There’s some very big news brewing when it comes to The Blogcademy. In the works since January, this has been a long time coming…and it’s happening so soon. Mark your calendars for Tuesday, May 27th!

Any guesses as to what the big reveal will be?!

Blogcademy San Francisco was our first class of the year and before it kicked off, we were feeling some definite “first day of school” jitters since we’d just re-shuffled and polished up our presentation. It’s always a roll of the dice when you take a chance and change up a tried-and-true formula. But, we had nothing to worry about — this group of women welcomed us with open arms, warm smiles and plenty of questions (we ended the class with our longest open Q&A yet!)

You know what I immediately loved about San Francisco? The women in our class were focused and driven but also knew how to have fun — from the beginning of class, they opened up and weren’t afraid to share their vulnerabilities along with their successes. By the end of day two, I felt like we’d just spent a week at the best summer camp of all time. Saying goodbye to this group was really, really hard.

Our first ever San Francisco class was held at Makeshift Society, an eclectic clubhouse and co-working space in the heart of Hayes Valley. I immediately felt at home amongst the geometric wallpaper, stacks of art and design books, walls covered in hanging inspiration and comfy couches. By the end of day one, I was begging them to open up a location in Portland. 😉

Our totes this time around featured a cable car…so quintessentially San Francisco! For every class, we design a custom graphic and do a print run through OSI. It’s so much fun adding those unique details to every city’s experience.

I love it when our blogcadettes show off their unique style — Angela flew in from Nebraska and lit up the room with her gold polkadot chiffon skirt. Wowza!

It took no time at all for our blogcadettes to rifle through their goodie bags and finish off their looks with ears and bows.

I always say that the best part of the weekend is watching our ladies make new friends. Shown above: Ayanna, Erin, Mariah and Samantha (who flew in all the way from Australia!)

On Sunday, it was Mother’s Day and we figured that there was no better way to celebrate than with a mix of macarons from Chantal Guillon which was right down the street. Always a crowd pleaser!

I won’t tell you what happened here. You’ll have to come to class to find out why I’m always mortified when this particular story comes up in the presentation. 😉

SPONSOR LOVE

Our sponsors KILLED IT this time around. These independent businesses hooked our blogcadettes up big time and we are so thankful for their generosity!

Notebooks are a must-have in class and Moxie Makery delivered with a rainbow-hued, pocket-sized assortment.

Ladybird Likes created a customized mix of wooden pins and keychains featuring our branding and inspirational messages.

It’s no secret that our ladies love big, bold hair accessories and these giant satin bows by Dark Pony Designs were a huge hit.

Reeta Krishna’s WordPress for Beginners book is so awesome because it covers some of the more technical parts of blogging that every blogger should know.

And, I’m always a fan of the cute acrylic accessories Art School Dropout whips up. These arrow hair clips were super fun.

The days of scrunchies and ugly hair bands adorning our wrists are over thanks to Mane Message! I’ve been wearing mine every single day since.

Zelma Rose sent necklaces imprinted with custom sayings on them and the packaging was top notch.

Fellow Branch client Olivine Atelier went above and beyond with sampler packs of scents! I designed the branding and packaging last year and getting to share it with the blogcadettes was really special. The finishing touch? Each box included a gold-dipped feather!

And, no class is complete without a glittery mix of sparkly ears from Crown and Glory!

And finally, a special thank you goes out to Kind who hooked us up with their delicious bars throughout the weekend.

Extra Love

After class, we always pose with blogcadettes in front of our backdrop. We changed up the pattern this year — do you like it? Here, we’re hanging out with Paula from Blank Stare, Blink. LOVE HER.

A special shout-out goes out to our kick-ass interns, Vivian and Paige. They were an absolute wonder team and I wish we could pack them along around the world with us.

And, no Blogcademy is ever complete without a class photo. Yes, it was as fun as it looks!

By the end of class, this is basically how I felt, as illustrated by the amazingly talented Hannah Concannon of The Dress Up Box.

Thank you to all of the wonderful ladies who spent their weekend with us, learning about blogging, snapping photos and eating macarons.

JOIN US!

If you’d like to join us on the road, we’re off to Vancouver and Calgary in June, London, Berlin and Amsterdam in July and August, New York and Washington, D.C. in September and October and finally, Melbourne, Sydney and Auckland in November and December. Hope to see you in class!

All photos: Ingrid Chang of Jerry Yoon Photographers.
Venue: Makeshift Society.