Learn the basics of photography and photo styling with Kevin and Layla Palmer (The Lettered Cottage), Josh Moates (Kim Box Photography), and Shaunna West (Perfectly Imperfect Blog). Their work has been published in national publications such as Flea Market Style Magazine, Cottages & Bungalows, Country Woman, Southern Weddings magazine, and on websites such as HGTV.com and TheKnot.com. This hour and a half long class will be broken up into three parts. First, Kevin and Josh will share practical and simple tips for using your DSLR camera, then Layla and Shaunna will talk about their favorite photo styling secrets. The last part of the class will be hands-on training from Kevin and Josh, so bring your camera and get ready to shoot!

It’s the big question everyone wants to know.  How do you make money blogging? And just how much can you make? Even bloggers who are already accepting paid advertising will find this session worthwhile. We’ll cover it all. When to start monetizing your blog, how to connect with businesses and networks, ways to diversify your income and even cover some of the ethics when it comes to advertising. Three long-time bloggers will head up this session:  Julia from Hooked on Houses, Beckie from Infarrantly Creative and Sarah from Thrifty Decor Chick.

In this session, Angie, the ‘slipcover diva’ will get your creative juices flowing with an inspiring slipcover trunk show and demonstration of quick and easy techniques for fitting and cutting a dining chair slipcover.  You will leave this session totally inspired to go home and let your slip show. Are you just dying to reupholster that ugly wing chair in your family room, but don’t quite know how or where to begin? Join Shelly for a casual, information packed, abbreviated upholstery class that will give you the confidence to get started, secrets to sticking with it, and how to finish up with a fresh, restyled chair for your home.  She’ll show you what DIY tools can be substituted for pricey upholstery tools; and for those of you who are ready for more, she will show you which bona fide tools you really need, and where to get them.

Are you interested in turning your blog into a business?  Or your business into a blog?  Rhoda from Southern Hospitality and Marian/Miss Mustard Seed will share all they’ve learned about setting up and running a creative business.  Don’t let the fear of taxes, paperwork and insurance keep you from pursuing your passion and making money at it!

Have you always wanted to learn the basics of carpentry and how to work with wood and power tools?  Ana White banishes the fears and will show us all how easy it is by building something from scratch in this exciting session.

Do you want to turn your painted furniture into unique pieces of art?  Learn how from furniture painting experts Shaunna (Perfectly Imperfect) and Marian (Miss Mustard Seed.)  They’re going to dish all of their favorite tricks, tools and techniques and let you get hands-on with some of their favorite products.

How to build relationships with your favorite brands.  Learn from PR professionals on how to get attention from companies, what brands are looking for in this ever-changing blogworld, and how to connect with those brands.  Learn tips on how to brand your blog to get noticed by those companies you are longing to work with.

You look at pictures on the web, and you know exactly what you like. Putting it all together, however, can be overwhelming. Let Beth and Chris walk you through some design and decorating basics! You don’t have to be a designer to know some rules and concepts that will help you beautify even the smallest spaces in your home.

Discover tips and tricks for decorating your home from three professional designers. Join Erika Ward, Sherry Hart, and Darlene Weir in the Design Studio. Darlene, of Fieldstone Hill Design, will get us started by helping us to identify our own personal style, and guiding us in ways to bring that style into our homes. Sherry, of Sherry Hart Interior Design, will be talking all about fabrics and teaching us designer tricks for successfully incorporating fabrics into our home, a key element in gorgeous design.  And Erika, of Erika Ward Interiors, will be teaching us about mixing highs and lows, and telling us what we always wanted to know about creating a Supermodel home.

There is an art to combining the old with the new in décor.  Learn from Mr. Goodwill Hunting himself as he shares his ideas on mixing thrift and vintage finds with pieces from everyday life. Rashon will offer fresh and inspirational tips and share his love for a luxurious lifestyle on a modest budget.

What do all successful home/DIY blogs have in common? What are some of the secrets behind their success? Learn tips from top bloggers on how to engage your audience, organize your time, optimize your posts for SEO, and best utilize social media to increase your readership and revenue.

You know the power of paint, but you just don’t know how to tackle it? Kate and Chris will cover all the paint basics that will help you tackle that piece of furniture that needs to be spruced up or those cabinets that require some TLC. From which tools to use to which paint works best, you’ll walk away with the knowledge and confidence to tackle that project that’s just been waiting for you!

You DIY furniture, accessories, your home, why not DIY your blog? Kristi, owner of CreativeKristiDesigns.com, will teach you simple ways to DIY your blog design to create a polished, professional look all on your own. Simple HTML & CSS for both blogger & wordpress blogs will be discussed as well as plenty of Q&A time for you to ask specific questions you may have. You will also receive a ‘cheat sheet’ and a list of websites that will help you on your DIY blog design journey.

Let the tool experts at Ryobi show you how to DIY without the fear of tackling those power tools alone.