Ever since starting my venture as a blogger, it seems, I’ve heard about the design and blogging conference, Alt Summit. I reveled in the thought of one day attending and got my wish sooner than I expected — last week, in fact. I was nervous leading up to Alt Summit; there’s a lot of chatter about looking fashionable and having stand-out creative business cards, but as soon as I got to Alt, my nervousness diminished. It wasn’t the fashion show I feared. Rather, it was a mess of women (and a handful of men!) who were mainly rooted in two goals: learning and meeting other creatives. While it was still a little nerve-wracking to be in the same room as people who’ve inspired and propelled me, the whole experience was really enjoyable and most of all, motivating. I came home with a notebook full of notes and a to-do list of items I know will improve my blog, business, and life. I can’t wait to share some of those things with you in the next few days! For now, I’d like to share some photos and reflections from the event. Enjoy!

Bing was one of the sponsors of the event and set up a room with decorations and activities. This corner was for anyone who wanted to take a new headshot. All of the flowers were real and were replaced each morning. So neat, right?

The opening keynote was done by Joy Cho of Oh Joy! I love her story because the beginning sounds a lot like mine! She got her start as a graphic designer and blogger, then went onto stationery and now has done all sorts of incredible things, like authored two books, created an app, and released her own product lines for Target and Land of Nod.

This picture is from a photo styling class I took, led by Audrey of French Knot Studios.

This photo was from the first party, equipped with food trucks, break dancers, and beautiful Salt Lake City architecture. On the left is my roommate, Bethany, and on the right is my new bud, Nicole. I didn’t really know anyone before attending the conference and Bethany and I ended up meeting on Twitter a few weeks before the event and decided to room together. #Bloglife, where sharing a bed with someone you just met doesn’t seem that weird.

The closing keynote was an interview with Martha Stewart. I remember realizing how powerful Martha is when I was at Petsmart a couple weeks ago and saw pretty, Martha Stewart brand dog poop bags. Seriously, she makes everything. She even casually mentioned during her interview that she’s written 85 books and her product line has over 8,000 items. Holy shiz! Anyways, it was really neat to hear from someone who creates a lot of the same things the other attendees and I do, but in a huge way. By the way, next to her is Gabby from Design Mom, one of the founders of Alt. She was incredibly sweet!

On the last evening, we had a soirée in the courtyard of the hotel. It was really beautiful! I’ve mentioned before that I’m an introvert, but normally I don’t align with introvert stereotypes, like being shy or antisocial. I’m confident and enjoy meeting new people, but Alt reminded me what introversion really is — feeling re-energized by solitude. After two 12-hour days of Alt, I was totally exhausted from meeting and being around people. But despite feeling tired by the end of the night, I still had so much fun and met some remarkable people. 

Until next time, Alt! Check back later this week for a glimpse at my most useful workshop notes, a peak at my Alt business cards (and everyone else’s!) and anything else that seems totally important. 🙂

Have a great one, friends!

Would you ever go to Alt or another blogging conference?

 *All photos via Brooke Dennis and Justin Hackworth on Flickr