.
• Collaborate with like-minded people to help build your brand and business - two heads are always better than one! Especially if you work for yourself and are often alone. 
• Stay connected with social media and be sure that you're actively participating in the conversation about your brand, other brands, etc.

 

I finally got to meet Keri Peterson of KP Spaces - she won the giveaway I hosted for Design Camp a few months back! We instantly clicked and I look forward to keeping in touch with this talented, sweet and fun lady! Check out her blog here.

A snapshot with the amazing new friends I made and hope to stay in touch with!

I couldn't come to Texas and not visit a boot store! This one was filled with the most beautiful boots in every color and style imaginable. I was so tempted to splurge on a pair but will have to save that for my next trip to Texas :)

There were many more highlights of my experience at Design Camp and I plan on sharing more in future blog posts. For more info and to see if there will be a camp hosted near you, click here. I'll be guest speaking about blogging when camp heads to Orange County, CA next year!