The Blogcademy Experience

The blogger's paradise that is The Blogcademy cannot be done proper justice without a gazillion fabulous photos, so watch out! I've previously written about The Blogcademy in my scholarship application, but basically it's a two-day blogging workshop wherein Gala, Shauna, and Kat generously provide knowledge, inspiration, and a boatload of motivation. I was the lucky winner of the Los Angeles scholarship, and it has turned out to be the best thing I've ever won. I felt a bit like a kid getting ready to return to school, as I carefully packed a few key items for class. I brought along a notebook, pencil and pen, kitty hand mirror, the prerequisite animal ears, business cards (which I'll share in detail next week), striped straws in class colors, and my phone in its spiffy new cat cover. I was ready for anything! Well, to be honest I was quite nervous, but it was time to suck it up and put myself out there.

My heart was pounding, and that feeling of not knowing anyone (aside from the lovely Kat) was a little scary at first, but fortunately these blogger gals were of the friendly and sweet sort. I found a seat and prepared my brain to be filled to the max. The three headmistresses dove right into introductions, we all shared a little about ourselves, and then off we went, no time to waste! So many important topics were covered in detail; from "about pages" to creating great content, to scheduling and social media. Each of the three women has her own area of expertise, so it is a vast, eclectic collection of knowledge. It was not a lecture though, questions were encouraged and there were group discussions and activities as well (not of the ice-breaker, trust fall variety, which I was more than relieved to discover). In talking to other bloggers from a variety of different fields, you get a fresh perspective on what you're doing and what you could be doing. I was immediately inspired by talking to the two women in my group, as well as speaking with the headmistresses themselves. I started a list of changes I wanted to make and things I wanted to try. And this was all within the first hour or so! Instant motivation.

When we broke for lunch, Suzy Mae, Martina and I grabbed sushi and got to spend some quality time together. I love those girls! Before class started back up, in the grand tradition of bloggers, there was a whole lot of photo-taking. Then it was back to work. The information about social media was helpful for me because I had not been using those tools to their fullest, and I wanted to fix that. For one, the idea of creating a Facebook page for my little blog always seemed silly and unnecessary. Through listening to the headmistresses' experiences with Facebook, I realized that Facebook can be a very helpful thing for a blog, if not one of the most important social media accounts a blogger can have. I actually started working on a page for Ahoy Miss last night, and I'm very excited about using it! You can see it here and like it if you wish.

During one of our breaks, I gave Kat, Gala, and Shauna the puppets I made of them for my video. Gala even made a super cute Vine video with them! My business cards were also a hit because they came with an extra special little goodie, but more on that next time.

At the end of the first day, everyone received a report card for their blog. It was so nerve-wracking waiting to read my card, but I was relieved to see that the headmistresses were very pleased! They were impressed with my content and the cohesiveness of my aesthetic, which made me so proud. They also offered a few very good suggestions for elements I might add to make my blog even better, and I'm looking forward to implementing those changes very soon.

The first day of class was amazing, but the second day was even better! I felt like I'd found my groove, and the fantastic Twinkie Chan was there for day two! It was so wonderful to be able to be around someone I knew; as she said, it was kind of like camp. Plus, Jose got to stick around for the day and help out with the presentation slides. It was also Kat's birthday, and it was so great to be there with her to celebrate. I gave her a very-Blogcademy turquoise unicorn bank and a skull bracelet. Then it was time to get down to business, literally! The second day was mostly about the business side of blogging, which was very helpful because it was pretty much all new information to me. Shauna, Kat, and Gala all monetize their blogs in different ways, so they each had something different to say about it.

Another thing that made the day even more wonderful was the photo booth by Snapden. It was a really neat booth because they provided props, printed out two strips to keep, and emailed the photos as well. I wish I would've taken a few more, but I love the ones I did get to take! You can see them a little larger here. Jose and I hit up the booth after returning from grabbing lunch with Stephanie (Twinkie Chan) and her super cool guy, Hairy. It was so fun spending time with them!

I loved the next segment, about creating a cohesive brand, as that is something I always strive to do. At that point, I had taken so many notes, my pen ran out of ink, but luckily I had a backup pencil so I could continue taking pages and pages of notes! Later in the day, Rebecca Crumley of The Knot spoke to us about choosing the best imagery for our blogs. The next topic was networking, which was packed with great tips for making connections in a non-sleazy way. Image copyright was discussed, as well as tips on taking great photos, and even a bit about good apps to use. The day really flew by, and as class came to a close, I didn't want it to end!

There was time after class for chatting and photo-taking, some of us exchanged business cards, and we celebrated Kat's birthday with gin and tonics. As you can see, the headmistresses and Jose loved each other quite a lot! He was perfectly happy acting as go-fer for such a lovely group of ladies. We said our sad goodbyes, but fortunately Jose and I went out to have drinks later on with Kat, Shauna, Gala, Stephanie and Hairy. We had so much fun even though the service was less than amazing, and Jose captivated Shauna with his Michael Jackson stories. That guy and his sparkling conversation, hehe.

One of the greatest things about the whole experience was being able to meet ladies who share a passion for blogging, and as you might expect, they're fantastic people! I feel so lucky to have connected with a few awesome gals in particular (clockwise from top left): Suzy Mae, Paige, Martina, and Mary. But seriously, it was a huge pleasure meeting everyone; Natalie, Adriana, Patty, Sarah, Ting, and many others! I'm looking forward to following everyone's progress. A number of the girls are planning regular meet-ups in the future, and even though I don't live in Los Angeles, I definitely hope to be part of the gatherings whenever I'm in town.

Oh, and I haven't mentioned the awesome goodie bags! Each student received a custom LA Blogcademy tote filled with all sorts of nifty gifties. Coffee cozy: Twinkie Chan, wallet & nail strips & cards: IF Ladies, earrings: Saturday Sequins, glitter ears: Crown & Glory, mini pouch: basik 855, bow shoe clips: Head Full of Feathers, glitter bow: SewMaryAnn for Margravine, necklace: Moorea Seal, Love card: Mr. Yen

Our class photo! Look at Jose being all BAM in the front, and little old me, peeking out in the back leftish (the result of being the shortest tall person). That Jose is a go-getter.

I want to say a huge thank you to Kat, Shauna, and Gala for choosing me for the scholarship, and for their kindness and generosity that is ever-present. My time at The Blogcademy was beyond words. I can try to describe the whole experience, but I don't think I'd ever be able to truly capture the magic of it all in just the right way. No photos or text do it proper justice, it is really something that just needs to be experienced, so if you have been thinking about joining in on the world tour, I encourage you to take the leap and sign up. It's a two-day workshop, but the community that results from those two days continues to live on. We are all helping each other to learn, to grow, and to be our best selves. I'm officially inspired; I'm ready to take this thing to a new level!

The photo of me looking down in my starlette crown, Kat & Gala holding the puppets up, the photos of Suzy Mae, Paige, Martina, and Mary, and the class photo were all taken by Caroline Winata. There are LOTS more gorgeous photos here.