Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Lunch with Holly Becker of Decor8


In late August, I was invited to attend a book signing at Anthropologie in Boston featuring Holly Becker of the well-known design blog Decor8, where for the past 5+ years she has featured “fresh finds for hip spaces.


Holly, along with lifestyle writer Joanna Copestick, has taken the design philosophy of her highly followed blog and has turned it into a really fabulous book filled with
1,000 professional design ideas for every room in your home.



photo Debi Treloar; designer Sania Pell
Decorate is available at local Anthropologie
stores or through
Amazon.com.



Peppered throughout with inspiring quotes from talented designers, and image-rich with a wide range of decorative styles, Holly has created an extensive guide that encourages readers to uncover their own personal design aesthetic while providing tips and techniques to decorate with confidence.






Meeting Holly in person was such a treat! Even with her cross-continental fame (she lived in the Boston area for 20 years but now lives in Germany with her husband) she is very approachable and truly values connecting with others. There were lots of people in line who had taken her e-course on how to establish a meaningful and creative blog (Blogging Your Way) and many others who have followed her creative journey throughout the years. She was warm and gracious to all, even after signing books for over 2 hours!




Before sitting down to sign books, Holly shared decorating tips with a group of attendees who had signed up for her mood board presentation. I wasn’t able to make it to this part of the event, but a lot of other bloggers in attendance wrote about it (see list below).




After finishing up at Anthropologie, about 20 of us headed to the Back Bay Social Club which was just a short walk down Boylston Street. We filled two long tables and Holly encouraged each of us to stand up and introduce ourselves to the group and share a little bit about why we blog and what else we do to fulfill our artistic impulses. The room was filled with a creative buzz and there was lots to talk about!

While I did not get a chance to speak with everyone personally, I was really impressed with the accomplishments and goals of these women who had gathered to meet Holly. I was happy to spend some time getting to know Rochelle Greayer, a landscape designer turned editor, who is on the verge of launching Leaf Magazine. Just like when I started New England Finery Magazine, she was full of contagious enthusiasm! Being a gardener myself, I am looking forward to reading their first issue (due out in October) which I am sure will be beautiful and informative.





I sat next to a handful of Boston bloggers who I have met at other design events (at the Boston Design Center and again in NYC on the set of the Nate Berkus show). I was also introduced to other area bloggers that I have been following online. Here I am chatting about blog writing and life in general with Laura of Journey Chic. Laura’s blog focuses on sharing easy and affordable design style tips. During lunch she told me she used to be roommates with Boston blogger Erin Gates of Elements of Style.


Here are some more photos from our end of the table:


Artist Sarah Ahearn with lifestyle blogger/writer Katy Elliott.
Photo credit: Amisha Thakkar-Kashyap


This was my first time meeting the two Kates who blog:
DomestiKated Life and Katy Elliott


It’s always fun spending time with Boston bloggers!
Julieann (CreateGirl)



Thank you, Julieann, for getting us all together. It is always a pleasure to connect with and support other creatives!



Check out the blog posts below. Most of them share their personal thoughts on gathering to meet Holly Becker, along with providing insights on what it is like to travel a creative path. The first two posts are from Holly : ) Enjoy!



Decor8

HausMaus

CreateGirl

Sabbe Interior Design

Everything LEB

DomestiKated Life

Katy Elliott

Monica Lee Studios

WellerWishes

Studio G

Sarah Ahearn Bellemare

Journey Chic

Gorgeous and Fun Things

Pretty Neat Design

Lolalina

The Desha Show

The Patterned Peacock

Graceful Whimsy

Ellen Crimi-Trent

D.S. Brennan Photography



4 comments:

  1. Had so much fun with you that day, we will have to do it again soon!!

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  2. It's so neat to hear all of the different bloggers' perspectives on Holly's book signing event. I like your recap of lunch - how Holly had asked each person to stand up and introduce themselves. Thanks for sharing. Hope you enjoyed Brimfield today (followed via #brimfield tweet up). I was there Thursday and ended a 2-year search for a mirror.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Look for Holly's book and a link to this post in the next issue of New England Finery Magazine (coming out in early October!)

    ReplyDelete

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