Browsing Category: "Blogging - Design"
So, recently I decided to just go purchase a Wordpress theme design from Theme Forest just because I felt like it would be handy for some of my future sites. And although, they have tons of incredible Wordpress themes for a pretty cheap price (most ranging from $5 to $40), I just went with my gut and purchased one that just stood out to me.
I spent a lot of time just going through the entire collection of themes and I saw so many that just caught my attention. But I was basically thinking how I would use these themes and how it would help me with some of my sites. Well, after a long deliberation by myself, I finally just picked one.
The Wordpress theme I chose is called “BlueLight” and it’s a pretty professional looking theme that is just amazing. Plus, for the price of using it, I have to say it’s definitely worth it. Check out the screenshot of the theme below:
If you guys can’t judge it just by the screenshot, check out the live preview here.
I probably won’t be using this new theme on DatMoney because the layout wouldn’t suit my ads the way I would like. But the reason why I bought it is because I’m sure I will be using it on a future site. Who knows, I may just use it on an existing site and just replace everything. But unfortunately, this amazing theme will not be displayed on DatMoney.
Feel free to check out the wide selection of themes at Theme Forest to see if you would enjoy any.
Why did I purchase a Wordpress theme when I’m working on designing my own? As you guys already know, I have been designing my own WP theme from scratch but it takes a lot of time. And it seems as though I’m my own worst critic when it comes to, well, just about anything I seem to make.
On top of that, I’m just a rookie learning the ropes of designing an entire Wordpress theme. Shoot, I haven’t even gotten to all the coding. But if I do manage to design a theme that I actually like, I think I’m going to outsource the coding part because I found someone that does it for a decent price. Though, eventually I will want to learn all the coding by myself simply because I want to learn as much as I can while I’m doing this internet entrepreneur stuff.
Anyways, what do you guys think of the BlueLight theme I purchased? Or have you checked out any other themes you like? Feel free to share!
A few weeks ago, I mentioned that I was testing out designing my own Wordpress theme and I was going to start from scratch. Well, I went with a very basic design just to get the feel for how it was going to turn out and I finally got a chance to finish up the mock design.
Check out my basic three-column Wordpress mock-up design theme (feel free to click on the image to see the large image):
I mentioned this in my previous post but as you can see from the screenshot, I used Photoshop to design my theme. One of the annoying parts that I kept running into is the fact that I was alternating between two different versions of Photoshop.
Why in the hell would I be doing something to annoy myself? Well, I didn’t do it on purpose and I try to work on it when I have opportunities. And with that said, I have Photoshop CS at home but another computer I use only has Photoshop 7. They work just the same except the fact that there are less features in 7 than there is in CS. And some of the control settings are different as well.
Again, the design is very basic only because I wanted to see how hard the next steps are going to be. I didn’t bother putting anything fancy within the design, no images or anything.
I have officially started but can I just say designing your own Wordpress theme is actually pretty hard. I mean, I knew it wasn’t going to be easy or anything but it takes a lot of work. There are a few major steps and I’m not even close to being done with the first part – the design portion of it.
Last week I asked you guys, Do You Prefer One, Two, Three or Four Column Blog Templates? I was asking because I kind of wanted you guys’ opinions on what I should do with my first Wordpress theme that I’m designing. After looking through the comments, it seems as though the majority favors three column templates with two columns coming in at a close second.
A few liked one column and someone (or a couple) mentioned a four column template. Well, I went with the majority and started my first design as a three column template.
Right now, it doesn’t look like anything special. You can check out the screenshot below on the beginning portion of my first Wordpress design. (Click on the image to see the full size)
Like I said, it doesn’t look like anything special right now. Matter of fact, the final design probably won’t look anything like what you see from the screenshot. I’m just going over some tutorials just to get the feel on how a typical Wordpress theme design is supposed to be like. Once I get all of that down, I’m going to change things to get it how I want it to be.
If you guys read my last DatMoney Weekly Updates post and you should know I’m dipping my feet into designing my own Wordpress themes. So, I have a very simple question, do you prefer one, two, three or four column blog templates? And while we’re discussing this, what exactly do you look or in a blog theme?
How Many Columns Do you Like on Your Blog?
Personally, I’m a three column blog template type of blogger. I like it because I usually have a lot of things on the sidebar and I don’t really want my readers to have to scroll down too much to see everything else on the sidebar. Although, I have been testing out two and four column templates as well just to see how they look but so far, I still prefer the three column templates.
If you had to pick on how many columns your blog template has, what would your number be? Does it even matter to you? And while we’re on the subject, what else do you look for when you’re picking your blog template?
What I Look for in a Blog Template
I think when it comes down to it, I get a little too picky for my own good. But here are a few things that I look for in a blog template.
Header - I like a blog template that has a header that runs across the top of the blog with an option of having the entire header being your logo or half of it as your logo and an ad spot or even a search option.
3 Columns - Like I mentioned, I tend to favor three column but particularly the main content area on the left hand side and the two other sidebar columns on the right side. The reason why is simply the fact that we read from left to right (most of us) and I like when people are looking at my content first and then everything else on the right after.
As you guys know, I’m trying to keep up with adding Free Blogger Template Download so you guys can enjoy them. The most recent Blogger template converted from Wordpress is a Woo Theme titled “Mainstream.”
As most of you guys already know, Woo Themes are premium themes for Wordpress. They are definitely popular especially the fact that these themes stand out from the rest.
But if you have a Blogger account, you can get this premium Woo theme for free. Just visit my Free Blogger Template Download page where I continue to update with new free Blogger themes or just download it below:
