BlogHer12: The Parties

Wow, you came back for more!  I’m impressed :)

So the parties…

I joked last year in San Diego that there was some kind of secret internet that had all the info about private parties for BlogHer.  Seriously, I was totally motivated to find out about the exclusive BlogHer parties last time around,  but I had zero luck.  Fortunately I buddied up with some sweet gals who got me in as their +1 and I was able to enjoy the festivities after all.  I missed out on some of the really great swag by not being “on the list” but in the end I think that was probably the best case for a hoarder like me!

This year I was much less concerned about exclusive parties.  The one I was interested in attending (Getting Gorgeous) was pretty well publicized on FaceBook.  They opened up a group of invites for the first 200 people to register, and I somehow managed to get on the list only minutes after I chipped my tooth!  Gotta say it was a bright spot during a dark time.  LOL

BlogHer got smart last year and decide to make the “official” parties open to everyone.  I can’t imagine going the year before that and not being able to attend any parties just because you were a newbie who didn’t understand how it all worked.  Bravo BlogHer!

I made it to most of the “official” parties in San Diego (i.e. Aiming Low, Sparklecorn and CheeseburgHer) and they were a good time but not nearly the best part of my trip.  The best part was definitely connecting with other bloggers and making new friends.

Here are a few throwback pics from last year’s parties:

This year, parties were not a huge priority for me.  Because I’m preggers I knew I wouldn’t have the liquid courage to tear up the dance floor or the energy to be up super late.

Turns out running around NYC all day pretty much zapped me of my energy for dancing but I totally stayed up late with Diana every night talking :)

I skipped all the official parties and was totally ok with it.  Next year (if I go!) I think I’ll try to make an appearance at a few of them just to meet people that I don’t bump into during the day.

Thanks to Diana, I did have a few private parties on my agenda and they were really nice.

We attended a Stonyfield Organic party at the Rogue Tomate restaurant.  I got to meet Kim Rosas and Stephanie Moram which was really cool.  I also snacked on some really tasty appetizers.  No pics though :(

After Stoneyfield, we headed downtown to Babble’s headquarters for a party just for their writers.  Thank you Diana for making me your date!  It was awesome to be surrounded by so many big names who are employed by Babble in addition to running personal blogs.  I got to meet Devan from Accustomed Chaos and I really connected with Katy from Indianapolis with Kids.

Before going to BlogHer I’d gotten an itch to start posting about the beautiful parts of Detroit.  I’ve been feeling burdened to give the world a glimpse at the nicer sides of the city that gets such a bad wrap.  Katy totally inspired me to push forward with this idea.  Her blog landed her a short segment on the local Indy news!

It would be a dream come true to write for Babble, so brushing shoulders with their writers and editors at this party was such a treat :)

The only other party I chose to attend was Getting Gorgeous since I miraculously landed a spot on the list during my tooth fiasco!  I’d heard that the party would be awesome and the swag would be even better.

Hosted at the Warwick Hotel, it was jam packed!  I get pretty cranky in crowds, so my plan was to hit up each of the 4 party rooms, pick up my swag bag, and get the heck out of dodge.

The following brands were among the cool booths I checked out: Coldwater Creek where I entered for a chance to win $500 in new jeans, Underbrella where I threw my biz card in a bowl to win a pack of pretty new underthings, and Naturalizer where I met the designer of the Fall line who gave me a 20% off coupon that I’m hoping to use to get some boots for fall!

So, the bottom line?

The parties are fun and the swag can be awesome, but skipping out to hang with your girlfriends or stand in line for the BEST. PIZZA. EVER. is OK too.

More on that later….