There is an epic party on the horizon so start digging through your closets. Admission into the party is simple: wear an Ugly Christmas Sweater. It is happening Thursday, December 11th from 6pm – 9pm here at Impromptu Studio. There is a link at the bottom of the post to RSVP for the party.
We will have Killer Sandwiches from B&B Grocery, beer donated from Olde Main, Live music by Jason Walsmith of The Nadas, and most importantly FUN. We owe the idea to Dallas Moore who is helping us organize and throw what we hope will be a huge bash!
In the spirit of the season we are also asking that people bring donations for the Central Iowa Shelter. Doug Mitchell and Dan Shipton are helping to put on a New Year’s Eve dinner for the Central Iowa Shelter and will bring the donated items from the party to the shelter.
The list of items to bring for donation to the Central Iowa Shelter:
- Both male and female hygiene items/personal grooming supplies (shampoo, shaving cream, soap, you name it)
- Both male and female clothing
- Detergent
- Blankets
- Socks
Follow @danielshipton and @mrdallasjmoore on Twitter and check out Dallas Moore’s blog to keep up with whats happening and to vote on the beer for the evening. Please use the hashtag #uglysweaterparty when referencing it on Twitter.
We hope to see you and your friends there!
Brooke Peterson who is a very talented local photographer brought in several of her pieces to display at our office. Be sure to stop by and see her work and check out her website.
Brooke will be holding a showing here at Impromptu Studio on January 3rd, 2009 from 6pm to 9pm. Details and a flyer for the event can be found on her photography site.
In case you’ve missed any of our recent press coverage we’ve been in print and web:
The Business Record
Living Downtown Des Moines
Star 102.5 Blog
We’ve been on the news:
KCCI
KDSM
And on the radio:
IPR
Justin Brady of Test of Time Design presented at our Ignite Des Moines event on “Networking for Nerds”. We felt that this was especially important because so many of us “nerds” have trouble with this vital business skill. Justin provided us with a list of easy ways to get started at a networking event.
1. Wear a name tag dang it
2. Camera + Photos + Business Cards = Web Traffic
3. Piggy Backing
4. Picking off the Lone Ranger
5. Wear an “Ask me about” tag or pin
6. Be the First to Arrive
7. Be the Last to Sit
8. Bring paper Forget the Pen
9. Ask. Ask. Ask.
10. Get their Card, Follow Up!
Watch his full talk and download the pdf with a BONUS tip!
During Ignite Des Moines, Claire Celsi talked about the growing homeless population in Des Moines. To that end we are organizing a #dmtweetup that will band tweeps together to feed the homeless at a local shelter. This is a great idea and we thank Claire for bringing it to our attention.
Feeding off Claire’s energy and passion, we wanted to find other ways to take the scale of Ignite Des Moines and use it to harness the power of our community for good deeds. Our founder, Daniel Shipton, had an idea come to mind that could help out ALL charities and causes: ActionCamp.
ActionCamp is about gathering really smart people with diverse backgrounds that want to make a difference in their local communities. We put these bright minds in the same room, provide information about the important local causes and charities, then let them brainstorm about how to make a difference. What can the power of people accomplish in 30 hours? We will find out!
Mark your calendars! ActionCamp Des Moines will take place on December 6th & 7th here at Impromptu Studio.
Visit the ActionCamp Des Moines website to find out more details!
Sign up for ActionCamp Des Moines on Upcoming.
Impromptu Studio Action Camp Press Release
WOW! That is all we can say. It has been 4 days since Ignite Des Moines and we still can’t believe how great it went. The next day we figured it up and there were 80 people at Impromptu Studio that night. We had six entries to the egg catapult contest including a creative approach involving a contestant attempting to catch his egg before it splat against the wall.
Thank you to everyone who presented that night! All of the presentations are were inspiring, and everyone did a fantastic job with the 5 minutes time limit. The improv power points were extremely funny and sufficiently embarrassed our own Abbie Shipton.
All in all we had a wonderful time at the event and feel so blessed to have the support of our friends and the community. Thank you all for supporting us, we hope you had as much fun as we did.
Check out some of our photos.
Video recap by CreateWowMedia:
Ignite Des Moines was a huge success and had an amazing turnout. Filling Impromptu Studio with talented energetic people is what we have always aimed for. We would like nothing more than to have you all there working with us everyday and seeing you all there gave us a great idea. We would like to extend an offer to Des Moines: come and cowork with us for the month of November for FREE.
Those who come and cowork will be taking advantage of our Lite Membership. If you sign up for a Full Membership during November you will get the first month at the Lite Membership ($175) price. Take a look at the plans for more details.
We are so excited to be welcoming the Big Dream Gathering to Impromptu Studio. The Big Dream Gathering is put on by Mitch Matthews and his wife Melissa and their team. They know how hard it is to make your dream come true when know one believes in you. That’s why they started the Big Dream Gathering in order to provide a safe and fun atmosphere for people to share their dreams and take that first step toward making them a reality. Here at Impromptu Studio we are providing that same type of atmosphere and community for these dreamers and entrepreneurs to continue to realize their dreams. We couldn’t imagine a better match and we want to thank one of our coworkers Chris Punke for introducing us.
The Big Dream Gathering will be at Impromptu Studio on November 5th and 12th from 6-8 pm both nights.
Last Friday Oct. 24th Abbie Shipton hosted a fun pumpkin carving party at Impromptu Studio. Everyone brought their own own pumpkin and carving utensil of choice.
Susanne (@garlicgirl) brought some fantastic halloween table cloths and napkins, and several people brought snacks to share. It was messy and stinky… someone inadvertantly had selected a rotten pumpkin but all in all a great time. Abbie Shipton put her carving skills to good use and carved the Impromptu logo into her pumpkin.
Check out the photos over at Flickr.
Impromptu Studio’s Founder, Daniel Shipton, is organizing Ignite Des Moines. Ignite Des Moines is built off a very simple premise: If you had five minutes to talk to the people of Des Moines what would you say? What if you only got 20 slides and they rotated automatically after 15 seconds?
Ignite Des Moines will be a chance for its finest to gather, network, and IGNITE! Participants should be ready to learn and laugh, be inspired and entertained. The event will showcase the creative class of Des Moines by listening to the Ignite Talks, participating in short impromptu presentations, and entering into the Egg Catapult Contest. Additionally, the Iowa Web Awards will be announcing its winners throughout the night. Mark your calendars and RSVP now because is an event you won’t want to miss.
We are hoping to fill Impromptu to the gills with local entrepreneurs, innovators, and up and comers. We are looking for sponsors to help us make this event great. So whether you just want to participate or would like to be a sponsor, check out www.ignitedesmoines.com.
