I Paid Full Price for Create & Cultivate. Here's My Honest Take
The good, the hot, & how I made the most of it
As a small business owner who isn't regularly handed free tickets because of my follower count, I paid full price to attend Create & Cultivate this year, plus flights to get there. So I feel like I have a well-rounded perspective to bring to the conversation that's been swirling online since the festival wrapped.
In this article, we're going to talk about why I was drawn to C&C in the first place, what my experience was like across both days, and what I got out of it. My goal is to shed light on what the organizers did right, share my honest overall impressions, and explain why I likely won't be attending next year (but might in the future).
And yes, if you caught me on Threads that weekend, you know I was popping off with some hot takes. This is the calmer, hydrated version. Buckle up, let's get into it.
Why I Said Yes
Let's be honest: of course I wanted to go. I'm a brand designer, and Create & Cultivate is impeccably designed. I appreciate impeccable aesthetics, so I was always going to give it a chance.
But the real deciding factor was the Connect app. I chose C&C over another conference happening in LA that same season because of the promise of curated, one-on-one networking meetings. As someone going specifically to build relationships, that felt like a dream.
(If you want to see how I planned my rainbow looks and brand goodies for the event, check out my post on how to prep your brand for a live event.)
Chartreuse Is the New Butter Yellow
Can we talk about the color for a second? As a designer, I was obsessed with how well branded this entire event was. Lime green was the festival's hero color this year, and it was everywhere: banners, signage, stages. It was energetic and lively, and it got you hyped just by existing.
As someone who has loved yellow forever (way before it was cool), it's been funny watching butter yellow blow up the way it has simply because it's trendy. And now I'm seeing that same energy building around chartreuse. At C&C, it wasn't just all over the signage. I saw a ton of attendees wearing it, too. I have a feeling it's on its way to replacing butter yellow as our new "it" color. Mark my words!
The Heat: A Local and a Visitor's Take
I have a unique vantage point here. I lived in San Diego for 20 years before moving to Portland a year ago, so I experienced this event as both a SoCal local and someone who flew in.
The local in me knows September is one of the hottest months of the year in Southern California. The visitor in me felt every degree of it. Only the Connect Garden and the Quad had real built-in shade, and everything else sat under the broiling sun. Day 1 was so hot that it was honestly a wash in terms of the value I got that day. Day 2 was better, but I had to make a concerted effort to make it better.
I hydrated constantly (thank you to every brand handing out drinks), and I still left California with a UTI from dehydration. I share that not to pile on, but because it shows how much the heat affected regular attendees, even the ones doing everything right.
It also got me thinking about accessibility more broadly. From what I saw, there was very little accommodation for disabled attendees, and my heart genuinely went out to them. An event this size, built around women supporting women, should be a space everyone can fully experience. I've shared more detailed feedback directly with the organizers, and I really hope this is a priority next year.
I'm not the only one who noticed. One of the most helpful takes I've seen came from Hailey Dawood, an award-winning corporate event producer who attended C&C for the first time this year. She breaks down what happened from an event management standpoint with so much clarity and kindness. Her core point? Events are for humans. Before anyone can soak up the speakers, energy, and gorgeous aesthetic (which C&C nailed), their basic needs have to be met. Her conclusion gave me hope, too: C&C has so much potential, and people are speaking up because they love what it could be.
Was It Fyre Fest? Not Even Close
Some folks online have compared C&C to Fyre Festival, and I think that's unjustified. Fyre Festival was actual fraud. C&C put on two full days of programming for thousands of women, with packed stages, major speakers, brand activations, and real connections being made. Was it perfect? No. But it was NOT that bad.
Honestly, I think this is where being chronically online has made us lose the plot. I get it: calling C&C "the next Fyre Fest" is going to do great in the algorithm. But exaggerating for views, clicks, and engagement is downright weird and wrong. This wasn't fraud. It was a generally good event with a few things that are definitely worth improving.
As women in business, we need to do better about what we say and how we say it. Our words carry weight, especially when we're talking about another woman's business. Honest feedback? Always. Hyperbole for the algorithm? Let's leave that behind.
The Connect App: How I Cracked the Code
The feature that sold me on C&C was also the one that tripped me up the most. Here's the thing nobody told us: once you scheduled a Connect meeting, you were supposed to show up at an assigned table at that exact time. I didn't realize this until my third meeting, which means I accidentally missed my first two. (If that was you, I'm so sorry! Send me a DM on IG and let’s connect!)
I finally figured it out by watching other attendees mid-chat and reverse-engineering how they got there. Add spotty WiFi, and I often couldn't even check when my next meeting was. There were so many people I'd hoped to meet that I just couldn't connect with.
That said, the organizers shared that more than 15,000 one-on-one meetings happened over the weekend, so it clearly worked for a lot of people. If you're heading to C&C, or any event with app-based networking, here's what I'd do:
Screenshot your schedule before you get to the venue, so you're not relying on WiFi.
Find the meeting area early on Day 1 and ask a staffer (or a mid-meeting attendee!) how it works.
Message your matches ahead of time with a quick "see you at table 12 at 2pm!"
Leave buffer time between meetings and panels.
The Highlights
The talks
Emma Grede (co-founder of SKIMS and Good American) opened Day 2 and was an absolute powerhouse. When she said, "I never lie," my Libra moon heart was obsessed. So freaking Libra coded, and I love seeing a woman fully own her power.
Brit Perkins' "Ask a Brand Photographer" Hot Seat was unexpectedly valuable. As a designer, I use photographers' work constantly, but I rarely get one-on-one time with them. Being able to ask how to best collaborate with photographers (and our shared clients) during a shoot was so helpful, and I made several connections just from asking my question out loud.
The Longevity + Wellness panel was a big one for me since I design for so many wellness brands. Senada Greca, founder of WeRise, said, "We should stop building brands that make people insecure and build ones that empower others." I 100% agree, and honestly, that's the heart of what I do at Arcoíris.
Another panelist reminded us that "science is a methodology, not a guarantee," and as someone with a science degree, I wanted to cheer. So many people treat "science" as a stamp of certainty rather than what it actually is: a way of asking questions and testing ideas. It doesn't have to be pitted against more intuitive approaches, like the astrology I bring into my work, either. I have a lot more to say on this, so stay tuned for a deeper dive into this topic soon.
The activations
Some of the brand activations were so thoughtful. The Archies sandal activation was genius. We were all dressed to the nines, and most of us were in less-than-comfy shoes, so being able to swap into a pair of high-quality sandals from this Australian brand was a huge win. And they genuinely are such good quality. I wore mine for hours at the festival and after, and they held up beautifully!
Constant Contact offering professional headshots was the standout for me. Swag is fun, but a headshot is something you can use over and over again on your website, socials, and speaker pages long after the event ends. That means every time an attendee updates their LinkedIn or About page, they'll think of that booth. As a brand designer, I'm taking notes: the most memorable activations give people something genuinely useful to take home.
And Zillow handing out electric fans in that heat? So clutch.
I also got to meet The Legal Paige, which was such a full-circle moment since I use her contracts in my own business!
The people
Some of my favorite connections didn't come from the app at all. Because so many people from my San Diego network attended, I got to reconnect with tons of familiar faces across both days, which felt like a little homecoming in the middle of it all. I also met a ton of people from Entreprenista, another woman in business community I’m a part of, and they were all so welcoming and kind. Plus, I serendipitously sat next to a potential client while waiting for Emma Grede's talk, and we totally hit it off. And I met a ton of cool people just waiting in lines. Honestly, I was so busy doing the most on Day 1 that I didn't even realize there were food issues until after the event. Ultimately, despite the event's hiccups, I made the most of every moment I could.
Feedback Is Support
I'm sharing all of this because I genuinely care. The concept behind Create & Cultivate is so cool, and I want it to succeed. Giving justified feedback IS supporting the founders, and I hope they take it in stride and grow from it.
Here's what I shared in my post-event survey:
More shade and cooling spaces throughout the venue
Stronger accessibility for disabled attendees
On-site Connect app guides and better WiFi in meeting areas
Smoother food service
More Latino vendors and booths, especially with the festival in LA during Hispanic Heritage Month
Who This Event Is Really For
Here's my honest takeaway: C&C felt very creator and influencer focused. It seemed best suited for people in the social media space or with product-based brands. I did pick up great insights for my product-based clients, but as a service provider and small business owner who doesn't focus heavily on social media marketing, I don't think it was really catered to businesses like mine.
Would I Go Again?
Probably not next year. As someone who flew in, I wouldn't go out of my way to travel for this particular event again anytime soon, since there are other conferences better suited to my business right now. But if I happened to be visiting family in SoCal and it lined up? I'd be there. And if they make improvements, I'm genuinely down to return in the future.
I left with new connections, fresh inspiration, a potential client, and a serious chartreuse crush. It wasn't perfect, but it was absolutely worth showing up for, especially because I made the most of every moment.
Let’s Stay Connected
Explore My Services to learn more about branding and web design support.
Explore The Apothecary Shop for accessible brand tools and resources.
Subscribe to my Substack for ongoing deep dives on design, astrology, entrepreneurship and being a human in the modern world.
