Nicole redesigned the blog for me.� If you are reading this vis RSS feed, you should click on over and check it out!� Or not.� You’ll see it eventually because, people, it’s not changing anytime soon.� It’s been a process.
It’s not done, but we’re calling it super close to done.� There are a few bugaboos I need to work out, a few features to add, and one or two decisions to make regarding content, but this is our new home and where we will be chatting almost daily for the foreseeable future.� Isn’t it cute?
I’ll give you all the details.
Tristan made my pattern.� She made my last pattern, too.� I don’t know if I could write at a blog where she didn’t design the background.� Anyway, I gave her carte blanche on the design and this is what she came up with on the first try.� I loved it, of course.� I especially loved her concept:
“I made a modern honeycomb for you.� Honeycombs are classic but the style is a bit modern, a combo just like you.� You’re sweet and simple, like honey, and so is your writing.� You’re also like a bee, loyal and hardworking.� Also, when you get mad at someone, you’re really mean and will sting the crap out of them, so there’s that, too.”
Alrighty then!
Cathe designed my logo and, as always, killed it.� Months ago I told her and Tristan what I wanted and they both said, “Sounds interesting!� Stick with words, woman.”� So I did, and I’m glad.
It goes without saying that Nicole deserves a monument built in her honor.� Did I tell you that I was debating changing my tagline?� “Big bloggers” suggested I do so, and I almost did.� I ran it past my favorite crew and after the laughter died down, they said uh, NO.� I believe one of Nicole’s emails went something like this:
You are emailing me because you can’t decide whether you should keep your tagline about being indecisive.� I’m going to say you should keep it. ;)
Sheesh.� She acts like I changed my mind 300 times during the nine month process.� YES IT WAS NINE MONTHS.� I consider my blog my baby.� I was gestating, people.
Okay, the layout.� We’re still filling things in, so that’s going to take a bit.� Forgive me if things don’t work perfectly just yet.� It will get there.
The left side is a visual index to what my blog is about.� These are the topics I write about the most, and eventually you will be able to click on those and read all the posts in any give topic.� If you click on it right now, you get nothing.
The right side is missing my About box.� It got lost in the move, but it will be back.� Who knows, it might be back by the time you read this.� The rest is pretty much what I already had on the blog, but much easier to navigate and understand.� Wait, I just noticed I’m missing the search box.� Strike that sentence about easier navigation.
The top navigation is also a work in process.� I need to spruce up my Amazon store.� It’s filled with cobwebs thanks to my neglect.� The Daily Meal Plan page is back, but right now it just shows old posts, like a category search.� It will go back to looking like a blog soon, but it will include more than just my meal plans so the name will change.� I’m open to suggestions!� Do you have one?� I’m looking for something short and simple.� I’ll be using that area to post interesting articles I find on health and nutrition, along with some of my favorite recipes and products.� Now, remember, I live in southern California and am obsessed with health food.� Don’t be surprised to find a post on raw coconut vinegar, is all I’m saying.
Finally, there is a section called Inland Empire Family.� I’m no longer posting at Inland Empire Family due to time constraints, but I do want to keep up my Inland Empire color stories and feature a few of my favorite haunts.� I love where I live and think it gets a bum rap.� I’d like to change that, so this new section of the blog will be my love letter to the IE.� I will post about my favorite restaurants, places to visit, and things to do.� That needs a new name, too, so please feel free to chime in with some suggestions.
I think that’s it.� Take a look around with a fresh pair of eyes and tell me if something is missing or seems confusing.� I’m thanking you in advance for your patience and for your help in making this place somewhere worth visiting. :)
Thank you.
xoxo
Jules
EDIT:� Oops!� I just saw a screenshot of my blog in Safari and it looks a little off.� Let me know if anything looks off in any other browsers!
Love. (Love, love, love, love.)
It looks fantastic lady. Love it! Great work :)
Love it! Love the IE idea – I have an brainstorm for that!
Love it so far! (meaning I haven’t had a lot of time to look around at this point). And I’m not a big fan of change. When I saw the title of the post and was still waiting on the other stuff to load, I kind of groaned (in my head-b/c it’s midnight and everyone is asleep, and I like it like that) because it meant change. But it’s good change. Love your header!!!!! Jealous!
Makes me wanna do something new. But I just drove my family crazy trying to figure out my header recently. Gotta wait. Of course then I will forget *even more* how to do it…hmmmm….
Ok, sorry…love your blog Jules! muah!
You crack me up, Cara. I just saw that Nicole put in this nifty reply box! Let’s see if it ups my comment count. If it doesn’t, this could mean trouble for me. I’ll never get out of my comment section! ;)
So I’ve decided to stop being a closet fan and subscribe because I so enjoy reading your posts. I think it’s the new header that sealed the deal – absolutely love it!
I haven’ been reading you for long, but I like the new look. Like Mia said above me, it’s time to subscribe!
CONGRATS! It looks fabulous … especially your logo. Love. And I can’t believe anyone would tell you to change your tagline … it’s perfect.
looks good. My only problem in Firefox is that some of the margin content obscure the main blog. I have to read my rss feed to see all the wording. No matter…I enjoy reading
Karen
Yes, Safari is being a turd. So is Thesis, my new theme. It seems like it’s taking a while to load and figuring out how to click the header image isn’t going well.
Very nice. Bright and popping! Love the big topic pics on the side.
Good luck.
A
Beautiful, sleek, modern and homey…
Now in Safari (5) the content spread is wide enough to obscure the patterned margins too. I thought it was missing the honey until I widened my page.
It took me 9 months to pick a font. A font!
Green dress and family leg picture is perfect.
Great job Cathe and Nicole!
Love the new look, which was a pleasant surprise since I, like Cara, am not a huge fan of change. The header and logo, though, won me over in a matter of seconds. Perfectly “you”!
I love it! Clean, organized, with a bit of flair and lots of personality!! Props to all talented parties involved…
Lovely, sunshiny and…buttery. Like on top of pancakes! Love the topics, too. Can’t wait until those are populated. That’s a user-friendly way for a new-(ish) reader like me to approach the archives. Oh, wait! Just saw the category drop-down. I’ll have to try that, too.
It looks so great! I love the honeycomb but the header is my favorite. Perfect font, great photo.
Gorgeous! Fun! Professional. I love the header photo. It’s perfect. But as always, your writing is the star of the show.
I love it Jules! I like that it still looks like you just tweeked for the better. Love the header picture! Worth the wait.
Love the new site – looks fantastic!! And you’re right, Cathe knocked the logo/tagline out of the park. :-)
it looks great!
What do you think it means that so many of us say we do not like change but we like it just the same? The header is fantastic. I was so busy checking out the photo that I worried that you had taken out your tag line–so glad it is still there!
I like that you added the spot for advertisers–I always like to check those little boxes.
It looks so good! I love the idea behind the honeycomb design and it’s very eye pleasing.
I have an idea for your meal plan tab…since you’ll be posting all about food and nutrition, both articles and recipes, maybe something along the lines of “Chew on This” or “Food for Thought”?
I look forward to poking around your blog!
It looks great! I am happy to hear the smart ladies convinced you to keep your tagline. I think your header is a perfect match for your blog style. The focus is on your family, but it’s not too mushy. And the font is just right.
Absolutely love it :) Been away for the summer and looking forward to catching up!
Beautiful and classy, just like you.
I’m so glad I listened to my gut (and my friends) and kept my tagline! Thanks for all the wonderful comments. I just noticed that every time I reply the comment count goes up (bummer) so I’ll keep it to one or two replies. :)
If you see any more issues, let me know. Is it slow to load for anyone else?
It looks lovely! wonderful! congrats!
The new look is fantastic! Love it :)
GORGEOUS !!!!! I love your quote “phenomenally indecisive since 1972”. Sounds familiar . . . congrats on your new look, loving the pops of yellow.
xo
Kate
Just discovered your blog via Nicole’s Twitter. Love it, and love the design. Oh, and you and I share the same birthday. :-)
Looks fabulous! The text on your blog header makes me think of diners for some reason. Now I’m craving some french fries with a side of pancakes…
Question – the “Topics” column on the left side, are those supposed to be links? ‘Cause don’t work as such in my browser.
Oh, now I’m embarrassed. Should have read the post instead of just skimming through.
Hah!! :)
Lovely redesign! The header is fantastic…photo, logo, tag line.. everything.
Jules, it’s perfect and loaded very quickly. I echo every positive thing said above. Checking your blog is one of my daily highlights and usually do it as soon as my eyes open via my phone by the side of my bed. Sometimes it makes me smile and sometimes makes me cry.
Congrats Jules! I am so proud of you , it looks so very professional and really feels happy, sheesh Disneyland (the supposed ‘happiest’ place on earth) has nothing on you!
I am IN LOVE with the modern honeycomb. The picture you chose is perfection! I love the font that Nicole used, and of course your tagline. The whole design is just the bee’s knees!
You have inspired me to add google “next” to my browser bar, so that I can appreciate all the beautiful design and your blog and all the others I read. Nicole blogged about it a while back. Here is the link http://makingitlovely.com/2009/05/15/next-an-excellent-way-to-read-blog-posts/
GORGEOUS!
And I agree with the lovely Miss B….so very you and happy and bright and sunny!
Tristan picked out the font! I searched for the perfect one for months and months, and she found one in ten minutes. Ten minutes! I’m going to check out the Google next thing you are talking about. Did you see this post by Melissa? It’s another really cool way to read blogs.
Oh wow Jules I absolutely love it!
Everything is so cute…I have to say one of my favourite things is the tagline: since the first time I read it I thought it was genious! Even my husband said: “oh that sounds just like you”. LOL
The colours, picture choice on the top, the honeycomb pattern, everything is just perfect!
I love it!
J xxx
LOVE IT! :)
I love it. The colors. The picture. Your forever tagline (I hope). Just promise to keep the same honest to goodness content and I’ll be checking back here forever ;)
Love the header and the background. I gotta say though, I’ve never been a fan of the default Thesis theme tell-tale elements. Are the Thesis elements part of what’s still in progress?
Since I have no idea what you are talking about, I’m going to say no. :) What elements are you talking about? Everything here will stay as is. It’s just the technical stuff, like being able to click on the header to return home and linking the images on the left. Oh, and a share this feature at the end of every post, search box, etc.
I hope I didn’t sound cranky in my first response. I happen to love the Thesis theme, but I like it best when it’s customized so you can’t tell it’s being used. It’s probably not even noticeable to people unfamiliar with Thesis, but to Thesis designers, the signs are all there. :)
I don’t think it looks too much like Thesis, do you? Which elements bug you the most? Not on my blog, just Thesis blogs in general. Most Thesis blogs have loads of white space. Mine doesn’t. We tried it, but it didn’t look right.
It’s just those little details like the look of the nav bar, the curly brackets around the comments, and that darn green submit button. Seriously, why did they think a green button would be good for everyone?
I don’t want to be a fly in the soup. Can we talk about how much I love your header? :)
Love it, love it, love it.
The new features are nice :o)
The layout is a bit “off” in Google Chrome, as well.
Blargh! Thanks for letting me know! :)
Looks great!! So happy for you!
Ahhhh…you will never guess..but I too, I thought, ahhhhh..change, no, don’t do it!!!! But then, when it loaded, I quickly saw the yellow shoes + green dress + dinosaur and felt oddly at home.
No worries from me, the woman who is too paranoid to swap out pillows during different seasons (no joke..it’s really how I am)!
Looks great, and I love how your favorite color was neatly incorporated.. yellow. :)
Also, how does everyone else have little pics of them when they write a response??? I’m jealous! I wanna…
Gosh! Thanks for all the support, ladies. :)
Brandi–what a wonderful comment, to say you felt at home! That means a lot, especially since I didn’t stage the dinosaur. Nico and Mikey were playing with them outside and he decided Spinosaurus wanted to take the picture, too. In the end, it turned out to be my very, very, very favorite part of the whole picture. That, and the way my feet are positioned. That was also unintentional but worked out great.
For a little picture thingy, go to Gravatar and create an account. I just got mine the other day!
Big props to your designers! Love the honeycombs, the logo font, the tagline, the photo, the color palette…um…yeah…pretty much the whole shebang! It’s all very cohesive with your personality and subject matter, and even the photos I’ve seen of your clothing and home decor style. Congrats!
Um, gasp!! Totally looks fantastic – love your new header – and so glad you decided to keep your tagline, I LOVE IT!! :) And you even incorporated my new fave color – yellow – bravo!!
Love it! Time well spent!
I TOTALLY dig the new look! It makes me smiley and happily hungry at the same time (which, to me, is the best feeling on earth). Congrats!
LOVE it!
I think you should change your tagline.. SO THAT I CAN STEAL IT which I’ve been wanting to do since the first moment we “met” online!
Anyway, everything looks fabulous, and now I’m wishing I had time to do something equally fabulous on becoming mom.. maybe if I conceive it right now, in 9 months it could become Jasper’s younger sibling? :)
Everything looks great! I’m the middle of a redesign of everything myself. Oh the pains!
Congrats, Jules! It’s great to see it all together. I am glad to see that Brandi mentioned that it felt like home, because I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again… it that’s what it feel like when I am reading your blog… having a chat in your cheery kitchen with a cup of coffee and some nibblets while the kids play outside in the yard. If only I was that close to enjoy that experience this is the closest I can come to it. ;-)
I’m so glad you commented and said that about the kitchen, Cathe! When Brandi said that I immediately thought of what you have always said about calling my blog a kitchen.
FYI everyone: I had this great idea of doing something simple, clean, and sparse for the new blog design. I showed it to Cathe, and she promptly told me to pull my head out and design around my personality. She was right, as usual.
wow, it looks really wonderful! congrats, jules. it must feel so great to have it all done. i especially love the header photo – the colors, the dinosaur, the foot positioning… just perfect.
and for the record, i adore your tagline. glad you stuck with it. :)
Jules I had no idea you were from the IE… probably because I just recently found your blog lol, but that’s where I’m from too- born and raised in Riverside, lived in Corona for awhile, and just recently moved away to Wyoming with my husband- but yay- a taste of back home :)
I only discovered your blog post-redesign, but I have to say it’s absolutely lovely! The header is charming. The honeycomb is indeed classic with a modern twist. And I love the soon-to-be clickable topics on the left sidebar. But now I’m intrigued by what it looked like before — do you have a screenshot you could add to the post as a “before” for us new readers?
Of course! Here you go: http://replay.waybackmachine.org/20090303224554/https://pancakesandfrenchfries.com/?
Wow! Great header!
Can’t wait until Nicole is accepting new clients…
I don’t know what you had before, I just found you via Making it Lovely, but I love it. I think I might have to hire Nicole to assist me with my blogover. Fabulous Header