The story goes: when Brandon Holley, editor in chief for Lucky magazine, asked the fabulous Diane von Furstenberg to be the keynote speaker at Lucky’s Fashion and Beauty Blogger conference (FABB), Diane replied in her thick accent, “I vill speak. To your bloggers.”
And that she did.
You see, Diane knows a thing or two about running a successful business. Surrounded by 250 fashion and beauty bloggers — essentially entrepreneurs in really cute shoes — Diane charmed us all with tales of her life before The Wrap Dress (so iconic it deserves capitalization) and shared with us her own personal mission: to empower women.
My suede heels were still drying from my rainy trek into Manhattan that morning and I already had my first goosebumps of the day thanks to the candid DVF. She shared with us her belief that every female should have an identity outside of work — which is exactly why I was taking a vacation day from my non-fashiony non-profit job to attend FABB, held at the swanky Apella Center overlooking the Hudson River.
The day was jam-packed with inspiring entrepreneurs who shared their success stories. Here are some of the highlights from the day:
After an initial OMG, it’s the Kardashian sisters! moment… I calmed down and enjoyed hearing from Khloe, Kim, and Kourtney about their passion for fashion and sisterhood. But let’s be honest, I was mainly just mesmerized by their shoes…
… and their camera crews that set up shop right in front of me. I cannot imagine trying to keep up with those Kardashians.
I wore an Express dress to the conference (after MUCH obsessing), so it only seemed approp to walk the runway that was set up in the Express suite. Their chief marketing officer, Lisa Gavales, was at FABB and spoke about learning from your mistakes. “If you don’t fall down, you weren’t trying hard enough.” (Glad I didn’t fall down on the runway though!).
Then I accepted the style challenge at the White House Black Market suite and styled this model. Wish I coulda taken that sick leather jacket home with me! But chatting with WHBM President Donna Noce Colaco was a nice alternative.
Ready for a pop quiz? What is the one beauty product you can see without having to look in the mirror? Nail polish! Essie Weingarten, founder of Essie nail polish,shared this tidbit. And then fed us cupcakes that matched her fall colors. Smart lady.
A gorgeous purse with a built-in iPad section for easy access is pretty genius, no?
The best part? Sharing style tips, hairspray, and champagne with other passionate bloggers. Cheers to an awesome conference!
Tags: blogger conference, diane von furstenberg, essie, express, fabb conference, kardashians, kim kardashian, lucky fabb, lucky magazine, nail polish, white house black market
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