Haven 2014: Yep, That Happened (Vol. 2)

The second day of the Haven Conference kicked off with a welcome ceremony from the fabulous Haven organizers.  These women work their little tails off to bring us a fantastic event year after year, and they knocked it out of the park as always!

Exhibit A of Haven Organizer Awesomeness:  Traci from Beneath My Heart asked some bloggers to send her clips of us dancing along to Pharrell Williams’ song “Happy” and she put it all together into a video for the Haven welcome!  (You can see me at the 24 second mark dancing on a walking path near our home – so much fun!)  

Our keynote speaker was Chip Wade from HGTV’s “Elbow Room.”  I have to admit I wasn’t familiar with Chip or his show, but after his presentation I’m a fan!  The innovation and ingenuity that goes into his designs is jaw-dropping.  Time to set my DVR!

Next, it was time to present!  I was so thrilled to be asked to attend Haven as a presenter this year, and couldn’t have been teamed up with a greater group of gals!  Our class was “Blogging Trade Secrets: What We Wish We Knew Then…” and I was joined by Jen from Balancing Beauty and Bedlam, Erin from DIY on the Cheap, and Laura from Finding Home.  The four of us had been exchanging emails for months, working hard to get ready for this presentation – and it paid off!

We were worried we wouldn’t have many people in attendance on our first day because Mike Holmes from HGTV was presenting at the same time (his only appearance at Haven), but boy were we surprised – our session was PACKED!  Every chair was filled, people were sitting on the floor wherever they could find a spot, and our guests even spilled out into the hallway!  It was pretty amazing to see.  Even more amazing?  All of the people who took the time to stop us, Tweet us, Instagram and Facebook us to tell us how much they loved our presentation.  I had one blogger tell me in the elevator that our presentation was the first one she attended and she added, “If it had been the only thing I did at the conference, I would’ve felt like I got my money’s worth.”  WOW!!  Thank you SO MUCH to everyone who came to learn, laugh, and support us.  I’ll be doing a blog post highlighting part of my presentation (blogger media kits) soon, so stay tuned for that!

After lunch I paid a visit to two of my favorite girls to show a little #brandlove – Gillian and Amber from Homes.com and ForRent.com!   As always, they (and their booth) were looking as cute as can be, all decked out in their signature orange and blue.  I first met these lovely ladies two years ago at Haven, and we’ve kept in touch ever since.  Now that G and I are getting our house ready to sell I’m so proud to take our relationship to the next level as Homes.com’s newest blog ambassador!  You can see my Homes.com articles (and videos, coming soon) featuring helpful tips and how-to’s for selling, buying and maintaing a home at Homes.com’s Idea Gallery.  While you’re there, take the Homes.com & ForRent.com Neighborhood Survey, and share what you love about your local area for your chance to win $500!

I spent the afternoon learning from Jen Staag from withHeart and Jon & Katie from SewWoodsy about Creating Video Content for Brands, YouTube and Television.  They shared so much great information that I cannot wait to incorporate.

Afterwards, I snuck away for a much-needed nap.  When I woke up I joined Kim from Sand & Sisal, Jessica from Four Generations One Roof, and Laura from Finding Home for dinner.  (Sidenote:  Having a glass of chardonnay within minutes of waking up feels like vacation.  You should try it at least once.)  I wish we had thought to take a picture at dinner because I adore these girls and miss them already!  I met Kim a couple of years ago at a Delta Faucet event, Jessica at last year’s Haven conference, and I’ve been saying ever since that these girls are my kind of people.  They’re funny, sharp-witted, and I love that when we’re together we can just breathe, relax, and talk about anything – no censoring necessary.  This year was my first time meeting Laura (who was also my co-presenter) and oh did I fall in love with this woman!  I swear we were cut from the same cloth, and I was so happy to have this chance to spend more time with her.  That’s probably why we didn’t get a picture of the four of us – we were too busy laughing!

After dinner I hit up the Rustoleum Cocktail Reception, followed by a Haven dance party (no Haven is complete without a dance party) and spent the rest of the night seeing, dancing, and chatting with so many wonderful women (and Jamison) that I can’t even list them all!

This is a good time to remind you that all my pics were taken with my iPhone.

My final Haven recap is coming soon!