Kathy Kinsley's blog

A few designs I've done

Tue, 12 Oct 2004 05:17:52 -0700

Just so you know... I'm now also designing BlogAds. Cheap! So, if you'd like some help with yours, let me know.

These are a few other sites I've designed. A lot of the work I've done is look-alike redesign (see the last example). Another specialty is translating templates from one type of blog software to another. I don't like to claim them as 'original' designs but I do want you all to know I do that sort of work!

Balloon Juice: This was an earlier design and was designed to be readable in noncompliant browsers (even NS 4.7).It has round-the-corner graphics. We were going for a kind of old-timey lithograph theme here.
On the Third Hand.: This one is also skinned, you'll find changeable CSS on the sidebar. It was designed to be attractive and quick-loading. It also was designed to not look like everyone else's blog.
Reason of Voice: This one was a redesign of a blogspot template, which was more extensively redesigned after he moved to MT. He wanted a simple, professional look.
the talking dog: This was a "look-alike" redesign, translated from a template originally done in MS Front Page. You'll note that I do design to the client's taste, not my own!

In addition to complete designs, redesigns, and 'translations', I will also do design tweaks, set up skins for a site and create alternate templates (such as for PDA browsers or printers).

No job is too small!

Kat 2

Sun, 06 Jun 2004 13:36:31 -0700

Kat2 is my latest template. It's similar to kat1, except with only one sidebar. This one can be done with either the header going all the way across the page or as two columns, depending on the CSS used. You can also change this one by changing the CSS, see this page for instructions.

CSS magic!

Sun, 06 Jun 2004 13:35:44 -0700

In addition to the ability to change templates via Drupal, I have also added a stylesheet switcher. You will be able to change the look of the site by just changing the CSS. You may have to reload after clicking in order to see the change.

These are for kattemplate. (More to come) You can look at these without logging in (tester/tester, if you don't want to create an account), since this is the default template.
This is the default
Patriotic!
In the dark

These are for kat1. You need to be logged in, go to 'my account' and change to kat1.
This is the default
This has both sidebars on the right
This has both sidebars on the left
Plain and simple, sidebar on each side

These are for kat2. You need to be logged in, go to 'my account' and change to kat2.
This is the default, fairly plain in pale turquoise
This has fancier styling details, looks a bit different.
This has the banner next to the sidebar and blows up IE5.5.

Colors and borders get changed around in each one. You can see how much can be done with just CSS to change the look of a page. Note that all of them have two sidebars. That can be changed in CSS but it doesn't work well in most browsers. I'll be doing the same thing with other templates as I go along. And, yes, all this is in the hope that you'll hire me to design your site!

Stylesheet switcher magic by: cssfile

How it works.

Sun, 06 Jun 2004 13:36:11 -0700

You may create your own account here in order to view the various designs. To change designs, go to 'my account' and change your default template (the option is toward the bottom of the page.

If you don't want to get your own account, you may use tester. I'll trust you not to change its password, which is the same as its username. (It wouldn't damage anything, only annoy me, since I'd have to change it back.)

Since the only place you can swap alternate templates is in 'my account' you do need to be able to get there. I'll probably do some screen shots when I have more designs so you can look at them before changing.

Design one

Sun, 06 Jun 2004 13:37:03 -0700

This one is called 'kat1'. I'm so creative with names.

This is slightly a fancier design. It can be done with right sidebar, left sidebar only or two sidebars. Unlike the default theme, it is a straight two or three-column design; the banner does not extend across the top.

This type of design lends itself nicely to fancy 'round-the-corner' graphics and is also handy if you want to put an adbox (or two) up top next to the banner. Or even an ad banner next to a small site logo.

The default template

Sun, 06 Jun 2004 13:37:47 -0700

The default template is called "kattemplate". It's plain and grey. It's a common style, with the banner and a navigation bar across the top, the content and one or more sidebars below, and a navbar/footer which goes across the bottom. Shaped like an very overful sandwich.

It can be done with right sidebar, left sidebar, or a sidebar on each side. This design is useful if you want to have a wider banner/logo or other things that take up the width of the page.

Design testing in progress

Sun, 06 Jun 2004 13:38:18 -0700

This is an area for testing designs. I'm running this on Drupal because it allows people to choose different designs from a list.

All of the designs I do will start with 'kat'. Until I get several done, I'll probably leave some of the default Drupal designs in as well so look for the 'kat' if you want to see what I've done!