Ah, what a time I had in Atlanta last week. But as they say, all good things must come to an end.
If you're new to my blog, let me quickly fill you in. This crafty girl found out that the Craft and Hobby Association would be holding an Inaugural Paper Arts trade show in Atlanta. Over a month ago, I began an online quest to get into this event. The powers-that-be got wind of my quest, called me, and asked me to be their guest blogger and show photographer. You can read about my quest in the July 2014 archives here on my blog.
The time I spent at the show exceeded my expectations and then some. Let me tell you, it was HARD work; harder than I thought. Had it not been for major technical difficulties on day one, dropped internet connections, password not working, re-writing my first post 3 times due to said problems, required apps draining the life of my phone....haha. I can laugh now but I wasn't laughing then! Luckily, I had a back-up plan. If I've learned anything in life, it's always have a back-up plan.
Day one was filled with workshops and seminars. I learned so much! Day two was the opening of the exhibit hall and more seminars. The exhibit hall was filled with vendor booths who showcased their new holiday products and current releases. So many cool things, enamel dots in every color of the rainbow, crochet doilies, kraft products, thousands of items! Total sensory overload, and this was a smaller show!
People somehow knew who I was, as they would come up to me and say, "oh, hey, you're Terri". I found out later that CHA had put out a little blurb about me a few days prior to the show.
I'm so glad I did my research. I tried to touch base with every vendor via Facebook or Twitter, prior to the show, to familiarize myself with the companies, their designers, etc. Of course, many I was well familiar with and many I was not. So research was a very good thing.
I loved meeting so many people I've admired from afar. I tried not to be a crafty geek and fawn over some of these people, but in a couple instances, I failed miserably! All in all, I think I kept it together pretty much. ;)
When I wasn't blogging, attending workshops, taking notes in seminars, tweeting like a mad woman or photographing everything in sight, I was spending time with different companies, learning new tricks, partaking in only two or three make-n-takes as that's all I had time for. Lunch? Forget about it. No time. I actually lost weight when I got home. All that walking and no time for meals. I'm not complaining. I'd rather talk to the folks that came all the way from South Africa, Australia, Nepal and China.
Would I do it again? In a heartbeat! So much happened in those 3 days. I'm sure I'll be reflecting on this for a long time to come. Here I am, 3 days after the event and I'm continuing to get tweet responses and good feedback. I hope the folks at CHA were happy with how it went, minus a few bumps in the road.
I was hoping to blog on my own site while I was there, but as you can see, there was no time. I'm listing the links below, if you wish to read my blog posts. The first is the blurb about me, from CHA. The rest are from me. Happy reading!
http://craftandhobby.wordpress.com/2014/07/28/meet-terri-burson-chas-guest-blogger-for-cha-2014-paper-arts/
(The above photos were posted with the express permission from the Craft and Hobby Association. Please do not copy without permission.) #CHASHOW
I totally enjoyed your blogging. This must have been an awesome experience!
ReplyDeleteThanks for following Michele. It was truly a great experience.
ReplyDeleteTerri- it was great meeting you at the show. Thanks for putting my pic in your post :-)
ReplyDeleteLooks like you had a great time! Sorry I did not have time ot meet up while I was there - would have been nice :)
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