12 Fun Facts about 1st Dibs

 

As ya'll know, I was so lucky to attend this year's 2014 Design Blogger's Conference in Atlanta last week.  (Read more here).   There were so many inspiring speakers and I learned everything from how to better utilize my blog for search engines to best practices for designing a room. 

I plan to share the more unique lessons learned over a series of posts. 

1st Dibs Dorothy Draper Espana Chest for Heritage

Today, I want to tell you a bit more about 1st dibs.com as we learned from its founder, Michael Bruno himself.  Michael used a creative way to inform our 430 person design blogging audience about his luxury brand company.  He started off giving us 3 minutes to answer about 15 questions.  The first one to submit our answers correctly would win a $5,000 gift certificate to the 1stdibs.com site itself! 

 

You can be sure there was full participation from everyone!  Here's a photo of Michael Bruno with Jeffrey Alan Marks (he also spoke).  I lifted this straight from JAM's Instagram since we're now besties after I  accosted him met him at the conference.  

From Instagram, @jeffreymarksinc
(Jeffrey Alan Marks of Million Dollar Decorators, l, and 1stdibs Founder, Michael Bruno, r)

 In 2001, Michael Bruno was living in Paris and decided to launch 1st dibs as a way to share the luxurious finds he encountered while visiting the historic Paris Marché aux Puces.  He felt he'd tapped into such unique finds and, while he kept some for his own collection, there were too many for him to keep all to himself.  He felt compelled to create a website to share these products with the rest of the world. 

The company positions itself as the place for "the most beautiful things on Earth."  Now in its 13^th year, 1stdibs is considered the "go-to" source for some of the most prominent dealers in the world. 
The site boasts more than 4,000 new listings each week. 


Here are some interesting tidbits about 1stdibs.com (we learned these when taking our quiz): 

1.  The Downton Abbey Crown  worn by Lady Mary on her wedding day to Matthew Crawley used to be available to rent by the day for $2,000 per day (with a $200,000 price tag).  However, the jewelry owner, Bentley and Skinner, selected 1stdibs in which to sell the crown.  The price tag?  A whopping $211,000 U.S.

Courtesy of 1st dib

2. There are currently 14 Countries on 1stdibs.com, including US, Denmark, Spain, Austria, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Mexico to name a few. 

3. The most searched brand on 1stdibs.com is Chanel!  Chanel anything...jewelry, fashion, you name it.  Buyers want it. 

4. Recently, a 1941 Plymouth Special Deluxe Wood Paneled Wagon designed by Ralph Lauren was sold on the site.  At the time of the Design Blogger's Conference (March 2014), there were multiple bids for the vehicle and they ranged around $85,000.  It has since sold.  No word on the final purchase price but it was likely higher than that amount as a bidding "war" ensued. 



1941 Plymouth Deluxe Wood Paneled Wagon by Ralph Lauren, Courtesy of 1stdibs

 

5.  There are currently 289,953 items for sale on the luxury site (estimation as of March 2014) per Michael Bruno. 

6. Of those, 14,000 of those items sell per month. 
7.  About 40,000 items are under $1,000



8. Over 4,000 items are OVER $50,000.  For example, this Wagon Wheel Chair by Wharton Esherick for $125,000


Courtesy of 1stdibs.com $125,000

Or this Belle Epoque Pink White Diamond Ring for $464,000 

 

9.  One of the 1st dibs team's biggest challenges is helping their consumer narrow down specific items they are searching for.  They are constantly working on the site to improve their search capabilities so that items can be found and visible in the results. 

10.  Marc Jacobs once stated that he "can't imagine living without 1st dibs."

Courtesy of The Fire This Time

11. Gloria Vanderbilt turned 90 this year and the fashion icon has also been painting since the 1960's.  She asked Michael Bruno, founder of 1st dibs, to help her price her vast collection of paintings so that she could sell them.  They are now available on 1st dibs.com here.  They range from $2,000 to $45,000.  (Total side note, I still love that she's Anderson Cooper's mom!) 

Gloria Vanderbilt's Lunar, $32,000 1st dibs.  Courtesy of 1st dibs. 

12.  Currently, the company does not sell vino online...but never say never. 

Have you ever purchased anything on the luxury site?  Do you find it too intimidating because of it's reputation for higher priced items?  What has your experience been with the site?

2014 Design Blogger's Conference Recap

The 2014 Design Blogger's Conference in Atlanta was a tremendous success for me personally.  I gained incredible knowledge about blogging best practices, met design celebrities, met many design idols that I've known in the cyber-world for a few years but had never met in person, and networked and cocktailed my bu** off! 

Design Blogger's Conference Stage

The Design Conference was presented by Design Sherpa for Interior Design Bloggers and held from March 2-4, 2014 at the Grand Hyatt Buckhead in Atlanta.  This was the 4th annual Design Blogger's Conference and it is the only one available specifically for interior design bloggers.  In the past, the event has been held in Los Angeles.  This year, they decided to move coasts to Atlanta.  It was the most widely attended conference yet with over 430 design bloggers, and I was proud to be among them! 

We were exposed to incredibly talented speakers, including Jeffrey Alan Marks (Bravo's Million Dollar Decorators), Candice Olson (HGTV's Divine Design and Candice Tells All,),  Timothy Corrigan (hailed by Architectural Digest as "Today's Tastemaker" and top 100 designers). 

Beth Greene of Kravet and Jeffrey Alan Marks | Candice Olson

Beth Greene with Kravet interviewed Jeffrey Alan Marks.  He scooped on behind the scenes of Bravo's Million Dollar Decorators.  Jeffrey admitted that there was a competitiveness between the women and the men designer's on the set.  His advice was that design should be a 'little bit of the (client) and a little bit of the (designer)."   I will share the story of our meeting soon but here's a picture of me with Jeffrey. 

Candice Olson of HGTV's Divine Design expressed that color is one of the most powerful tools a designer has in their tool box (yes!).  She also discussed how lighting plays a very important part of her design process (more to follow in a separate post). 

 

Timothy Corrigan

Design extraordinaire, Timothy Corrigan shared photos of his French Chateau, Château du Grand-Lucé and inspired me in describing his pathway to becoming such a celebrity and luxury designer.  PS- he had no formal design training- a man after my own heart. 

Timothy Corrigan's French Estate Photo Courtesy of Architectural Digest

Timothy also launched his new line of Schumacher fabrics and rugs that very day. 

 I was finally able to connect - in person - with fellow design bloggers that I've followed for years, many with whom I've established a true friendship beyond blogging.  

 

 

 Here's me with a handful of talented ladies, Lori May of Lori May Interiors, Amanda of Amanda Carol Interiors, Me of Vivid Hue Home, Sherry Hart of Design Indulgence and Jennifer Schoenberger of Vreeland Road .

Another very valuable part of the conference was hearing from design bloggers who have become extremely successful in this arena.  They shared the secrets to their success (in many cases be authentic and stick with it).  But of course, it's also much more than this.  

All of the speakers offered invaluable advice.  Some of the most memorable advice, for me, came from the following: 

1. Jan Bills of Two Women and a Hoe said  "let your brand bloom organically."  Give people what they want and make things easy for people to see. 

2. The incredible Paloma Contreras of La Dolce Vita suggested treating your blog like a magazine, complete with an editorial calendar.  She suggested establishing a series on your blog will allow users to know what to expect from your blog. 



Courtesy of La Dolce Vita blog



3. New England Home's Lynda Simonton urged bloggers to photograph your work!  Visual images are the key to success.  Even if it costs a bit more to have your work professionally photographed, it will pay off in the end. 

4. Michael Bruno, the founder of 1st dibs, gave a wonderful synopsis of 1st dibs and how it was created.  Look for a future post. 

Toma Clark Haines of The Antiques Diva (Courtesy of The Antiques Diva)

5. I was so inspired by  Toma Clark Haines of The Antiques Diva.  She described how she finally said "yes" to shopping for other people.  This changed everything.  Before then, she used to help her friends out of the kindness of her heart because she loved antiquing so much.  Her advice, "don't get so focused doing what it is you are doing that you overlook an opportunity to do something else." 

The networking opportunities were tremendous.  Each night, there was another beautifully executed post-party.  This gave us an opportunity to visit design showrooms and see elaborate spaces. 

This experience was a huge metamorphosis for me.  I have a greater understanding of where I want to take Vivid Hue and I have learned some excellent tips in order to get there.  I will be sharing these in future posts. 

I am grateful for this experience.  Look to good things to come from Vivid Hue Home.  If you're a new reader and you've found me from the #dbc2014 please follow me!  I will follow you back. 

2014 Design Blogger's Conference

My oh my, how time flies when you're super busy with life.  And work.  And family. 
I have been absent for quite awhile.  I apologize, but I have a good excuse. 

Last week, we had our February break and my family ventured off to the warm island of Captiva, Florida.  It was our first visit there and we managed to settle in pretty quickly.  If you follow my Instagram, then you got play by play of our trip.  If not, sign up NOW!  And I'll give you a quick snap shot of the trip below:

We escaped the brutal New England weather for the week.  In the past, we've visited Disney and returned from our vacation needing another vacation.  This time, we needed some serious R&R.  Nothing over the top...just serious relaxation at the beach and pool.  No frills.  We realized that people use golf carts to get from point A to B on the 2 mile island.  So we obliged.

We drove the cart to the pool, to shopping, to dinner.  We thoroughly enjoyed our family time together.
 

 It was a much needed break from reality.  Upon our return, we had a week of school and regular routines....but then the weekend approached and I prepped for a big event for me personally...

If you follow my twitter, then you've probably already de-friended me (is that even possible on twitter??) 

But I am beside myself that I'm attending the 2014 Design Blogger's Conference in Atlanta this week.  This was a huge feat for my family to allow me to attend.  (I will some day share details of the trials and challenges).  But this was incredibly important for me to launch myself into a new level of blogging.  This week, check out my instagram for moment by moment updates. 

 

 Tonight was the kick off... Already, I have met blogging friends that I have known for awhile but have never met in person (e.g., Lisa Mende, Amanda Carol ) .  And I have met others that I have followed religiously (though they may not have known that I existed)...Jennifer | Vreeland Road , Sheri | Confetti Style , Lori | Lori May Interiors ).

Very fuzzy picture of my first night outfit. 

 Tomorrow is the beginning of the actual conference.  We'll hear from Jeffrey Alan Marks of Million Dollar Designer Stars and many other talented designers.  I'm thrilled to be here and will try to share as much of the experience with you as I can.   

For now, I will finish watching the Oscars and try to get a good night's sleep so I can be crisp for day 1 tomorrow.

Cheers,
Heather | Vivid Hue Home