Pre-conference social media stalking!

Hi kittens!

Having just watched all the fun at Quiltcon via the hashtag #QuiltCon on Instagram, I'm totally amped  for Craftcation and am finding it super hard to be patient until April. APRIL!!!  Thank goodness workshop sign ups are this Friday means I've already picked my schedule and know what workshops and business classes I'm taking.

It also means it's time for PRE-CRAFTCATION INSTAGRAM STALKING! Muahahahaha......

2015 Craftcation

It's not as sinister as it sounds, and in fact it's pretty awesome (if I do say so myself, and I do) and it can make any conference a richer experience!

I've come across the advice several times to try and connect before a conference with other attendees, typically through the conference hashtag. Four years ago at my first Craftcation I had had a smart phone for exactly two weeks and had no social media accounts. (I know!) I committed at that time to try Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and the friends I made at that first conference were my first social media friends.

The next year I took the hashtag advice and I tried to connect with other attendees prior to the conference, and I did! By this point I think I was only using Instagram which remains my only (because it is my most favorite) social media platform. I made more friends and had a deeper and richer experience.

Then last year I had a new idea! I went to the Presenters page on the Dear Handmade Life website and looked for the Instagram pages of the presenters. Sometimes it took a little sleuthing, like going to the website linked to their profile and looking for the Instagram icon. What I wouldn't know until I got to Craftcation last year is that connecting with the presenters, even just to see what types of things they posted made that year the best year yet. I thought last year might be the last year for me and Craftcation. Three years of the same conference. Were there other conferences I might want to try? But no! I found myself chatting with our craft celebrities between classess, finding out they were totally normal people (well normal crafter is a relative term!) and generally having a fabulous time.

Each time I've attended Craftcation the experience has evolved. But a key piece has always been the connections made before, during, and after the conference. It is about building community.

So.....  Dear Presenters of the 2016 Craftcation. Yes, I'm following you.

Cheers!

Amber
This Little Bird