Hands On Small Business in Denver

So. The first two (of 100) Hands On Small Business Sessions were held last night. One in Charlotte. One in Atlanta. Both sold out. Awesome! Although maybe "sold out" isn't the right term. Because the classes are free (free!).

There are more classes happening this week. And throughout the next 5 weeks. There are still some dates and locations being finalized. But for most cities, you can already register. Find all the info you need at Hands On Small Business.

For those of you in the Denver area (hey local peeps!), the first class will be held this Thursday. Taught by the fabulous Aimee Greeblemonkey. Here are the deets:

Thursday, October 8th
6:30pm - 8:30pm
at Klein Buendel
1667 Cole Blvd. Suite No. 225
Golden, Colorado 80401
(303) 565-4321

I'll be there. With bells on. And I hope you're coming too. Because I can't wait to see you. You can register here.

One last thing: a little birdie told me the event may be getting some news coverage. So you might want to put on some lip gloss. Just saying.

BlogHer Schedule

Are you heading to the big BlogHer conference next week? Or. Will you be in the Chicago area? If yes, I'm guessing you're having a hard time keeping track of all the parties and extra-curricular events happening in conjunction with the conference. Same for me.

Luckily, the Kirtsy Girls have come up with a fix: We've gathered all the important info in one place. Parties. Suites. Demos. Fun Runs. You can find it all in the Hershey's Kirtsy Party Alertsy. And most of the listed events are open to everyone -- not just BlogHer attendees. Woot! So everyone can join the fun. We're even offering a ready-to-print pdf of all the info for partying on the go.

Personally, I've been studying the Hershey's Kirtsy Party Alertsy like a straight-A student. This will be my 3rd year attending BlogHer. The first two years, I pretty much showed up without ever checking the conference schedule and without even a basic plan of what I wanted to do/see/take part in. But this year feels different. Like BlogHer hit some sort of tipping point and there are so many parties and invites and extra-events that I've had to make some decisions.

If you'll be attending BlogHer this year, or live anywhere in the Chicago metro area, I'd love to meet you. Here's a heads up of My Personal BlogHer Schedule (tentative, of course). Hopefully our paths will cross more than once.

Wednesday:
Fly in to Chicago

Thursday:
4:00 - I'll be attending A Hair Affair — a small gathering hosted by Danielle Wiley, Susan Wagner and Heather Barmore.
6:00 - VIP Guest to the Social Luxe Lounge. I'll even be announcing one of the winners of the BlogLuxe Awards. Nice.
9:00 - People's Party!! Everyone's invited. It's typically the biggest party at BlogHer. Kirtsy will have lots of Hershey's chocolate to give out. Mmmmmm.

Friday:
10:00 - Microsoft Microspa Lounge. I'll be getting my makeup done in the Spa.
10:30 - Session One: Business of You — Pioneers in a Post-Employee World (very likely I will end up talking with someone in the hallway and miss this. But who knows.)
2:00 to 4:00 - Yudu Nation Meetup in the Shutter Sisters Suite (Room #1237 Sheraton Towers) — Come meet me and I'll show you how to silkscreen your very own totebag. Free! Everyone's welcome — even if you're not attending BlogHer.
4:45 - Community Keynote. This is sure to be the very best session at BlogHer.
6:00 - Method Party with Danny Seo. (Remember the cool party I hosted for Method with Danny Seo way back when? I'm wonder what awesome thing he'll teach us this time.)
7:30 - BlogHer Reception
8:30 - Nikon Night Out with Carson Kressley. (Remember Carson from Queer Eye? Do you think he'll like my outfit?)
10:30 - Mommy Needs a Cocktail Party. Sounds like it's going to be fabulous.
11:00 - VIP Guest to Mamapop Party. The perfect way to close out the night.

Saturday:
9:30 - Keynote Address
10:45 - Session One: Business of You — Advanced Social Media, Syndication and Stats (Again. I could end up in the hallway here, but I think this class sounds good.)
12:00 - I'll be speaking with Jodie and Sharon from Playskool.
2:00 to 4:00 - Yudu Nation Meetup in the Shutter Sisters Suite (Room #1237 Sheraton Towers) — Come meet me and I'll show you how to silkscreen your very own totebag. Free! Everyone's welcome — even if you're not attending BlogHer.
5:00 - Closing Keynote
6:00 - BlogHer Cocktail Party
7:00 - This is unofficial, but I'd love to have dinner with all the Kirtsy Editors that are in town.
8:30 - BowlHer '09 Party. Save me the hottest bowling shoes.
10:30 CheezburgHer Party. It would be hard to end on a better note than this.

Sunday:
Head home. Probably exhausted. But happy.

What's that you ask? What's the Yudu Nation Meetup? It's pretty dang awesome. I'll post about it in a minute.

June Hands On Sessions!

Have you heard? There are 10 Hands On Social Media sessions being held this month. Woot! I know the news has been flying around twitter, but my travel/work schedule hasn't allowed me to get the word out till now.

I'm super excited about the whole thing. Kirtsy held a handful of these sessions earlier in the year and the response was universally: we want more, please. So we've been working hard to find the right sponsor — and when Office Live heard about Hands On they jumped at the chance to host 10 big sessions this month. FYI: sponsor = free sessions for readers. Nice.

What are Hands On Social Media (HOSM) sessions? Women getting together to learn social media basics in a very cool, non-stressful way. Like how to Twitter. What to do with Digg/Kirtsy. And when Flickr might come in handy. HOSM is like the new tupperware party — but there's nothing to buy. And they're FREE!

June sessions will be held in Charlotte, Denver, Houston, Salt Lake City and Little Rock. You can find dates, times, registration info and more details at HandsOnKirtsy.com.

The first session is in Charlotte tomorrow. It's going to be taught by my kirtsy partner, Laurie, and it is going to be amazing. If you're in the area — and you're a social media newbie — make every effort to be there. Totally worth it, I promise.

This coming weekend, I'll be team-teaching two sessions with the always enthusiastic Gwen Bell:

Friday, June 12th at 7:00 PM
-Location: The Cup
-1521 Pearl St., Boulder, CO 80302 (303) 449-5173
-Click here to save your spot.

Saturday, June 13th at 9:00 AM
-Location: The Curtis Hotel
-1405 Curtis Street, Denver, CO 80202 (303) 571-0300
-Click here to save your spot.

To any Colorado peeps who might be reading:
I've been jonesing for a get-together since I moved here — I'd love to meet all the wonderful friends that sent kind emails and cool suggestions of places to check out. If you can make it to the Denver or Boulder sessions, I hope you'll come! It's totally free, you'll learn fun stuff and you'll get to hang out in two of the coolest places in Colorado. And mostly, I'd love to meet you!

Girl Guy Party at SXSW

Morning! I'm in Austin, Texas at SXSW (pronounced South by Southwest). I flew in yesterday and I have to say, it's the biggest, baddest conference that happens. Ever. Period. I feel super lucky to be a part of it.

I'm here with kirtsy. We are throwing a crazy Texas party with Guy Kawasaki's company, Alltop. And it all goes down tonight. Because kirtsy is for girls, and Guy is a guy, we're calling it the Girl/Guy party. And it's going to be amazing.

Allens Boots, the classic Texas footwear store, is the venue. (You may have noticed Allens Boots mentioned in the April issue of Domino (that's right. the final issue. sad.). There will be hay. And a chuckwagon. And boots. There will be music. And Guy. And Girls.

Guy Kawasaki is the keynote speaker (the headliner, basically) of the whole, huge, ginormous conference, so you can imagine how everyone wants to get into this shindig. But the guest list is kind of full. As in overflowing. If you're at SXSW and you want in, there's only one way to do it. Find one of the kirtsy girls and ask us for a Girl/Guy bandana. If we have any left, you'll get one. And the bandana will grant you entrance to the party.

The coolest party of the conference. I hope to see you there!

If you can't make the party, don't be sad. You can still win an HP Printer, some high-end headphones and $100 off a pair of boots by leaving a comment on the kirtsy blog.

Gwen & Joel's Wedding

It was beautiful and sweet. During the ceremony, Gwen wore a gorgeous white gown by J Crew. Joel wore Converse. And then it turned into a great big party. See more pics and more deets here.

In other kirtsy related news. A lucky someone is going to win an all-in-one HP Printer, some luxe headphones by V-Moda, and $100 off a pair of brand new boots — just by leaving a comment on the kirtsy blog. That's almost $400 of goodies. The Giveaway was just listed. Only four comments so far. Which makes for some good odds.

Fab photo of Gwen and her lovely Mother-in-law, Beth Longtine, by Aimee of Greeblemonkey.

Things I'm thinking of Today

1) How much I like lists.

2) What the weather is going to be like in Boulder, Colorado this weekend. I'm heading there on an early flight this morning. I'm all packed and ready to go.

3) How awesome Gwen Bell and Joel Longtine's wedding is going to be. That's the event calling me to Boulder.

4) Kirtsy's Party People contest. Three people will each win $200 from Minted. ($200!) Plus 150 cards designed with the winner as inspiration. How cool is that? Don't miss.

5) The funky house I'm renting in Boulder with the kirtsy girls and CosmoPolitician and Mags Mac n Cheese.

6) How much everyone wants a new set of sheets. Including me. You can enter to win a sheet set from Serena & Lily (any size, any style) through Sunday night. Enter here.

Have a great weekend!

Mom 2.0 Summit

I loved attending the Mom 2.0 Summit. I was so proud of kirtsy for putting it on. You can find links to tons of photos and more in depth reports of all things Mom 2.0 Summit here.

Also. Probably my favorite Mom 2.0 Summit report so far is by Holly Buchanan — one of the keynote speakers — and a total rockstar about everything she does (speak, write, consult, network, mentor). Don't miss the slideshow she put together.

Some Notes

I'm on my way to Houston early tomorrow morning for the Mom 2.0 Summit. It's being held at the Houston Four Seasons. Today has been full of packing and unpacking and repacking — sweet Ben Blair has been asked to offer opinions on at least a dozen different outfits as I've attempted to finalize my packing list. Can't wait to be in sunny Texas with my kirtsy peeps.

Guess what else? My friend Kathryn and I are taking 3 of our girls to see The Little Mermaid tonight. This is Olive's first Broadway show and she can not stop bouncing around the house with 7 year old excitement. Time to go get ready for a girls night on the town...

One last thing: I just want to quickly remind you that the Olli and Lime Giveaway is open through Sunday night. You can find the Giveaway by scrolling down or clicking here. Great baby gear! Don't miss it.

P.S. — Okay. This is really the last thing. Is it just me or is the internet broken today? It's like it's moving in slow motion. Or something.

Giveaway — Business Minded Ladies

Goodness. There's a whole lot happening this month with women and social media. Women everywhere, who started blogging or twittering or podcasting on a whim (like myself) have seen a lot of potential for growth and opportunity in this emerging field. And we're getting together right and left to talk about things and get ideas and share our knowledge.

Sometimes these get togethers are simple meetups over drinks. Other times, the conversations turn into full-blown conferences. Last week, ladies all over the country attended Blissdom. Next week, ladies all over the country will be heading to Houston for Mom 2.0. (I'm one of the speakers and kirtsy is putting it on — so I'm super excited about it.)

Anyway. The point of all this is that I thought it would be great to celebrate the fact that women who didn't consider themselves business-y at all, are getting all entrepreneurial on us. Thanks to social media. So the prizes for the Design Mom Giveaway today are all about these women. Five winners in all!



TWO of you will win Peek email devices. (Cherry red ones, of course. Because it's Valentine's Day this weekend.)

You've probably heard about Peek already. It's brilliant. And it's getting written up like crazy by all the major media — receiving rave reviews right and left. Think of Peek as blackberry-lite. It provides email. Period. In a very less is more sort of way. Perfect for the mom who's running errands all day and wishes she could check her email from time to time. Peek is a great companion to her basic-cell-phone-that-works-just-fine-thank-you-very-much. And it's perfectly easy to use. You can explore the device in depth here.

This is where Peek is extra brilliant. The bells and whistles that a smartphone provide are cool, but you have to pay for them. The phones are expensive and the monthly plans that go with them are astronomical and often, binding for years. But the Peek offers unlimited email and texting for just $19.95 each month. No contracts. Ever. With coverage all over the country. Plus they're super sleek.

Honestly — unless you're a hard core tech person, Peek is all the email gadget you'll ever want or need.



THREE of you will win 1000 business cards, custom printed just for you by AllBusinessCards.com.

The thing to do at these meetups and conferences and Hands on Kirtsy sessions is exchange cards. Something that lists your blog url or twitter handle. So that people can find you after the conference. But I know as well as anybody, that when you're just starting up a business or a blog, and you're not even sure where you're going to go with it, that spending even a few dollars on supplies or marketing materials is painful.

Free business cards will ease your conference expenses in a real way. And AllBusinessCards.com will make it easy for you to get them. You can design your card online using their tools. Or upload a file your graphic designer brother made for you. Either way, they'll print and ship them to you pronto.

You've got your Peek. You've got you're business cards. Looks like you're ready to attend a social media conference. Go you! And a big thank you to Peek and AllBusinessCards.com.

By the way, if you're itching to exchange business cards right this minute and you're in Utah, there's an opportunity tonight. Startup Princess is holding a Twitter-pated event to teach women how to use this fun tool. Plus, my sister-in-law Liz Stanley will be there schooling women on how to make the most of kirtsy. Find out more here.

-------------

Guidelines:
-You have until Midnight PST on Sunday, February 15th to enter this giveaway.
-Just make a comment ON THIS POST to enter — any comment. One entry per person, please.
-The winner will be randomly picked and announced Monday, February 16th.
-What are Random Giveaways? Read about them here.

Grommets = Really Cool Indie Products

There is a killer of a contest happening at kirtsy this week. We're hosting it in conjunction with Daily Grommet. And if you've ever sent me an email letting me know about the rad new product you came up with, or the stylin' new thing your brother created, or the super hip item your bff is selling in her etsy shop, then this contest is for you. For reals. (By the way. I love those emails, keep them coming, please!)

Here's the deal: tell us your favorite new-on-the-scene or yet-to-go-big product and you could win a fantastic prize package worth over $230! It's super easy to enter. Just leave a comment over at the kirtsy blog — include the link/url of the product you want to promote and by all means, tell us why you like it. And that's it. You're done. One comment.

Or. Several comments if you want to promote several products. You can enter as many times as you'd like.

What a fantastic way to promote yourself, your friends or your favorite entrepreneur. We can't wait to see what you suggest!



Bummer for me — I can't enter. But if I could, I would link to the beautiful personalized jewelry at Bel Kai Designs. Take a look at my new necklace from Bel Kai. It's so pretty. And it has all 5 of my kids names. Neat!

Fa La La La Lots of Prizes

More good news! — kirtsy's latest contest was just posted. And it's HOT! Over $550 worth of goodies. From two of my favorite companies. Check it out:

First of all, Serena & Lily is offering up a $150 Gift Certificate to their gorgeous home goods shop. You probably know them for their baby bedding, but their line is so chic and sophisticated, that grown-ups everywhere begged and pleaded for them to expand their line. And they did. They now offer all sorts of gorgeous home items. And I covet the whole collection.

To sweeten the deal, check this out: for only the 2nd time in the entire history of the company, Serena & Lily is having a sale. Right now, you can get 30% off all their delicious bedding. And it truly is delicious. You'll want to eat it for breakfast. And sleep in it. All at the same time.

Second of all, All About Cute, an internet hotspot full of lovely items for you and your best friends, is offering up an Orla Kiely Bundle of treats retailing over $400.00! How deluxe is that?

The winner of this kirtsy Fa La La La Giveaway will receive an Orla Kiely Boulevard large zip wallet, an Orla Kiely Dreamsicle orange angora sweater (winner chooses her size, of course), and a $50.00 Gift Certificate to All About Cute, that she can spend as she pleases. I can picture it now. You'll be sporting your hot new sweater while pulling your hot new wallet out of your handbag, so that you can spend your hot little gift certificate.

And you can make that $50 feel like $100. Because from now through the end of the year, everything at the All About Cute site is 50% off. Just use the code: holiday.

It's super easy to enter. Just leave a comment on the kirtsy blog post, or over on kirtsy. Yay!

Of Note.

1) You can find my two most recent posts at Cookie Magazine's Nesting blog — one featuring wire laundry baskets, one featuring custom collage art by Janey Garnet. Both are don't miss finds.

2) Last chance notice:



You can enter the One Laptop Per Child Giveaway at Kirtsy through Sunday 12/7 — just leave a comment and you could win one of FOUR laptops. Sweet! There are a little over 100 entries so far, with four life-changing computers up for grabs — that's really good odds! So get those comments in ASAP. Such a great cause!

3) You can enter the super-generous Klutz Giveaway through Sunday 12/7 as well. Seven Klutz books plus a $50 Visa Giftcard. Fab!

Laidback Home

It's been kind of a whirlwind few days. The kirtsy girls came to town on Monday. We all stayed together at the Hudson Hotel. We hosted a Hands on Kirtsy session that night. Awesome. Met oodles of interesting people. Then followed it up with a Meetup. See Gwen Bell's pics here. On Tuesday we made a field trip to Hershey, Pennsylvania. Hung out with Jesse Engle and Aaron of Tomorrow Pants. Amassed chocolate. And more chocolate. This morning — Wednesday — it was business meetings back in the city. And then I dropped off the crew at LaGuardia this afternoon. And now I'm home. In reporting mode.



One of the people I was lucky to meet at the Hands on Kirtsy session is Tina Shoulders — designer and brain behind Laidback Home. Gorgeous pillows. Hip totes. From textiles she designs herself.

And my addiction for/crush on textile designers continues...

Welcome December

Hello! I hope your Thanksgiving weekend was lovely. I was happy today to wake up and greet December. I'm pretty sure it's going to be a really good month. And the goodness starts today.

In just a few hours, I'll be picking up the Kirtsy Girls at the airport and we'll get down to business with any last-minute preparations for tonight. I hope you will be able to make it. Here are the details again in case you need a reminder:

Hands On Kirtsy
It's a Social Media 101 class for beginners. And it's free.
Monday, December 1, 2008
6:00 to 8:00 PM
Hudson Hotel, in the Studio
356 West 58th Street, New York

Kirtsy Meetup
Because we love hanging out with our NY peeps! Seriously, come by and say Hello. I'd love to meet you.
Monday, December 1, 2009
Hudson Bar
8:00 till you go home
356 West 58th Street, New York

Pretty felt ornaments at Crate & Barrel.

One Laptop Per Child Giveaway

Have you seen the latest contest at kirtsy? It's probably the most Thanksgiving appropriate contest ever. Kirtsy has teamed up with One Laptop Per Child to give away Four XO Laptops! That's right. You could win one of four laptops. Honest and true.

How? Easy: Spread the word about One Laptop Per Child by sharing their link (http://laptop.org). Email it. Tweet it. Blog it. Put it on Facebook. Call a friend. Do whatever it is you do.

Then tell kirtsy what you did by leaving a comment on the kirtsy blog or on the kirtsy entry, like: "I twittered about OLPC." And you're officially entered to win.

Winning a laptop is a fantastic thing. But OLPC's programs are even more fantastic — their whole mission and purpose is to get a laptop into the hands of every child in emerging countries across the globe. Every. Single. Child. OLPC understands how a computer can give advantages and offer opportunities in a life-changing way.



See, the little laptops they make are amazing. Super sturdy. Designed for children's hands. Easy to care for and maintain. Self-networking. And they send them for free to children around the globe. These laptops can't even be bought for personal use — they are strictly for giving away.

With one exception. Over the holidays, OLPC is holding a Give One, Get One (G1G1) promotion. You buy a laptop for yourself or for someone you love, and OLPC will donate another laptop to a child in need. In fact, this G1G1 campaign is the only way to actually buy one of their laptops. Period.



I'm a big fan. If you were reading Design Mom a year ago, you may remember my post on OLPC. We participated in the program last December — and our kids love our XO. Your kids would love one as well! Bonus: I'll bet it's the best price you'll find on a laptop anywhere.

If you are able to get involved with the Give One Get One program this year, you won't regret it. If donating a laptop isn't an option, then I hope you'll get involved by trying to win one from kirtsy!

Share the OLPC link. Tell kirtsy about it. Then you're entered to win. Done and done.

At the beginning of this post, I mentioned this contest is particularly Thanksgiving appropriate. This is what I mean: I am thankful every single day for the opportunities and friendships that have come into my life through a computer and the internet. And I'm thankful for companies like One Laptop Per Child that understand the power that computer ownership can bring to a child's life.

Do You Twitter? Do You Facebook?

Oh my goodness! I'm so excited. Remember when I told you about Hands On Kirtsy? It's a new program kirtsy is launching — featuring gatherings across the country where women can learn how to use web 2.0 services like twitter, delicious, flickr, kirtsy, facebook, stumble upon, rss feed readers, tumblr. . .

The first Hands On Kirtsy was held a few weeks ago in conjunction with the Startup Princess Retreat. And the 2nd Hands On Kirtsy is happening on Monday. This coming Monday, December 1st. And it's coming to New York!

If you're in New York and you're wanting an introduction to social media, we hope you'll attend. Maybe you've read some blogs. Signed up for Facebook. But you're not sure what all the fuss about Twitter is. Or how one would use Stumble Upon.

Then Hands On Kirsty is for you.

Hands On Kirtsy sessions are like the funnest class you ever took. No stress. No judgment. Just a bunch of girls learning what's up on the internet these days. Real hands on learning. Trying things out. Learning new skills. At the end of the session, you'll feel so in the know! You'll be able to use verbs like tweet, kirtsy, stumble and flickr without being tempted to giggle.

Extra fun: all the kirtsy girls will be in town! Laura is coming from Texas. Laurie is coming from North Carolina. And Gwen is coming from Colorado. And we can't wait to hang out with everybody. Best part: it's free dollars and thirty free cents. For reals. The details:

Hands On Kirtsy
Monday, December 1, 2008
6:00 to 8:00 PM
Hudson Hotel, in the Studio
356 West 58th Street, New York



Too advanced for Hands on Kirsty? Already a social media pro? We get that. But we want to see you anyway. So immediately after the Hands on Kirtsy, we've got a fabulous meetup happening. In the same building, at the Hudson Bar.

Kirtsy Meetup
Monday, December 1, 2009
Hudson Bar
8:00 till you go home
356 West 58th Street, New York

For sure, if you're in the area, you need to come by and say Hello! Oh. And send me an email or leave a comment if you can make it to either event — I'd love to know who's planning to come.

UPDATE: You can register for your FREE tickets to either event here: http://handsonkirtsy.eventbrite.com/

Spotted on Kirtsy

Spotted on kirtsy. Another blog to feed my addiction: Greedy Girl. Clever writing. Pretty pictures. And there's a smart calendar swap going on right now as well. Check it.

Also spotted on kirtsy. You can win free registration to the Mom 2.0 Summit in Houston, Texas. The kirtsy girls will be there — with a whole crew of other interesting people — and we can't wait to meet you! Plus, while you're at the summit, you'll get a chance to attend a Hands On Kirtsy session.

What's Hands On Kirtsy? So glad you asked. I've been dying to get the chance to announce this. Hands On Kirtsy is:

"Fun, practical gatherings of goodness to show you and yours a few new easy things to take up online. Each session will be hosted and led by kirtsy editors, kirtsy founders and kirtsy friends, who just want to get together to show you some new (and maybe not so new) cool things that will help make your online life easier, smarter and definitely more interesting."



Basically, kirtsy is going to host meetups all over the country where you can come and learn how to twitter, how to kirtsy, how to use an rss feed reader, how to facebook, how to flickr, etc. We've got 6 dates on the calendar so far. And plans-in-the-works to roll this out nationwide early in 2009 with over 200 gatherings next year.

I can't believe how excited I am for this program! I think this will go a long way in filling a big educational need. There are several people in my life that keep me in the know on the latest social media trends and sites — that teach me how to use sites like delicious and stumble upon. But from what I hear, most women don't have such mentors. So kirtsy's going to make it our mission to teach these tools to women everywhere. Because we can. And because we're all about empowering women online.

What social media/web 2.0 tool do you most want to learn?

Kirtsy/Alltop Party

After the 5MFM interview on Thursday morning, I went straight to Guy Kawasaki's house to help with preparations for the big Kirtsy-Alltop Party. And all the work, work, work paid off. The party was a red hot, super-cool, smash hit — thanks to our generous sponsors and friends like Stephanie from ListenShare and Trae and Jim from YouData.





There was a photo station with a bowl full of fake mustaches acquired by Jordan, and glam dressups provided by Mrs. Kawasaki, and the talented Ms. Juliann behind the camera. There was a button-making booth manned by the highly creative Emily. There was a vintage, red, Italian typewriter where you could type a quick Hello (in lieu of a guestbook). There was amazing food by PSRT Catering. There was amazing swag. The best part: the fabilicious guests of course.





If you get a chance to browse the party photos, you won't be disappointed. And you can see even more here.

Mighty Haus

Did you see what I saw on kirtsy today? The super strong duo of Mighty Goods and Mighty Junior is now a trifecta — Mighty Haus was just unveiled! A daily shopping blog (a clever and witty and just-right shopping blog) that focuses on items for your home. Items like this Paper Potter that I want to own right this minute. Fantastic. Three cheers to Maggie Mason and Melissa Summers on the launch!

Do you know what else is happening on kirtsy this week? A super cool Kirtsy Loves Video Games Giveaway! You have until Saturday night at midnight to get your comments in over at the kirtsy blog. Then. Four Winners will each receive $150 worth of yummy, portable, Nintendo awesomeness. You know you want to get on this. Because you totally wanted to dress up as Ms. Pac Man in the fourth grade and couldn't make it happen. And this will make it all better.

Tasting Party

Spotted on kirtsy. This fascinating article from the NY Times about a tiny fruit that makes everything taste sweet. And now the only thing in the whole world that I want to do is host a Tasting Party.

Also spotted on kirtsy. Goodyblog is having a HUGE Father's Day party. With $5000 worth of prizes. It looks awesome. Don't miss it!

images from the NY Times

Happy Birthday Kirtsy!

I interrupt Ask-Design-Mom Week with an important announcement: It's Kirtsy's Birthday!!!

To celebrate, there is a big, huge contest going on. (I know, I know. No big surprise. Kirtsy is all about big, huge contests.) Go check it out. Wish kirtsy a Happy Birthday. And enter to win over $625 worth of prizes from four fantastic sponsors.



What's kirtsy? It's my other website. That I love. And it's my secret for finding all the best stuff happening online.

Say Hello to Kirtsy!!

I've got some news. Unless you're very new to Design Mom, you probably already know I started another website called sk*rt with two amazing partners. Sk*rt was modeled on a site called Digg and is a place where anyone can share any cool link they find online. It's been up and running for less than a year but is already a pretty darn popular site. I love it. I find cool things on it everyday. And I hope you do to.

That said, we're changing the name. And it happens today. Why? Well, it's because of some unseemly internet drama. The 411: A company with a similar name sued us a few months ago over the domain name. We won. Which didn't surprise us, but apparently surprised them — because now they're back again with an even more massive lawsuit. So. We're changing our name. We have decided to move on. Why fight an enormous corporation with deep pockets and a penchant for sueing tiny companies? And. We don’t believe in skirts fighting. The end.

Which means: we've been working our sk*rts off over the last weeks, and we now have a new name, a new location, and a whole new even more awesome energy!

Sk*rt is now kirtsy.

And I have a favor to ask. I need your help to get the word out, so that no one gets lost and no one gets left behind. Here’s what you can do. You have a number of options. And you can do any and all of the following:

1. Replace your old sk*rt badges with one of these bad boys. Here they are! And go crazy! Feel free to add one even if you didn’t have a sk*rt badge before. Kirtsy badges are the new chartreuse. Which is totally huge.

2. Also, please feel very free to write about it on your blog, or twitter, or facebook, or comment about it wherever you comment, or send out an email, or put up flyers on poles, or chalk it on sidewalks, or do an interpretive dance, or whatever it is that you do, and help us get the word out about the change.

3. Finally, tell anyone you know about kirtsy. And then tell anyone you know who knows people to tell them too. We’ve always said, the more brilliant minds, the better the site. And we don’t want to lose any of those brilliant minds along the way.

To thank you for your help, we've put together a huge contest. If you do any of the above. Let us know about it. In the comments on the kirtsy contest blog post. Or in the comments on the kirtsy entry. Or send us an email at changerocks@kirtsy.com. And you will be entered to win this ginormous Make That Change prize worth over $1,000.

One lucky kirtsy champion will win all of these cool things:

-14 Books from Hachette Book Group
The fantastic Hachette Book Group has published a kabillion great books. And you could win 14 of them.

-A Lands’ End $100 Gift Certificate to buy your new favorite swimsuit.
Lands’ End is known as the long-time go-to spot for the quality and variety (and the best-made swimsuits around). Seriously, a ton of super cute options. How will you chose?

-A Sony DVDirect.
Wow. This is incredible. A quick and easy way to get your home movies and digital pictures to DVD. Very nice. And it can playback on Blu-ray Discs too. For extreme high definition detail of your oh so professional shots.

-An Affirmagy blanket.
We think the Peace blanket is our mantra right now.

-3 cool techy items from Spoon Sisters
A Driinn, the Take Charge, and the ID Pilot Labels. How useful are these products? How cool is this site?

-8 rolls of super cute giftwrap from Hallmark.
And it’s not just giftwrap — it’s adhesive wrap. Brilliant!! If you can operate a sticky note, you can wrap like a professional wrapper of wrappings. You’ll be fancy like that.

-Ten Cases of water from Primo Water.
Primo is the first nationally available bottled water whose bottle is made from plants, not crude oil! A bottle that’s friendly to the environment. What a concept! We love them.

-And finally, a registration to the July BlogHer conference in San Francisco OR a Blogher Reach conference of the winner’s choice. From YouData… a new company that is so freaking smart and fantastic, and you’ll hear much more about them sooner than later. Watch for it. That’s right, this means one lucky winner will be attending a Blogher Conference for FREE. Thanks, YouData!!!

That’s right, kirtsy is having a giant contest with over $1,000 in prizes just for spreading the word and leaving a comment. Easy. Peasy.

And most of all. Thank you for reading Design Mom. And for taking an interest when I post about kirtsy.

kisses, Gabrielle