Finally. I finally give you Vinh Le and his beautiful Blog Web Design Blog.
Hey, you can still blog in your pajamas, but it’s time you built a better blog design to send the right message to your readers. Blog Design Blog is all about helping you: get traffic, gain subscribers, communicate your message, sell something, and do all of it while looking good.
I like the part about blogging in my pj’s (because I do). But I especially like this part: and do all of it while looking good. I’d like to look good. Sure I would.
Vinh Le has a clean message (and one I do agree with after all). That along with the contents, the package holds importance. Keeping to the subject, on the Blog Web Design Blog he walks his readers through the logic by show and tell.
Now, I’m not going to drag his whole index over (obviously). Just the ones I’m bookmarking for afters. Yes, time is short so I won’t be able to digest them completely until after my blog redesign is finished (hopefully this week). I’m sure to go “oh”. But, like Vinh Le says, there’s always tomorrow. And the tomorrow after that. For more redesigns, tweaks, upgrades and such.
For show: there’s 30 Must See Comment Designs for Web Designers (a post I should have looked over before passing along my design files) and 47 Must See Great Blog Designs (some still to be featured on DWB). And if you haven’t drooled enough, the Blog Design Blog Gallery.
For tell: there’s How to Not Get Lost When Learning to Create a Blog Design and 25 Must Buy, Borrow, or Steal Books for Web Design. And my favourite for the next rainy day, 17 Resources for Creating a Blog Design.
And then there’s a variant of show and tell with How to Blog Design Style Guide where he features more of the best. Like MindTwitch.
Wow. I’m salivating. Are you?
Technorati Tags: advice, blog, blog designer, design
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April 29th, 2008 at 12:25 am
what a great blog! yes, i’m salivating too! I’ve been thinking over the past week about my blog’s current design, and how it needs to be reworked, and most importantly, simplified. I’ll be taking in Vinh’s tips over the next day or so and apply them to my new layout. After all, it is a blog about design, so it should reflect that.
shannons last blog post..Photoshop Tutorial: Vinyl Album
April 29th, 2008 at 8:13 am
Nice blog! I’m fascinated with the design. It’s so simple but impressive. I launched my websites/blogs and all of it are also simple and fascinating. The designs came from inspirations of other websites/blogs. Next time I will be taking Vinh’s tips to make beautiful blogs.
April 29th, 2008 at 8:13 am
Shannon, yes, isn’t he fine? And his articles really make you think about blog design and how change can make a big difference to your audience.
When I first started DWB it was with a very simple, narrow template. I was only concerned with featuring as many good blogs as I could as simply as I could. Name. Rank. Serial number. Finish.
But those were the early days and priorities changed. I still want to feature all the good blogs (and there are so many fabulous ones out there these days). But I also want to expand the experience on my blog. To do that, I needed a wider blog. And one with a better design.
So I switched to a two column that could hold the rotating banners (it was a looooooooong search), then added a third column.
But it wasn’t very long before I started falling more in love with designs like Vinh Le’s and MindTwitch. I knew I wanted something more. Less boxy. More designy. More flair.
So my next design tweak (hopefully this week) will able me to have more fun with DWB. Yes, adding a banner on top will push the contents down, but … the more I see Vinh Le’s the more I like it.
Please let me know when you’ve decided your new design is ready, ok? I’d love to see it!
(note: can you tell I just woke up? Caffeine are us!)
April 29th, 2008 at 8:18 am
Welcome Web designer :-) great to see you here. Please keep us posted on what tips you take away of Vinh Le’s.
I’m still kicking myself for not reading his comments post before this week. I’ve seen one other blog post about comment design but his is the absolute best.
But, there’s always more time … more time to tweak …
April 29th, 2008 at 6:51 pm
Great blog, design is great
April 30th, 2008 at 8:52 pm
Thanks for this guidance on blogs.I am new blogger and this is very helpful
May 2nd, 2008 at 10:38 pm
Hi Cat -
You asked me to let you know when my new design was ready, so here you go! Still a little tweaking to be done; I have some ideas that I hope to implement this weekend. but for the most part, it’s ready to go.
Interestingly, I didn’t end up getting rid of anything, but the new design isn’t cluttered like the one before, and I think that makes it look a lot more “professional”.
May 2nd, 2008 at 10:48 pm
Hi Shannon,
I agree, that is clean. I can certainly tell the difference!
And like you, I’ll be working over the weekend on DWB. Only I’ll be going through and adding the to each post. That and pushing the trackbacks to the end of the comments. (will it ever end?)
May 2nd, 2008 at 11:00 pm
i’m just starting to think, it may NOT ever end :)
But really, it’s kind of fun, don’t you think? It’s all for something we’re passionate about, after all.
May 2nd, 2008 at 11:28 pm
Well, learning what it takes to put a WP blog together is fun.
But I’m going on my third year and I specifically remember someone telling me that using a WP set up was easy.
Just plug in and play.
Riiiiiiiiiiight. That’s why I’ve spent the past several weeks with housekeeping.
And it’s no where near over yet.
Because once you switch blog layouts, everything needs to be adjusted. And for me, that means photos, banners, the lot.
Tip: use left or right justify, don’t have your photos fill the available area. Not unless you are in LOVE with that size. Forever.
Sure, they tell you that in order to avoid it you must plan. But HOW do you plan for something when you don’t have a clue?
First you need learn what you don’t want. Then you go back to change everything to what you do want.
May 3rd, 2008 at 12:05 am
oh I know exactly what you mean! I still have to change a few of my older posts as well, as the layout of those pages is completely out of whack due to the new theme. I still have a lot of work ahead of me.
May 3rd, 2008 at 12:06 am
i’m liking the new look here by the way. I like the colors quite a bit.
May 3rd, 2008 at 12:11 am
“I still have a lot of work ahead of me.”
And what’s driving you might be what’s driving me. We want to be able to get on with other things knowing at least this is as right as can be for now.
And starting Monday I need to back off from DWB and put an even bigger site into WP. Creative Latitude. Live since 2004. [groan].
ps: Thanks for the kind words. I was wondering if it was noticeable.
May 4th, 2008 at 8:57 am
Hey Cat,
Thanks for the feature. I appreciate it. I see you made the changes to your blog design, I like it.
As for the comment on whether it will ever end, I don’t think it ever does and thats what makes it fun. I keep coming back to my own design and making small changes here and there to improve it.
Vinh Les last blog post..5 Ways to Make Your Blog Design Unforgettable
May 4th, 2008 at 10:29 am
Hey Vihn Le,
I’m enjoying the changes I make to the blog design (thanks for the comment). What I don’t like is all the housekeeping. And now, since I forgot to turn off trackbacks before embarking on this, I need to delete all those too (what a pain).
Apologies to anyone who’s received a ton of trackbacks from me. More than once. My bad.