Showing posts with label blog. Show all posts
Showing posts with label blog. Show all posts
Don't forget....
Jun 30, 2014
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Today is the day! Sweet & Simple Life Blog is officially Hello Creative Blog.
If you saw my post Friday (here), it explains the why's. In a nutshell, I wanted to be more unique in the blog name. Something a little more catchy, and something that describes me a little better.
So, without further delay, it's my pleasure to introduce you to Hello Creative Blog!
Hope you like it! There are subtle changes in the design, but it's still pretty much the same concept.
Note: I will be redirecting this page to the new blog web address, and am working to transfer all of my current followers...so if you follow along in one way or another you shouldn't need to do anything. Fingers crossed. :)
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Some people approach change with anxiety...some crave change. I'm somewhere in the middle. I like a little now and then. A fresh start. A little something different. Big changes kind of scare me and I tend to shy away.
Well, there are some changes comin'. To the blog.
I know, it seems kind of soon, right? I haven't been blogging that long. Why change now? I guess because it's better to do it sooner than later! So, what changes?
I'm changing the name. Of course, changing the name means changing the web address and everything else involved with that (which luckily isn't a TON of stuff). At first I thought it would be some huge mess, but once I looked into it, it's not so bad. You guys will just have to hang in there a little bit.
Why change the name? Well, I don't really want to, but if you search "Sweet and Simple Life"...there are several results out there. I really liked this name. It was a good name. Apparently a lot of other bloggers felt the same! I wanted to do something a little different. Here's a tip: search the blog name you come up with before jumping in!
What will this mean to you? Hopefully nothing, really. More on that to come though.
When will the change take place? I'm not totally sure yet. I'm still working on some things. Freshening up the design, making sure everything works.
Stay tuned...
Have a good weekend!
I was so excited (and honored, and surprised) to learn that Marci from If These Walls Could Speak nominated me for the Liebster Award, which is an award given to promote newer or up-and-coming blogs! I wish I knew where it started so I could give a little more background information, but after much searching I still can't find the official starting point of the award. If anyone knows, please comment below!
{Rules}
1. List 11 facts about yourself.
2. Answer the questions of the person who nominated you.
3. Create 11 new questions.
4. Nominate 11 new bloggers, and be sure to tell them about it. (I had trouble finding an official number of followers a blog is supposed to have to be nominated...some things say under 200, some say under 1,000.)
So...here it goes!
{11 Facts About Me}
1. I have a degree in Interior Design.
2. Originally, I am from the Sunshine State of Florida. It's very humid there, and HOT.
3. I love flip flops (probably because of #2).
3. When I was little I used to sing in front of the mirror and pretend I was on a big stage.
4. I'm extremely afraid of speaking/singing/anything in public or on a stage (ironic?).
5. I used to take violin lessons.
6. Fall my favorite season, for many reasons, but mostly because of college football.
7. Zumba is the one and only workout that I have ever stuck with for longer than a month, and I actually enjoy it. It's a miracle.
8. I worked for a summer (or two) in residential construction during college.
9. Scarves are my favorite accessory.
10. My husband and I have a little miniature schnauzer. She doesn't realize that she's a dog. :)
11. My husband and I dated for 4 months before we got engaged. Truth.
{11 Questions from Marci}
1. Why did you start blogging?
I've been following blogs for a few years, and I have seen so many talented women share their lives. It's inspiring, really. Through these other bloggers I discovered that I have many different interests. Because I have a creative brain (which means I'm terrible at math) I wanted to create an outlet for these other interests of mine. Plus, it was a perfect opportunity to sharpen my photography skills!
2. What is your biggest phobia?
Well, you could see my #4 fact, but I'm also afraid of heights. Climbing a ladder higher than about 6 feet? Forget it!
3. What is your top item on Pinterest that you really actually want to try?
I think it would be this skirt. I'd like to learn how to sew better; primarily because it's hard for me to find clothes that fit just right.
4. What is your favorite thing to do in your city?
Go to the lake. For sure!
5. What is the #1 blog you would recommend someone to follow?
Wow, that's such a hard choice! There are several amazing blogs out there. The one that I first started following was The Small Things Blog, and it's still a favorite. I also love Liz Marie Blog because she's so talented with DIY! They both seem like great people too...I feel like we're friends and I don't even know them!
6. If you have to dress/get ready and leave in a hurry what is the one thing you can easily cut out of your routine?
Ironing. Who am I kidding? I rarely iron as it is!
7. What is the single best decision you have made in your life so far?
To accept the Lord as my Savior.
8. What would constitute a perfect day for you?
Sleeping in late after staying up into the wee hours working on a project - drawing, editing pictures, painting, blogging, etc., eating a late breakfast, renting a few movies, and being lazy all afternoon. Oh wait, that was college! Ha! Everyone needs a day like that once in a while.
9. If you could wake up tomorrow having gained one quality or ability, what would it be?
Good question! It would probably be the ability to let things go. I over-analyze everything.
10. Your house, containing everything you own, catches fire. After saving your loved ones and pets, you have time to safely make a final dash to save any one item. What would it be? Why?
My computer. It has pretty much all of my pictures stored on it. It's become my photo album.
11. Are you currently watching a season of something on Netflix? What is it? If not - what is your top favorite TV show?
I don't do the Netflix thing, but my husband and I record several shows on our DVR. I'm not sure if I can come up with one favorite, but I'd have to say Parenthood is a top choice because it just seems so real-life, and it has ups, downs, comedy, and family love. A guilty pleasure is Real Housewives of whatever the city is at the time. Sad, but true, because it's completely mindless drama and it makes me laugh. Shallow, I know.
{My 11 New Questions for the Nominees}
1. How would you describe your blog using 5 words or less?
2. How long have you been blogging?
3. What is your personal style?
4. If you could travel anywhere, where would it be, and why?
5. Do you have a signature recipe, and if so, what is it? If not, what is the one recipe you want to try and make?
6. What is your favorite season, and why?
7. Coke or Pepsi?
8. What did you want to be when you grew up (or what do you want to be when you grow up)?
9. If you could go back in time, what time period would you choose to explore?
10. What one person (or people) have inspired you in life?
11. Do you have a hidden talent? If so, what is it?
{My 11 Liebster Award Nominees}
If you have already been nominated in the past, I'm sorry. There's nothing in the "rules" that says you can't be nominated more than once though...just go with it!
1. Rebecca @ The Becca Ruth Blog
2. Christina @ Happy or Else
3. Norma @ Paint Me Pink
4. Sarah @ Joyfully Organized
5. Jasmin @ Jasmin Daily
6. Dee @ Routes & Wings Blog
7. Katie @ Sunflour Cottage Creations
8. Sarah @ My Simplistic Ideal
9. Marisa @ A Lovely Living
10. Lindsey @ My Vintage Window
11. Amy @ Love It & List It
That's it! Thanks again to Marci for the nomination! Be sure to visit the blogs listed and leave them some love!
Hi there! This is just a quick post to take care of some housekeeping and let you know of a little change happening to the blog...
After much thought, I decided to create a custom domain for the blog (meaning that would be ".com" instead of "blogspot.com"). I felt like it was important to make this move so the blog would be easier to search, and it would be easier for people to remember!
So, the official new web address is www.sweetandsimplelifeblog.com.
If you follow me on bloglovin' with the old "blogspot.com" address be sure to click the link below to find the new site and follow me so you don't miss any new posts!
Have a good weekend, and thank you so much for following Sweet & Simple Life Blog - I can't tell you how much it means to me.
In today's tutorial I'll be showing you how I made my own "Pin It" button. There are probably several ways to do this, and this may not be the best, but it's how I did it. The program used was Photoshop. I've used this program for several years in my design profession. If you're still learning, please do not be intimidated. I think this is a pretty simple process, it just may take some trial and error to get the hang of it.
1. Save this icon to your computer (I named this file "P"). It is a .png file meaning that it will maintain its transparent background.
2. In Photoshop, select File/New. It should bring up a window that looks like this:
Be sure to change the Background Contents to Transparent. I chose to make the button at 50 x 50 pixels and 72 pixels/inch (I named the file "Pin-It Button").
3. Once the new file is open, select a color for your background. This color will be the circle of the button itself. Choose the Ellipse Tool. To ensure a "perfect" circle I always hold the shift button while drawing. This will constrain the proportions. You want to make sure that the circle's edges stay within the 50 x 50 pixel square. Otherwise you'll end up with some flat spots!
4. Now open your "P" icon file in Photoshop. Once that is open, go to Image/Adjustments/Invert (or Ctrl+I). This makes the icon white.
5. You should now have two file windows open in Photoshop (the "Pin-It Button" and the "P"). While working in the "P" window, use the Layers box. Select the "P" icon layer and drag it into your "Pin-It Button" window. This will automatically create a new layer in this file. You'll need to resize the "P" until it fits within the circle.
If you want to get fancy, you can add some effects. I decided to add a drop shadow because it needed a little more separation from the green background color. You can be as creative with this step as you want!
After you have played with it and made it your own, you need to save the file as a .png. This keeps the background transparent. Now it's ready to load into your blog's HTML. For that tutorial, click here.
I hope this helps!
This is a step-by-step tutorial for adding a "Pin It" button to your blog on Blogger. I used this on the simple template. Before starting this process make sure you backup your Blogger template first.
Backup your template
1. In the dashboard, select Template.
2. Select to Backup/Restore.
3. Select the Download Full Template button.
4. Choose your location to save the file, then select Save.
Adding the "Pin It" button
1. In the dashboard, select Template.
2. Select Edit HTML.
3. Scroll down, close to the bottom, and find this: </body>
Copy this code provided by BloggerSentral and paste into the template code right below the </body> code. It should look something like this:
<script> //<![CDATA[ var bs_pinButtonURL = "https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYqxdWyvG37WEzU44KY3a7Lk9LeDsBp3cPRd48tLmapIepYJcCsUagXPMr-6Z0acBg9aMLGdCih5EdzNPSw1e58g4RcFXM4UK5ehEBeFzgT3mh6iL3YKgCFZUHUrzr3QsVZLACkBe8TLJQ/s1600/pinterestx1_72.png"; var bs_pinButtonPos = "center"; var bs_pinPrefix = ""; var bs_pinSuffix = ""; //]]> </script> <script src='http://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/jquery/1.8.2/jquery.min.js' type='text/javascript'></script> <script id='bs_pinOnHover' src='http://greenlava-code.googlecode.com/svn/trunk/publicscripts/bs_pinOnHoverv1_min.js' type='text/javascript'> // This Pinterest Hover Button is brought to you by bloggersentral.com. // Visit http://www.bloggersentral.com/2012/11/pinterest-pin-it-button-on-image-hover.html for details. // Feel free to use and share, but please keep this notice intact. </script>
This code is set to automatically place the button in the center of your image. To reposition the button, just replace the text center with topleft, topright, bottomleft, or bottomright.
4. Select the Save Template button.
5. Select to Close.
6. Select View Blog and hover over a picture in your post. The button should appear.
If you like this, you can keep the original button. If you're anything like me, you may want to customize it to match the theme of your blog!
Find the image you want to use, or create your own. You'll need to have an HTML link to your image. Now, I am by no means an HTML expert. So...this was how I found a way around that.
Go to your Blogger dashboard and select New Post. It will automatically be in the Compose mode (top left). Leave it like this for now. Select to Insert Image into the post. Pretty, right? Ok...now select HTML. It should jumble your image into a code like this:
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dbjWjkUhMRE/Uu_ZETy4jOI/AAAAAAAABIA/XSn5oumSoq8/s1600/50x50PinIT.png" /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>
It makes no sense to me; however, there is a source for the image (highlighted above). That's really all you'll need. Just copy that string of text, and save the post as a draft in case you need it in the future. I chose to title my post with "DO NOT PUBLISH" so I wouldn't accidentally publish it to my blog.
Adding the custom button
1. Select Template in your dashboard.
2. Select the Edit HTML button.
3. Find this code: var bs_pinButtonURL = "https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYqxdWyvG37WEzU44KY3a7Lk9LeDsBp3cPRd48tLmapIepYJcCsUagXPMr-6Z0acBg9aMLGdCih5EdzNPSw1e58g4RcFXM4UK5ehEBeFzgT3mh6iL3YKgCFZUHUrzr3QsVZLACkBe8TLJQ/s1600/pinterestx1_72.png"; and replace it with your new image code.
6. Select to Save Template.
7. Select Close.
Now you'll want to view your blog and make sure it worked! *Fingers crossed
I know this looks like a lot of steps, but it's really pretty simple. It's just making sure that you have the codes pasted in the right spot. For me, it took some time to find the </body> text and I had to play with inserting the code a few times. Once I got that figured out, it didn't take any time at all to get the custom image in place. For anyone that doesn't have much experience wiht HTML (um, can we say confusing?), my suggestion is to just take your time. It's easy to get overwhelmed, but trust me, if I can figure it out so can you.
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