I saw this event on Instagram one day and after visiting their page and looking at the website, I knew I had to go this year. If you are unfamiliar with BlogHer like I was, it is a yearly conference that has been celebrating female content creators, bloggers, influencers and entrepreneurs since 2005. It just empowers women in all aspects of life, not just blogging. You may want to grab a snack and enjoy.

I came up to New York the night before to make it easier on myself because I had to be up pretty early in the morning. After settling into my hotel room, I wandered out to find something to eat because I came straight after work. I found this cute Italian restaurant and ordered this amazing margherita pizza. I forgot the name of the restaurant but it was so good (I did eat the whole thing lol).

Day one of BlogHer started with a breakfast that was thrown by Vagisil. I had to get up pretty earlier to be there at 7am. There was coffee and donuts and it was such a cute rooftop setting.

You got network with people as we waiting to head over to BlogHer. We heard from the She-E-O(I love this lol) of Vagisil, Keech Combe Shetty which I found out that she is the third generation of running the company. They recently launched a new emergency contraceptive and empowering women to take control of their sexual health. I like that when you buy one, you get another to give to a friend or keep for yourself.

We took the walk of shameless over to BlogHer after the breakfast which I thought was so cute. We walked a few blocks all holding pink and purple balloons. I think were causing a little pandemonium on a Wednesday morning with the balloons and holding up traffic to cross the street lol.

The conference was held at Pier 17 and the outside scenery was so beautiful. There were boats by the pier and you had a view of the bridge.

The registration line was a little chaotic to me. When you got up to the desk, they were shuffling through tons of name cards trying to find yours or you had to write your name on one if it was not found. It would be been helpful if they were organized a little better so it made registration a little easier.

Inside the venue was so spacious and nice. I love the flowered wall when you first walked in to take pictures. I loved how other bloggers and influencers wanted to help out and take pictures for other people.

Jumpsuit from Charlotte Russe

We were also greeted with breakfast by Pret. They had croissants, water, juice, coffee for everyone and they also provided lunch as well. Also in the first room was all of the sponsor tables to interact with such as Honest Beauty, Best Buy and Fresh Direct.

There were also two stages, the main stage and the creator stage (I didn’t realize the creator stage until the end of day 1 lol). Most of the conference took place on the main stage. It was best to get in that room early to reserve you seat so you could see the stage.

The day started off with a welcome from Samatha Skey, the CEO of SheKnows Media.

After the welcome and a mindful moment, the sessions began. We heard from so many influential women that were dropping some knowledge, giving us jewels and empowering us. I didn’t know that actress/model Brooklyn Decker and Whitney Casey started a business called Finery which helps you organize and style your wardrobe that you have at home.

I thought I knew about most influencers but when Marie Forleo came to the stage, it was like I was the only person who didn’t know about her. She was just so real and energetic. I loved how she just spoke the truth and gave everyone some amazing advice. One quote that she said that I think stood out to everyone was “Clarity comes from engagement, not thought”. When she said that, I could see it hit something with everyone. She also said that the most underrated qualities are patience and consistency. I just took away so much from her.

In between the panel sessions were networking breaks where you got up to stretch, go to the bathroom, grab a snack, charge your phone for a bit, network with others and get around to the sponsor tables. I know for myself that I cannot sit for very long listening to people talk so I really appreciate the breaks.

When it was time for lunch, it was also a little chaotic too. It was just an announcement that lunch was ready and just imagine hundreds of hungry women rushing to get lunch at the same time. It was a bit overwhelming for me but they did provide a good spread for everyone.

The second half of the day was hearing from a lot of the keynote speakers, masterclasses and panels. I didn’t know that Tiffani Thiessen had a cooking show on Food Network and she is also coming out with a cookbook. She also said something that stuck with me when she was asked about dealing with the negative side of the business. “It takes a lot of energy to empty someone’s bucket than to fill it”. It really put things in perspective on how we treat others and dealing with negativity in life.

I loved hearing from women who just took chances to make their careers happen and how they just gave us the tools and knowledge to navigate it for ourselves. I was taking notes like crazy with all the advice, quotes and everything. I was just feeling so inspired and empowered and it was only day 1 lol.

After the speakers and panels, it was time to give out some awards. A few brands won the Femvertising Award for creating ads that show women in a positive light and breaking those typical stereotypes. Tamron Hall (she looked so pretty) came out to present the 2018 Voices of the Year award to amazing, fierce women who spoke out and did some extraordinary things.

After the awards was happy hour (I was ready for it and drinks were starting to be passed out a little earlier lol) that had some tasty appetizers that I could not get enough of and plenty of drinks. You got to walk around and talk with other influencers and mingle. It was a great end to day 1 of BlogHer.

My biggest take aways from Day 1 was hearing from Gabrielle Union Wade. I love how transparent and motivational she was. It was just so inspiring and empowering to hear her speak and just be so open with us. I enjoyed meeting new people from all walks of life and the positive vibes going around. I was so excited for the next day.

I am going out of my schedule this week to bring you this recap of BlogHer. I will have my recap of Day 2 tomorrow and the vlog on Thursday and Friday.