My blog through the years

I have been blogging since 2005, and this space has seen many changes, with content, theme and visually too. I recently saw Kelly Rae Robert’s post that linked to this really cool site that archives what websites have looked like through the years and she shared the changes of her blog. So I clicked the link and enjoyed seeing the transition of my space too. I thought it would be fun to share the different blog headers and colors scheme’s I’ve had through the years. I think there is real insight in looking back and seeing growth and evolution and changes.

I started blogging in December of 2005 and I worked at a scrapbook store at the time. My blog was so cliché with a black background and white writing and no content in my sidebars except for my profile thing. But I did figure out I could create and upload my own header. So I literally scanned in a piece of my favorite scrapbook paper at the time and created a header in Word and then did a screen shot that I cropped to size and uploaded that as my header. And this little header is the humble beginnings of my love of blog design.

Header from 2005-2008

My blog used to be called Serendipity and I was blogging at acccidentaldiscoveries.blogspot.com, which is a crazy-long web address to type in and give to people, but it was mine. The concept expanded and grew to include making these “fortunate accidental discoveries” in life and art. I started sharing a lot more of my scrapbooking projects on my blog because that was the blogging world I was part of at the time.

And then I discovered scrapblog.com, which sadly is not around anymore. It was a digital scrapbook site where you could create pages with digital elements to save and use. It was on there that I created my next header and when I really started designing blogs for other people. I did those designs in exchange for scrapbooking supplies, and went a whole 2 years (back when we first moved to the area and Chris was unemployed) scrapbooking without purchasing any supplies aside from adhesive. I was excited to have a way of ‘funding’ my hobby while on a very limited budget, and then it grew into more than that…I started to love blog designing.

Header from 2008-2010

In 2010 I took a class from KA and Wilna over at Little Light Studios called Bling Out Your Blog. It was with the guidance from that course and the tricks I learned from them that I developed the next look my blog had. I got Photoshop Elements in 2010 and used that to finalize and complete my look. PSE is what I still use for all my photo editing and design work. I was able to use some fun fonts on my blog and incorporated my dandelion throughout.

Header from 2010 to April 2012

And then this year I felt like my goals and intentions for this blog had moved beyond Serendipity… so I completely redesigned and rebranded this space and made it more about celebrating the everyday and inspiring others to do the same. I went with the name Shadylane, which has been my nickname since I was little. It just felt right when I made the decision…its personal and me. I stuck with my a favorite color scheme, the yellow, grey and purple, and added a hint of honeysuckle pink. I also turned my handwriting into a font and I love that extra personal touch in my space. And that’s the look you currently see here on my blog.

Current header designed in April 2012.

So there you have it…the transition of this space through the years. Quite a journey. And one that I’m grateful for. This blog is really such a huge part of my life during these years. And I love to be able to look back on what I’ve been through, what I’ve learned and how I’ve grown. I hope that part of blogging never changes.

Thanks to all of you who have read my words and encouraged me through comments and emails and tweets all these years. I’m glad to have you as a part of this journey. Its really a special section of the online world that I’ve become a part of and its been a blessing to make friends and make connections and be an inspiration to others. Thank you for being here!

What do you appreciate most about blogging?
Have you changed your blog design through the years?
Are you a recent reader of my blog, or do you remember past designs?