Attendee Profile: Tamara Matthews-Stephenson of Nest by Tamara

I started my blog Nest by Tamara in May 2009. My very first post was about my mother’s gardens and how she weaved much of her artistic abilities in her landscaping. With many years experience as a residential interior designer, I felt compelled to begin journaling the many inspirations I see and how it relates to both home and garden. By blogging, I have the opportunity to combine two of my life’s passions – writing and interior design. Each month I write about a different nest-related topic and post weekly features on the subject, profiling artists and craftsman, and all the while peppering my stories with a philosophical perspective. I hope to help my viewers discover their design sense through my weekly musings just as I do with my own clients. I feel like I am the editor, publisher and photographer of a one-woman magazine since almost all the features are my original content. I investigate history, elements of design, cooking, entertaining and gardening and often take a page from my own life to add to the mix. Nest by Tamara has grown quite quickly and I have been offered unique opportunities and projects because of it, and I have learned the value of social media, both as a blogger and while managing my other sites like Twitter. One of the most valuable experiences so far has been connecting with the many other talented, innovative-thinking bloggers I have met, and the opportunities of collaboration seem endless. This May will mark the end of my second year, and through attending this conference I hope to learn interesting ways to take this exciting platform to the next level.

Happy NESTING! Xo tamara