A New Design Is Coming...

I literally have to be one of the most indecisive bloggers on the planet when it comes to design. Pretty much a month after uploading my current template into blogger I had remorse over my purchase. Not because the design I had purchased was bad (it's a great design), but because it wasn't exactly what I wanted. I was determined to make it work however, and tried lots of personalization to make this space feel more like home. It didn't stick. About two months ago I decided I needed to take things into my own hands and create a blog design from the ground up. I have been tirelessly coding and designing ever since.

Tomorrow I will be uploading a brand new design for this space, one that will look dramatically different from anything else I've had up here. You can see some of the previous designs here, and here. I took my time with this, and thought long and hard about what I wanted for Secondhand Sundays in the long term. In the past I've been more concerned with the personalization of this space and less on the usability for readers. The new design will be much easier for readers to navigate, design elements are minimal, and the pages will look cohesive and branded. The new design will allow my focus to be entirely on creating great content for the site, and less on the sketches and widgets in my sidebar.

Now that I've spent a minute justifying my reasons for a new design, let's talk inspiration-

I've come to believe your blog design should allow your content to be the focus, and that colorful graphics and sketches are best left for posting. Your blog design should allow your readers to easily locate the various topics and pages of content you offer. Your design should also be easy to look at, and there should be ample visual space between all of its elements.

The key elements I wanted for Secondhand Sunday's new design included:
+ Lots of negative space to allow the visual elements room to breathe.
+ A minimal color scheme
+ Easy navigation
+ Cohesive design elements throughout all pages of content
+ Navbar above the title image, with search
+ A blog that looked even more mature than my current content, i.e. I can grow into
+ A space I felt reflected my goal of living happily and simply

Sites I used for design inspiration and how they inspired me:
+ A Beautiful Mess
I really love the mini intro on A Beautiful Mess, and I wanted something similar on my blog. They moved their navbar above all their other content, and I felt like that was a genius move. It gave everything else a lot more breathing room and I knew immediately I wanted the same.
+ A Cup of Jo
I love Jo's new color scheme, and ultra pared down layout. I found her new look visually appealing and minimalist. I found myself checking in on A Cup of Jo much more after she redesigned, and the effect that her new design had on my interest level with her content was the catalyst for my decision to start from scratch with my own blog.
+ Design Love Fest
I've long admired Bri's eye for all things design. She always seems to be ahead of trend with everything she does and her blog design is no exception. What caught my eye the most about her layout was the way she framed her sidebar content. I found it much easier to focus on the different categories and content she shared that way. I pulled a little bit of that aesthetic into my new design as well.
+ Lune Vintage
I've been a fan of Lune and Jill for as long as I've read blogs. She has the amazing talent of balancing both simple design, and vintage kitschy goodness, that I so admire. Jill keeps her blog sidebars really simple so that her images pop, and sparkle like the stars they should be. I really wanted my content to have that same effect on readers.

Say good-bye to the old SHS:

Here's a peak at the new header and navbar:

I'm by no means a blog designer, but I didn't have the money to invest in a project this size, so I took the DIY route. If you're looking to do the same know that it requires a tremendous amount of time, and energy. There's a reason people get paid to do this. I worked nearly everyday on this project tweaking things here and there until I finally felt like I'd create something to be proud of. Remember that and be kind tomorrow.

I'm really excited to unveil the brand new Secondhand Sundays, I think some of you might think you've come to the wrong place. Here's to hoping this design sticks for at least a year or two. You just never know. big kiss, bekuh

PS- I'd like to personally thank two sweet friends Kate and Maddie for giving me some feedback on the site before anyone else had seen it! They're input helped add a lot more character to the new site, and I could just hug them both to pieces for it.