Welcome to the New Blog!
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Hello All!! Welcome to the new blog!!
I’m really excited to write this post and unveil the new digs! If you’re scratching your head and wondering what happened to my last blog, Classically Conditioned, don’t worry–it’s still there! For now, anyway ;)
Since my last post on Classically Conditioned, I have spent the last three weeks (well, weekends, mostly) migrating on over to my own domain name, giving my blog a new paint job, “spring cleaning” clutter off the pages, and repurposing old content to fit with my blog’s new look and the new vision I have for it.
I will be devoting a whole post to why chose to do all this as opposed to moving to WordPress as I originally intended, so you can look forward to that in the very near future. For now, let’s dive into a tour of my blog’s new home!
THE TOUR
First and foremost, the domain name! You can learn more about the thought behind the name for my new blog by visiting my *new and improved* About page.
Can I just stop for a moment and say how NICE it is to be able to google my blog and have it appear on the first page of websites Google pulls?? Try googling my previous blog name, Classically Conditioned, and you’ll get page after page after page after page (etc. etc.) of websites about classical conditioning, psychology research, blah blah blah.
In the last three weeks it became glaringly apparent how important making connections with my readers is to me. If readers can’t find my blog, then who am I blogging for? Who am I talking to? Why am I doing this? A name change was necessary.
Furthermore, as much as I loved the old name, it just didn’t speak to what my blog was about. At all. Not in any way whatsoever. I love that now my blog title at least gives you an inkling of what you can expect when stopping by.
Next, the two-column layout! Gone are the days of reining in your eyes as they wander from side to side of the page, not sure of which sidebar widget to focus on next!
BEFORE:
AFTER:
Third, no more clutter! Goodbye useless sidebar widgets and 15 page tabs! I’ve consolidated my “Crafts & DIY,” “Recipes,” and “Freebies” page into one “Project Galleries” page that will feature a thumbnail display of all my projects by category.
Next, hello fresh paint job! I really really like the color purple, as you might’ve guessed if you’ve ever seen my wedding photos. But the purple on my old blog was just too much, and I was pretty bored with it. I went with colors that were lighter and airy, which was more the feel I was going for, and a little less monochromatic, what with the splash of orange when you mouse-over links. Also, I finally incorporated a pin it button for my images that appears when you mouse-over an image I want to be pinnable:
In the future, I hope to have a header and buttons professionally designed (recommendations, anyone?) but for now I’m just liking the newness of the look!
BUT WHAT ARE THE TWO BIGGEST CHANGES YOU CAN EXPECT?
1) The content
2) The connections
I want to CONNECT with my readers! So if you enjoy a post or have a question, send some love my way by leaving a comment on my post :) I want to hear your thoughts, start a conversation, and collaborate! That is why my new look also features more ways to connect than ever:
In addition to subscribing by email (see the right sidebar), you can now connect with me on Bloglovin’, Google Plus {Google} and via email at essentiallyeclecticblog{at}gmail{dot}com (or by filling out my contact form).
All that said, what do you think of the new look?? :)
Love,
Gabby
