Show Speakers Give Great Advice

Fantastic Speakers on two different stages! Professional speakers with pertinent information for you on a variety of topics ranging from --  Cooking and Entertaining, Organizing, Gardening, Identity Theft, Green Themes, Outdoor Living, Kitchen and Bath Trends, Interior Design Ideas and more...

Entertain with Style
Settle in with Karen Bussen, one of America's most exciting entertaining experts and author of the wildly successful "Simple Stunning" series of entertaining books (Stewart, Tabori & Chang), as she offers practical advice and inspired ideas for all facets of home entertaining with her distinctive “less waste/more taste” approach.

"My goal is to help everyone in America celebrate more often, with more style, without sacrificing quality or over spending," said Bussen. A quintuple-threat expert in food, wine, hospitality, flowers and design, Bussen believes a truly great party is filled with unique, well-chosen details and personal touches. “I’m so excited to be coming to Houston to share some of my “Simple Stunning” home entertainment tips!”

Clive Berkman, a Houston-area chef and restaurateur, believes that “food does not just feed our stomachs, it feeds relationships.” Berkman will focus on creating a meal that allows people the time to sit down and relax. “It’s about inclusiveness and getting others involved,” said Berkman.

One way to simplify cooking is by streamlining the kitchen. Berkman plans to explain how to equip and design an efficient kitchen, as well as the best layout for people building or remodeling their homes.

Kitchens on a Budget
Kitchens are a specialty of Peggy McGowen, ASID, CMKBD (Certified Master Kitchen and Bath Design) and founder of Houston-based Kitchen & Bath Concepts. Explaining her designs as champagne taste on a budget, McGowen teaches how homeowners can model their kitchens to look high-end by compromising on product selection instead of design and function of the space. Peggy is one of the most popular speakers at the show.

“Whether you select a $6,000 or $1,500 refrigerator it has the same functionality and layout, you’re just not spending as much,” she said. McGowen wants homeowners to understand where to spend, where to save and where to splurge.

She’s happy to share a few design tricks. For anyone who wants an island without a construction crew, buy a chest of drawers, put a stone or marble slab on top and use it as a stylish island. Another crafty idea if the kitchen lacks closet space is to install an armoire as an impromptu pantry.

Simplify and Organize
Organizing the home, whether it’s the kitchen or a spare room, is Ellen Delap’s life. A professional organizer and owner of Professional-Organizer.com, Delap simplifies the process for anxious hoa rders and homeowners with a clutter problem.

“Organizing really appeals to people who want to freshen up their home, are downsizing or just simplifying their lifestyle,” she said. “I think the country is embracing that right now, but the biggest challenge people face is getting started.”

Instead of complicated plans and ideas, Delap said she wants people to leave the home and garden show with something they can start the moment they get home.

Take Style Outdoors
Jeff Cunningham with Cunningham Gas Products promotes enjoying the great outdoors in the backyard with some cool ideas to make hot weather bearable and living outside more enjoyable.

“We’re about making the outdoor environment more pleasing, more entertaining, more fun,” he said. At the show, Cunningham said he plans to talk about different types of fire pits, using gas or wood and new innovations in outdoor fire pits, as well as outdoor kitchens.  One of the most popular items now in demand is outdoor pizza ovens, "this was the MOST requested product at the spring show and we have found the worlds best pizza oven maker -- Chicago Brick Oven."  Jeff knows what he’s talking about as Cunningham Gas Products is a family-owned business of over fifty years!



Industry Experts
Other speakers include GardenLine radio show host Randy Lemmon, High-Tech Texan Michael Garfield, outdoor living expert Ron Thompson, Houston’s leading ‘Green’ architect LaVerne Williams, and habitat gardening expert Jason McKenzie.


Ask-the-Expert Booth
Stop by for some one-on-one advice from Brenda Beust Smith , The Lazy Gardener, Saturday from 10am-4pm and Houston Chronicle gardening guru Kathy Huber, Sunday from Noon-4pm.