Hello and welcome to the new version of Kyle Steed on the web. This has been, at least what feels like, a long time coming. What started as simple sketches in my journal months ago has now blossomed in to a fully functional work of wonder. But I’ll save the mushy design details for later. In this first part, of what I plan to be a three part series, I want to focus on how my life has affected the new look of my site.
This time it’s personal
When I first started out blogging nearly two years ago I wrote about the simple things in life, what my favorite tv show was, the new movie I just saw at the theater or maybe a new band I just started listening to. It was me testing the waters of documenting my life online and how to approach it. There wasn’t really much of a focus on what I was writing about.
Compare that with more than two years later where I have narrowed my writing down to three main topics, and I feel that I’ve somewhat found my voice in the creative community.
More than words
Another lesson I’ve learned in life is that my actions speak louder than words. And I wanted to convey that somehow in my new design. Hence the new portfolio slideshow. That’s one thing that always bothered me about my previous designs. I had not created a decent way of showing off what I could do. Not that I mean to boast, but if I’m not going to promote myself, then who will?
I think that old saying “content is king” is a great way to start a blog, but if you can do more than that, then I would encourage you to do so.
Getting out more
One of my main goals in life is to get out as much as possible and spend time with those I love. There is nothing more important than building relationship with real people. So with that in mind, I don’t want to constantly sit at my computer and worry about what to write/design next. I want my blog to be able to handle my absence for a week or so and not feel like it’s growing stagnant. And I think with the creation of my custom home page template I have found a good solution.
So I’m looking forward to what lies ahead in life, and my goal is to stay as transparent as possible through my writing and designs. In the second part of this series I will go over, from start to finish, the design decisions I had to work through, some good and some bad.
Love this man. Makes me want to redesign my site. Glad you are focusing on a design and pursuing it. Keep it going man. Love the execution! Much Love!
Nice read Kyle… there are some good insights here.
Definitely agree with the personal relationships, and I think the home page is definitely a nice way to keep people interested in your content without having to post every other day.
looking forward to part 2
~ Aaron I
.-= Aaron Irizarry´s last blog ..Tips For Better Form Design #4 =-.
You speak from the heart Kyle
It is so amazing how we mature over the years and how an outlet like a blog can polish our souls and bring our priorities in perspective. I wish you the very best with the redesign of not only your blog but you 
.-= Sneh Roy´s last blog ..Logo Designing 101 – Is My Logo Inappropriate? =-.
Love your attitude man. One of the few people on the web these days who is keeping it real and sticking to your values. Really is great to see especially amid all the chaos and pointing of fingers.
The site redesign better reflects who you are as a designer and person (er, from your videos + twitter
.
Keep it up!
Kyle, you are a constant source of amazement and inspiration to me. I absolutely love the new design, and what you’re doing with it. Don’t tell Amanda, but I smell a man crush brewing. Love you, man.
You better watch it, Cabeeb!
Excellent work on the re-design, I like the idea of the aggregation of the content on the homepage
And like I mentioned yesterday, I’m loving the hand drawn font you designed – it rocks! It’s by far one of my favourites out there…
All the best and I’m looking forward to parts 2 and 3
.-= Analiza Rebelo´s last blog ..d3signar: Where do 22 web people see themselves in 10 years time? http://bit.ly/3Ts5QV (via @gavinelliott:) *Awesome, @garyvee is featured #crushit =-.
Boss.
Looking good dude.
.-= Josh Cagwin´s last blog ..Design Stages In Photos =-.
Pingback: Spill It: Why Do You Blog? | Fuel Your Blogging
Pure awesomeness! Site looks great Kyle.
.-= fontburger´s last blog ..Sniff, Sneeze, Cough, Repeat =-.
Pingback: Redesigning Myself Part 3
Definitely a great entry…heading over to part 2.