April 14

Nate Berkus

Chicago-based interior designer Nate Berkus (b. 1971) is a former day-time television host (The Nate Berkus Show 2010-2012) who became known to millions of TV viewers as a regular guest on The Oprah Winfrey Show. He offered design advice for eight years after his first guest appearance in 2002 and is still a regular contributor to "O, the Oprah Magazine." Jewish and openly gay, Nate is the son of interior designer Nancy Golden of HGTV and DIY network fame.

On April 8, 2013, Berkus became engaged to Jeremiah Brent in a dramatic moment celebrated atop Machu Picchu in Peru. The two have been dating for nine months. Brent is the former assistant to designer/stylist Rachel Zoe and is a regular on "The Rachel Zoe Project.”

Nate’s most recent book, The Things that Matter (2012), features intimate stories from his life experience, including people and events who influenced his design philosophy. The book features his own home and twelve others that chronicle his design career.

It was announced last month that Nate will be host and executive producer of a new reality show on NBC called Renovation Nation. The series will feature two teams of designers and builders competing against each other on design challenges for cash and luxury housewares. Viewers will be invited to weigh in and vote during a live finale to choose who will win the ultimate prize, a dream home.

Many fans will recall that in 2004 Nate’s longtime partner, photographer Fernando Bengoechea, was tragically swept to his death as the result of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami while the couple was vacationing in Sri Lanka. Nate and Fernando had been swept from the hut they were staying in and were separated by the force of the current. Berkus appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show in early 2005 to talk about the ordeal and the loss of his partner. His heart-wrenching account of that tragedy drew 15 million television viewers.

From 2007 to 2009 Berkus was partnered with Brian Atwood, a talented footwear designer and Creative Director for Bally.

Berkus founded his highly successful design firm, Nate Berkus Associates, in 1995 at age twenty-four. Many of his design products have been sold through mass-market retailers such as Target, Calico Corners and Linens 'n Things.

Nate Berkus (sporting faux-leopard slip-ons) with fiancé Jeremiah Brent. The couple announced their engagement a week ago:

Inexplicable:

With a side of jockstraps: