The creative team at B+C is a tight-knit group, one that spends the work week *and* plenty of time outside of work together. We even have a B+C surf club in which we head to the beach almost every Sunday in the summer. If there is one thing that binds us together, it’s our hunger for creativity far from our desks in San Francisco. We love to travel and seek the outdoors, so when it came to our team offsite this year, a time for team bonding, fireside chats, pitching tents and hikes through the fresh air was on the agenda. Of course, we had to bring our creative touch, so today we have six camping tips to help you plan your next adventure so that it fosters creativity.
What are these RAD t-shirts, you ask? These are from our friends at Parks Projects Co. They are doing incredible things by connecting people with national parks conservancies. As advocates for public spaces in nature, they are offering Brit + Co readers 15% off, now until November 30, 2016! Just enter brit15 upon checkout.
1. Find the ultimate campsite to fit your needs. By being in a beautiful setting outdoors, you leave the noise and make room for creative thinking. Our go-to for hunting down the best campsite is the trusty site Hipcamp — a platform to discover beautiful privately owned land for campouts. We love it so much, we camped with the Hipcamp team over the summer and gleaned some incredible lessons. With over 300,000 campgrounds and campsites to choose from, we were able to find Redwood Camp just a little over an hour from our headquarters. Hipcamp makes it incredibly easy to filter your search based on the needs of your trip (i.e. lots of space, bathrooms and fire pits!).
2. Make it home, even for just a night. Decorating any space, inside or out, allows for creative opportunity. With a group as large as ours, our camping experience ranged from zero nights to backpacking up Half Dome. To intro those new to camping, it was crucial to have enough tents, sleeping bags, blankets and sleeping pads to make it feel comfy cozy.
Make it even homier and fun by putting some flair into the outdoor decor! Ain’t no party like a tassel party.
3. Make meals together. Cooking is never a bad time for opening your mind to new recipes and ways to present the food creatively. Also, family-style dinner makes your campfire circle even cozier. We have two words for an easy and fun way to feed a large group: TACO BAR.
Bring iron skillets to char some vegetables, a nice big cooler to store all the salsas, guac and margaritas, and enough water to keep your team hydrated throughout the trip. Make sure to bring enough wood and kindling to cook your meals and also to enjoy some s’mores underneath the stars. Last but not least, pancakes and bacon in the morning are a must.
These Avex wine glasses were insulated and kept our wine chilled at just the right temp.
4. Make a campfire and provide ample seating. When you create a warm, welcoming environment that gets people to sit together, they are more inclined to start talking… about what inspires them :) Blankets are perfect to use for warmth, as seat cushions and even as tablecloths in a pinch. You can never have too many.
Camp chairs are a plus, but if you’re short on them, blankets are the way to go!
If you want to raise the bar, bring a hammock. Specifically a Kammock Hammock! They’re super easy to hang on multiple sized trucks and compact enough to fit in the smallest of packs. They’re partnering with Parks Project Co. to send 1000 kids outside — read more about that here.
5. Bring creative activities for the group. Need I say more?We’re all about collective art projects, which is why we brought paint supplies and a big ol’ canvas. This was the perfect activity to let everyone’s creative juices flow. It provided a space to get messy, let loose and build off each other’s paintings.
When the stars come out, glow sticks and cameras are a must. Night photography brings out a lot of laughs and crazy dance moves in the dark.
6. Everyone loves a swag bag. It’s no offsite without some swag! Ignite creativity with a swag bag in two ways: either by letting the team design what will go into the bag or by providing items that will get people making cool stuff. Our talented visual designers created these sweet camp mugs. Along with our awesome Parks Project tees and tent flair pins, we also tested some new Eddie Bauer sleeping bags and Thermacell Repeller Lanterns. These were fun and practical gifts that everyone wore and used throughout the whole trip.
The CO in Brit and Co stands for community and is core to how we think about creating content. It’s important to encourage, support and challenge one another every day both in and outside of the office. The outdoors gave us a chance to separate from our daily to-dos and connect on a grounded level. We hope you try it too. #findyourselfoutside #liveyouradventure
What’s your favorite thing about camping? Share with us on Instagram @BritandCo using the hashtags #bcweekender, @hipcamp #findyourselfoutside and @eddiebauer #liveyouradventure.
Author: Anita Yung
Photography: Brittany Griffin
