Your Ampersand Studio

I see you. I know you. I've been you. 

As you create your art you feel brave and vibrant; so happy that sometimes it feels like a secret. It is my goal and desire to help you see how capable you really are, how deserving you are of this dream, and be your ally in sharing it with the world. 

You & Me 

Your Wild Dreams & My Passion

Photography & Contagious Design 

Coming March 2015. I would like to officially invite you to come make a connection. I have been working so hard for a few months now on creating a way to bring my love of photography, design and branding together. This turned into my new adventure: Your Ampersand Studio. Please come visit my new site and sign up for updates. I would love to have you as part of this journey. 

Recent Design: PS Rowland

A couple of months ago I got a message on Facebook from my friend Pam who revealed to me that she was getting her book of poetry published! I was super excited for her, and that excitement grew when she asked me a bit about my design services and my perspective on author’s websites. We talked a lot about it and in the end, she hired me to design her brand new website to be released with her book. I was honored.

It has been such a great project and, as with every one I undertake, a learning process. Pam knew the feel she wanted for her site and we nailed down the colors based on the sweet sunflower picture we used for the background. We focused a lot on navigation and ease of use for her readers and I think we accomplished that. I love the final product and how well it matches Pam’s personality and her poetry.

Here is the final product. Click through to view it live at psrowland.com!

Here’s what Pam had to say about the process:

"As a new author I was in need of a professional working website. I did a market search, and consulted with many web designers. It was a mind boggling daunting process. I then remembered my friend Shaina was in the biz. So I contacted her, and wanted to jump for joy for how easy she made it for me. Her upbeat, "can do" attitude was refreshing. Her calmness when I was frantic was very soothing. Her artistic qualities, and thought process made it a breeze. I love the soft romantic feel she gave to it, which is perfect for the poetry I write. The ease of use for readers is the best. I've already received SO many compliments. I chose the PERFECT person for the job, and would HIGHLY recommend her for anyones needs. Thanks Shaina!"

Thanks so much Pam for trusting me with this project and working with me to make something beautiful. I hope that it continues to fit your needs as your readership expands with the publishing of your book. Congratulations and thanks for sharing this part of your journey with me!

Want to learn more about Pam? Follow her on FB and see her brand new book of poetry available for purchase here.

Recent blog design work

I am so excited to share with you my most recent blog design work. I was connected with Erin when she won the design giveaway I did The Charming blog. I was inspired by her passion for life, the fun everyday life posts she does and I enjoyed reading the “Love Story” about her and her fiancé. Her blog is all about her life and how she approaches it, so her blog name is just perfect: “Living, Laughing and Loving Life.”

We started with a colorful Pinterest board, narrowed down the color scheme and I created this moodboard for the project.

We wanted a little glitz, while being feminine and soft. I was really inspired by the feathers. And this is how her final design came together:

Come see it in action HERE. I was so excited to work with a developer for the first time on this project behind the scenes. Her name is Claudia, and she totally rocked this for me and Erin. I love the mouse-over details in the nav bar and the social media icons. So happy with how everything came together!

I am currently reworking my design packages, but if you’re in the hunt for a new look for your blog, check out my Design page and shoot me an email. I would love to hear from you and see what we can create together.

Go leave Erin some love! Tell her what you like best about her new design. I’m sure she’d love to hear your thoughts!

My newest designs

I have been working hard on a few designs lately and I’m excited to share some of the results of these projects.

The first is a header design for the lovely Niamh at Finding the Joys in my Journey. She was the winner of my header giveaway at Hope Squared in October. We had a lot of fun talking back and forth about colors and textures and how she wanted the header to look. I love the final product which captures the brightness of her personality and her blog. My favorite things are the geometric shapes and how all the colors look together. She was a pleasure to work with, and her blog is a fun space to visit. Take a look at her header live on her blog HERE.

Next is a complete blog makeover for Rebecca at Our Busy Little Bunch. She received a blogger grant from Mom Central to give her blog a makeover and she chose me as her designer! She knew exactly the color scheme she wanted and sent me these pictures of fabric as a starting off point.

I loved the bright colors and grey as a neutral. She is an amazing quilter and sewer and initially I wanted to do a pretty literal interpretation of that in her design. But after some conversation I realized Rebecca didn’t want to be completely contained by that. So I went back to the drawing board and focused more on the colors with just a little bit of frill. And I added a hint of stitching/thread feel to some of the design elements. I love how everything came together, and Rebecca has been blogging up a storm since the design went live. I’m so excited for the future growth of her blog and am so glad she likes the design. See it for yourself on her blog HERE.

And the final project I have to share is for Gretchen, mother to darling little Arabella whose blog is full of stories of her little girl, her favorite etsy finds and real life moments. I had fun working with her color scheme and using pictures of Arabella. This header was a lot of fun to create!

 

We worked together to come up with a goal for her blog and something to tie everything together. In just a couple sentences that we used for her sidebar I think we accomplished just that: “I’m taking a cue from my daughter Arabella and living life to the fullest. Telling her stories, sharing our everyday life and encouraging others to live their best life wherever they are with all that they have.” I know you’ll enjoy reading her blog. Visit Gretchen and little Arabella HERE.

I am currently working with my friend and photographer Marta of VonGrey Photography to design her website using Showit. This is my first time really digging into the software and I’m having fun learning something new. Can’t wait to reveal the final website once its complete, so stay tuned!

So this is a big part of why I’ve been pretty quiet here on my own blog. Most of December and January was almost full time hours at the Credit Union and my spare time has been spent working on these design projects. I feel like I’ve hit my stride and am really in “my dream job”…working with the public by day and designing and blogging by night. I just need to work on balancing things better so I have time to share here too. Thanks for sticking around in the meantime and for your comments. They just make my day!

If you visit the blogs I shared today be sure to leave a comment! I’m sure that would make them smile too. Thanks!

Hanging on blogs with Canadians

Its like riding in cars with boys, but better…

This month I am sitting in E-Ho’s sidebar over at Hope-Squared and got to take over her blog for a day this week. I answered some of her questions about my approach to blog design and together we’ve got a pretty terrific giveaway in the works. I’ve got a blog header design and a download of my handwriting font and Emily is offering a space for you in her sidebar next month. Pretty sure she’s going to make us all ‘blog famous’.

Here is your chance to enter the giveaway! Head on over and get to know Emily a bit better and take a peek at my answers to her interview questions. And follow the steps below for even more chances to win.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I can't wait to meet the winner of the giveaway and get to know them better as I work with them to make their blog pretty and make it feel like “home.” And even if you don’t win, check my blog design page for more information about what packages I offer and shoot me an email if you’d like to work together.

What is your favorite feature of blog designs?
What thing do you look for first when you discover a new blog?
How do you feel about fonts?

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?

Blog Design work update

I have been hard at work this month with 2 repeat customers creating new blogs for fun and interesting purposes. I designed both Mary and Kristin’s personal blogs, but I was so honored when they wanted to work with me again for their new projects.

Mary is an Independent Beach Body Coach and wanted a blog for her new business that will be full of inspirational content promoting a healthy and fit lifestyle in conjunction with the Beach Body programs and products. Her new business is called Game-On Fitness, and so she chose the name Game-On Fitspiration for her blog. I worked with muted tones, a vintage sports inspired color scheme and some great fonts. She’s got a series she’s featuring right now called “Nine Innings to Health” that you should totally check out.

It was a pleasure to work with Mary again. I can’t wait to watch her blog and her new business venture grow. Thanks Mary!!

I just worked with Kristin a couple months ago to develop and create her Fancy Free Life blog and we had lots of fun working together. She is an elementary school teacher and had a plan for a classroom blog she wanted help with. I loved all the school elements and colors she brought together in her Pinterest board and had fun drawing inspiration for her design from that. I’ve mentioned a couple times that Leah of Mommyish.net was so kind and gave permission for her elements to be used in the design. I just don’t think the finished look would be the same without that great apple!

She’s going to use her blog to keep in contact with her students and their parents throughout the school year. Isn’t that a great idea? Thanks so much for choosing to work with me again on this fun project Kristin!

I really enjoyed working on both of these designs and love that with everything new I create, I continue to learn. Blog design is something that I’ve really come to love and have a passion for. I’ve got another couple designs in the beginning stages that should be a lot of fun! I can’t wait to share those completed projects too.

Are you looking for a personalized blog design? Do you have an interesting side project that you want to develop and keep a blog for? I’d love to work with you! Take a peek at my Design page and see if one of my packages will work for you and feel free to send me an email. I hope to hear from you soon!

Leave some love for these ladies in the comments below.
It will just make their day!

dirty feet. wide open mind

My far-away friend Dani is one of the very first people I connected with in this big wide world of blogging, and we’ve stayed close through the years. We’d tossed around the idea of working together on designing her blog in the past, but something clicked this time. My design skill level has increased and I could create what she was looking for. This is my first time using an image map as a header. Totally loved figuring that out!

Dani wanted her blog to just be the header and the main post column, kind of like how most photographers have their blogs. I thought that was perfect and unique like her and was excited to work within those parameters.

Here is her completed header. I am so proud of the finished product! Click through to see the complete design live on her blog.

Whenever I am working on designing blogs I usually have this “aha” moment where everything comes together…the colors, the concept, the elements themselves…and once it clicks I just go! My “aha” moment for this project came when I was reading blogs and saw Hey Miss Indie’s sponsor giveaway post. One of her sponsors, The Joyful Fox was giving away a line portrait, and as soon as I saw it I just knew that’s what I needed for Dani. So I contacted the blogger, Laura for more information. Turns out, it is her boyfriend Chris Conlon (from Grand Rapids, MI) who is the artist behind the portraits. He was quick to respond and send me some more samples of his work to see if it was exactly what I was looking for. I must admit, I was smitten with his art.

Check out his line portraits and his painted circle portraits. Crazy good, right?! I know!

So I commissioned him to do a line portrait of Dani from one of my favorite pictures of her, and I am beyond pleased with how it turned out. His turn-around time blew me away, and I will be working with him again in the future for sure!

It was just what her header needed, and the thing that brought the whole design together. I just adore it and will probably hang it in my office. Thanks so much Chris for creating this for us! (You can contact Chris directly at blindfoxart@gmail.com if you’re interested in working with him.)

I was able to be on the phone with Dani when she saw the completed design for the first time, and her response just brightened my whole day…okay, probably my whole month. She really loves it just as much as I do. Thanks so much Dani for letting me create this for you! 

This was a really fun project to work on, and I learned a lot in the process. Thanks for sharing in the joy of a completed design with me. I’m celebrating!

Are you looking for a new header to freshen up your blog?
Or maybe its time for a brand new look?
Check out my design page for more details.
I’d love to work with you next!

Shadylane Designs

I have been eager to share my newest blog designs! The two I did this past month have been so much fun to work on, and I love how the colors and the concepts came together. I like to have my clients pull together ideas with Pinterest. Even if they don’t have a fixed idea in mind when they start, once they begin pinning images and pictures it falls together, sometimes even in ways we didn’t expect.

The first one I want to share is for Kristin of Fancy Free Life. She was starting a brand new blog, and as things were coming together she found a scripture that inspired a name change. It was the perfect fit, and we even put the scripture in her sidebar. I love the colors that came out of her pinned images and loved the delicate touch of lace.

I really really love this finished design. The colors, the fonts and how well it matches her personality. It was a pleasure to work with and get to know Kristin too. She’s so sweet and a good photographer. Her most recent blog post is about a photoshoot turned surprise proposal. It’s the cutest story.

The second design I did was for April of Memoirs of a Panda. She is in the military and lives on an air force base in Germany! She was looking for something bright, busy and full of personality…and that’s exactly what her design inspiration pin board was full of! Lots of fun to look at! I pulled colors out of the images she loved and went with bold lines. She also took advantage of the handwriting font option and I was able to use her own personal handwriting in her design. It adds a very personal touch that I love.

“Panda” is a callsign she was given on a deployment and then a training exercise, and now its serves as kind of an endearing nickname that her good friends and a lot of coworkers call her. She embraced it by using that for her blog name. I didn’t want to go to literal with pandas, but there are a couple hidden in the design. You should head over to her blog and see if you can find them! And say hello while you’re there. April is a ton of fun!

Are you looking for a new blog design that really captures your personality? I’d love to work with you! Check out my blog design packages and see if something that I offer will work for you. I’d love to see your name in my inbox!

What are your favorite features to see on a blog?

Do you like sidebars full of links, or a more clean and simple look?

Have you started a Pinterest board for design inspiration?

 

New Design Work

With the redesign of my own blog complete, and a few inquiries about my designs, I decided to take on some blog design clients again last month. I wrote a little about it when I offered a blog header as one of the giveaways during my blog party, and shared the first one I'd completed. It makes me so happy to create a space for people online that feels like home.  

Today I want to share another completed design with you. This one was done for Ashley of Markland & Main. She was open to trying a different type of layout, with the header in the sidebar and I love how it turned out!  Lots of arrows to direct your eye and a favorite color pallet of mine (pink and brown were my wedding colors).  

I have also finished designing the header for the winner of my giveaway last month, Zelina of Honey in the Sun.  Her boyfriend is working on getting it up on her blog still, but I love it too much to wait to share!  I wanted something that felt warm and looked like how the name of her blog made me feel.  I saw this idea in my mind, and I it came together just as I'd imagined. I literally did a happy dance when I finished it and she loved it just as much as me! 

 

Are you looking for a fresh new blog design to match your personality and spirit? I'd love to work with you to create an online home you'll feel comfortable in. :)  Please check out my Blog Design page and see if there is a package there that works for you. And feel free to email me with any questions: shadylane_14{at}hotmail{dot}com.  

Is there a design feature you love to see on blogs? 

Do you like blogs with clean lines or lots of little details?

What is your favorite thing about your own blog?

Giveaway: Blog Header

GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED

1. One Day at a Time 2. A Full Life with an Empty Nest  3. Adventures of a Disney Nut

Through the process of designing my own blog over the years, design has become something that I really love... and something that I want to share my passion for.  This month I have started taking on new blog design clients with some super fun results.  Here is my most recent finished design for my new friend Heather over at Chronicles of an Independent Spinster.  I had fun working with her colors and creating an online home that is just right for her.

For more information on what I offer please check out my Blog Design Page.  I think that good design along with great content will maximize your success as a blogger. If you're searching for someone to help you create an online home and personal brand, I would love to work with you! 

And so as part of that, today I am offering a free blog header design to one special reader.  And if the winner wants a full blog makeover, they can get the header price discounted from their design package. :)  I am so excited about this giveaway!! 

>>>> GIVEAWAY REQUIREMENTS:

Leave a comment on today's post sharing your favorite thing about blogging. 

>>>> BONUS ENTRIES: 

Be a blog follower.

Follow me on twitter (@shadylane14)

Tweet about the blog header giveaway or my blog design services.

Like Shadylane Blog on Facebook. 

Spread the word via social networking.

Please leave a comment for each additional entry. 

The winners of all 4 giveaways will be posted on the last day of this month-long blog party.  Don't forget to enter for the other giveaways too!  Links in the right sidebar.  

Looking forward to hearing from some of you and getting to work with you on a blog makeover that matches your spirit and personality.  Please feel free to email me: shadylane_14(at)hotmail(dot)com with any questions. 

WELCOME

I am so eager to welcome you to my new online home:  shadylaneblog.com!  I'm opening the doors today and letting in the light.  If you're in a reader please pop on over and take a peek and the new design.  I'd love your thoughts, opinions, comments and if you spot anything a little off or missing a correct link, please let me know.  I am pretty proud of how everything came together.  It went through a few drafts, but in the end it is exactly what I'd hoped:  a place for me to share my story, chronicle my life, become a better writer, learn more about myself, show my pictures and my design work and ultimately CELEBRATE THE EVERYDAY.  

So that is what the month of May will be all about.  Celebrating the everyday.  There will be a post every day of some sort.  I've got some great giveaways lined up (my first ever on my blog!), some amazing and inspiring guest posters (some of my favorite bloggers have agreed to share their thought on celebrating the everyday!), a few of my special features (see my hair is short and blond now; look for another installment of The Hair Diaries coming soon!), and finally some thoughts on my recent diagnosis and what that means for my life right now.  

So welcome!!  I'm so glad you're here, and hope you'll pop back in throughout the month. Its gonna be a fun blog party. 

a new design

I am so excited to share my newest blog design with you.  I had so much fun working on this one.  The lovely Felecia   (who I know from Scrapbooking from the Inside Out) gave her friend MaryC my email and we got right to work creating an online space that would feel like home for Mary.  She answered the questions in my little questionnaire so I could get a feel for her design style and what she was looking for.  And this is what I designed just for her.

Mary was looking for something rich in color, that felt a little distressed but homey.  She wanted a place she would feel comfortable spilling her guts.  She sent along a file of her actual signature which I had fun incorporating.  And since I couldn't find any social networking icons that match the feel I was going for, I created some myself.  I think they are my favorite part!

Click through to see her full blog and read her two-part story explaining the thought process behind her brand new blog.  A Full Life with an Empty Nest.

Thanks so much Mary for choosing me for your blog design needs.

For more info on my blog design work click HERE.  I'd love to create a space just for you too!

blog designing

I have had the honor of working on a brand new blog design for the lovely Laura and wanted to share the finished product.  She got the amazing news that she will be part of the brand new Design Team for Scrapbooking from the Inside Out starting next month, and felt it was a great time to create an online home that was just right for her.

I was so excited for her, and eager to get started.  First we walked through the steps of figuring out exactly what she was wanting from her blog.  She wanted  a place to share her projects, stories from her life and causes she feels strongly about.  She sent me links to her favorite blogs and and told me what she loved about them and we discussed ways to implement features and designs in a unique way just for her.  Then I worked creating a mood board with the thoughts I had and elements I'd sourced that I thought she would like.  And once we hammered out a few details, like fonts, colors and page specifics, I created and then launched her brand new blog:  Progress, Not Perfection.

I love the organic elements with unexpected colors, and the little bio in the sidebar.  I sure love how it turned out, and I think Laura likes it too. :)

This was my very first time working in Typepad.  I was so fortunate that Laura took a chance on me and let me use her blog a bit as a guinea pig project.  I learned a ton about the Typepad dashboard and did a bunch of coding for the design elements.  It was an adventure learning something new, and I really appreciate the opportunity that Laura gave me.

Anyone else out there eager for a new design??  I would love to work with you to create an online home just perfect for you.  Click HERE for more information.  I hope to hear from you soon!  And now I do Typepad blogs too!

designing again

i am so excited to share my most recent blog makeover.  my scrappy online friend Patty did a twitter shout-out saying she was looking to redo her blog.  and after a couple years hiatus on the blog design front, i decided it was time to dip my toes back in and offered to work with her. 

and we had a blast!!  we sourced inspiration for the feel she was going for, the colors she was drawn to and the fonts she just loved.  in her words she was looking for "something out of an art journal with a twist of vintage and a pinch of scrapbook" and i ran with it... this is the final design:

i am so loving how it all came together.  yellow and grey with a touch of aqua.  i think its just so "patty" and she's loving it so far too. 

i want to take this chance to thank patty for trusting me with her blog and for giving me the chance to get back into blog designs.  im now so excited to move forward.  are you looking for a new look for your online home??  perhaps im in your price range!  :)  for more information see my sHe*deSigNs tab at the top of my blog.  i'd love to work with you too! 

share the love

i am so proud of myself!  :P  i finally figured out how to add a widget to my sidebar for you all to grab.  now you can share on your blog that you're a reader of {serendipity}.  i would be so honored!!!

here, grab a widget!

<a href="/http://www.accidentaldiscoveries.blogspot.com"><img border="0" src="http://s732.photobucket.com/albums/ww328/shadylane_14/?action=view&current=widget-1.jpg" target="_blank" /><img src="http://i732.photobucket.com/albums/ww328/shadylane_14/widget-1.jpg" border="0" alt="widget2" /></a>

a fresh start

i felt that it was time for a clean, fresh start here in my little piece of the online world.  time for a blog makeover!!  i had my previous design since november of 2008.  man, that is a long time!!  but my style is gradually changing and my color pallet is too.  lately i've been really drawn to gray, purple and yellow.  i'm even going to do my office in those colors. so here is my new blog design.

please tell me what you think of it.  i'd LOVE to hear your opinions!  and soon i will have a blog button up for you to grab if you'd like to share on your blog too. :)

do you love gray, purple and yellow??

{source}

{source}

{source}

{source}

{source}