14 Women Reveal the 1 Essential They Carry to All-Day Conferences
ReMake is fully underway, y’all, and it’s been as awesome as one would expect. As epic as the speakers + panels have been, we’re just as excited to hear from them once they walk offstage, not to mention our attendees! Not only did all these women (and a handful of dudes!), give and get great insights, but they looked *great* throughout the entire conference — from morning to night! We were curious about what one, single thing they depended on the most to get them through the eventful day that they toted along with them, and the answers are as real as they get. From apps to lipstick to a change of clothes should spills strike (and they *could* have — there were watercolor stations at every table at the conference, here are their answers.
1. Kate Puhala, Style Editor, Brit + Co: “I can’t get through the day without my Glossier Balm Dot Com Lipgloss. The packaging is well loved because I use this everyday. I keep it in my wallet and wipe it on my lips in the morning, for a quick pick me up in the afternoon or anytime I just feel like I need that extra oomph. I love it because it’s really velvety and it provides a nice sheen on my lips. And it has this super dreamy coconut smell that transports you — it gives you island vibes.”
2. Jessica Hische, Independent Designer and Author: “Every single day, I wear mascara — that’s my definite go-to. I wear MAC false black eyelashes mascara. As long as I have that on, I feel put together. And this is not an essential thing, but it’s a fun thing — I have one of those little Fuji Instant cameras that takes mini pictures. I’ve been taking it everywhere with me recently. Ever since i had a baby, I’ve been trying to come up with ways to take photography that’s not just like pretty phone photography or even like bring your good camera with you photography, but just like captures the memory. I put together an actual photo album of all these photos, so I write a date and a little info about where it happened and while they’re not the best photos in the world, they’re really good for conjuring up memories. It’s become a really fun thing to carry around with me.”
3. Taryn Rose, Founder and CEO, DRESR: “I Can’t go a day without my Chanel lipgloss in whatever color I find duty-free.”
4. Amanda Mizrahi, PR, Edelman: “I have a kind of pen that I really like called Stablio pens. I like the way that my handwriting looks with them. I started using them when I was studying abroad and I couldn’t find them here at first, but they’re finally selling them on Amazon — now they’re my #1 go to pen.”
5. Tina Seelig, Stanford Professor, Neuroscientist and Author: “I don’t leave home without my Mac computer. It is my lifeline; it’s connected to me and my communication with people all over the world — it’s an extension of me. I love it for taking notes — I’m often writing ideas down so I don’t loose them like I’d lose a piece of paper. With my computer, everything is in one place.”
6. Jen Gotch, Founder and Chief Creative Officer, Ban.do: “I always carry this tiny aromatic stress treatment by Tata Harper. It’s $80 and worth every penny because if you’re feeling anxious or stressed at work you just rub it onto your wrists and inhale — I usually make a sort of cave with my hands and smell. The scent makes me feel instantly relaxed. I don’t know what’s in it other than magic. I have one at my desk and one in my bag at all times. Anytime someone comes into my office and they’re feeling super stressed or anxious I just say “Hold out your wrist,” I dab a little bit and now the girls know so they’re always asking, “Can I get some of that stress treatment?”
7. Jodie Fox, Co-Founder and CCO, Shoes of Prey: “One thing that’s going to get me through today is Slack — it’s one of my fave apps on my phone. My team is broken up into places all over the world from China to Australia and all over the US — SF to Seattle to Chicago. Having access to Slack is something that means I can be sure I’m not letting anyone down, catching things they need help with or giving an opinion but doing in a bite-sized way so I’m not distracted from what I’m hearing from all these amazing inspirational people.”
8. Misty Spinney, Beauty Editor, Brit + Co: “Because I’m a hair and makeup artist, I do my makeup in the morning and set that ish for the day so my answer has nothing to do with beauty! I always, always have my phone/wallet with me — it’s handy because it’s a two-in-one and keeps my cards and my phone together so I won’t ever have one and be looking for the other ever!”
9. Jane Li, Walkinthese: “My most important thing to have with me is a pen, specially this pen because it’s my favorite. It’s very thin and writes very smoothly. I love it — I have 20 at home. I write random notes and doodle things like animals, castles and buildings with it all the time.”
10. Kristen Shearon, Havok Designs: “I have to have my lip balm and my Tic Tacs or else I would never get thru anything. With Tic Tacs, my flavor of choice is fresh mint — the orange flavor I just eat them candy, so I’d have to buy, like, 20 boxes. My lip balm is Palmer’s Coco Butter formula — it’s all about the coconut butter. It’s nude and it lasts forever even though I’ve used it a millinon times.”
11. Courtney Brigham, Head of Innovation at Adobe Creative: “I can’t live without creativity apps. I love using instagram — it’s my absolute favorite place to get inspiration for creativity and to see what other people are doing. Behance, which is one of our apps, is a great app to get lost in, too, because there’s so much content. It’s an online community where you can post your portfolio, so a lot of creatives post their work and get discovered and are able to find jobs — often they’re doing something creative as a side project and they end up finding full time work at big companies and doing amazing things.”
12. Ristina Gooden, Sugar Hippo Bakery: “I brought a cardigan just in case I get food or something on myself! I was really afraid of wearing a white shirt, but I wanted to so I brought a backup option! Sometimes you have to do it. It’s a real thing.”
13. Dora Hsu, CPO, SmartThings: “I carry a bag of almonds. That’s one thing I normally go to conferences with and always have with me. They cut cravings, so, if you’re so hungry, you can pop a couple almonds and you’re ready to go.”
14. Anjelika Temple, Creative Director, Brit + Co: “I always have my notebook and pen with me. Every single day, I keep it in my purse to take notes and jot down creative ideas that pop up throughout the day.”
What essentials do you keep in your purse when your in for a long day? Spill your 9AM-9PM must-haves in the comments below.