Vera's birthday: all-day event

The woman of the hour: happy birthday, Vera!

The party for Vera's birthday continued after Tuesday night's VIP event for Wednesday's all-day event. With mini cupcakes, an adorable gift with purchase, and great offers throughout the day, it was one of the best birthday celebrations I have been to! And as always, the Vera Bradley fans were highlights also: I loved working with the amazing Kenwood team, chatting with sweet guests, and I even had a few friends from Indiana come for the occasion!

An outline of the day's festivities!

10am to noon = All in One Wristlet mania!

The first offer of the day was a great discount on the All in One Wristlet--normally $32, but during those 2 hours, it was $20! Before the doors even opened, fans were waiting outside so they could have the first picks. The reasons for the All in One Wristlet mania were pretty varied: bridal party presents, back to campus, Christmas present, and just for every day!

One of the many Vera facts signs around the store--this one is talking about the Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast Cancer's pledge of $10 million (and plans for another $10 million!)

And speaking of facts, my older brother Andy impressed me with his knowledge about Vera Bradley! His comment on the post about the VIP birthday event:

He is right: Vera Bradley's real name-- Veronica Bradley, and birthday-- August 9, 1909. Someone has been doing his homework!

Intern dinner + celebration + O-H-I-O

Intern Dinner: Wednesday marked the grand finale of the Fort Wayne Chamber of Commerce's Live, Learn, Intern series this summer. It was a very nice reception at Sycamore Hills (the same site as the Classic dinners), complete with excellent food, special speakers, and door prizes (the VB interns cleaned up: I won a gift card to JK O'Donnell's, and Allegra and Megan each won a Starbucks gift card!).

Sycamore Hills Clubhouse--the venue for the final Live, Learn, Intern event.

I'm not biased or anything, but I think we had the best table! Alicia and Jill, our intern coordinators, entertained us with funny stories of their kids and gave us some inside scoop on Vera Bradley.

Alicia and Jill, human resources extraordinaires!

Celebration: Today marks Heidi Floyd's five year cancer free anniversary. The lovely folks at Production road (shout-out to Foundation intern, Karen!) organized a breakfast to celebrate. Special surprises: a visit from Heidi's adorable family and a new pair of pink shoes!

Congrats, Heidi--mom, survivor, blogger, Twitterer, and ambassador!

The celebration breakfast at Production--all decked out in Loves Me..., of course!

O-H-I-O: This weekend I will be hanging out in the buckeye state for the Frill Fashion Photo Shoot at the Vera Bradley store in Kenwood Town Center. Stop by and strike a pose!

Campus wishlist

My post mentioning back to campus emails got me thinking about my own trek to school...and more importantly, what I hope will be coming with me!

In the middle: the bulldog statue outside of the Butler University student center.

1. Ribbon Board. Luckily, I still have a few weeks to decide which color to choose. Poppy Fields is a front runner, with Very Berry Paisley close behind...

2. Sherry sunglasses in Tortoise. Because the sun shines extra bright on Butler!

3. Sharpies. I've been admiring Emily's collection when I stop by her desk and it is time to start my own collection. I have a few black ones, but I need some color in my life!

4. Keep Calm and Carry On water bottle. I couldn't believe it when I found this online! I recently lost my (not as cool) water bottle--not after a semester of lugging it on trips around Europe, but during a visit to the local Barnes & Noble! And now, a replacement in my mantra? I MUST get this.

5. Pocket Folders. I am very excited to use my Carnaby folders, and need a few more as well.

Click here for more details and enter to win!

The ultimate wishlist item? A 32GB iPad™! I cannot get over how awesome this is: one lucky person wins an iPad™and Mini Laptop Bag, and 12 other people walk away with other Back to Campus bags. I think this contest represents the true meaning of "back to cool"!

Forget ninety degree weather... fall is here!

Fort Wayne may still be hot, but my mind is on fall... fall colors, that is! Yesterday marked the launch of the new fall 2010 colors and styles, and the Vera Bradley offices were buzzing with excitement--and color!

The Customer Service desks welcomed color with open arms.

Some members of the web team came into the office at 11PM on Wednesday night to get the site ready to go with fall items. They updated verabradley.com and Vera Bradley on Facebook, youtube, and Twitter in the wee hours of the night so when Vera Bradley fans woke up on Thursday, it would be like Christmas morning...in fall!

As a treat for their hard work, Dave (of birthday fame) took us to Jefferson Pointe to see the Vera Bradley store and to have lunch. I have been to the store quite a few times this summer and loved seeing new products lining the shelves this time around. My mental wish list grew by the second--I know I will be going back to school in style!

I'd choose Very Berry Paisley any day!

Emily and Nissa enjoy a sweet treat at the candy station.

I loved being a part of the fall launch! The web team did a great job of transitioning the site and it was fun to hear about their late-night adventures (I heard Steak 'n Shake and a meat and cheese tray were involved...) And talk about dedication--they didn't leave until 3AM on Thursday!

The web team at Jefferson Pointe--looking good in our "be colorful" t-shirts (check out other employees sporting color on Facebook!)

Standing tall for Vera Bradley :)