Website Woes

Although this blog is usually for posting my sketchbook work, I thought it was worth sharing my recent troubles with building a personal website...

Despite being a regular internet user, I still feel held back by a lack of knowledge of web design. For years I've contented myself with using Coroflot and Carbonmade, but I have found the lack of personalisation quite restricting, and the professional image is somewhat lacking when your homepage is a template site that looks the same as thousands of others.

So I've tried and fix this in a number of ways:

• Try to teach myself basic html and css via www.dontfeartheinternet.com. Very well explained and enjoyable tutorials for building a website from scratch. I'm just waiting for more of them!

• The other day I found a quite satisfactory although not 100% desirable method of manipulating a standard Wordpress blog to create a portfolio site. The tutorial is available in pdf form here.

• I am currently trying Wordpress software. I have heard that Wordpress is the most popular CMS (Content Management System - see, I have learnt something!), but currently I am struggling to go beyond the generic templates and design something that reflects my own style.

• I am also trying Squarespace, and would like to give Cargo a go too. Although Squarespace is a paid portfolio site, and Cargo is strictly invite only!

Ideally I'm looking for a simple, customisable, fast, easily updatable CMS to create a portfolio site with an integrated blog & social networking tools. If you're reading this blog and have similar troubles, or can offer me some further direction, please get in touch! 

Sketchbook Doodles 1

Here's a few random sketches from my sketchbook; some old, some brand new. I think I might try vectorising a couple of these. What do you think? Comments welcome as always!

Vinyl Toys!

Since posting my entry to the Sketchbook Project I decided to finally start customising the blank Kidrobot vinyl toys I've had kept in storage for most of the past year. I've started small with a 4" Glow-in-the-dark Munny & a Raffy.

The Munny design was completely improvised as I was just testing out my Posca markers and to get a feel for designing directly onto a toy. Its certainly more difficult than it looks trying to draw neat linework onto a 3D surface!

Below is my geek Raffy design, although I haven't yet decided on a colour for the glasses! Any suggestions?

I've also drawn up several possible designs for the larger Munny using the 2D templates (some of which are shown below). See any you think are worth pursuing? Feedback is very welcome as always!

Finished Sketchbook!

On Tuesday I posted my entry to the Sketchbook Project 2012! It felt really good to get back into drawing and I hope this is the first of many projects to come...

To see the sketchbook in full its here on Facebook and Google+, and hopefully if it reaches the Brooklyn Art Library in one piece it will be added to the digital library too! 

Won't give up the day job.

I've had a bit of break from the project for the past couple of weeks. Mainly because of lots of work coming into my day job, which from tomorrow involves me having to drive from the UK to Italy (to test and collect a new moulding tool, but thats a long story!). 

Nevertheless I have not forgotten about the project and am determined to continue with it. I have until the end of January to submit the sketchbook which leaves plenty of time! So... very little in the way of new material here, but hopefully if I'm not too tired after the trip I should be able to get a few more sketches in before Christmas!

Graveyard Shift

Here's how the back page of the sketch book has turned out after a bit of sketching late one night last week. Seems a bit grim and it has little to do with the original theme, but I enjoyed drawing it!

Sketches and Broken Xboxes

It's been a bit of slow week in terms of sketching, mainly because the majority of my time has been spent trying to resolve problems with my wifi, ebay sales, and a broken xbox (essential)... Nonetheless I have fitted in a little doodling...

I've been exploring the villains theme again, this time developing a character's shape through thumbnail sketches of the silhouette. I also had an idea for a giant space squid monster character (far left sketch).

I've already come to the end of the project sketch book, which means I'm going to have to start on a new one and look at how to take the book apart and rebind it with more pages. So I'm looking for some advice on book binding if anybody can help!