How to Make Friends in DC (part 1)

new to DC, or just ready to make new friends in da city

I’ve found myself on a mission in DC (many missions actually). One of them being to figure out the workings of the social system in DC (the Scorpio in me stays observant, loves psychology) so I’m always looking for what clicks and what doesn’t. After a lot of observation, of myself and others, and hearing lots of peoples stories and taking into my account my experience, I’ve figured out where to go/what to do to make friends in DC and also potential romantic partners. Today we’re just talking about where to make friends in DC. If you want information about where to find potential romantic partners in DC, let me know in the comments.

There are many different ways. I’ll share a few today

We have

• groups geared towards making friends

• groups for people with the same interest

• activity groups

• conducive third spaces

• parties (because this is a whole topic on it’s own, I won’t be diving into this one today)

Let’s get into it:

Friends In: Who would I be if I didn’t plug my own community. I started Friends in with a really good friend of mine to create a space for people to connect and form friendships with each other intentionally. I was tired of the “what do you do for work” question as an intro question to meeting people, and really wanted to connect on a deeper level, so each month we have our signature event “Friends in DC” where people get to connect using connection cards, for 5 rounds, and then we have an afterparty where you can dance into the night with your new friend.

Friend of a Friend Social: Connection through a fun activity or shared interest like craft nights, vinyl nights, etc.

Black Girls in Art Spaces: I’ve made so many good friends through BGIAS. If you love art, this is such a beautiful community of women (with chapters all over the US). They do lots of exhibit viewings together, artist discussions, and panels, etc.

Black Girls Love Coffee Shops: If you love coffee shops, this is another great energy group of women connecting through different activities including mixers.

Through Activities:

Soul Brain Trivia: My absolute favorite trivia in DC. I used to be a trivia hater, but I’ve had so much fun at this trivia, and I’ve met so many cool people at these events.

Choc City Cornhole: If you love cornhole, this is a great place to play and meet people. Even though I haven’t been, I’ve heard such great things about this group.

Bingo Baddies: Ok, so I came across this page on instagram. While I haven’t been yet, it looks super cute.

Conducive Third Spaces

Without hesitation, Eaton DC is my third space in DC. The Eaton House has a ton of programming, and I’ve met some really cool people through the programming that happens there. Everything I’ve been to there feels very heart-led, creatives-friendly, and from a genuine space. A couple groups that have events here include A Not At All Creative Kickback, NoFreeGas, Art and Soul Sessions, etc.

Movement Groups

Do y’all remember the post I made about Hobbies in DC? Ok, all the info about the different movement groups are in that post. I’ve made some really good friends from the walking, running and hiking groups, so I highly recommend using movement groups as a way to make friends

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Now that it’s summer and everyone is outside, I have plans to be outside and try some new places, and new groups, so I’ll report back to y’all in part 2. Also, put your girl on to your favorite places to make friends in the comments.