I am a huge design geek. HUGE. I love looking at houses, furniture, blogs, magazines, lamps, clothes, packaging, font – you name it, I love it. I like studying the balance of size and shape and color. I like to see how the designer is getting the message across and knowing that they had a client to please and a budget to meet. I love the process that they must go through. That whole research, problem solving, editing thing. It’s like a giant Rubik’s cube of ideas and thoughts and when you get it right, you’ve got yourself a beautiful little cube of perfection. My blog is a constant source of frustration for me and it is bothering my eyes.
I thought by purchasing a “premium” theme that I would be able to make my blog reflect me better. My organic appreciation of design, my quirky taste, my appreciation of the different things in life. Though I might be asking too much of any blog, as I tend to adore Frank Lloyd Wright’s clean aesthetic with strong lines as well as funky, mish mash of color like Pucci and his loud prints. What I do know is that if something is not sitting right, I won’t rest until it is removed. I will pick up the smallest detail and lose my mind until it is fixed. A friend once noted that I will take months to choose the perfect lamp or accessories simply because I have to love it. It has to not bother my eyes.
I’ve managed to edit as much as I can with my blog to make it my own. It still comes across to me as boring and typical. That is not how I roll. I do like convention in some cases. I like to follow rules and have clear expectations. But color and form can follow rules without looking like everybody else. Aesthetics have certain guidelines that if used properly, can make the most unlikely things work together. That appeals to me greatly. That does not bother my eyes. That makes my eyes very happy.
While writing CSS code would be a very handy skill, it’s not something I’m going to pick up quick enough to make the changes I need in order to be happy with the blog layout. So the decision must be made: do I forfeit the blog design I paid for in favor of one that doesn’t hurt my eyes or do I continue to tinker within the limits of my CSS impaired design skills ? Being a tinkerer at heart, I think the answer is obvious don’t you ? Life is too short to have things bother your eyes and my blog is too important to me not to have it accurately reflect the creative that I am. Changes are a-comin’ y’all and my eyes will be so much happier for it.