Columns are a great way to organize and display the content. Their structure enhances the user experience by improving readability, prioritizing information, and presenting material in attractive ways. Fortunately, creating columns in WordPress has become easier and easier over the years. Types … [Read More...] about 4 Ways to Create Columns in WordPress
A Guide to Incorporating Social Media with Your Website – part 2
Social Media Platforms - The Usual Suspects Incorporating social media on your website requires using many tools. We continue this series with the "usual suspects" of social media platforms, additional options, and recommended tools for creating content. Facebook Personal accountAll Facebook users must begin by creating a personal account. You can then establish pages for businesses and groups. The essence of Facebook is personal interaction, based initially on your friends, relatives, … [Read more...] about A Guide to Incorporating Social Media with Your Website – part 2
A Guide to Incorporating Social Media with Your Website – part 1
PART 1 - Social Media Overview Integrating social media into your website is an important way to widen your reach, deepen engagement with your audience, and build brand recognition. It’s a form of digital marketing that can be fun and fulfilling. When used with intelligent strategies, social media contributes to increased support, sales and donations. Tell Me a Story The essence of social media for me is telling stories and building community. My dad was a great storyteller. He loved … [Read more...] about A Guide to Incorporating Social Media with Your Website – part 1
Finding My Art Voice
Discovering my voice in art was a gradual process. When I returned to making art a few years ago, I was driven by the desire to convey the emotional, ethereal, spiritual experience of swimming with wild dolphins. Words did not suffice, so I had to express visually. Initially, I used colored pencils to sketch the dolphins in their oceanic playground. That was my most comfortable medium, stemming from years of using them to draw abstract, geometric mandalas. It was good to begin with a … [Read more...] about Finding My Art Voice
How to Choose a WordPress Theme
Finding Your Way Through the Labyrinth In April, I shared some of my insights and experiences with choosing themes at the WordPress Southwest Florida MeetUp. Below are the slides and key topics from my presentation. There has been an explosion in the number of themes being developed in the past few years. The sheer volume of offerings can make theme selection an overwhelming challenge. Thus, making an informed choice is the first step towards a wise choice. The Early … [Read more...] about How to Choose a WordPress Theme
Three Great Ways to Create Grids in InDesign
Why Should You Use a Grid? Grids are the underlying structure to an InDesign layout. They are the skeleton upon which you place the text and images. You can see the grid in InDesign, but it doesn't display in the printed piece. Effective grids organize and align the components, providing consistency and cohesiveness to the layout. Grids are used in the design world, for sure. They can also be found in all sorts of other arenas: maps, city planning, architecture, crossword puzzles, … [Read more...] about Three Great Ways to Create Grids in InDesign
Let’s Use Google Hangouts for Our Meeting!
In my last post, I shared my list of viable tools for videoconferencing. Several clients then requested that we use my preferred tool, Google Hangouts, for our future meetings! The only glitch was that they were unsure about how it worked. Voila! It became the perfect subject for a new blog post! If you don't already have a Google account, I highly recommend that you set one up. Google provides an entire suite of applications, which includes Hangouts, Gmail, YouTube, Drive, and Docs. As a … [Read more...] about Let’s Use Google Hangouts for Our Meeting!
Free Video Conferencing Tools for Remote Teaching
Updated May 2020 Overview After I moved to Florida, I taught my graphic design class at Lasell College remotely for the first time. It took a lot of discussion, thought, and research into videoconferencing tools. During the previous year, I completed Lasell's professional development course on online teaching and got my certification. Teaching online doesn’t involve regular face-to-face interactions that adhere to a traditional schedule. Students can do the classwork on their own time, … [Read more...] about Free Video Conferencing Tools for Remote Teaching
Introduction to Web Design
Key Design Principles and How to Implement Them! In November, I shared some of my web design knowledge at the WordPress Southwest Florida MeetUp. Below are my slides and the key topics from the evening's presentation. Overview Web design is the visual styling and layout of a website. It requires a good understanding of color, type, alignment, and harmony. With pleasing aesthetics, organized navigation, and sensible UX, visitors are more likely to stay on the site, view multiple … [Read more...] about Introduction to Web Design