Blog Fete 2015

Blog Fete 2015 was our best year yet! From the schedule to the topics covered to the food to the fancy dinner party, it truly was a fabulous event. 

Each attendee was welcomed in fashion; notebooks from Tiny Prints, custom macarons by Le Petite Sweet, fresh juice from Natalie's, custom building my empire coffee mugs from Tiny Prints, event schedule cards by Brave Creative Design, flowers from Farm Gal Flowers and lots of girl boss love from the Blog Fete team. 

We started our day with a warm welcome from Blog Fete founder Melissa of Melissa Creates and she debuted a new video! You can spot the video here. Following the video debut Brandi of Alexis June Weddings gave an inspirational keynote. Lots of note taking action happened. wink. 

Brandi was also our event photographer and offered head shots for each attendee. Such a treat! 

After our inspirational keynote we moved into lunch sponsored by event founder Melissa Creates. East End Market served as our venue for the second year and the food was catered by Cuisiners. Another year a gorgeous venue with delicious food! 

Our round tables were a blast and the only thing missing was more time. The attendees (and team) could have talked business for several more hours. Topics covered during our round table sessions included blogging basics, personality + business, photoshop tips, what it takes to run a business, social media, working with brands and more. 

Take a look at a few round table discussion photos below! 

After a couple of hours diving into our roundtable topics it was time to take a creative break. Sarah Hearts led a DIY hour were each attendee created a motivational banner. Each banner was complete with pom poms created with pom pom makers. 

Alexis June Weddings captured some great photos during the craft hour. The banners are fun, unique and simple. Very Blog Fete! 

We ended the day with a sit down dinner party hosted and sponsored by Paper Goat Post. The dinner party and swag bags were coordinated by Pen and Paper Flowers. Black, white, pink and touches of gold graced the dinner party room. Wine was provided by Anew Wines, menu cards were sponsored by Tiny Prints and coordinating swag bags were provided by Nashville Wraps. 

The absolute perfect way to wrap up a day filled with girl boss fun.

You can spot more images on Instagram and by searching #BlogFete2015 #BlogFete and #PGPDinnerParty 

All photos by event photographer Alexis June Weddings. A full list of 2015 event sponsors and their websites can be found here. 

The 2015 Blog Fete Team:

Kori Clark Design / Sarah Hearts / Melissa Creates / Alexis June Weddings / Pen and Paper Flowers / The Flair Exchange / Brave Creative Design

Networking Tips for Bloggers

Networking for any job or career is vital for success.  Having a background in marketing and community relations I know first hand the importance of not only making a good and lasting impression but creating a relationship. Many opportunities arise from business built relationships and taking the time to put forth the effort will result in a payoff.  With great opportunities comes great exposure. 

Here's the Blog Fete Team & Committee Members advice on networking:

"Schedule time for it, if not it gets pushed to the back burner and connecting never happens consistently. -Michele, Brave Creative Design

"Always be open to those who cross your path. They cross it for a reason. You can learn something from everyone you meet, and you never know what someone could bring into your life... a joyful friendship, a wonderful opportunity, or even a new view of yourself!"-Kori, Kori Clark Designs 

"Spend time and energy working on collaborations and partnerships instead of spending time and energy comparing yourself to your competition.  While this is easier said than done, I've found personal and professional fulfillment in sticking to this guideline. By keeping yourself open to working with anyone, you'll experience an abundance of  opportunities!" -Carmen, The Flair Exchange

"I have found that when I email someone to tell them how great I think something of theirs is or just say that I like what they are doing, it makes people very happy.  It has opened the door to many new friendships and collaborations.  People often take the time to write when they are unhappy with something so it is nice to hear something good once in a while.  I think my best networking tip for in-person events is to find a simple way to break the ice.  Whether it is telling someone their shoes are cute (but be genuine), or asking where they are from.  I am super shy and hate to go up to someone I don't know but when I do, I often find that lots of other people are the same way.  Just take the bull by the horns and say something!" -Sharon, Cupcakes and Cutlery

"Take the time to comment, get to know people, spread the love and do so often.  Creating a routine of networking simply just makes sense, it's part of the biz and shouldn't be taken lightly.  A little can go a long way.  Most importantly be courteous to those you come in contact with."-Melissa, Melissa Creates 

So you want to start a blog? Lessons learned from blogger Melissa Creates

So you want to start a blog: Introduction from Melissa Chambers on Vimeo.

Welcome, friends! I get asked often why I started blogging and I'm here to share my personal blog story and the lessons I've learned along the way. Enjoy the free 3 video part presentation and be sure to take advantage of the worksheets available for blog brainstorming.

Resource List
My blog- MelissaCreates.com 


So you want to start a blog: My story and lessons learned from Melissa Chambers on Vimeo.

Resource List
My blog- MelissaCreates.com
My shop- MelissaCreates.com/shop
Blogger vs Wordpress article 1
Blogger vs Wordpress article 2

Chart via

So you want to start a blog: Questions to ask from Melissa Chambers on Vimeo.

Resource List:
My blog- MelissaCreates.com
Brainstorming worksheets

Local friends, we hope to see you at Blog Fete 2015. Be sure to follow us on Instagram and Facebook for updates.

Thanks for watching, friends! xo