Surprise, it's a brand new look!
For months now behind-the-scenes tinkering has been going on around here as I worked with Jennette from Make My Blog Pretty and my brother Rand to create a new look for Kalyn's Kitchen. Jennette did the website design and Rand did the graphics to create an updated blog I hope you're going to love as much as I do. Later tonight the switcheroo will take place, as I'm biting my fingernails and probably refreshing the page multiple times a minute.
Repeat after me: Change is good
There are three reasons I decided to re-design my blog (despite all the people who told me "Don't change it" every time I brought it up!)
--First, I wanted bigger photos. It seemed like all the cool blogs had photos bigger than mine, but I couldn't go any bigger with the template I had.
--Second, I was still using a classic Blogger template, and there were new features I couldn't add without upgrading. Every time I looked at other blogs, I got a serious case of blog envy.
--Third, quite honestly I was starting to feel like the whole blog was looking a bit 2006, which was when the design was last updated!
Hmm, this place seems familiar
During the transition I focused on keeping the same overall "feel" to Kalyn's Kitchen, as well as keeping most things located in the same spot so it won't be hard for readers to find what they're looking for. A few items from the sidebars have been moved to tabs, but most things will be where they were before, just looking like they had a slight make-over. In addition, there will be some shiny new social media buttons, subscribe buttons, and category tabs that I hope you'll like.
Excuse our dust while we make the switch
Hopefully everything will go smoothly, but I'm guessing that some of my oldest posts might need to be re-formatted for larger main column. If you see a post that looks odd, let me know in the comments and I'll fix it. Thanks for reading, and if things do go wrong and need to be tweaked, thanks in advance for your patience!
For months now behind-the-scenes tinkering has been going on around here as I worked with Jennette from Make My Blog Pretty and my brother Rand to create a new look for Kalyn's Kitchen. Jennette did the website design and Rand did the graphics to create an updated blog I hope you're going to love as much as I do. Later tonight the switcheroo will take place, as I'm biting my fingernails and probably refreshing the page multiple times a minute.
Repeat after me: Change is good
There are three reasons I decided to re-design my blog (despite all the people who told me "Don't change it" every time I brought it up!)
--First, I wanted bigger photos. It seemed like all the cool blogs had photos bigger than mine, but I couldn't go any bigger with the template I had.
--Second, I was still using a classic Blogger template, and there were new features I couldn't add without upgrading. Every time I looked at other blogs, I got a serious case of blog envy.
--Third, quite honestly I was starting to feel like the whole blog was looking a bit 2006, which was when the design was last updated!
Hmm, this place seems familiar
During the transition I focused on keeping the same overall "feel" to Kalyn's Kitchen, as well as keeping most things located in the same spot so it won't be hard for readers to find what they're looking for. A few items from the sidebars have been moved to tabs, but most things will be where they were before, just looking like they had a slight make-over. In addition, there will be some shiny new social media buttons, subscribe buttons, and category tabs that I hope you'll like.
Excuse our dust while we make the switch
Hopefully everything will go smoothly, but I'm guessing that some of my oldest posts might need to be re-formatted for larger main column. If you see a post that looks odd, let me know in the comments and I'll fix it. Thanks for reading, and if things do go wrong and need to be tweaked, thanks in advance for your patience!
44 comments:
So exciting!! Can't wait to see the new look.
It's always exciting to get a new blog look. Enjoy!
Change is not a bad thing...
We all like a new "look", whether it's for ourselves, our wardrobes, our homes or (in your case), your blog. As long as it's still user friendly, I'm happy! JD from Calgary.
Hi Kalyn, looking forward to seeing the changes. Have been reading your blog for quite some time. The recipes I chose to make have all been really good - from soup to sweet potato fries to chicken recipes. Love the "how to" pictures you post to show the steps to make the recipe.
Thanks all for the very nice feedback about this. I promise it will still be user friendly, maybe even better than now!
Helen, so glad to hear that the step-by-step photos are helpful.
I've been passing your blog along to friends. Can't wait to see the new look!
I've always envied your log as one of the most visually appealing. I'm sure it will be fabulous, can't wait for the unveiling!
Georgie
Traci, thanks. I always appreciate that!
Georgie, all credit for the "look" of the blog goes to my brother Rand who's a very talented designer. So lucky to have him for a brother!
Hope it goes smoothly and can't wait to see it!
Thanks Martha!
So exciting! Love the new digs. Crisp and clean, just like your recipes.. :) Cheers to you and all you worked on it!
Thanks Chris. It's still changing by the minute so you may not have seen the final version, but looks like things are working!
I just read your post while it was in the old format and clicked refresh and here's the new one. It looks great! And I'm sure you'll enjoy all the bells and whistles that new blogger offers. Congratulations to you and your creative team for a job well done!
Thanks Susan, I'm so happy with what they've done.
Cool! ...and very easy to navigate:-)
Thanks Val. I'm so glad to hear that!
Congrats! The new blog design looks fabulous. And I agree- change is good. I love it.
Thanks Karina! (And I confess; I'm one of those types that needs to embrace change a bit more. Maybe this will be a new start for me doing that.)
Hi everybody! I'm glad you like the redesign. If you run into any bugs or problems with the new design, leave a comment here or contact Kalyn and I'll look into it. - Jennette from http://www.makemyblogpretty.com/
I totally understand how you feel about getting a new look. I had to upgrade from my older blogger template to one of the new ones, and since I had made changes to the old template code, I didn't how that would affect the switchover. Anyhow, everything went great. And it looks like yours did too! I like the updated look!
Great new design! You have done a beautiful job of keeping what's best of the old, with a fresh new look. Congratulations!
It looks wonderful! You've managed to created a new look all your own, rather than one that mirrors the blog of others. I really like this. Have a great day. Blessings...Mary
It's lovely! Very sleek and clean- kudos to your brother :)
Looks fantastic!!!
Thanks all for the nice feedback. I agree, Jennette and Rand have done a beautiful job on it. There are still a few things were tweaking, but I'm very happy!
Congratulations on your new do.
Kalyn,
Looks good to me. And I think a blog's design should be revamped every 3 - 4 years.
Looking forward to the complete change. Looks great. Very readable.
Looks great Kalyn, and team. Good clean look and the larger photos really shine. Nice work.
Love the look, it looks great!
No matter what your format is, it is the content that always shines!
Kalyn, I think it looks absolutely lovely. I've been pondering a refresh for Food in Jars and seeing your sparkly new digs makes me think it really is time for a change!
I love the new change and I love changing up the look on my blog too. I believe I'm on my 3rd change now. I would LOVE to be able to do more with photos though.
It's always nice to change things up a bit... I just changed my HCG Diet Blog a couple of months ago and I couldn't be more happy.
It looks great. Take care,
Brian M Connole
HCG Diet 411 Blog
Hi, I tried to send you an email but it bounced back. Found your blog a few weeks ago and really enjoy it and your recipes! I gave it a mention in my blog since I'll be making one of your recipes tomorrow! Mmmmm!
You guys are all so sweet. Thanks everyone for the kind thoughts. And I think everyone is working properly now.
Wow---soooo exciting. Love your new look. Can't wait to try things out.
Kalyn, the new design is so pretty! I love it!
Love the new look! So clean and inviting!
It's gorgeous! I love it.
Jennette is wonderful, and I imagine Rand is too. :-0
Thanks again everyone!
Stephanie, did you notice I liked your idea of putting the search bar in the row of tabs? Jennette did a fantastic job, and of course Rand is always great with the design for the header and sidebars!
Love the new design--but I loved the old one too. Your site is one of my very favorites and I use so many of your recipes which my friends and family really like--I've even been accused of being a Kalyn "evangelist" since I tell everyone to check out your site! :)
Keep it up--being a South Beach-er, I treasure your site.
Becky, thanks so much! That kind of feedback really makes me smile.
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