Better Homes and Gardens' Annual Stylemaker issue Highlights Artists & Tastemakers in Gardens, Food, Fashion, Home Design, & Entertaining

Better Homes and Gardens September Stylemaker issue

Better Homes and Gardens (BHG), the leading lifestyle brand reaching 50 million consumers a month, today announced the release of its sixth annual Stylemaker issue, highlighting creative forces and tastemakers who influence the worlds of fashion, food, home design, and entertaining. The issue is available now.

For the first time, seven of the BHG Stylemakers grace the issue's cover in a striking gatefold image shot by renowned celebrity photographer Robert Trachtenberg. They join 22 other Stylemakers who shape the way we decorate, cook, garden, organize, dress, and celebrate.

"We are thrilled to share our 29 trendsetters with our readers in our September Stylemaker issue," says Better Homes and Gardens Editor-in-Chief Stephen Orr. "Our Stylemaker issue showcases creative ways our readers can infuse their lives with inspiring food, fashion, entertaining, and gardening ideas."

To celebrate the issue, Better Homes and Gardens is hosting over 80 bloggers and tastemakers for a day of classes, workshops, and speakers on September 29 at the Gramercy Park Hotel in New York City. Sponsors of the event include Crate and Barrel, Dunkin' Donuts, thinkThin, and Triscuit. According to BHG, the magazine considered a variety of factors when selecting who to invite to the 2016 Stylemaker event, including a nice mix of new vs. returning bloggers; the size of the blogger’s social following; the topic area of the blog (aiming for an overall mix of home, food, beauty, garden, and general lifestyle); editorial recommendations; and the blogger’s BHG Insider status. Want to be considered a BHG Insider? (Who wouldn’t?!) To keep posted about future events and opportunities with the brand and the magazine’s editors, the magazine recommends you apply here

"The September 2016 issue is a celebration of style, creativity, and inspiration for all aspects of the home," says Christine Guilfoyle, Senior Vice President and Publisher of Better Homes and Gardens. "Each year, this special issue elevates our readers' and advertisers' style inspiration." Guilfoyle notes that the gatefold cover includes an organic integration of furniture products from lead sponsor Crate and Barrel.

The September issue also features fantastic recipes from celebrity chef Jacques Pépin, practical entertaining tips from Top Chef host and author Padma Lakshmi, (a fellow author at a post East Hampton Library fundraising and dinner party hosted by Hamptons Magazine), and aging and wellness advice from movie star Cameron Diaz.

The 2016 BHG Stylemakers featured in the September issue include:

Chris Benz –Creative Director for Bill Blass

Chris's mix of furnishings, accessories, and art follows the new-meets-old trend of his newly renovated Brooklyn house—with some high-low mash-ups thrown in for good measure. "My style is bold, casual bricolage," says Chris.

Justina Blakeney – Designer, Author and creator of The Jungalow blog

This Los Angeles designer mixes fun patterns with boho-meets-tropical color choices. Her top advice for mixing patterns is simple: repetition. "I like to pick two or three colors and pull those into each piece," she says.

Steve Woodward – President and Chief Merchant for Crate and Barrel

"Clean, thoughtful, timeless design makes me happy," the retail guru says. On watching trends, he adds. "I'm addicted to decorating shows, and I think you can learn a lot from them about your own personal style. Trends open your eyes to new possibilities."

Grace Bonney – Design*Sponge Founder and Author

Her new book, In the Company of Women, brings together the collected wisdom, passion, heartache, and savvy of 100 women business owners, each of whom she thoughtfully interviewed and photographed in their work spaces.  

Elsie Larson and Emma Chapman – Creators of the blog A Beautiful Mess  

The sisters have been creating together since they were little, so crafting, writing books, and creating photo apps was a natural segue beyond their blog. "We just get out of each other's way and get stuff done," says Elsie.

Roman Alonso and Steven Johanknecht – Commune Design

The Los Angeles-based design team behind Commune, Roman and Steven have partnered with West Elm to create a new line of beautifully crafted pieces with approachable price tags, so everyone can have access to their high-style California breeziness.

Katie Armour Taylor – Creator of Style Blog The Neo-Trad

A California girl living and working in Denmark, Katie's style inspiration spans the globe. Focusing on the surge of the color-blocking trend, Katie says, "I love bold color, especially pairing unexpected combinations. Today we favor more balance by mixing up the trend with natural materials or metallics."

Alec Babala, Bruce Kim, and John Humphrey – Founders of Greycork furniture

The trio started Greycork with the mission to provide affordable furniture shipped free in flat packs and assembled without tools. "We chose the name Greycork because it was our blank canvas," says Bruce.

Hana Getachew – Textile Designer

A love of her native Ethiopia led Hana to launch Brooklyn-based Bolé Road Textiles. Ethiopian weavers turn her colorful designs into fabrics for pillows, curtains, and more. She describes her style as "eclectic minimalism."


Katrina Hernandez and Josh Greene – Interior Designers

The push-pull of their personal styles—she's boho and he's classic—has made an ideal design union. They started in the fashion world, but joined forces to create elegant interiors with bold colors and patterns and high-style furnishings.

Marlien Rentmeester – Creator of the Style blog Le Catch

"Indigo is intrinsically easy," says Marlien, explaining how the distinctive shade that's synonymous with your favorite pair of blue jeans is just as versatile in your living room.

Erin Flett – Pattern Designer

For screen printer and home-goods designer Erin, growing a business means working hard, loving what you do, and adding a little color where you can. "Collect things that you love, and eventually your space becomes your story," Erin says.

Greg Salmeri – Garden Designer and Store Owner

The co-owner of Rolling Greens Nursery finds the way to inner peace with a mix of sculptural plants accented by carefully placed outdoor ornaments and salvaged pieces. "Style is important in every single thing you do. An outdoor space is no different to me in that regard than an indoor one," Greg says.

Fay Wolf – Professional Organizer and Author

Fay believes most messes can be fixed with recycled containers and commonsense labeling. "Embrace the imperfection of it all, and forget being Pinterest-perfect."

Michele Michael – Elephant Ceramics Owner

This creative pro used to be a decorating editor, prop stylist, and the owner of a prop house. But after taking a ceramics class in 2010, she realized she loved working with her hands to create something uniquely her own.

Jim Franco – Photographer, Video Director and Ceramicist

Jim says his ceramics style is simple and quiet. "It's about crafting a piece with a form that is almost plain… If I'm lucky, it might also satisfy my sense of design and proportion."

Asya Palatova – Gleena Ceramics Owner

Asya specializes in soft, sugary colors and vintage illustrations transferred in metal ink.

Kat Teutsch – Photographer and Claykat Ceramics Owner

When she started making too many ceramic pieces to keep, Kat launched her own store. For inspiration, she says, she looks to the things she loves, "from the ever-changing green of the forests or the blues from the ocean and sky."

Adina Grigore – Skincare Entrepreneur

The author of Skin Cleanse and the entrepreneur behind Brooklyn-based S.W. Basics takes us through her daily routine, focusing on keeping things simple.

Selina Lake – Interiors Stylist and Author  

"There's no such thing as too many plants," says London-based Selina. (I Couldn't agree more but good garden editing should also be considered...) 

In her new book, Botanical Style, she shows how to use plants and nature in interiors.