Archive for the 'Art' Category
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Posted by Bloggeries in Art
Bloggeries is going to look at an artist’s blog today, and the blog is about pencil sketching. The blog is called Pencil Drawing Sketch Art. The blogger is an amateur artist, but only in the sense that she has never been formally schooled in the field of either drawing or painting. She enjoys drawing and painting on different objects, and makes a point to use recycled materials. Her theory is, if she can make something useful out of something someone threw out, it’s one less thing in the landfills. If you enjoy stopping to look at those with a gift in the visual arts, then you will definitely enjoy this blog. Have a look at some of her recent bloggeries at Hendrix and Vaughan – Guitar Legends, Custom Pencil Sketch from Photo, Feedburner Widget Text Not Working, Horsin’ Around – Farm Heritage Shows, Biker in Paradise, Criss Angel by: Sierra, and Jim Morrison – This is the End My Only Friend.
The blog is fairly new and this makes it very easy to navigate. Bloggeries are centralized in white text on black background and links are highlighted in red. I normally don’t really like the black background/white text in blogs, but this blog has more to offer with its visual pieces and thus I think the black background is very fitting as a showcase for her art. The blog contains both a left and right navigation bar and a top navigation bar as well. In the left navigation bar you will find a Categories Menu that contains items such as Aerosmith, blogging, Criss Angel, Gifts, Island lake tanning, paintings, pencil sketches art, and so much more. The left bar also contains an Archives Menu, Blogroll, and blog Meta. In the right navigation bar you will find feeds, MyBlogLog widget, Advertising, and from the blogosphere widget. The top bar you have the Home links, About links, and Contact Susie link. I think the only thing that would make navigation easier here would be a recent posts menu so the blogger’s readers could find posts easily without scrolling through the main page.
I am going to give this blog a 4/5, which is a very good review for such a new blog. The blog scores well on all accounts. It is aesthetically appealing and scores well for appearance. The navigation system is very easy and I did not have difficulty finding anything or moving around on the blog at all. Other than a recent posts menu, or even a recent comments menu as the readership will support it, I have no other suggestions for this blogger. The blog is well organized and it certainly is providing good content for its niche. The blogger’s content is very good as well. This is clearly a personal blog on her personal art, and the voice of the content has a beautiful personal touch to it. The activity is doing very well as well, with content coming in just about every day. This blogger clearly understands the necessities for a good blog and she is doing very well at it. As her blog grows, I am sure her readership will as well.
-Chrissie
Posted by Bloggeries in Shopping, Art
This year’s fashion trends are all about the bohemian look and finding pieces that complement your wardrobe that are one of a kind. If you are having some problems procuring these one of a kinders, you can stop looking and take a minute to check out some pretty funky pieces that Knot Gypsy has created. Her collection can be found at KnotGypsy’s Journey of Creation. Knot Gypsy works out of Texas in pursuit of her dream – to live a creative life and make a living at it. She specializes in beaded micro macramé jewelry and often branches out to other techniques such as beaded crochet. Having been in this business for 10 years, she wants her collection to be both durable and beautiful. Take a look at any of her recent bloggeries to get a feel for what kind of wearable art she has created: Look what Someone Did with the Waves Bracelet Pattern, Knot News – Weekly Update, Update Re: New Websites, Fans Bracelet Pattern Finished, Yin Yang, Fans On the Way, and a Poll.
Navigation on this blog is very straightforward. Posts are right marginalized with black text on a pretty mauve background with headlines in a darker mauve accent. Each post is accompanied by relevant pictures to the piece on topic, and they are excellent representations of the jewelry. There is a left navigation system with you will find to be very simple and easy to move through towards finding all that you want in Knot Gypsy’s world. In the left navigation bar you will see the About Page, a featured piece which is currently a beautiful bracelet designed to look like tapestry. You will also find more information about her designs, updates for the site, Blog Entries of Note, and a Categories Menu. A few interesting categories include bead shopping, patterns and kits, and Knotgypsy’s beaded jewelry showcase. Scroll down to look through the archives and as well check out some of Knot Gypsy’s other links where she features more pieces on her Squidoo Lens, Workshop Forum, read her FAQ, and check out her Guestbook. The categories menu is extremely comprehensive and covers everything from catfood to inspiration and so much more. You will also find in this navigation bar related links, some of her favorite blogs, and many other cool links.
I am going to go with a 4.3 for this blog. The content is excellent and very well written. Each post appropriately describes every piece and the pictures speak for themselves. You can see a lot of love in every piece, and her account of that is evident through her writing. The description of the Yin Yang piece is the best example of that thus far. The blog is very unique and easily stands out amongst other jewelry blogs, and the navigation and overall appearance of the site is very appealing to the reader. I think the amount of information that she has added on this blog for such a young blog is very impressive. I also really like the personal voice that the blog conveys through the posting. I think this blog could use with some more activity, even daily posting if possible, and there is a teensy typo on the About page that should be looked at. Daily posting would definitely improve the readership of the blog, and I also think this blog would not be hurt by a little advertising, and this would easily be accomplished through some AdSense or other forms of advertising. This would definitely monetize the blog nicely, and add to her income. I think the only thing missing from this blog is a pricing menu for the pieces she features. Overall, this blog is very impressive given that it is so young, and I look forward to seeing Knot Gypsy’s success grow from this blog.
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- Chrissie
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Posted by Bloggeries in Reviews, Spotlight, Travel, Art, Cultural
If you enjoy reading personal blogs, then here is another that you want to take some time out for. The blog is called Correr es mi Destino which translated to English means “To Run is my Destiny”. The blog is also known as “My Life in Canada Under the Snow” and, among other things, contains a series of revelations on the author’s experiences as an immigrant to Canada. Juliette, though the blogosphere knows her affectionately as Zhu (珠), is the author and creator of this blog and interspersed with her Canadian musings, writes about her travels and experiences across the globe. Zhu is French and currently living in Canada’s capital as a Permanent Resident though she has traveled literally across the globe. You can tell her fortitude simply by her occupation, Zhu works in Ottawa and teaches French to government workers, not an occupation for the weak minded. She writes on just about anything that crosses her mind, and beautifully at that. Grab your beverage of choice and peruse some of her recent Bloggeries: Games without Frontiers, Morning Glory, Fighting for What, Neigbor – ino, La Desperecida, The Wall, The World for Dummies, Of a Blog Award, Sicko (s), and The 416 Escape.
Navigation on this blog is very simple. Posts are centered down the page with black text on a light blue background. Each post also contains relevant pictures to each post and the blog is very easy to look at and to read. Down the left border is an eclectic collection of art work and in the right navigation bar you will see very easy to find buttons for FA, Who Am I (About Me), Reviews of her Blog (all glowing), and a button to get to the home page. The Right bar also contains her profile, a pull down menu for Recent Posts that she has called “Previously On”. I am not sure if there is supposed to be a typo with this menu title, but the blog is so tongue in cheek it fits with the theme perfectly. You will also find a categories menu (known as ‘Done That’) containing categories such as Canadian Life, en Francais (posts in French), Immigration, Just Bloggin’, On the Road, Society, Travel, Working Girl, and 中文..Other interesting features in the left navigation bar include a time and date button, weather widget for her location in Ottawa, Blog Roll known as ‘Daily Blog Shot’, her Flickr Album, and a map of her visitors locations.
I am going with a 4.5 for this one. Zhu’s Life in Canada scores beautifully on all aspects. The blog has a very friendly appearance with nothing to distract from the content. In fact the appearance is extremely creative in and of itself which makes the navigation system incredibly easy. There is no advertising, as this blogger is blogging strictly for the love. Judging by her very active following she is very successful at it as well. Uniqueness scores are high as well, though this is a personal blog the range of the content is excellent and truly offers the perspective that the writer wishes to. The content is easy to read, and though it is a bit tongue in cheek, it is easily taken with a grain of salt and excellently written. The author is very good at expressing herself and her experiences. A look at the Bloggerie “Neigbor – ino” is an excellent example of this as it explains how easy it is to sleep in quiet Canada. The only place where this blog is not perfect is in daily postings. Simply put, we want more of Zhu. If you enjoy personal blogs, or hearing about global experiences, you will want to bookmark this one.
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- Chrissie
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Posted by Bloggeries in Reviews, Fashion, Shopping, Art
If you are one of those funky fashionistas that would rather wear something unique and distinct, you may want to check out Cluny Grey’s Jewelry Blog. Cluny is a former instructor of college English and Humanities and has turned into a jewelry designer. Her blog is about designing and creating one of a kind pieces and on the blog she offers her other sites where you can see more of her jewelry featured. Get a taste for some of her distinct art in jewelry from some of her recent posts which include A little Lapis; A preview of the New Fall Colors; Rubies: Divinely Decadent; In the Pink…Drusies Too!; Coral, coral, and a new computer!; Sapphire and computer woes!; What’s New? Gold, Bangles, Ankles, and Coral; Earrings: Neglected but necessary; Emeralds: The May Birthstone; and Swarovski, Charoite, and Coral Earrings.
This is not the easiest blog that I have had to navigate. Posts are left marginalized with a right navigation system. The appearance is a black background with light green text for posts which, I will admit, is not the easiest on the eyes. I understand this look is to make the pictures stand out a little more, and the effect is noticed, but it makes for difficult reading. The right navigation system has the about me page, blog roll, and a host of ads. I also notice each post has quite a few tags attached, but I do not see a categories menu so I would suggest sorting the tags into categories to make navigation go easier. The links menu also needs some work as there is an “edit-me” link that is not meant for readers that should be removed.
I will go with a 3 here with highest marks going towards content. Though even here some posts are as much as a week apart and regular viewings or featured weekly pieces may add to the activity. I really do not like the black background, I have seen blogs where the black really works, but here it is really just making the ads jump off the page which is distracting from the content. I would suggest making the text white if this background does stay, and using AdSense tools to blend in the ads a little bit with the black background. Overall however, the content is well written, and judging by comments the blog definitely has a following, so I would suggest these formatting changes to perhaps make the blog more appealing to a wider range of readers, and consequently, jewelry market.
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- Chrissie
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