NestingNewbies.com digital shelter magazine’s winter issue makes crockpot cooking chic and high-end entertaining and luxury designing approachable, including stories on rooms that inspire and practical DIY advice. Readers can enter to win a Nesting Newbies’ Bluebird Swag Bag valued at over $1,500.

(February 9, 2010) Santa Clara, CA – The Winter 2010 issue of NestingNewbies.com magazine focuses on reinvention and inspiration. This issue is more than double the size of its premiere issue, including more recipes and inspirational ideas for “nesting newbies,” the site’s target audience of those who are new to nesting and have no clue when it comes to cooking, entertaining, and decorating. Avid foodies and decorating enthusiasts will also enjoy the original ideas being presented by top industry professionals. The “Bluebird Bag of Happiness,” the magazine’s version of a swag bag, debuts in this issue, and one reader will win merchandise valued over $1,500.

“The Nesting Newbies’ concept is an innovative way to communicate original ideas and trends to a previously overlooked group,” says Christopher Peacock, CEO of Christopher Peacock Home.

In the winter issue, Chef Lea McIntosh invited design icon Christopher Peacock to cook with her in his kitchen showroom in San Francisco and invite his friends over afterwards to taste test. McIntosh challenged herself to create a high-end party using original recipes for slow-cookers. “I wanted to make crockpot cooking chic,” she says. “In every issue of the magazine, I will show newbies how easy it is to cook from scratch and encourage them to move away from processed fast foods and experiment with fresh combinations of ingredients. Slow cookers have been making a comeback, so I set out to prove that they are a tool for creating fine cuisine!”

“Everything was amazing,” says Lane Brooks, principal and CEO of The Brooks Group and a guest at the Christopher Peacock party. “I am still dreaming about the food. The Fonduta di Parma was delicious…like eating a luxurious Kir Royal on crisp toast.”

The magazine’s entertaining section is pure inspiration with the editor’s top picks at San Francisco’s Dining By Design event. “Our favorite tables are whimsical, inventive and fun!” says Jodi Murphy, editor-in-chief. “We chose displays with a wow factor and lots of takeaway ideas. There is such a range—vintage French circus, romantic Marrakesh, rustic elegance, and recycled eco-luxe…just to name a few.”

Boston interior designer Jennifer Rowland Clapp shares how to mix vintage pieces with modern pieces for a table that’s an interesting study in contrasts. Rowland-Clapp also introduces readers to Lekker Home, an alluring home store located in Boston’s trendy South End.

Embedded in the digital magazine is a film clip featuring Chef Lea McIntosh showing sisters—who rarely entertain—the tricks to creating an artful and sophisticatedly luscious cheese platter.

Highlights of the decorating section include “girly-girl” spaces—distinctively feminine rooms designed by leading design professionals—some already known throughout the design industry and blogosphere, and others soon-to-be-discovered. Prominent designer Jay Jeffers is the issue’s Iconic Nester, and he shares how he keeps his work fresh and exuberant from project to project.

Inside the winter issue is the debut of the Nesting Newbies’ Bluebird Bag—the magazine’s version of a swag bag. One winner will take home over $1,500 worth of merchandise from Barclay Butera, Bloomingdale’s (Stanford), Calphalon, Inmod.com, SavvyHost.com, DK Designs, Zenatona, Terlato Family Vineyards, Desert Essence and Pamela’s Products. The contest details are in the magazine and at www.nestingnewbies.com. The winner will be announced on March 16, 2010.

The issue was produced in partnership with James Burkart, Burkart Video Productions—who directed, filmed and edited the entertaining- with-cheese segment—and photographers Michael Soo (SooPhotography.com), Natalie Wi (AllureWest.com), Dean Birinyi (DJBphoto.com), and Margot Hartford (MargotHartford.com). For more information, visit the website at www.nestingnewbies.com and the Nesting Newbies Facebook fan page.

Direct Link to Winter 2010 Issue