At the last Design Bloggers Conference, Doug Cook gave a fascinating and highly informative presentation on Search Engine Optimization (SEO). The bloggers were so interested in what he had to say, that Doug probably could have talked for another hour. One of the key questions that Doug did not have time to delve into very deeply was…

The Design Bloggers Conference 2012 will take place at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles from February 26-28.  It’s the only conference specifically focused on the interests of bloggers on interior design. At the conference, you’ll have the opportunity to learn a many new ways to improve your blog, build your personal brand, grow…

There was so much that happened at the Design Bloggers Conference 2011, it’s a challenge to sum it all up. We figured that we couldn’t summarize the conference any better than our attendees, so in this blog post you’ll find a comprehensive collection of their highlights, recaps, and tips gleaned from the conference, along with lots of…

In 2005 Barbara Karpf founded DecoratorsBest, an e-commerce website selling designer fabric and wallpapers at competitive, discount prices. Now with over two-hundred-thousand products and increasing daily, DecoratorsBest has established itself as a leader in the decorating community. The recently launched blog has increased DecoratorsBest’s visibility to the public, providing everything from Barbara’s designer tips to…

My first exposure to blogging involved me politely corrected a conference speaker on his pronunciation of the Southern dish, “chicken bog”. He was speaking about BLOGS…  Mortified! However, in only one year, blogging has become my platform for promoting “green” design, gaining national recognition for my work…  On hgtv.com

I’m an interior designer and I have breast cancer. I started blogging because I wanted to help other women be less afraid. Jane Bryant Quinn, editor of a start-up hyperlocal news publication, read my blog and hired me as Home & Garden editor. Now I have a new career!

Rising from the dust of recovery to focus on the future this “steelworker” takes what was learned from the past and begins welding the future.   Blogging has provided me another outlet to my future, allowing me to merge past design experiences and knowledge into new forms of marketing and recognition.

Blogging compels me to think carefully; to consider, weigh, and savor good design, good places, good people. There is joy in blogging… even Joseph Campbell’s elusive “bliss.”  Designing and writing about design are near the top of my “bliss list.”  To ponder the beautiful things around us, the meaning that beauty and creativity bring into each…

I followed my passion by launching Simplified Bee® blog in January 2009 – it was now or never. The blog not only helped kick off my business, it allowed me to live for today, love life again and eventually move past an early stage breast cancer diagnosis nine months earlier.

I opened the door and walked right into a world of inspirations, new friends and a way to find my voice within the design community. Opportunities have knocked that I would never have dreamed of. I am embracing it all. There is no limit to what lies ahead.

I used to speak almost incessantly about design and decorative painting to loved ones. To save the relationships, blogging became the outlet for my passion.  It’s provided endless inspiration, unique opportunities and beautiful kindred spirits – all while honing a deeper appreciation of design. P.S. I’m still invited to family gatherings.

Writing can be a lonely pursuit. However, my blog has connected me to engaging, insightful and intelligent people from all over the world.  Looking up at the moon, I think about others who are also looking up and who have made the world feel much smaller and welcoming.