When we told people we were going to Texas in August, they all — understandably — looked at us like we were nuts. I would typically make a joke about how it was “all the work of our friend from Britain” who clearly “had NO IDEA”, but actually, I think Shauna and I have to take equal ownership of that brilliant decision!

And yeah… It was hot. Really, really hot. But we lived to tell the tale… And The Blogcademy Austin was so fantastic that it was totally worth it!

I have to admit that when we first walked into VUKA, a kickass co-working space in Austin, we were a little intimidated. Clocking in at a whopping 3200 square feet — not counting the loft space or enormous backyard — we kinda wondered if this time we had finally overshot the mark. But as soon as our babes started strutting in, we realized that — just like all the others — the space would fill up quickly.

And fill up it did.

In they sauntered, one by one, two by two, and in little groups. On Friday night, during a stroll down South Congress, we were stopped by Becky, who was on her way to meet some of the other blogcadettes for dinner. If you’re planning on coming to a class, we definitely recommend meeting up with some other girls in your city beforehand! It’s so much fun to walk into a class full of familiar faces!

This was our first time setting up the room with tables. It was awesome, and gave it much more of a classroom vibe!

My friend Ed, who I met at Burning Man in 2006, was the perfect intern. (You can’t see it, but his shirt had glittery thread throughout.) And Jenna has the best smile!

We love to give out prizes at the end of class. Becky won 4 tickets to Austin City Limits!

Cupcakes, cookies and baked treats from Sugarmama’s Bakeshop were a massive hit!

We were obsessed with VUKA’s rustic warehouse aesthetic… Check out those amazing lampshades!

Our goodie bag was stuffed with (sparkly) treats: Handbag mirrors from The Aviary, an assortment of vegan soaps from Strawberry Hedgehog, Big Jon greeting cards, Zevia soda, rainbow glitter hair clips from GG’s Pin Up Couture, and sparkly ears from — who else?! — Crown and Glory. We were delighted to add Reeta Krishna’s completely brilliant WordPress For Beginners book to the mix, too!

Plus, their custom tote bag featured a turquoise map of Texas with a big heart in the middle. Shauna really outdid herself!

Getting our learn on with Reeta’s fantastic book! We know it will so helpful for our blogcadettes!

Shauna freaked out over the perfectly-branded cookies from Patty at Fine Art Bakery! And Katie looks pretty happy about ’em, too…

…I mean, can you blame them?!

Elizabeth’s dress was like a discoball come to life, and she is a sweetheart to boot. (We met in a bathroom two years ago!)

We decked out VUKA with Studio Mucci tassels, balls and goodies!

Brittany cracked me up. And Shauna was made for those stockings!

Kiriko is so adorable. I kinda love her. A bunch.

All three of us agreed that this was, hands down, our best class ever. The combination of the space, our comfort level with the material, and the enthusiasm level of our students conspired to make a magical weekend.

For our last US class of the year, it was a fab blowout. With babes from San Francisco, Washington DC, New York, Canada and all over the fair state of Texas, it was such a keen group of women and we appreciated them bringing their energy, A-game and dazzling smiles!

It was sad to say goodbye to these loons at the crack of dawn on Monday morning… But all is not lost. I’ll be reunited with them in five days! Europe, here we come!

We have a handful of seats left at our second London class, so if you’d like to join us, well… You know what to do!

Thank you so much to Jessica Monnich for the photos!