Thank you, Grace, for being so supportive of small businesses and organizing such great events as these. (Thank you also to DWR and the speakers. It was a great night!)

it was a really awesome night. so great to be together with so many talented, smart women. and the snacks were great, too. who made those mini-cupcakes? they were delish!

I think it’s awesome that all you ladies get together to help one another out! I just wish boy-ladies could come. If there is ever one in Seattle…and I wear a fetching wig and sit very quietly in the back. Could I come?

I met so many interesting women last night, but didn’t get all of their contact info. Is there some way you can facilitate for those who attended, and are interested, to post their email addresses or something? That would be super helpful!

Thank so much, Grace! This was a great event and the speakers were really on-point. If anyone is interested in meeting up on a more regular basis to talk about business plans, marketing, financing issues, creative slumps, etc., I’d be really interested in forming a group. Contact me at uppercut@missnatalie.com.

the event seemed like fun - but i only went for about 10 mins. not knowing ANYONE, it was very intimidating. any pointers on how to break into the scene? in my limited experience it didn’t feel like anyone wanted to chat…unless you were a known blogger. anyone else??

Thanks a ton Grace, we all had a lovely time and it was such a fun and informative night.

While talking in one of the groups we had a idea for your blog…What if we had a sounding board/ classified section for people to post that they have communal working spaces, looking for one or need design/business partners. Just a thought. Thanks again. It was so motivating.

this was such an awesome night… there are so many amazing, talented ladies here!

Sounds like you guys had a blast, being that there were some business owners there as well as potential ones, they should have been a bit more professional and not leave such an establishment messy. Sad.

Thanks so much for hosting an incredible event. I am so inspired now to get going on a million different projects! I didn’t know anyone either, but everyone was so friendly, and in my opinion, NOT intimidating, that it was easy to strike up a conversation. Thanks again!

hi grace! thanks so much for getting us all together! it is so inspiring to see so many women working in creative, independent fields. i am extra inspired now to get my business going! i’d love to continue to get together with others in the sf area. camilla

oh i cannot believe I missed that :(
i’ll be there for the next one, that’s for sure!
your meetup.com page for SF is an awesome idea grace!
thanks for all this!

we need you in L.A.
any update on when that is going to happen?

i feel totally re-invigorated with my small biz! thanks grace!

I wanted to add my Thank You to Grace for putting on this event and DWR as well for allowing all us to hang out there. I was so happily suprised to walk in and see SOOOOO many people! I am so excited and motivated to do more with my business and art now.

To Anon-I hope next time something like this happens that you dont’ feel intimidated. Everyone there was there to support each other and everyone was very friendly. Don’t be afraid to introduce yourself to someone to get the ball rolling-then they will introduce you to others and you won’t feel like an outsider.

Thank you so much for organizing such a wonderful event. All the speakers were so friendly and informative.. the meet-up definitely inspired me to work harder!

hi anon

i didn’t know anyone either, and considered escaping after five minutes! but i fought the social panic down and i’m so glad i stayed. wish we’d met, we could have been nervous noobs together! :) xo

Grace,

Another thank you! I had a fabulous time at this event. Thank you to Meg, Emily and Cate and DWR as well. There was so much great stuff that I’m still elated. I’m buying a digital camera and trying to not make so many excuses.

Hi anon: I understand the feeling of intimidation at an event like this. I think that is within all of us to varying degrees. We’re not all that different. I introduced myself to two people sitting down and got the pleasure of having one of them share her original artwork with me. It was quite a treat! And something I would have missed out on if I hadn’t introduced myself. People love to talk about themselves. I know I do. Good luck!

Grace…wanted to thank you for having taken the time to do the write-up on PR for everyone. SO thoughtful of you and I genuinely appreciate you sharing all that info. Thanks!

Thank you so much, Grace for organizing this event! I was happily surprised by the warmth, conviviality, and mutual interest & support in the room. Thanks to all the speakers for the really interesting and helpful talks, and thanks to DWR for hosting us. I went away that night fairly bursting with energy and inspiration! I second Karen’s, MissNatalie’s, and Jillian’s suggestions. I’d love to have follow-up to this event.

I thought it was rsvp only and since I didn’t, I didn’t go. Now I regret it. So…next time…if there is a next time.

It was an awesome evening. Each of the speakers had something really valuable to share about owning/starting/helping a creative business - warts and all. It’s good to know that a lot of us have similar concerns.

I met some people whom I had never met face-to-face before. That was great. It would have been awesome if we could have all stood in a circle or something and introduced ourselves very briefly, because I just know there were people I didn’t meet because it seemed rude to walk around peering at everyones’ chest (nametags!) That would have taken a while though; there were a lot of women there.

The mini cupcakes were awesome, as were the larger carrot cake cupcakes. Yum!

Thanks so much Grace. It was truly lovely to meet you.

Thanks for such an inspiring night with lots of entrepreneurial gals!

If anyone on the Peninsula or South Bay are interested in forming an ongoing creative biz group, shoot me an email… mona@re-modern.com

p.s. Grace’s PR tips really work! :)

I am so disappointed that I couldn’t make it…I had it on my calender for months.

Please, please let me know if you decide to meet up in SF/Bay area again. I would love to meet up with other creative types….anyone from the South Bay?

Oh, I forgot….thanks to DWR for hosting the event. I went to a fashion event in conjuction with ReadyMade magazine. DWR really seems to support independent design.

A big thank you for all of the effort that went into making this happen. You’re a dynamo.
You’re really an important spokesperson for the new business paradigm — people sharing info and helping one another to be successful, feeding one another.
Merci.

I am sorry I missed it; I too planned to go but babies were calling that night—I’ll plan better next time. Please include me in a regular meet-up for bay area—I would love that—thanks for the comments; the event sounds lovely and I hope to catch the next one :)

A big thanks to Grace & all the talented ladies who attended the biz lady event last week. As a fellow graphic designer, it was really great to see so many of you pursuing not only your graphic careers, but also turning hobby into fruition. Really INSPIRING!

A great reminder to keep making jewelry, cards, and generally getting off the computer! Go ladies go!

Thanks again for the VERY helpful event! It was great to be around so many motivated and creative people. Thanks, too, for posting your PR pdf, incredibly valuable.