Archives for 2013

The differences between Alt NYC and Alt SLC

June 26, 2013

Alt Summit NYC felt very different to me than Alt Summit SLC.

I’m not sure why, but I felt less anxious the second time around. Nervous, yes, but not crazy anxious. Maybe it was because I didn’t have to worry about three days worth of outfit changes or because I wasn’t debuting brand new business cards. Perhaps it was because I’ve had the opportunity to work with a couple of brands I admire since Salt Lake City, validating the work I put into the blog.

Or maybe it was because I knew there’d be friendly faces — hello, Erika, Leslie, Sheri, Sarah, and Haeley! — awaiting me when I arrived at the Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia office. This time I wasn’t going in alone.

But the difference wasn’t just me. The energy at Alt NYC was different, too. Its tempo was faster paced than SLC. We attendees were on a one-day mission to mingle, learn, and network.

While Alt SLC virtually had its own wing of a hotel, providing lots of room to break away and roam, Alt NYC was confined to an event space flanked by offices and cubicles of Martha’s worker bees. Although bright and airy, it was crowded and loud; during several conversations, I had trouble hearing the person sitting across from me.

Compared to Alt SLC, which felt like a blogging retreat, Alt NYC felt more like a work conference. The presentations, while interesting, weren’t necessarily about blogging. Rather than sharing tricks of the trade — i.e. growing your readership, collaborating with sponsors, finding your niche — the speakers mainly talked about creativity, entrepreneurship, and social media in more general terms.

That’s not to say I didn’t take anything away from my experience at Alt NYC. I did leave feeling more inspired than when I arrived (albeit without a clear plan of action) and with many new blogging friends — hello, Seema, Ellen, Melanie, and the Obsession Session ladies!

I also had the chance to finally meet Ashley in person. Yay! We’ve been blogging friends since before our sons were born, and she was just as down to earth and engaging as I expected she’d be. We even met up Friday afternoon to toast the start of summer with some Rosé.

(That was a crazy day! I met a high school friend for coffee near Rockefeller Center, Ashley for a drink in the West Village, and a college friend for dinner in Chelsea. Oh! And then she and I wandered back to the West Village for some Big Gay Ice Cream.)

Tomorrow I’ll highlight some of my favorite presenters, so please be sure to come back!

{all photographs by justin hackworth}

The UV index forecast

June 25, 2013

Have you ever spent time outside on a cloudy day, only to return home sunburned? Under a light cloud cover, you may not feel the warmth of the sun upon your skin, but you’re still being exposed to solar UV radiation—the cause of sunburns.

Click here to read the rest of my article on The Neighborhood and learn how The UV Index Forecast can help you prevent sunburn, skin cancer, eye damage, and even premature wrinkling.

P.S. – When thunder roars, stay indoors!

Currently…

June 24, 2013

… listening to The Mowgli’s

I can’t vouch for their entire album, but The Mowgli’s San Francisco may be the catchiest song of the summer. Blending together eight voices (eight!), this joyous tune literally makes me bop as I sing and doot-doot-doot along. Even Levi gets in on the action, grooving and humming along from the back seat.

… processing my Alt Summit NYC experience

Did you catch my #altnyc pics on Instagram last week? The one-day conference held at the Martha Stewart Living offices (yes, Martha made a brief appearance!) was a whirlwind 10 hours of connecting with online friends, meeting new bloggers, and listening to variety of panels and presentations on topics ranging social media to entrepreneurship. Equal parts inspiring and overwhelming, Alt NYC, like Alt SLC, left me with a lot to think about with regards to growing my “brand” and the type of content I want to produce. Later this week I’ll be sharing my full recap and promise to fill you in on my recent blogging struggles.

… planning Levi’s second birthday party

Compared to Levi’s first birthday party, JB and I decided that we’d go small this year. Thank goodness I don’t spend too much time trolling Pinterest or party planning blogs. If I did, I’d probably feel really guilty about hosting a non-themed birthday party outside of the house. (Confession: I do feel a tiny bit guilty about my lack of Martha Stewart-like DIY skills. If I don’t include a couple of homemade elements at his birthday party, will I lose some of my blogging cred?)

… loving Christina Hendricks’s hair in the June/July issue of Lucky

How great does the red-headed bombshell look with shoulder-length waves? Since my hair is naturally wavy, I’d love to learn how to style it similarly, but I’m gonna guess that her hair was blown straight and then curled with an curling iron or hot rollers. I’m using the photos from her shoot as inspiration as I grow out my bangs.

P.S. – Four interiors currently inspiring me and last month’s list.

Being Pregnant with Amy from Parker Etc.

June 21, 2013

Because every woman’s pregnancy is unique, our newly launched Being Pregnant series is a way to share a variety of maternity experiences on the blog. Today we’re featuring Amy of Parker Etc, although you may also know her as a founder of Blog Brunch. I had the opportunity to meet Amy at Alt Summit in Salt Lake City this January when she was just barely showing, and let me tell you — she’s just as kick-ass in person as she appears online.

Q. When is your due date?

A. June 15, 2013

Q. Boy or girl?

A. No clue! Figure it will be one or the other, right?

Q. Do you have a name picked out?

A. We have a series of names picked out. Most are family names or they have some sort of meaning for the two of us based on places we’ve been or important people in our lives. It becomes especially hard once you realize how judgemental you are towards names! I think we all are secretly deep down…. it just really comes out once you’re being forced to name a small human!

Q. Is this your first child?

A. Yes!

Q. How has being pregnant compared to what you imagined it might be like?

A. I think people overshare the horror stories of being pregnant; they only really harp on the bad stuff. But what if none of that happens? It didn’t for me. I never got sick, I’ve enjoyed all my favorite foods and never had to buy maternity pants. My hormone levels have stayed relatively stable and the worst part might be my inability to wait to use the restroom. Trust me, let a pregnant person cut you in line for the restroom….. you’ll both be happy you did.

Up until this point, I had only heard how horrible being pregnant is, the weight gain and mood swings and gross stuff I won’t share….. especially in New York City…. it adds a multitude of obstacles. I’m now here to say…. hey, it’s been a blast! It makes my husband nervous how much I’ve loved being pregnant.

Q. What’s the best thing about being pregnant?

A. My newfound Beyonce hair and super nails. Ladies…. if you aren’t already, go get yourself some prenatal vitamins. Even if you don’t want to get knocked up anytime soon….. they do wonders, and I mean wonders, to your hair especially. I hear it falls out after the baby comes, but I’m choosing to ignoring that common statement and just continue tossing my hair in ignorant bliss.

Q. What’s the worst thing about being pregnant?

A. Well, I’ve just hit that point at 37 weeks (at the time this was written) where my feet are getting a bit puffy and, especially with the added humidity as we move into June, they don’t seem to be un-puffing anytime soon. I attempted to wear my oxfords the other day, and well, that didn’t go over so well.

Q. Any cravings?

A. Surprisingly, no. I had some aversions around week 10. I’ve been known for years to chew this one specific type of gum, but once week 10 hit, I couldn’t stand the taste of the gum and needed to spit it out after 30 seconds of chewing. I’ve now slowly moved back into the mint world and will pop Tic Tac’s like it’s my job. Yep, they are still around. Just me and grandmas across the Midwest are keeping that company in business.

Q. How do you dress the bump?

A. Dressing the bump has been one of my favorite things! My style pretty much stayed the same as I learned how to work with what I already owned. I’ve never worn super tight things, so most clothes fit fine until month 6 or 7. I haven’t really bought much in the way of ‘maternity’ specific clothes. I did get a few basic t-shirts and tank tops from H&M Maternity, cause trust me, those are the first things to start riding up your bump and causing a ‘baby doll tee’ look that isn’t attractive.

We obviously all want to buy up every piece ever offered on Hatch, but I’m no millionaire, so those prices just aren’t in my budget. But I do look at their photos for maternity style inspiration and then look for cheaper options to replicate it. Topshop and Asos have great maternity selections. Just be sure they are things you’ll get use of out during pregnancy and possibly after. If not, then just stick with what you have in your closet already.

Q. What are the essentials that have gotten you through the pregnancy so far?

Twice daily combo of Palmer’s Cocoa Butter and Bio-Oil mixture. It also has turned into my ‘musk’. Those smells linger around you all day!
Snoogle. Yep, get ready for your husband to be livid over this purchase. Mine refers to it as “The Great Wall of China.”
A large yoga ball to sit on. Helps with posture and back pains. It will also come in handy post pregnancy to bounce on to soothe the baby, for stretching/exercise and a footrest!
Spinning. Being pregnant doesn’t mean you can’t work out. Keeping active will help keep you feeling like yourself and not sluggish. Obviously, if your doctor doesn’t approve it, then stick to walking. But, spinning is super low impact and a great form of cardio.
Mani’s/Pedi’s. You will get to a point where reaching your toes is getting a little tricky. Plus, when else can you justify this pampering on the regular? Live it up.
Protein. Keep your iron levels up with red meat and greens. Low iron levels are common in pregnant women and not fun if they are ignored.
Fresh green juices. Refreshing and full of nutrients.
Berries (in-season). Great for antioxidants.
Greek Yogurt and Cottage Cheese. Yes, I know they are weird consistencies…. but calcium is uber importante for your little one’s bone development and I don’t really dig milk, I’m an almond milk sort of lady.
KIND Bars. I hide them in every purse pocket for when hunger strikes.

Ed. note: It turns out that baby Anderson did not want to wait until June 15th to make her debut! Miss Parker Mae arrived on Wednesday, and she is simply adorable in the photo Amy posted on Instagram yesterday. Congratulations, mama!

P.S. – If you’d like to share your pregnancy experience, please send me a note with “Being Pregnant” as the subject.

{photo credits: Eric Ryan Anderson & Nate Poekert }

A DIY Maine wedding

June 19, 2013

JB and I were thrilled to celebrate with our friends at their destination wedding in Boothbay Harbor, Maine this past weekend. It was standing room only at their Saturday afternoon ceremony, which took place “in the middle of cocktail hour,” according to the day’s schedule of events. It was short but sweet, and I definitely teared up during the groom’s vows. (It didn’t help that he did, too!)

After the ceremony it was time for hors d’ourves — passed appetizers, cheese and crackers, and oysters. Freshly shucked oysters. Omigosh, they were incredible.

Dinner was a buffet inside the Main Lodge and included lobster and roasted pig. The tables were adorned with empty wine bottles collected by the couple, each holding a single giant sunflower, and handmade doily runners. As a way to encourage guests to mingle and meet one another, there was no assigned seating.

Then it was time to move into the West Lodge (where our room was located) for dancing and dessert. As you can see above, the bride and groom eschewed a traditional wedding cake for a buffet of whoopie pies! Besides classic chocolate with vanilla filling, there were blueberry, pumpkin, and mocha whoopie pies.

But wait! There’s more! Towards the end of the party, Portland’s Gelato Fiasco showed up with a refrigerated cart and started serving the most delicious gelato I’ve tasted outside of Italy. I tried a trio of Blueberry Crisp, Sweet Resurgam (burnt sugar and roasted almond gelato with big chocolate slivers, named for Portland’s motto, which means, “I shall rise again”), and Maine potato donut (cinnamon and sugar glazed with big bites of potato donuts).

By that point, I was beyond full, but I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to make (and eat!) s’mores at the after party bonfire! Naturally, they weren’t your run-of-the-mill s’mores; the marshmallows were approximately the size of four standard marshmallows.

Needless to say, I’m watching what I’m eating this week — until I head into New York City for Alt Summit later today! Tonight I’m attending a dinner hosted by Hayneedle at Morimoto. To say I’m excited about both the food and the company would be an understatement!

P.S. – If you’ll be attending Alt Summit tomorrow, contact me via Twitter or email so that we can meet up and say hello.

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