Danielle's Blog

Cook Like a New York Top Chef

dm7520a — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 22:33:03 +0000

I added a link to my final blog on my facebook page in order to leverage my online presence. I also updated my status and told people to check out my blog. I also added my blog on my Twitter profile page. I am also thinking about a “comment relish” plug-in in order to welcome visitors. By Monday we will see if I added it. I posted a comment on this page, I hope she approves it. My username is “d”. I commented on this blog because it is somewhat similar to mine. They are simple recipes that are suitable for those people in the 18-25 age range. Both blogs contain recipes that are easy to make and are very inexpensive. I liked her pictures, something that I opted to leave out of my blog. I also thought that the little martini cookies looked amazing. They were simple, but unique and a great idea for an intimate gathering with friends. I also plugged my blog in my comment:)

Here’s the ping

Plug-in

dm7520a — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 01:36:10 +0000

As a plug-in for my final project’s blog, I installed and downloaded an interactive contact form. The plug-in was found in WordPress Plug-in directory. This form will improve my blog because it will allow my blog to be interactive as opposed to just me posting recipes. The viewers will be able to email me suggestions, comments, or innovations that may aid my blog’s content.

…And on November 22, 2008, I pinged Brad

Multimedia Accounts

dm7520a — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 18:43:17 +0000

YouTube Favorite

Flickr Photo

Twitter Tweet

…and here’s the ping

Description of My Plans

dm7520a — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 22:38:32 +0000

For my final project, I would like to use a wood grain image as the background for my page. I would like for it to fade downward or use lighting and shadows. (I may have to take a pic of a desk and scan the image) Paul Wallas uses this image as well. Similar his personal portfolio, I would like to use notebook paper as the content background or the nav bar background. I would like to use hand-written fonts; however, Smashing Magazine claims that using a clear and sharp script font is better for content. Therefore, I would like to use the hand-written font, or Comic Sans for my headings, buttons, and category listings. I would then use a basic verdana font for the other text. In addition, I am thinking about scanning a picture of a pencil and using that as my nav bar background. Each button would have to be placed along the pencil using Photoshop, though majority of my editing will be done using CSS (I hope). I basically want my page to look similar to this. For the most part, I plan to use solid colors like purple, blue, black, green, and pink. These colors are similar to high lighter colors that a student would have in class. I will have to scan my images because I want to use my own hand drawn images in order to make it look like a student’ notes. As far as the images for each recipe, I “may” draw those as well. If not, I will just use clip art or no pictures at all. Overall, I want my blog to look like a students notebook on a desk.

On November 9th, I pinged this assignment.

Exemplary Theme Designs

dm7520a — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 22:12:17 +0000

1. NetBramha Studios is one of themes that I love! I like the hand-written font and the doodle image of the flower in the top right corner. I also like the black edges that outline the yellow heading. It adds texture to the theme. This will influence my final project because I want to add an image that resembles someone doodling in their notebook that is similar to the yellow flower.

2.Razvan Pavel is another theme that I love! This theme uses the color pallet that I would like to use for my final project. I also love the lighting that is used. The colors seem to fade out as they reach the bottom of the page. I also like how they added the a:hover feature to the titles of each post. The nav bar is also appealing because it stands out nicely apart from the other information on the page. Finally, I will use this influence in my final project because the designer used CSS rules to create the effects, something in which I plan to do.

3. The Wojo Group is the theme that most likely will be similar to my theme design. I am actually contemplating on activating this theme and using it for my final project layout. Because my blog is geared towards college students, I like how the wood grain in the background resembles a desk. It is a clean look that I would like to implement in my final project. The word Lab is also written in the hand-written font that I would like to use.

Activated Theme

dm7520a — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 22:23:02 +0000

On November 3, 2008 I pinged my activated theme!

Ping Brad and Sample Themes

dm7520a — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 18:57:36 +0000

On November 2, 2008 I pinged Brad

Here are my sample themes.

Vice Versa

Fluid

Dream On

Blog Layout

dm7520a — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 18:52:50 +0000

After reading Smashing Magazine’s articles and looking at examples of recipe blogs, I want to use, at max, 3 columns in my layout. I only want 3 columns because I want a clean look that is readable and easy to follow. I am going to center align the content because that seems to be the most popular trend. Also, doing it this way allows all of the content to be in the center of the screen, and all of the content is able to be viewed at one time. The width will be fixed because it will allow each design aspect to be independent. This is also popular amongst other blogs. My sidebar will be twice as small as the main content because I want the main content to be the focus of the blog. I would like for this to be right aligned. The horizontal navigation bar will be at the top of the layout because it will be out of the way of the other content. I would like for it to be right aligned like Smashing Magazine suggests, but it would cause clutter. In addition, majority of people are right-handed which makes this location more convenient. Finally, the search box, I think, will be at the top right corner of the layout. Its most popular and it’s out of the way of the main content.

I think I Pinged Brad

dm7520a — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 18:30:19 +0000

On October 25, 2008, I think I sent Brad a ping

Recipes

dm7520a — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 16:08:32 +0000

1. Baking Bites is a blog about seasonal, holiday, and some traditional baking recipes. It also contains mixology The posts are very descriptive and explain the significance of each recipe. The title of each recipe is linked to step by step directions. Nicole, the author, posts daily; however, there are gaps between dates because I think she may just post whenever she has a new recipe. There really isn’t a system to her posts. There are an average of four comments per post. Some only have one, whereas, others may have up to seven. The ads on the blog include one by the Dept. of Transportation and the other an advertisement for “Blogher” There are over 30 categories and over 30 food websites listed. Each category contains a tally of the number of recipes related to that category. Some recipes overlap into other categories. There are tags that can be very helpful when a person wants to quickly locate a recipe.

2. She Knows: Chef Mom is a blog also dedicated to recipes. The posts are brief descriptions of each recipe and also healthy tips that will benefit families during snack and dinner times. ajority of them include pictures of the desired outcome of the dish. Following each post are step by step directions on how to make the dish. Michelle or Jen post almost daily. There are comments; however, there are an average of only about 2 comments per post. There are over 20 categories on the blog’s site. They range from soups and salads, to dessert and meal planning. The advertisements include two by Safeway and 1 from Wanchai. There are tags that help with navigation.

3. Cook and Eat is a little bit different than the other blogs that I reference. This blog focuses on photos and a limited amount of recipes. It does give descriptions of each recipe followed by step by step directions on how to make the desired dish. I am not really sure of the times when the author posts. Some months, he posts every week, others, he posts only once. There are no tags or categories; however, there are links to previous recipes and cook books. There are on average about 7 comments per post. Iams was the only advertisement on the page.