New Website!

I wrote early in the year that I was going to build a new website for my business. I am a big fan of WordPress and have only used that software.  I’d been using the Flexx Theme from iThemes since perhaps 2009 or 2010 and I was ready to upgrade to iThemes Builder with all their responsive themes, cool built-in widgets, and the ability to use the Builder layout. The Builder layout lets you choose the components you want to build the site you envision without having to know a lot of code. Each page can have a unique look – a full width (no sidebars), a page with 1 sidebar, well you get the point.

I’m using the child theme, Everett. I liked this one because I could use the call out/full window feature to have an image going from ‘edge to edge’ that will stand out. My home page has a cloud image that covers the entire page. I didn’t use the full window feature for this as it needed some css styling to accomplish this. Go ahead and click on the image and look at the rest of my site – then come back!

Building a site for myself took waaaayyy longer than building for any of my clients. This is because it was harder to make decisions on what I wanted or should want/have, decisions on what content to keep, what to throw out. Should I have some cool sliders with some images of (fill in the blank). This went on for so long that I finally made a decision just to get this site published and then I can make changes as they come to me. When I realized it didn’t have to be perfect to be published, then I could actually publish!

So there are a few things that aren’t quite right yet and there is content I need to add and to change. There are some cool components I want to add (maybe those sliders that will show the various websites I’ve done). I like my home page the best as it’s eye-catching – minimal text with my main content box being a bit translucent. I’ve put social media icons on each page along with my contact information so people can find me around the web. I put my Twitter stream in because it’s my favorite social media. I also put a sign-up box for my newsletter – but confession time – I have yet to publish because I haven’t decided what it will look like! I need to decide to ‘publish before perfection’ here as well!

I’d been searching for just the right social sharing icons and think I’ve found them, thanks to MaAnna over at http://www.blogaid.net/. I was reading one of her articles and noticed her icons so I left a comment asking what they are and she got right back with me. She has some great WordPress information, I heartily recommend her site. The plugin is called Simple Share Buttons Adder and it is very customizable. Here’s a look at my buttons – they appear at the end of each blog article.

Finally, for those really geeky people, I thought you might like to look at how I used Builder to lay out my Home Page. It’s pretty traditional. Besides the traditional components, I added 3 widgets to the second level. Right now I’m using just the far-right one for my social icons. I’m saving the other two widgets for now. My content module has 2 sidebars – the left for Twitter and the right for my newsletter sign-up. I can add more later, if I wish.

There’s a lot more to tell, but I may write more later on. For now, it’s good to be back blogging again after my 4-week hiatus. More on that later too. Please leave a comment with your impressions of my new site –good or bad!