conferences and events

Expanding Our Octoberfest to Minnesota

We certainly love our local brews. However, a few weeks ago my husband received a birthday gift of assorted Oktoberfest beers from outside our WiscoBeer realm. They say it’s good to expand your thinking, so in preparation for our upcoming Octoberfest Brewery Tour we’re “working” to expand our palettes. Yes, sigh, it’s a tough, tough job.

This year we’re also expanding our brewery tour. In addition to our annual celebration of sipping and scenery, we’re including the Women In Sustainable Agriculture (WISA) Conference in St. Paul, Minnesota.

What a great conference this will be—fabulous women from across the country gathering to exchange ideas, find resources, and network. I’m super proud to be amongst them and presenting the workshop Be a Better Self-Promoter. Do join us!

But For Now, Let’s Talk Beer!

The Mississippi River region is truly glorious in October. After sampling the Twin Cities’ great selection of brews, we’re heading downstream to Fountain City, a cozy community nestled between the river and Wisconsin’s towering bluffs. Here we’re planning a few days of river exploration, state park hiking, and, of course, more sampling.

So Many to Sample

To the delight of beer enthusiasts everywhere, the number of craft breweries continues to grow. Each year as I plan our tour the number of venues seems to have doubled from the year before. Most interesting is the creative entrepreneurship of these small businesses; like, for example, the symbiotic partnership between taprooms and food trucks, which is a tasty win-win for breweries, food trucks and customers alike.

This all leaves us with a hardly-unfortunate dilemma: With so many breweries in Western Wisconsin/Eastern Minnesota, how does one choose? I’ve decided to prioritize our sampling to 1) interesting ambiance (I do like my historic architecture, you know) and 2) if the brewery was featured in Taproom Travelers videos (again, gotta love that creative entrepreneurship).

Promo of My Own

In the spirit of practicing what I’ll be preaching at the upcoming WISA Conference, may I present my 2019 Octoberfest Brewery Tour poster!

Each year as a personal exercise, I design a poster commemorating our tour (check out more of them here). This keeps me in touch with the industry and brings an added element of fun to our travels. Posters are great keepsakes for any event.

Perhaps you have an event you’d like to promote? Or maybe a new line of beverage you’d like to brand? Drop me a line!

Lots of Summer Ramblings: Strawberry Moon to Strawberry Festivals

Several years ago the bulb in our yard light burned out. It was one of those dawn-to-dusk lights set high on a line pole and even though my husband’s job is to regularly climb such poles, he just never got around to climbing ours.

At first, I’d go out at night and it seemed unnervingly dark. We don’t have immediate neighbors so nothing but the celestial sky lit our yard. Oh, but let me tell you, there’s no going back. The event of that burned-out bulb has totally heightened my appreciation of the night sky and I’m now a moon-gazing habitué.

Given that, here’s to a happy Strawberry Moon (Tuesday night) and upcoming Summer Solstice (Friday night). I love them both. With the full days of summer ahead, it’s a wonderful time of festivity and adventure.

Speaking of Strawberries…

They’re finally here! We live on a windy hill and it seems my patch is always a bit behind. But they’re here now and as delicious as ever. Just look at how red and juicy they are, unlike those so-called “strawberries” you find in the grocery store.

Hey folks, shop your local farmers! Eat real food!

Strawberry Festivals and More

One of my tastiest childhood memories is of a strawberry festival we attended while camping in northern Michigan. If I recall, it was a community church serving shortcake piled mile-high with strawberries and cream. Oh, so good!

Quite often such festivals are benefits for a specific cause (like these upcoming festivals here and here). Joining the celebration not only creates fun memories but also supports grassroots working together at its finest.

Food festivals have become one of the fastest growing forms of tourism and there’s a good reason why. They offer a sensory overload of the landscape, ethnicities, history, and food cultures of their given community.

Food lovers love food festivals; ask me how I know!

Which Leads Me To…

When it comes to festivals, I’m proud to help promote two Wisconsin biggies: The Soil Sisters in August and Fermentation Fest in October. These are annual celebrations that each draw thousands of people and have great social and economic impacts on their rural communities. Needless to say, a lot of organizing and marketing goes into these events.

Do you know of a festival looking to grow in its success? I’d love to help. Let’s talk about what makes a good festival and how to get the word out to all those fun-loving, destination travelers!

A Wolf Moon Welcome

Happy upcoming first full moon of the year!

Interestingly, not only will this be the Wolf Moon, it’s a Super Wolf Blood Moon. Super Moon, in that it’s closest to the earth in its elliptical orbit; Wolf Moon, because that’s the name given to January’s moon; and Blood Moon because of the reddish tint that’s going to appear when, yes, a lunar eclipse occurs. 

Barring cloudy skies, here in Wisconsin this stargazer’s phenomenon should appear this Sunday, January 20, between 10:41 and 11:12 p.m. You can bet I’ll be outside watching for it!

Back when people named moons according to the seasons, our northern ancestors hunkered themselves inside near a fire while wolves howled distantly in the January cold. Wolves are a common metaphor for hunger, yet families kept this wolf—hunger, that is—from their door with the food they’d put up earlier in autumn. 

These days, while in the cozy warmth of our homes, we’re browsing garden catalogs and dreaming of the spring months ahead when we can plant those first seedlings. The plans we make now shape the crops we grow in summer and the food we put up in fall, which in turn keeps “the wolves from our door” next winter. 

Preparedness: It’s ongoing through the seasons

For self-employed farm entrepreneurs, winter is time to plan your seed purchases. It’s also time to promote your farm and sign up members for the upcoming growing season. 

Next month is the Midwest Organic & Sustainable Education Service (MOSES) Conference and I’m presenting a workshop that offers great ideas for promoting your farm. The workshop is Marketing & Branding 101 and will be Saturday, February 23, in La Crosse, Wisconsin. We’ll talk branding, because you have to brand yourself before you can market. We’ll then discuss marketing and how social media has become the easiest and most cost effective way to promote your small business. 

Hope to see you next month in La Crosse!

Going the Extra Mile

When it comes to promoting my clients, I love getting out and shouting the good word. It’s easy because I design for clients I totally love and they give me great things to shout about.

There’s something to be said for promoting one’s clients. Their success is my success, after all. But even more, it means I believe in them and I value their product. It means I know their industry. Because I target clients who share my passions, we talk the same talk, walk the same circles and, together, know what brings optimal success.

My Current Project

These days I’m promoting Fermentation Fest, an annual event for which I design a 48-page guide. It bubbles over in my list of personal interests—food, art, agriculture, travel—so, of course, it’s one of my favorite projects of the year. And delivering guides to fascinating people and places throughout southern Wisconsin is as much a perk for me as it is for my client.

Come early October, you can bet I’ll be attending Fermentation Fest. I love the more than 50 interesting classes, hands-on workshops, tastings and more, taught by fermenters, artists, bakers and brewers. I love touring the rolling hills of Sauk County and finding art, performances and music in the Farm/Art DTour.

Sounds like fun, doesn’t it? It truly is and it’s an event the whole family can enjoy.

Fermentation Fest 2018 guides

#GetYourFermFestGuide2018Here

Listed in order of cities are venues where you can find Fermentation Fest guides. If you’re not in these areas, check out the Fermentation Fest website or join the mailing list.

Landmark Creamery, Belleville (Paoli)

SchoolGrounds Coffee House, Cottage Grove

Milwaukee Street Traders, Delafield

Fitchburg Public Library, Fitchburg

2 Rivers Bicycle & Outdoor, Fort Atkinson

Café Carpe, Fort Atkinson

Brickhaus Cafe, Jefferson

GetCulture, Madison

Ground Zero Coffee, Madison

Jordan’s Big Ten Pub, Madison

Madison Sourdough, Madison

Regent Market Co-op, Madison

Sequoya Public Library, Madison

Willy Street Co-op East, Madison

Willy Street Co-op North, Madison

ZuZu Cafe & Market, Madison

Willy Street Co-op, Middleton

Roots Coffeebar & Cafe, Oconomowoc

Firefly Coffee House, Oregon

Good Harvest Market, Pewaukee

2 Rivers Bicycle & Outdoor, Watertown

Tribeca Gallery Cafe & Books, Watertown

 

 

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It Takes Grandparents and a Full Flock

The Instagram rule of poultry is if you’re going to raise layers, you must produce a rainbow of egg colors. Given that—and because I have grandchildren who, in my mind, rate much higher than Instagram—I choose breeds specifically for their color of eggs. My chick order this spring consisted of Ameraucanas for their pastels, Marans for their chocolate (I usually forget and say chocolate covered instead of colored, haha, wouldn’t that be nice), and the gentle, very pretty Lavender Orpingtons for their brown.

Add these to my white-egger Leghorns from last year and you get a full spectrum in every dozen. All for the grandchildren.

flock of chickensRecently my husband was perusing the Abendroth catalog and noticed Lavender Orpingtons were $9.95 each. Oops, I guess I never checked prices. And…Lavender Orpingtons only come as a straight run, meaning they could be male or female. Oops, I didn’t check that either. They’re for the grandchildren, after all.

Isn’t it funny what we do as grandparents?

Fermentation Fest event guide 2018

Last week I wrapped up work on the Fermentation Fest event guide and sent the final draft to press (put the paper to bed, to be jargonly correct). Because this year’s guide is to be a reversible (half of it printed upside down), I went to the print agency to verify it was laid out correctly. Look at this, not only was I provided with individual proof pages and a full size mockup, I also got a cute, mini mockup. I feel like a beloved grandchild.

I’m thinking my favorite businesses are like grandparents; they give more than their all without a second thought. And just as it takes a full flock to produce that colorful dozen of eggs, so it takes a multitude of grandparently businesses to produce a successful event guide. Donna Neuwirth, founder of Fermentation Fest, is a brilliant visionary. Cricket Design Works illustrated the gorgeous front covers—both of them! Badger Group is the dedicated agency doing our professional printing. I can’t put into words how honored I am to work with each of them.

2018 Fermentation Fest event guide

Lastly, Fermentation Fest is made possible by a long list (can we say full flock?) of sponsors, funders and partners. Be sure to check them out in this year’s event guide, which will soon be out in various locations. Watch for it!

Lavender Orpington rooster

And now…drumroll…here’s a Lavender Orpington update. One, and only one, is a rooster. He’s developing his comb, learning to crow and is violaceously beautiful (men have all the luck). If he’s gentle enough, maybe we’ll keep him and hold back a few eggs for hatching.

You know, for the grandchildren.

 

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February Randomness

Wisconsin beehives in winter

Happy February! So what do you think my honeybees are up to these days? From what I’ve read, they’re not hibernating. Even in cold Midwestern temps—and we’ve had plenty of that this year—those little sweethearts are busy in their hives clustering together, fluttering their wings and energizing themselves with honey, all in the name of protecting the queen. Amazingly, bees keep the inside of their cluster a toasty 80-90°F.

Of course, I can’t open the hive because cold air would immediately zap them all. Instead, I go out each day, brush away the occasional dead bee that’s been kicked out and wait until spring to know if my community has survived. For me, only a second-year beekeeper, this is the quiet season.

My Clients

I work with many people who are also in the quiet season. Seemingly so, anyway, because they too are busy behind the scenes. My farmer clients are hunkered down with seed catalogs and educational conferences, like the MOSES Organic Farming Conference, for which I was again proud to design. It definitely isn’t the quiet season for the MOSES team—not with their big event coming in just three short weeks. They put on the largest conference of its kind in the U.S., so if you’re into organic and sustainable agriculture, be sure to attend. It’s over the moon (an apt but pun-ish descriptor in light of last night’s Super Blue Blood Moon).

My Wormfarm Institute clients, Donna and Jay, are currently in Mexico, researching exciting food and art for this fall’s Fermentation Fest (last year’s mezcal class and dinner were huge successes). Both these non-profits could not exist without continuous outreach for funding and exposure. It’s hard, skillful work and Donna is a master. Her efforts were recently rewarded with recognition in an upcoming publication by Americans for the Arts.

Adunate

It’s the quiet season for Adunate too. Quiet, but, again, busy behind the scenes. I’ve been marketing, marketing, marketing—a fact of life for every business. One of my goals for 2018 is to target the female ag industry. In her book Soil Sisters, author Lisa Kivirist describes the growing number of women farmers and how they’re changing the face of American agriculture.

“New women farmers are primarily starting small-scale, diversified, locally focused and family-run operations, bucking the corporate agriculture trend of fewer small family farms and more consolidation,” says Kivirist.

For the most part, those USDA-subsidized corporate farms are producing just corn and soybeans for animal feed or fuel. Contrast that with women farmers who raise a diversity of crops going directly from their farm to a family’s table. Or a school cafeteria. Or a senior health community. They’re sustaining their land and giving back to the soil. Can you see the nurturing going on here? These are the caring people with whom I want to work.

Books I'm reading in 2018

Speaking of books…

Here’s what I’m reading these days (and yes, I’m dabbling in all four—it’s the quiet season, after all). Some of them are great reads about food, land and business. Others will help me to help you market your products. Give me a call!

  • Braiding Sweetgrass: This one drew my attention because it it melds the spiritual and scientific aspects of nature. I’ve long been a proponent of both, like say, gardening by the moon (there’s that moon again!). God created an awesome earth and, of course, every part of it is connected.
  • Articulating Design Decisions: Many times the customer doesn’t understand the designer’s reason for a design. Often designers, ahem, me, have trouble articulating their reasons. This book is well-written, easy to read, and in many ways is applicable to anyone who talks about their product. I wish I’d read this twenty years ago!
  • An Unlikely Vineyard: I want to take a road trip to Vermont! This is both a life story and how-to for restoring the land and building an eight-acre vineyard. She beautifully speaks of terroir, essence of place, and the meditation of cultivation.
  • Gastrophysics: Did you know there’s a science to enjoying your food? Things like what color plate it’s served on or what sounds are playing in the background? This covers our five senses and how they affect our perception of food. One reviewer named it a manual for restaurants. I think it’s great for anyone who markets food.

So there you have it, some happenings in this seemingly quiet season. Stay warm, be healthy and keep busy!

Transitioning from Summer to Autumn

Eat Local Month and Fermentation FestIt’s two weeks into September and my mind is finally beginning to let go of summer. It’s been a slow transition but as autumn reveals its golden glories I can’t help getting excited. And here are two happenings that make autumn great!

September is Eat Local Month

Harvests everywhere are at their peak and whether you glean from gardens, food co-ops, farmers markets or CSAs, the abundance of local food is a celebration in itself. These days, while elbow-deep in canning tomatoes, I’ve been listing to podcasts of Deep Roots Radio, with host Sylvia Burgos Toftness. Sylvia makes a great point when she says “every single food dollar we spend either protects or degrades the environment, produces foods with high nutrition or empty calories, and either helps pay a fair wage or keeps farm workers among the working poor.”

So yes, this September eat local. Hey, eat local all year long!

Fermentation Fest is in October

On that note, if you’re interested in learning to preserve this local food, plan ahead for next month’s Fermentation Fest. The Fermentation Fest team and I recently put out a beautiful event guide and you can now find it in Madison and Milwaukee area coffee shops and food co-ops. It details more than 60 classes and the great food and art events happening in Reedsburg.

Happy autumn everyone!

Sticking Up for Stock Imagery

Wisconsin Lutheran State Teachers' Conference 2015

True fact. We designers are as highly opinionated as a house full of relatives gathering for holiday dinner. Of the many obtuse things we debate, stock imagery rates high. Let me assure you, at this very moment there are multiple “dis-cuss-ions” happening in design forums round the world as to whether or not reputable designers should use stock imagery.

Never one to bite my tongue, I’m going to boldly exclaim “why not use stock imagery?”

Then like any other non-committing diplomat, I’m going to say it depends on what stock imagery you use, how you use it and when. And I’m going to proudly validate my opinion with our recent program for the Wisconsin Lutheran State Teachers’ Conference.

But first, let me explain stock imagery.

Stock photo used for advertising in WLSTC program

Stock images are professionally created photos and vector images that are bought and sold online. They’re often used in advertising, as shown above. The level of professionalism varies, depending on how much you’re willing to pay and what type of licensing is offered. If used right, stock imagery can be an effective tool when it’s necessary to stay within a schedule and budget.

Like we do with the WLSTC program.

Each year I work with conference coordinator/wonderwoman Kris Snyder in producing collateral that’s reflects the mission of this highly professional event. The conference is attended by more than 1200 teachers, yet in order to keep registration costs to a minimum the committee maintains a conservative budget.

Use of custom photography in WLSTC program

In recent years, we’ve used custom photography for the registration and conference programs. These are real photos taken by schools within the district and donated for our use. Some of them are amateur; others are professional, as is this one by Gusto Photography. Either way, the photos are meaningful because they feature the very students taught by the conference attendees.

Stock vector image used in WLSTC program

And yet, on this year’s programs we used a Vectorstock image. Stock imagery!

Yes, I could have custom designed something equally well. Or, I could have hired an illustration specialist. Here’s the thing, good design takes time and time costs money. A wise project manager examines all aspects of the project; the timeframe, the budget and, of course, the use of the product. Since these programs were to be used only for the conference, purchasing a stock image was a better use of our resources.

Here’s where I justify my argument: Stock imagery doesn’t have to be a lesser quality of imagery. Nor must it be generic.

A good designer knows how to choose stock imagery and customize it to fit the project. For starters, we found a funky, cool image that communicates our message well. Then, because it’s a vector, I could take it apart and rebuild it for our needs. Lastly, I changed the colors to coordinate them with our theme.

So there you have it—my two cents, for whatever it’s worth. If you need help managing your project for maximum efficiency and effectiveness, give me a call.

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