http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog en lara@blogwhatdesign.com Copyright 2008 2008-11-12T06:56:41-05:00 http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog/love_that_southern_fried_momma/ http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog/love_that_southern_fried_momma/#When:06:56:41Z Dejoni was an absolutely fabulous client (and woman!) to work with. Her spunk and enthusiasm throughout the project made it fun for the both of us. Southern Fried Momma chronicles Dejoni’s life as a southern mom with two lovely children and a rather comical husband. Dejoni was looking for something that would allow her to closely connect with her readers. Her blog is outfitted with her latest Twitter tweets, a great photo album hooked up to her Flickr account, and a quality contact form. We moved Dejoni from Blogger to her own domain name. This, coupled with her new design and fantastic content allowed Dejoni to become a sponsored Blogher advertiser!  Blogging, Clients, Portfolio Item Addition 2008-11-12T06:56:41-05:00 http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog/caring_for_the_victims_of_cystic_fibrosis/ http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog/caring_for_the_victims_of_cystic_fibrosis/#When:00:41:00Z We finished a project back in May that was our first “community service” project. I was more than happy to donate my time and complete the entire project with a colleague of mine for around 25% of the actual cost. From our portfolio: The Common Hope Corporation approached Blog What? Design looking for an upgrade from their old, and out of date, Microsoft Frontpage design. They needed a fresh new face for their organization - a true reflection of their excellent intentions and cause. I worked with the lovely Ellen at the CF Care Fund. Feature included a contact form and mailing list among static content pages. The fund previously had a logo developed, so we were able to work quickly off a predetermined starter color scheme. The final product is one that breathes fresh air into an important cause. Blog What? Design was happy to donate our services for only 25% of the cost. See the portfolio item here.  Clients, News, Portfolio Item Addition 2008-07-30T00:41:00-05:00 http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog/wordpress_26_is_really_kickin/ http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog/wordpress_26_is_really_kickin/#When:23:46:00Z WordPress version 2.6 made it’s debut a month early just two days ago on WordPress.org. This latest version is called “Tyner” after a famous jazz pianist. The screen cast which details the release even has his snappy music as an accompaniment. Take a look! Don’t feel like watching the video or reading the release post? Here’s what’s new in WordPress 2.6: Post Revisions: Wiki-like tracking of edits Press This!: Post from wherever you are on the web—easily grab any photo, video, quote, or bit of text from the page you’re currently viewing. Shift Gears: Turbo-speed your blogging—download all of your basic WordPress scripts to speed up your blog while you’re working on it! Theme Previews: See a theme applied to your site before your audience does. Contact us to have your blog upgrades to WordPress 2.6 today! Announcements, Blogging, News 2008-07-17T23:46:00-05:00 http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog/leading_a_natural_life/ http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog/leading_a_natural_life/#When:00:59:00Z During the times in which we currently live, attempting to lead a healthy, natural life could not be any more important. This is only one of the reasons I enjoyed working with Tiffany of the Nature Moms blog so much. An inspiring mother and an excellent writer, Tiffany sends the message I have just presented you with in an astounding manner. Her posts include product reviews of healthful products, thought-provoking anecdotes from her personal life, organic recipes, and so much more. Tiffany requested a revamp of her old design wishing to use a natural green and orange theme to compliment a unique header graphic. We provided her with just that so that she could present herself in a more professional manner to the thousands of readers that browse her blog everyday.  Clients, Portfolio Item Addition 2008-05-28T00:59:00-05:00 http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog/spring_has_sprung/ http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog/spring_has_sprung/#When:20:35:00Z I wonder why my post titles have had so much to do with the current state of the season lately. Either way, Happy Spring! It’s an exciting time here at Blog What? Design! We are currently taking on new projects for the May - July season. If you are interested in receiving a quote for your project, please contact us. However, please note that we will not be able to complete your project before this time period. Additionally, our starting prices have gone up from $700 to approximately $1200 per project. Business has been competitive and we would like to provide our clients with the best service possible. One final note: I have been experiencing an infinite number of problems with my e-mail within that last two months thanks to my transfer over to Gmail. If you have not received a reply, please e-mail me at your convenience. Announcements, Clients, News 2008-03-31T20:35:00-05:00 http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog/baby_its_cold_outside/ http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog/baby_its_cold_outside/#When:20:29:00Z SO! There’s been quite a bit going on this side of the Hudson lately! I feel like I owe an explanation for the lack of activity. Maybe not, but here’s my life within the past few months anyways: Ahmadinjad came to Columbia University amidst great controversy. I had a few hearty political debates with around three cameras in my face at all times (as did every other student that day). Check out some interesting photos from the event. I got through my first semester of college! Woohoo! And no. Unless we’re Facebook friends, there are no “interesting photos” so see from that. I have reaffirmed my belief that New York City is the best city in the entire world and that every undergraduate who isn’t attending college here is seriously missing out. I interned for two months at College Humor as a web developer—owned by Connected Ventures. I subsequently learned that working for free is not cool. I became online editor at The Columbia Daily Spectator. Since the beginning of the semester I have launched an entirely new blog network—entitled SpecBlogs—completed many upgrades for the publishing company’s websites, and have many big plans in place! (Including some super awesome web applications never before seen by any other College Daily… no Harvard… not even your ”Crimson” will be putting out stuff as cool as us. I hatched up a brand new business plan… which involves fashion and websites; these are very obviously two things I truly enjoy. More on this possibly soon… I bought a black fedora and I wear it everywhere. … because I have finally started to take on new projects at Blog What? Design and will hopefully be blogging quite a bit more after the semester settles in. And life couldn’t be happier Anyways, that’s it for now!  Announcements, Blogging, Clients 2008-01-31T20:29:00-05:00 http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog/twirlin/ http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog/twirlin/#When:15:21:00Z The Twirlin’ project was introduced to Blog What? through our previous client, Tyrone. We knew that Tyrone was always a pleasure to work with, so we got started on this project right away. Twirlin’ is “a derivative of stepping or step-dancing originated from the Historically African American Fraternity’s culture of organizational boast worthy song and dance. The history of this art form dates back to the middle decades of the 20th century Anno Domini. While there are many organizations that use cane props in stepping routines, there are four organization that have emerged most well know in the phenomenon [Kappa Alpha Psi, Phi Beta Sigma, Sigma Gamma Rho, and Zeta Phi Beta].” [Wikipedia] To demonstrate this passionate urban sort of dance, Tyrone and his client decided to go ahead with a design that was grungy and filled bright color on a black background. The final product is Twirlin.info. The logo you’ll see was designed by an independent artist, and we incorporated it into the best places. Twirlin’ features a blog section with various videos and reports, a history of the style, a “how to” page, more current information on the dance, and finally a page with access to buy merchandise and contact the webmasters. Twirlin’ is currently still in its production stage.. but check back soon to see new information up on the site. 2007-10-01T15:21:00-05:00 http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog/were_back/ http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog/were_back/#When:20:15:00Z We’re finally back after some God-awful downtime within the past few days due to some ridiculous name server issues with a new domain company. The lesson? Never switch away from companies that may charge a bit more, but are simply the best and most professional around. Thank you for your patience! Announcements, News 2007-08-30T20:15:00-05:00 http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog/nick_on_wine/ http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog/nick_on_wine/#When:06:28:00Z The new website at Nick on Wine has certainly been one of the most exciting projects at Blog What? Design. Let me tell you a little bit about this “intoxicating” website… Mr. Passmore was referred to me from one of my previous clients. The concept for the website he needed was simple yet precise. It would be a website that would showcase his articles and… his life. “His life?” you ask? Mr. Passmore is one of the premiere wine critics in the world. His articles are featured in publications such as Forbes, BusinessWeek, and many, many more. The task presented to me was certainly exciting. Mr. Passmore provided me with a selection of photos he wanted to incorporate into the site. As you can see, three of those magnificent wine photos are featured at the top of the design, and a few more around presented around the rest of the site. Next came the color scheme. What better colors to choose than burgundy and champagne? Mr. Passmore already had a great, modern logo designed, so I grabbed these colors right from his business card. The features of Mr. Passmore’s site suit his needs perfectly. The focal point of Nick on Wine is ”Nick’s Wine of the Week.” Each week, Mr. Passmore publishes a new article showcasing a wine of his choice. I was able to make use of WordPress’ custom fields, and provided him with a dynamic template and form in which he could enter his rating of the wine, food pairings, etc… Each new “NWOW” is featured on the front page, while the previous wine is archived. Another aspect of Mr. Passmore’s career is his corporate wine events. To showcase this, I featured a page-link at the top with a promotional bit of information he provided me with. Alongside the explanation of his services is a lovely photo Mr. Passmore during one of his events. Nick on Wine also features Mr. Passmore’s latest articles and a chance to comment on them, along with his own wine blog. The final (and one of the most humorous) aspects of Nick on Wine is the gallery page. Mr. Passmore needed a static page which he could edit easily and constantly with photos and captions of his choice. I installed a few more plugins to WordPress’ TinyMCE editor which allowed him to create a table to drop any number of photos he wished. So, looking for a great wine to accompany your meal tonight? Need to supply a corporate “wine and dine” event? If you’re an expert or a novice, looking for a great deal or the top of the line, Nick on Wine certainly has something to offer. Blog What? Design had a pleasure designing and developing Nick on Wine, and we know you’ll have the same pleasure reading Mr. Passmore’s articles as well! Clients, Portfolio Item Addition 2007-08-02T06:28:00-05:00 http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog/crunchy_frog_crunchy_mustard/ http://blogwhatdesign.com/index.php/blog/crunchy_frog_crunchy_mustard/#When:07:25:00Z Here’s the latest addition to the portfolio! Crunchy Mustard! Crunchy Mustard is a personal blog of mine and Christian’s along with our friends Yurij and Ryan. This blog was launched a few months back and features a wide variety of absurd news stories and findings. I decided on this excellent graphic from Simon Oxley because of its absurd nature and the way it fit into the theme. I put a fishbowl around it and voila: a strange blog logo (but a perfect fit!) was formed. The aquas and greens fit together naturally; they’re reminiscent of a pond scene. The blog is run strictly off WordPress with your basic features in the sidebar. These include: an about blurb with some pretty funny author photos, the top commenters for the month (along with a link back to their blogs!), your basic blogroll, search spot, category display, and meta section with RSS and login “stuff.” Our extra cool features include: a small sidebar chat room (it pops with each new message!), and a display of recent readers via mybloglog.  Not found in the sidebar are these great plugins: ajax comments for the permalink pages, and a special “dofollow” feature to allow our visitor’s sites to be crawled by Google! Blogging, Clients, Portfolio Item Addition 2007-07-25T07:25:00-05:00