I was honored to be a panel speaker at the San Francisco Design Center, along with PR consultant Alisa Carol and Dwell Magazine editor Sarah Rich (hosted by California Homes Magazine and editor Vanessa Brunner).  We covered lots of topics, including a sneak preview of Decorati Pro Premier – our new elevated service available to designers looking to use the web to promote and grow their businesses.

Here is a list of websites mentioned:

www.apartmenttherapy.com

www.coolhunting.com

www.core77.com

www.designspongeonline.com

www.dezeen.com

www.dwell.com

www.decorati.com

www.grassrootsmodern.com

www.habituallychic.blogspot.com

www.inhabitat.com

www.mocoloco.com

www.notcot.org

www.psfk.com

www.spaceinvading.com

www.swiss-miss.com

www.theselby.com

If you want to recommend other sites, please feel free to do so here, or better yet, join the conversation in the Decorati Forums where we are compiling a great list of design blogs.

http://decorati.com/forum/thread/96/recommended-design-blogs-up-on-decorati

While visiting Edward Ferrell + Lewis Mittman in High Point, I got to take some snapshots of new products.  The sofa above is my favorite – so pretty!  I love the pleats and other details.  The two sofas below are so plush.  The company is also introducing some new large ottomans with a sturdy table-like top (read: comfortable to put your feet up but can also hold your drink – brilliant!).  Stay tuned for all these and more on Decorati. (more…)

Curious to know what happens after you place an order in a trade-only showroom?  Well, if you are smart enough to order from manufacturer Edward Ferrell + Lewis Mittman, your order goes to the headquarters in North Carolina.  There, a state-of-the-art manufacturing system insures your piece gets completed with high-quality craftsmanship in record time (see our previous Decorati feature on EFLM).  While at High Point market this past weekend, I caught up with EFLM President Jobi Blachy, who gave me a tour of the facility.  I was so impressed, I wanted to show you a few snaps.

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A popular topic of discussion among designers (and homeowners hiring designers) is how to create a fair agreement.  Why is it that so often both sides feel like they got the short end of the stick?  Are there good models out there from other industries?

I asked our FORUMS this question.  What do you think?  Feel free to anwer here or in our Decorati Forum on the topic.

While at Fall Market in LA last week, I was struck by how much curiosity there still is about the basics of design blogs.  Designers want to know what they are, which are the best ones, how they can help their businesses, etc.  Decorati has hosted packed panel discussions at Design Centers all over the country (examples: Schumacher event, Stark event, Robert Allen event, Jerry Pair event) on the topic of blogs, so, I must say, Designers, it is time to check them out.  Your clients may be reading them.

People often ask if blogs are more important than print for exposure.  The short answer is no.  Most of the top shelter magazines have many times the circulation of blogs.  For example, Elle Decor reports a circulation of 520,000.  Other than a few notable exceptions, most design blogs have far fewer than 10,000 unique visitors per month (and by the way, many design bloggers do not understand web metrics and often misreport their traffic when asked).  But of course, blogs are searchable and live “forever” online (something magazines have not figured out yet) so comparing them to print circulation is not entirely fair.  And, bloggers who have managed to build an audience with original content often have a very loyal following with a unique point of view or taste, such as Peak of Chic or Cote de Texas.  So, while print is still the heavyweight in the design industry, blogs play an important, and ever growing, role.

I recently asked our community Forums for their favorite design blogs.  CLICK HERE to see the list or add more.  We also keep a Blogroll of selected blogs on the right rail of Decorati Access Blog.  Enjoy!

Yesterday was fall market at the Pacific Design Center in LA.  I sat on the keynote panel hosted by Traditional Home covering “The Past, Present, and Future of Design,” along with designers Tobi Farley, Windsor Smith, Joe Lucas, and Peter Dunham, and moderator Candace Ord Manroe, Senior Design Editor at Traditional Home.  Candace asked many probing questions about design trends and how elements of design, from colors to materials, can be timeless.  I mentioned how on Decorati we can see data across all manufacturers, and that there are certain shapes of furniture that appear to be timeless in their appeal because they are always the most popular, no matter what color or finish or debut date.  As far as the future of design, I discussed how the speed at which products come to market now via online tools is allowing for far more innovation for interior designers. I look forward to many more years to come of wonderful design.

Thanks again to Traditional Home for a wonderful day of learning and sharing.

After a bit of a break from blogging, I am back.  It’s been a busy month.  For starters, I got married!  I wore a Melissa Sweet dress and added a band of Donghia fabric (Get the Look: Debutante 10032) as an accent color, and to personalize the dress with an element of interior design.  Officially, my new last name is McCarroll, but I’m easing into that.  In addition to a brief honeymoon in Italy, I finished a design project, headed to NY and checked out the Metropolitan Home Showtime house, and the Veranda Art of Design party, for which I was delighted to be on the award nominating committee.  Back in San Francisco I worked with the Decorati product team on a number of new product features, including “Get This Look,” which links photos with the products in them.  Did you see our big story in the NY Times?  Today I was at the Pacific Design Center in LA to be on the keynote panel hosted by Tradtional Home.  Needless to say, it’s been a packed couple of weeks.  Stay tuned for more pics.

One quick note – a big congrats to the First Family of San Francisco, my college friend, Jen Siebel Newsom, and her husband Mayor Gavin Newsom, for new baby girl Montana!

Learn along with me as Clodagh discusses her new fabric line with Duralee due out this fall.  The name of the line is “GLOBAL PASSAGE.”  It is a collection of five exclusive color books full of beautiful, eco-friendly fabrics.  The collection contains over 200 selections – we only had time to look at a few.  Clodagh discusses her inspirations - her travels, her love of spices, and her desire to make green fabrics so attractive you don’t even think about them being green.  We will be featuring the Clodagh fabrics for Duralee on Decorati this fall, so stay tuned.

I was honored to be on a panel today at the D&D Building hosted by Luxe magazine. Left to right: me, Shane Reilly, Decorati Founder, Steve Noble, Luxury Home Alliance, Amy Lau, designer, Michael Wollaeger, Luxe Editor at Large, Pamela Jaccarino, Luxe Editor in Chief, and Barclay Butera, designer.  After an opening from Pamela, which also addressed the merging of Luxe and Western Interiors and Design magazines, Michael moderated the discussion. We covered a lot of ground from products to theories about the trend.  Here are some highlights:

1.    Outdoor is absolutely a booming trend.  Some reasons for this are technologic advancements and the growth of green.  Not all designers are knowledgeable about the vast amounts of products available.  We discussed everything from canopies to fire pits to hammocks.

2.    In a down economy, outdoor products can be a good solution for interior design as well since their durability allows you to take shortcuts (such as skipping the liner on drapery when the fabric is sun resistant).

3.    Being knowledgeable about outdoor can be a unique marketing tool for designers.  The outdoor space can be a place to push design ideas and to demonstrate expertise.

SEARCH OUTDOOR PRODUCTS ON DECORATI

Thanks to the Luxe team and the D&D Building for a great event!

Read the press release with this big news!