Comment to Win a One-Year Membership to MediaLoot!
Earlier today a new membership-based site, MediaLoot was launched. It is an online toolbox of premium design resources, and they have kindly offered to give five readers of the Vandelay Design blog a one-year membership to the site for free! MediaLoot is a project of Jon Phillips of Spyre Studios and Mason Hipp of Freelance Folder . Members of MediaLoot are able to download resources like textures, icons, vectors, brushes, templates and more. The goal of MediaLoot is to eliminate the need for pay-per-use site..
Vandelay Website Design (2 days ago)
21 Resources Especially for Lovers of Minimalism
Minimalism a popular style of design because it keeps things simple and user-friendly. In this post we'll look at more than 20 websites, blogs and books dedicated to minimalism. Not all of them are related to web design – minimalism can also be applied to other aspects of business and life. Minimal Design Showcases: If you want to find great and inspiring examples of minimalist design, these sites will be excellent sources. Minimal Exhibit Minimal Sites Siiimple MinimalistDesign.org Minimal Showcase Mni..
Vandelay Website Design (3 days ago)
5 Tips To Get The Most Out of Your 99Designs.com Contest
This is a guest post by Andreas Kambanis. If you want to guest post on this blog, check out the guidelines here. I’ve always considered logo’s the realm of big multinational companies. Companies like AOL or Amazon who have thousands of dollars to throw at new designs. Therefore, despite being constantly told about their importance and the value of branding for my blog I’ve ignored the advice. I’ve put it to the back of my mind and decided to focus on other things. After all logo’s are really expensive aren’t ..
Daily Blog Tips (3 days ago)
How to Add a Background Image with CSS
Hi, In our continuing pursuit to make web design easy for you, we have yet another great little tutorial on using CSS to insert background images into your web pages. A little bit from the article: CSS also gives us the tools to direct our background image how we want it. The default, as you can see, is that it repeats itself horizontally AND vertically to fill the entire background, regardless of size. Sometimes we might want the image appear only horizontally or vertically – and maybe not directly on the ed..
Website Design Blog - Killersites.com (7 days ago)
jQuery Resources for One-Page Portfolios
A few weeks ago we published a showcase of one-page portfolios and pointed out some trends among them. Many of those sites are using jQuery to accomplish specific things. In this post we'll feature some plugins and tutorials that are ideal for one-page portfolios. Of course, they can be used on other types of sites as well, but they are well-suited to match up with the trends among one-page portfolios. Contact Forms: All portfolio sites need to allow visitors to contact the designer, whether it is through an ..
Vandelay Website Design (7 days ago)
Styling a Horizontal Navigation Menu with CSS
Hi, We are busy at work here creating new videos and tutorials with the aim to make web design easy … so, I just wanted to mention a new CSS tip on csstutorial.net on: Styling a Horizontal Navigation Menu with CSS From the article: It’s true: Your navigation items are really a LIST. Bread, Milk, Sugar, Coffee, Home, Contact Us, About, Cheese, Tomatoes, Sitemap. See, it’s a LIST!! And it should be coded and styled like a list. It’s easy. Just another one of our growing collection of CSS tips. Thanks, Ste..
Website Design Blog - Killersites.com (8 days ago)
Showcase of Light Texture in Web Design
Texture is obviously a common design element that is being used on a lot of modern websites. However, texture doesn't always have to be a part of the design that stands out immediately to visitors. Light textures can also be used to subtly improve the design of the site. In this post we'll feature 25 sites that use texture without it dominating the design. Odosketch Toggle Questionable Characters FeedStitch 84 Colors Designs for Interaction Ali Felski Atebits Small White Bear A Simple Measure ConvergeSC WellM..
Vandelay Website Design (9 days ago)
Picnik – web based image editing.
One of the great things about web design is that you can jump into it with cheap hardware and free and next to free software. In a nutshell, web design is an affordable thing to learn and do. Image editing on the cheap There are cheap and free image editors that you can install on your computer. And now, there are image editors that you can simply run in a web browser! Sure, they are not as powerful (today) as say Photoshop or The Gimp … OK, not nearly as powerful, but nonetheless, for simple image edit..
Website Design Blog - Killersites.com (9 days ago)
Learn how to create a Fixed Width CSS layout
Hi, I just wanted to announce that a new css tutorial has been posted on how to create a 2-Column, Center-aligned Fixed Width Layout with CSS . OK, that was a mouthful, but nonetheless, still a useful tutorial. Many more CSS tutorials on the way. Stefan
Website Design Blog - Killersites.com (11 days ago)
An interview with David Siegel about his new book on the semantic Web: Pull
David has had a knack for pointing the way, when it comes to the Web. In David's new book ‘Pull', he's now pointing the way when it comes to the Web, business and perhaps even more. In the following interview, I try to get to heart of what Pull is all about. Thanks for reading, Stefan Mischook An interview with David Siegel about Pull 1. What is ‘pull' in a nutshell? It's the first book of its kind, describing the next 10 years of innovation online, where all industries will transition from a push..
Website Design Blog - Killersites.com (12 days ago)
Diving Deep into the Templates Box
For most people, designing a custom design template can be more trouble than what it’s worth. It takes so much time to put together a decent-looking website and that’s why it’s so much easier if you can have something ready for you out of the box. At the same time, you also recognize that there [...] Diving Deep into the Templates Box A selection of e-books to help you improve as a blogger. Find out more at www.bloggingtips.com/books/
Blogging Tips (12 days ago)
The Future of Web Design as a Career?
Hi, Sometimes change makes people nervous. I got an email from someone recently, who's been noticing some changes in the web design world and had some fears. Check it out: I been noticing more ads on the TV and the internet about web site building kits and companies set up to build web sites through the use of templates and prearranged page layout formats to choose from. Since this is on the rise I was wondering in me learning to become a web developer, will this occupation be a dieing breed given all the sel..
Website Design Blog - Killersites.com (14 days ago)
25 Portfolio Site Designs Using Illustration
Portfolio sites often showcase creativity and the skills of the designer. If you browse around at current portfolio sites you'll see a lot of illustration being used in the design. In this post we'll feature 25 portfolios that use illustration. To see more portfolios please visit our gallery site Folio Focus . Rype Arts N. Design Studio Camellie Pampaneo Yodaa Flourish Artua Design Studios Mutant Labs We Build Ecommerce Art Core Illustrations The Plant The Alamo Basement Guerilla Justin Tsang Stoodeo Creative..
Vandelay Website Design (14 days ago)
Win a Free Template of Your Choice from TemplateWire
TemplateWire has offered to give free templates to three Vandelay Design readers. If you’re not familiar with TemplateWire they are a leading marketplace of CSS templates , Flash templates , and logo templates . For $49 you can get 12 months of unlimited access to all of their premium templates. Or you can get 3 months of access for $29. You can use the templates on an unlimited number of websites for you or your clients. CSS Templates: TemplateWire currently has more than 60 CSS templates. Flash Templates: T..
Vandelay Website Design (16 days ago)
Showcase of Transparency in Web Design
Transparency is being used in an increasing number of websites. In some cases transparency subtly adds to the quality and character of the design, and in other cases it can be a major design element. In this post we'll feature 35 websites that are making excellent use of transparency. 2am Electricurrent Sam Brown Housing Works Lift Lilly's Table Sisu Russ Kirby Imaginaria Creative Mint Ordered List Delicious CSS BenSky World in My Lens Galan WebMynd Blik FontShop Go Media Squarespace Blog SOASdesign Oliver Ka..
Vandelay Website Design (17 days ago)
Drive traffic to your website by keeping it active.
Hi, After weeks of being good and not eating much junk food, I decided to treat myself to a steak submarine – 14 inchs no less! Anyway, within a few hours, I started to get those creepy-crawly's in my legs and this morning, after having a tea, I started to feel like gagging. !! Lesson learned: no more subs and junk food. OK, back to web design business … In the following video, I go over why you should keep you website looking active and I provide five tips on how to do this. But, just in case you..
Website Design Blog - Killersites.com (18 days ago)
CSS Tips and Tricks Collection
Hi, We just started building a new collection of CSS tips and tricks on our dedicated CSS training site csstutorial.net. CSS recipes that are byte-sized! I wanted to create a beginner friendly collection of CSS tips that got to the point fast. For example, check out this tip on CSS and font sizes . Anyway, you should see this collection grow fast (with the help of a few authors) that will include written and video CSS tips. Thanks and let me know what you think. Stefan Mischook www.killersites.com
Website Design Blog - Killersites.com (19 days ago)
Wordpress Updates: constant and annoying!
Hi, Anyone who knows me, understands that I think learning and using Wordpress is pretty much a must for web designers – Wordpress is a key tool in the web design toolbox. That said, Wordpress does have it's failings (though not many) and one of them is the seemingly constant stream of upgrades. What!? Aren't upgrades a good thing? Normally sure. But it seems to me that just as soon as you've gone through the trouble of installing the latest Wordpress upgrade … you get another dashboard message sa..
Website Design Blog - Killersites.com (19 days ago)
Web Design for Developers – Book Review
Hi, This book's title does not do it justice – it's also a great book for intermediate web designers (just out of web design diapers) who want to take it a few steps further. The book revolves around the redesign of a pretty bland looking web site. You are walked through the whole design process: sketching out the design/layout ideas. interacting with the clients. how to choose colors and fonts for the web site. designing a logo! Then you get into the coding (HTML, CSS) aspects of the web design process..
Website Design Blog - Killersites.com (21 days ago)
This Is Why I Don't Believe In Optimizing for Mobile Devices
A couple of years ago we saw the trend of “mobile optimization” emerge. People started urging us about the importance of optimizing our sites for mobile devices, about creating versions for the iPhone and other mobile phones and so on. There were even companies that created a business model around this idea. I wrote about it, but I never really bought into it. In fact early in 2009 I had already written a post titled Do We Really Need to Optimize Our Sites for Mobile Phones? . One year later I sti..
Daily Blog Tips (21 days ago)
10 Keys to Effective Non-Profit Organization Websites
Non profit organizations tend to have limited budgets and limited involvement from members for planning, designing and maintaining websites. This often results in a site that doesn't really achieve everything that it could for the organization and the people involved. In recent years there has been an increasing number of organizations that are doing great things with their websites and truly making them valuable and effective. In this article we'll look at the keys to an effective non-profit organization web..
Vandelay Website Design (22 days ago)
Design Trend Showcase: 30 Horizontal Websites
Horizontal websites have been increasing in popularity over the past year or two. Although the approach isn't a good fit for every project, a horizontal layout can provide designers with an opportunity to showcase some creativity and to break out of the box. As you may notice from the sites showcased here, portfolio sites of designers and photographers are probably the most likely type of site to use a horizontal layout right now. Here is a look at 30 sites for your own inspiration. Aubrey Edwards We Shoot Bo..
Vandelay Website Design (24 days ago)
One-Page Portfolios: Trends and Showcase
One-page portfolios are certainly a popular trend among web and graphic designers. Many designers have created one-page portfolios that use a lot of creativity, but there are also some elements or characteristics that are very common among them. In this post we'll look at ten trends of one-page portfolios with examples of each. At the end of the post we'll include a showcase for your own design inspiration, plus some resources to help you if you're interested in creating your own one-page portfolio. Trends of..
Vandelay Website Design (28 days ago)
Putting My Blog on a Diet
Earlier this week, I decided that I needed to put my main site on a diet. Simply put, the loading time of the site was nowhere near my personal standard and, though no one had complained about the time it took to load, I wasn’t pleased with the numbers I was seeing and even Google Webmaster [...] Putting My Blog on a Diet A selection of e-books to help you improve as a blogger. Find out more at www.bloggingtips.com/books/
Blogging Tips (35 days ago)
Why YouTube’s Move to HTML5 May be Huge
Today YouTube announced a new beta program that will allow you to view the movies on its site using pure HTML5, no Adobe Flash required. To be fair, it isn’t a huge change if you enter the beta. The controls for the movies are different and the loading animation says “HTML5″ rather than having the [...] Why YouTube’s Move to HTML5 May be Huge A selection of e-books to help you improve as a blogger. Find out more at www.bloggingtips.com/books/
Blogging Tips (49 days ago)
Cullogo – A new place to hold a logo design contest
More and more people are having their website logo designed in a design contest rather than going to a design company directly with a proposal. SitePoint was one of the first marketplaces to offer design contests when they moved their design contest section from their marketplace to 99Designs. Since then many other logo and design [...] Cullogo – A new place to hold a logo design contest A selection of e-books to help you improve as a blogger. Find out more at www.bloggingtips.com/books/
Blogging Tips (86 days ago)
Google Analytics Gets Faster, Better
Many bloggers are using Google Analytics (GA) on their site to collect information about their visitors. It is feature-rich, accurate, extensible through an API and, most importantly to many, completely free. However, despite its popularity, it seems that most of its users have missed one of the most important improvements to the service in recent years. Historically [...] Google Analytics Gets Faster, Better A selection of e-books to help you improve as a blogger. Find out more at www.bloggingtips.com/books/
Blogging Tips (98 days ago)
LogoBee – Quality Logo and Stationery Design
Branding is an essential part of marketing your blog. Which is why it’s important for your blog to have a good logo. Today I will be looking at LogoBee, a logo design company which does logo, web and stationery design. What LogoBee can do The reputation of any design company is dependent on their previous work. So [...] LogoBee – Quality Logo and Stationery Design A selection of e-books to help you improve as a blogger. Find out more at www.bloggingtips.com/books/
Blogging Tips (98 days ago)
Are We Obsessed With Aesthetics?
If you have the habit of visiting social bookmarking sites you probably know how popular web design related stories are. Every single day you can find a list with “the best collection of free textures,” “free icon sets,” “examples of stunning typography” and so on. I do believe that design is an important part of the whole. As the Italian proverb goes, anche l'occhio vuole la sua parte (i.e., the eye wants it's share too). But after seeing those web design related stories f..
Daily Blog Tips (122 days ago)
5 Fast Ways to Speed Up Your Blog
Every time someone visits your site, your blog is in a race against the clock. The time between when a user will click the link to your site and can actually read your words is limited. Too long and people just click away. Though, with high-speed Internet becoming as prevalent as it has, these issues [...] 5 Fast Ways to Speed Up Your Blog A selection of e-books to help you improve as a blogger. Find out more at www.bloggingtips.com/books/
Blogging Tips (161 days ago)
What every beginning web designer should know: 5 tips for fresh web designers
I am the lucky one, I have had the fortune of being surrounded by a group of experts who have been more than generous with their wealth of information. Finding people who are dealing with the web on a regular basis and who are willing to give you guidance is invaluable. What every beginning web designer should know: 5 tips for fresh web designers A selection of e-books to help you improve as a blogger. Find out more at www.bloggingtips.com/books/
Blogging Tips (177 days ago)
5 Quick Ways to Improve Your Blog
Some weeks ago I came across an interesting post on Blogging Tips titled 5 Quick Ways to Improve Your Blog . It basically lists improvements that you can perform on your blog without spending too much time. Here is the first point: 5. Tweak Your Theme You might not have the time you need to overhaul your theme completely, but what about tweaking it a bit? Why not see if you can improve your site’s typography, thus making your text easier to read? Maybe it’s time for a better logo? Check out the original artic..
Daily Blog Tips (195 days ago)
What You Need to Know About HTML 5
HTML stands for H yper t ext M arkup L anguage, and it is the most common language used to create web pages. The basic HTML structure is composed of tags, but you can also embed images, videos, and load scripts from other languages (e.g., Javascript) inside pages. You probably already knew that. What you might not know is that currently we are using the fourth revision of HTML, called HTML 4.01, and that the next revision, called HTML 5.0, will completely change the web development segment. Here are some majo..
Daily Blog Tips (199 days ago)
Simple 404
404 pages are one of the most boring pages on your site but they are also one of the most important. Imagine going somewhere you have never been before with no signposts to direct you ( and no sat nav) where would you go next? You would either guess and try to navigate your way round or [...] Simple 404 A selection of e-books to help you improve as a blogger. Find out more at www.bloggingtips.com/books/
Blogging Tips (201 days ago)
Free ‘Basic HTML’ E-Book For Blogging Tips Readers
I am very pleased to announce the release of Blogging Tips first e-book ‘Basic HTML : An Introduction to HTML for Bloggers‘. This 63 page e-book spans 11 chapters and is available to download for free to anyone who joins our blogging newsletter. An Introduction to HTML for Bloggers Releasing an ebook is something I have thought [...] Free ‘Basic HTML’ E-Book For Blogging Tips Readers A selection of e-books to help you improve as a blogger. Find out more at www.bloggingtips.com/books/
Blogging Tips (234 days ago)
5 Basic HTML Tasks Every Blogger Should Know
WYSIWYG HTML editors are great. They let bloggers, or other webmasters, build sites or create posts without requiring them to take a look at any of the code that makes it up. Best of all, they are becoming increasingly powerful, able to do more and more while creating better and better code. However, they are far [...] 5 Basic HTML Tasks Every Blogger Should Know A selection of e-books to help you improve as a blogger. Find out more at www.bloggingtips.com/books/
Blogging Tips (240 days ago)
Blog Themes Club Launches
Over the last month or so I have been giving you all an insight into a new project that I have been developing with Sarah. Today I am very happy to announce that Blog Themes Club is now online. What is Blog Themes Club? Blog Themes Club is a brand new premium WordPress store which aims [...] Blog Themes Club Launches A selection of e-books to help you improve as a blogger. Find out more at www.bloggingtips.com/books/
Blogging Tips (270 days ago)
Blog Themes Club Update
It’s just short of a month since I told you all about Blog Themes Club, a new website I am launching with Sarah. Therefore I thought I would give you all a quick update Site Development All the themes have been developed and the site is ready for launch. However, we are still putting the [...] Blog Themes Club Update A selection of e-books to help you improve as a blogger. Find out more at www.bloggingtips.com/books/
Blogging Tips (275 days ago)
20 Fabulous Resources for Free Blogger Templates
Now more than ever the availability of quality Blogger templates astounds me. Talented designers and coders have turned their attentions to the vast market of those using Google Blogger as their platform of choice, resulting in a wonderful variety of templates – most of which are free to download! From simple, elegant designs to quirky, feminine [...] 20 Fabulous Resources for Free Blogger Templates A selection of e-books to help you improve as a blogger. Find out more at www.bloggingtips.com/books/
Blogging Tips (277 days ago)
6 Great Sites With Free Professional Twitter Backgrounds
Are you wanting a professional looking Twitter background but not sure where to find one? As Twitter continues to grow, it’s a good idea to stand out from the crowd so that people will remember you. That can be hard if you’re using the same generic Twitter background as hundreds of other Twitter users. If [...] 6 Great Sites With Free Professional Twitter Backgrounds A selection of e-books to help you improve as a blogger. Find out more at www.bloggingtips.com/books/
Blogging Tips (279 days ago)
Web Design for God’s Audience: Learning from Church Web Development
Part of my joy in being an advocate for WordPress is showcasing how WordPress is used around the world. In a fascinating discussion with Darren Hoyt, Interviews with Church Designers looks at web design and WordPress blogs from a unique perspective: Christian churches, specifically American Christian churches. Like me, Darren admits he didn’t understand the market [...]
Lorelle on WordPress (1 year ago)
WordPress Post Content Sandbox Content Updated
The thirteenth blog post published on Lorelle on WordPress was Designing a WordPress Theme – Building a Post Sandbox. This post continues to be useful to WordPress Theme developers and testers, so I’ve updated it and included an easier-to-use sandbox post text file. When designing, testing, or tweaking a WordPress Theme, you need to pay attention [...]
Lorelle on WordPress (1 year ago)
CSS Development Tools, Forms, Layouts, and More
If you are a WordPress Theme designer, or want to dig into your WordPress Theme’s design, check out Blog Oh Blog’s “Rapid CSS Development Tools” article with a list of CSS tools that help make coding and designing easier. The article include forms, layouts, frameworks, optimizers, and more. For more CSS and web design tools, [...]
Lorelle on WordPress (1 year ago)
WordPress Helper Firefox Extension
WordPress Helper Firefox Extension.: An extension for Firefox that adds a bunch of automated and manual features to the right click contextual menu in Firefox. Available features include the following: Categorized Access to WordPress Help pages (WordPress Codex) Search for highlighted text strings on websites One-Click-switch to a website’s WordPress backend Update Notification on new WordPress versions Website Profiles Custom Shortcuts Various preference
Weblog Tools Collection (1 year ago)
Glenda Watson Hyatt: How WordPress Changes Her Life Daily
I was so thrilled when Glenda Watson Hyatt of the Do It Myself Blog volunteered her story of how WordPress changed her life for my WordCamp Portland keynote presentation. I’ll be sharing the videos and pictures of the program in the next few days, but I wanted to share with you Glenda’s personal story. As you [...]
Lorelle on WordPress (1 year ago)
Designing WordPress Themes For the Slowing Web
Jonathan Bailey of the Blog Herald wrote about Surfing the Slow Web, a summary of his recent experience trying to connect to the Internet as an evacuee from Hurricane Gustav. While most web designers are pushing the limits of heavy handed design towards high bandwidth, the world still doesn’t work that fast or wide. According to [...]
Lorelle on WordPress (2 years ago)
10 Video Tutorials for Learning Basic Web Design Skills
10 Video Tutorials for Learning Basic Web Design Skills: Some interesting video tutorials linked from Mashable that could help budding web designers or dabblers put a new sheen on their existing blog or website. Of interest are such video tutorials as “How to turn any web template into a WordPress theme“.
Weblog Tools Collection (2 years ago)
Create Your Own Frontpage Slideshow
The folks over at PerfectSurf.de have published a tutorial which goes into detail on how you can create your own personal slideshow to appear on the frontpage of your WordPress powered site. This slideshow feature has been seen in numerous premium themes as of late and now you can create one for yourself via this
Weblog Tools Collection (2 years ago)
Stripped Down Naked to Honor Web Designers and Developers
In honor of April 9, 2008, as CSS Naked Day, my blog is going naked. I discussed this a few days ago with details on how to strip naked your blog if you would like to join in the celebrations. By going naked, my blog stands with thousands of others who recognize and honor the hard [...]
Lorelle on WordPress (2 years ago)
Strip Down Your Blog: CSS Naked Day
Get ready to go naked. On April 9th, 2008, hundreds, possibly thousands, of blogs and websites will go naked in honor of CSS Naked Day. Join fellow WordPress bloggers in honoring web designers and WordPress Theme builders by going naked. This is the third year of the annual CSS Naked Day which honors web design and [...]
Lorelle on WordPress (2 years ago)
