Great Designs: Carmel from Rabid Reads

<center><a href="http://www.missiontoread.com/"><img border="0" src="http://i1177.photobucket.com/albums/x351/Rie_Conley/greatdesigns.png"width="98%"/></a></center>

I've started a new feature. Great Design is a way for me to showcase other book bloggers that have put the effort forward to learn how to do great design work. If you would like to be considered for this feature please fill out the form!

Blog Button Created by Parajunkee

Rabid Reads

What resources have you used in your design? Is there any websites you'd recommend for resources?


A lot of my knowledge comes from experience. I recently celebrated my 1 year blogoversary so a big part of my design is based upon trial and error. I'm also studying part-time in Web Design. Back when I started Rabid Reads I wasn't even in school yet so my knowledge of CSS was tenuous at best. My strength is in the coding aspect of design not in graphics. Sure, I've played around with Photoshop quite a bit but making an image from scratch is beyond my capabilities (maybe my next challenge?). By being a Paranormal Book Review blogger I had a hard time finding graphics with a "supernatural" feel to them. I didn't want a cutesey blog. I wanted a RABID blog. LOL So when I stumbled across Rieka Rafita's scrap kits I was in heaven! I wanted my blog to have a Red Riding Hood feel to it and lo and behold she had a kit that fit perfectly! Just be sure to ask her permission before using any of her work. 

What do you like most about your design?


The fact that I did it all myself! My first blog design was done by Rachel over at Parajunkee's View. It was a great starting point for a beginner blogger but it's hard to get exactly what you want without doing it yourself. My top banner also holds a special place in my heart. I worked tirelessly on it until I got it just right. I couldn't be more proud of it and I've been receiving plenty of kudos from my followers. Sometimes I just load my blog in a web browser and admire it. Is that weird? Hehe

What has been the biggest difficulty in getting your design to be how you want it?


I had a few problem areas. Coding can be very finicky! One small out-of-place punctuation can make everything go awry! I had a hard time getting the center of my blog background to be all one color and the same width. Everything kept shifting and the main background even vanished for a while. Talk about a lesson in patience! Now that I've figured it out though I'll remember forever! However, my absolute biggest problem was cross browser compatibility. Unfortunately, the bulk of web surfers still use MS Internet Explorer (why that is still baffles me; try Google Chrome people!). My blog would display exactly as expected on every other platform, at every possible screen resolution, even mobile except when IE was involved. It's seriously the bane of my blogging existence! I had to research special code to compensate for its difficult temperament. Even now, the design isn't identical in all browsers but it's close enough that I've just accepted that it'll never be perfect.

Have you enjoyed learning about design?


Absolutely! Growing up I loved to draw and according to my art teachers I was pretty good at it too. Then the internet made its appearance (yes I just dated myself) and I was hooked on all things technology. I didn't end up studying Web Design right off the bat because back in the day there was crazy Math and Science requirements. Now it's much more lax. Unless you're designing software you don't need to be mad smart to get into a Design program. It was my mom who actually suggested that I study web design. Of course I ignored her at the time, but as I'm slowly learning the hard way, mother's are often times right! Sometimes it's a love/hate relationship. JavaScript for example is my arch nemesis! On the other hand, I'm rather enjoying PHP. Like everything else, learning about design has its ups and downs but overall its been a labor of love for me. Running Rabid Reads has given me even more motivation to continue. My friends and family are so proud. I'm always shocked when we're out and I catch one of them working it into the conversation.
Thanks so much for having me Rie! I really appreciate what you're doing to help promote fellow designers!

I personally adore Carmel and her designs! I totally agree with her on web browers, why people continue to use IE or even Firefox confuses me. Chrome is where it’s at people!


Thanks for being with us today Carmel!

Categories: Great Designs