Katie Williamsen

About Katie Williamsen

Katie is pursuing her MA in Interactive Media from Elon University (NC). She is interested in web and interactive design, social media and strategy work. She is co-founder and co-creative director of Twin Stripe (www.twinstripe.com), an interactive online seasonal magazine and blog highlighting styling, parties, and decor. Katie also writes for Twin Stripe, a magazine and blog focused on parties, styling and decor. Connect with Katie via Twitter @kewilliamsen or kwilliamsen.com.

High Point Furniture Market: Interview with Sheilah MacSporran

Sheilah MacSporran, Co-founder & CEO of OlioboardAnother High Point Furniture Market has come and gone and your next chance to visit is not until October. If you are wondering where to get your interior design fix until then, look no further than the online interior design mood board creator, Olioboard. At the market I met the wonderful co-founder and CEO of Olioboard, Sheilah MacSporran.

About Sheilah
Sheilah and her partner, Cole Mackin, live in Vancouver, Canada. Together, they also run a successful web design business called Keele UX. After creating successful websites and mobile apps, they wanted the chance to create something for themselves.

About Olioboard
Olioboard was conceptualized in late 2008 and launched in June 2010. Users have created their own digital interior design mood boards. Users browse a product library of over 150,000 products, including West Elm, Crate and Barrel, CB2, Ralph Lauren, and more. Select any item, drag it onto your mood board and create a 3-D space. Users are also able to shop for all products used in their mood boards.

Where did the idea for Olioboard come from?
I love interior design just as much as I love web design. This lets me combine both of my loves. I wanted to create a site I would enjoy and have fun with. We created a project I really enjoy and others like it as well! I’ve already designed my ideal home ten times over.

Who is using Olioboard?
Design enthusiasts love Olioboard. It is a great tool for people who just bought home and want to design the interior. It is easy to do that on Olioboard and no need to commit until you are happy. There is also a large community of professionals who use it to conceptualize, work with budgets and present the end idea to the client.

How many are currently using Olioboard?
Currently, there are over 65,000 users. We gained a lot of new users when Olioboard appeared on the Today Show and the Nate Berkus Show. I had an interview on the Nate Berkus show in New York. It was my first time on TV, it was very exciting! Nate was so sweet and made it a nice easy process. After the show launched, the users started piling in.

Olioboard is open to anyone. Just create a username and password and begin to design your dream home. If you are an interior designer, there is also a Pro plan for a small monthly fee.

Connect with Shielah via Twitter @olioboard.

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High Point Furniture Market: Interview with Jaime Derringer

Jamie Derringer of Design MilkHigh Point Furniture Market takes place twice a year, in April and October. On Saturday, I had the pleasure of attending my first market and had the opportunity to interview bloggers and editors covering the market.

When I found out Jaime Derringer of the wildly popular Design Milk was attending market, I knew I wanted to get in touch with her. She took time out of her busy schedule to talk to me about her blog and her first experience at market.

About Jaime
Before Jaime began blogging, she worked as a project manager in marketing, advertising and publishing for medical and pharmaceutical companies. In 2006, when she and her husband moved into a townhouse in suburban New Jersey, she discovered blogs and her passion for design.

About Design Milk
Design Milk is a blog dedicated to modern design and boasts a global audience. It focuses on art, architecture, interior design, furniture and décor, fashion and technology.

How did you start Design Milk?
In 2006, I had a job with a lot of down time and was online a lot, looking for furniture for our new home. I discovered design blogs around the same time and used my own blog to catalogue items I was finding for my home. Then I started to find other cool things and began posting about them. More and more people started to read it and people liked the things I was posting about. I did it part time for three years as I worked full time, then I quit my job to follow my dreams. Design Milk is my passion, 110 percent. I wake up everyday happy I’m doing it.

What do you like about High Point Market?
Market is different than what I normally write about on the blog. I try to spot trends and new design innovations that are accessible to everyone when shopping for their home. The products at market are what we deal with everyday.

How do you use social media?
Social media is the single best thing I have ever done for my blog. Not only does it drive tons of traffic to the site, but it allows readers to easily access the content and pick and choose what they want to read so they do not have to be bombarded with their RSS feed. Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest are valuable tools. They can be a challenge to manage, but at the end of the day those are the best tools I’ve ever had for my blog, bring readers in and keep them interested.

Look for Jaime’s market posts on Design Milk, complete with video in the next few weeks. You can connect with Jaime on Twitter @designmilk.

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High Point Furniture Market: Interview with Crystal Gentilello

Crystal Gentilello, Founder and Editor in Chief of Rue MagazineHigh Point Furniture Market takes place twice a year, in April and October. On Saturday, I had the pleasure of attending my first market and had the opportunity to interview bloggers and editors covering the market.

Crystal Gentilello, founder and editor in chief of Rue Magazine, was kind enough to spend some time chatting with me about Rue and her experience at the market. She is also a Style Spotter at market, so make sure to follow her board on Pinterest.

About Crystal
Crystal has a background in English and journalism, but has a true passion for design. After college, while working for a publisher, she became friends with a couple of interior designers. Their success planted the seed that design was a feasible career option. She started a design blog (formerly known Plush Palate) as an after work hobby. With her eye for design, she was able to form a captive audience. Two years after the launch of her blog, she made the decision to launch Rue Magazine.

About Rue Magazine
Rue, an online lifestyle magazine, was founded in 2010 by Crystal and Anne Sage. Since its inception, it has become a leader in the shelter magazine category.

Where did the idea for Rue Magazine start?
After blogging for two years, I had the idea for the magazine. I didn’t realize how much work it would be to create a magazine. As I was setting up my first photo shoot, I mentioned it to a friend, Anne Sage. She was really excited about the project. She became involved and took ownership of the project, becoming a bona fide co-founder of Rue.

What are your plans for your personal blog?
Rue is my number one priority and passion. I wake up and thinking about Rue and the future of Rue. My blog is fun and a great way to have a daily conversation with my readers. It also allows me to be part of the design industry daily.

How will your experience at the market tie into Rue?
I think it is important for bloggers and editors to come to come to High Point because it is one of the biggest trade shows in the country. You see everyone; it is a great networking opportunity. It is a great place to spot trends and see the best of the best in one spot. Without a doubt, some of our finds at High Point Market will show up in Rue’s upcoming issues.

Where do you see Rue going in the future?
I want to continue to grow our readership, online presence and advertising program. We would like to publish more often. Right now we come out every six to seven weeks. We would love to bring that down to every four weeks to provide our readers with more content. The possibilities are endless right now in our day and age because of technology. We are excited about making it an interactive experience. We would love to see the business grow in an e-commerce way. There are a lot of exciting things in the works that readers will start to see.

The next issue of Rue is scheduled for a May 3 release. You can connect with Crystal on Twitter @crystalg.

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High Point Furniture Market: Interview with Roxy Owens

Roxy Owens of Society Social and My Cup of TeHigh Point Furniture Market takes place twice a year, in April and October. On Saturday, I had the pleasure of attending my first market. I had the opportunity to interview bloggers and editors attending the market.

I sat down with Roxy Owens, founder and designer for Society Social, and the writer behind the delightful blog, My Cup of Te.

About Roxy
Roxy grew up in a small North Carolina town, just an hour away from High Point, and received her undergraduate degree in marketing from North Carolina State University. Roxy made the move to the Big Apple to pursue an MA in marketing from Parson The New School for Design. She started off in the fashion world, working at fashion week and interning with Donna Karan. After graduation she became a buyer for Belk. When the economy started to fail, she found herself stuck in an office crunching numbers and not feeling creatively fulfilled, and so her blog My Cup of Te was born.

About Society Social
Society Social boasts a line of fun, festive cocktail carts, tables and chairs and accessories introduced in summer of 2011. You can visit Society Social at High Point Market hosted by Acacia Home & Garden, IHFC, Wrenn Wing #346.

How did you enter the blogging world?
I’m one of those crazy, idealistic people, if I’m not happy, I’m not going to do it. I quit my job, I was unemployed for a year. I was happier, I was poor, but happier. During that time I started my blog. I really felt like my blog brought me back to who I was. I read other blogs like Design*Sponge and other interior design blogs and Rue came out and I knew, this is what excites me.

What is the focus of your blog?
My Cup of Te chronicles my personal journey. I blogged about the whole process of starting Society Social. I think that is what helps sets the brand apart. People want a personal connection.

The Draper Accent Table by Society Social

Where did the idea for Society Social come from?
As I read interior design blogs, I saw a gap in the market for fun designer bar pieces at a price point people in their twenties can afford. Personally, I love to entertain and hangout with family and friends. The bar cart is where it all started.

How do you use social media for your blog and business?
I am a huge advocate of social media, which stems from my marketing background. I am always sharing. People like to connect. As a small business owner, I can’t afford an ad in House Beautiful, so I use social media to market my business. It’s genuine and I love to connect.

It was wonderful to meet Roxy and I wish Society Social success at the market!

You can connect with Roxy on Twitter @SocietySocial or @MyCupofTe.

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