Categories
MetaBlogging

Working with a blog designer

This entry is part 3 of 5 in the series Blog design

Now that you’ve found the right designer for your new custom blog template, what’s next? I’ve dabbled in blog design, but for expert input I turned to Elizabeth of Gazelle Creative, Girly Blog Designz and Mommy Zabs.

Agree on payment
You probably set the price in the “opening negotiations” that we discussed last week, or your designer has a set price. Your designer probably also has a preferred method of being paid—PayPal, Google Checkout, check in the mail, your first born. Paying in advance (or at least on time) helps the process along, Elizabeth says.

Agree on a (working) deadline
Depending on how popular your designer is, this could be several months or a few weeks. Can you live with the deadline?

Naturally, you should be flexible with your designer: they’re doing you a service, and we all know how crazy life can get. Generally, etiquette asks that a designer let you know in advance if there will be any delays, but sometimes that’s not possible (hospitalization, for one example).

Have an idea in mind
Either from your favorite designed sites or (better yet) from the designer’s portfolio. Try to identify what it is you like about the sites: the colors, the layout of the columns, the clean lines, the way the header stands out or is integrated into the body.

Also helpful: Have at least one color chosen (I totally recommend ColourLovers.com for designing palettes; hat tip to Kasie).

Elizabeth agrees. She says that it’s easier to work with a client:

  • when they have a well articulated goal in mind. (ex. I would like 3 columns, girly blog, I like flowers, and have a passion for education. My main focus will be homeschooling.)
  • When they provide links to blogs (or sites) that have things they like about them. Anything that can give me an idea of what they like and what they don’t.

So, conversely, if there are some site designs that you don’t like, it can be helpful to point those out (especially if you can be more specific than ‘I hate this one.’) Another important point that Elizabeth makes is that it’s important to share with your designer what the themes for your blog are—and not just the colors. If you have any specific photos or clip art (which you own the rights to), obviously, share them with the designer.

Be specific and polite
Kind of reiterating what I just said, but by pointing out exactly what you want and don’t want, you’ll get there a lot faster than if you leave your designer to stab in the dark.

Be constructive and specific (again) about revisions
If you don’t like something in your new design, it’s up to you whether you want to try to live with it or ask the designer to fix it. Most of the time (especially if you’re polite about it), a designer wants to work with you to make you as happy as possible.

Bad examples of this might go:

Dear Designer,
You really screwed this up, didn’t you? Back to the drawing board.
Love,
Blogger

Dear Designer,
I don’t like it. Can you fix it?
Love,
Blogger

Better examples:

Dear Designer,
Thank you for my design! I like the design overall, but there are a few things that I don’t care for. Can we work on the way the comments display and the color of the headings (especially post titles and in the sidebar)?
Thanks again!
Blogger

Dear Designer,
Thank you for working on my design. I see how you incorporated a lot of what I wanted into it. However, I was hoping for a bigger header and a darker background color. Could you fix that?
Thanks,
Blogger

Sometimes your designer will automatically include a number of revisions (or batches thereof) in their price, though occasionally some will charge extra.

How do you know if now is the right time to buy a custom blog design? Come back next week to read more. Be sure to join in the Group Writing Project if you haven’t already!

More WFMW

Categories
Contests

January Group Writing Project

This writing project has ended. Please view the full list of wonderful entries at the January GWP Finale, and subscribe to MamaBlogga to find out about the next group writing project!

After eight excellent Group Writing Projects, we’re gonna do it again. It’s time for the January MamaBlogga Group Writing Project!

In honor of this time of year, the theme for the January Group Writing Project is “Me time.” Feel free to write about how you take time for yourself, how you need time for yourself, what you do with time for yourself, and/or anything else that comes to mind.

Feel free to go in any direction that appeals to you. Even if you don’t choose to participate, you can encourage others to participate!

  • Your post can take any form as long as it reflects this theme—this includes anything from serious to sarcastic, about your children, your future children, your pet, etc.
  • You can participate with a blog post, a podcast, a video, a page on your website, etc., etc. If you don’t have a website, contact me and I’ll be happy to publish your entry here on MamaBlogga.
  • Only NEW posts (i.e., posts have not been published prior to 28 January 2008) are eligible. Posts must be submitted through the submission form before Sunday, 3 February 2008.

Why participate?
There are lots of reasons to participate! All entries that meet the guidelines will be listed and linked to here on MamaBlogga. This an opportunity for you to discover new blogs (and for others to discover yours!). In July, I came up with five ways to get the most out of the GWP.

And, of course, there is one more incentive: one lucky post author, drawn at random, will receive a $30 gift certificate to Amazon.com (to be announced Tuesday, 5 February 2008).

Finally, we’d appreciate it if you linked to this post or to the guidelines/submission form on your entry post so that others can learn about the project and participate.

Now get writing!

Categories
Kids/Parenting

And some pictures

He did this to himself
Hayden Potato Head
Yeah, those are Mr. Potato Head’s.

Hayden ready for school
He added the hat himself.

Hayden ready for school
His Mickey backpack (and the reason why he says “ba’ pa'” when he sees Mickey on TV)

Little boy/very small man
His hands in his pockets and his pockets in his pants

Little diva
No pictures, please

A favorite game: Night night!
Nai nai! And Tee! Hayden loves to mug for the camera, even while pretending to sleep.

peek
Peek.

It
It’s a glove monster!

Categories
Kids/Parenting

The Haydicon

My sister asked for a list of Hayden’s words today. I feel like this is woefully lacking and I’m sure I’ve missed some of his best words, but here are the first forty or so words that I could think of.

waddy (water)
pih (pig, piggy bank)
buboo/bubble
dooce (juice)
Mommy
Daddy
dee tee (TV)
diddy/mao (kitty)
mar/mardy/marny (Marty)
nanee (candy)
muah (more)
nanoo/nanle (candle)
nai (light)
nainai (night night)
toy
boy
toey (toe)
Nana
Bapa/Papa
ba’ pa’ (backpack and Mickey Mouse—see the second pic in this post to see why these are the same word)
Howdowee?
du tu (thank you)
beh du (bless you)
p’eece (please)
wu du (love you; he’s only said this twice)
yeah
no
hi
byebye
doe (Joe on Blue’s Clues)
bu hu (Blue’s Clues)
khar (car with a very guttural ‘c’)
no (snow)
baby
Haydie
ow (ouch or don’t touch my toes)
up
down
ope (open)
hewp (help)

And a few words that he repeats well:
purple
aitch (H)
wet (white or red)
orange/orntch

Words I remembered later:
beddy (belly)
own (on)
my
nana (banana)
mea/mean/meat (meat)
apple
po (plug, pull, push)
knee
hat
sooss (shoes)
eye (eye, glasses, sunglasses)
mou (mouth)
nos (nose)
hair
ear
pishy/pissy (fish, goldfish cracker)
pear (prayer, pear)
amen/minnie (amen)
Deetah (Jesus)
hot
annie (Auntie)
coat (coat, cold)
uh oh

Categories
Random

For the boy who has everything

Okay, so maybe Hayden doesn’t have everything, but the kid’s got it pretty good. He’s got dozens of toys and only his parent to share them with—and a birthday coming up.

What do you get a little boy that doesn’t really need more toys for his birthday? (Great toy suggestions are, of course, welcome, too.)

I had a couple ideas:

  • Outdoor furniture. (No, really—I saw this cute plastic Adirondack table and chairs set at the store and thought that would be fun for Hayden in the summer. Not now with our six+ inches of snow, though.)
  • Books. (When shopping for friends, you may want to get suggestions for their library, just so you don’t get them something they already have.)
  • Art supplies/crafts. (Even Hayden loves to color. Especially nice—something they can do together as a family.)

What else will make a kid’s life complete?

Categories
MetaBlogging

Finding the right blog designer

This entry is part 2 of 5 in the series Blog design

You’re ready. Your blog’s ready. You want to really graduate to the big times. You want your very own, personal blog design.

Woohoo! Whether you decide to do it yourself or find a web designer, this is a very exciting time for your blog.

So, if you’re going the web designer route, how do you find one that will work for you?

See samples of their work
Look at your favorite blogs. Okay, blogs that you think are pretty. See if they have a designer credit (usually at the bottom of the page), or ask the bloggers who did their design.

If you already have a designer in mind, be sure to look through their portfolio (they should definitely have a collection of sample themes or clients’ blogs that you can look at).

What should you be looking for? You should be looking to see if you like some (or better still, all) of the designs that person has done. It can be helpful to point to elements their previous work and ask for something similar in your design.

You should also look to see if they work in the same “genre” (or at least style) as your blog. If they’ve done exclusively corporate blogs and you have a mom blog, they might not be a good match.

Check prices
You know how it goes: good stuff don’t come cheap. Generally, if you’re working with a designer that specializes in mom blogs, their prices will be far more affordable than “professional” blog designers’. Many blog designers charge flat rates and publish those rates on their websites. Others may give ballpark prices and/or estimates on the website, but the final price will be based on how extensive and custom your blog design is.

Make sure they work in your platform
If you’re on Blogger and they only do WordPress, that’s a problem. Blogger and WordPress are worlds apart; it would take a lot for a designer to learn an entire new platform just for one design.

Again, most blog designers will state directly on their blog what platforms they design for. If you’re using something other than WordPress, TypePad or Blogger, it may be a bit harder to find the affordable mom blog designer you’re looking for.

Make sure you understand exactly what you’re getting
Will your blog design include a just a new header? What about a favicon? Customized sidebars? For that matter, one or two sidebars—and will they cost extra? How many widgets will they include? Will the design for specific plugins? Will the designer “install” your new design for you and make sure it works on your blog?

Ask what kind of input they’d like
I believe most designers appreciate some direction when you’re working with them. I know that it’s really hard to make something a client likes when you have no idea what they’re looking for. I’ll have more on this topic next week, so stay tuned!

That’s right, next week we’ll have more on working with your chosen blog designer as well as another Group Writing Project!

Get more Works-for-me Wednesday!