This is The End // Q & A Session + A Secret Reveal

---

✨CLICK HERE TO SEE A COMPLETE LIST OF THE BLOGIFUL DESIGN POSTS.✨

→ Introducing The Blogiful Blog Design Event

→ 5 Steps That Will Help You Choose An Awesome Blog Name (ft. A Free Worksheet!)

→ How to Choose the Right Font for Your Blog

→ How in the World I Make My Graphics: A Step-By-Step Tutorial

→ My Branding Journey + Four Questions To Ask Yourself While Rebranding (ft. A Free Downloadable Checklist)

→ 4 Ways To Make Your Free WordPress.com Theme Look Different From Everybody Else’s

→ An Interview with Web Designer, Hazel From Stay Bookish

→ Q & A Session + A Secret Reveal

---

This is it. This is the end.

Yes, we’ve reached the final day of the Blogiful Blog Design Event, and all I can say is WOW! Thank you to everyone who has dropped by, left comments, retweeted, and generally just been overwhelmingly supportive! Both Tracy and I have had a lot of fun with this event, and I hope that you were able to enjoy it a bit as well.

Today’s final post is going to be a short Q&A session where I’ll be answering some queries I received from you, my wonderful readers. To those of you whose questions I didn’t answer – I apologize profusely! I wish I had time to write more, but alas….I never have enough time for all the things I want to do.

In any case, if you ever have a question about blog design (or anything else, for that matter), please don’t hesitate to DM me over on my Twitter.

---

Question: Where can I get or create graphics for free?

Answer:

As I’ve mentioned multiple times, I LOVE FREE THINGS (but then again, who doesn’t, amirite????)

Here’s a list of some free resources I use when it comes to designing:

• Unsplash & Pexels– for free stock photos
• Design Seeds & ColorSpace – for free color palette ideas
• Free Goods of the Week (From Creative Market) & Freebie of the Week (From The Hungry Jpeg) – for free fonts and graphics
• Freepik – for free graphics, icons, photos, and more
• Font Squirrel – for free fonts
• Canva – a free graphic-design tool website
• Vecteezy – for free graphics that can be edited in-browser
• Gimp – a free graphics editor and Photoshop stand-in

---

Question: What social media accounts do you recommend having outside of your blog, and how do you create a consistent brand across all of them?

Answer:

If we’re talking in terms of which social media platform is the most helpful for boosting your blog, then Twitter is the way to go. When I first started my book blog, I was hesitant to dip my toes into the wide world of Bookish Twitter because I had never used that platform before. It looked so daunting/cutthroat and I didn’t think I that needed YET ANOTHER social media account. Eventually, I broke down and started one anyways because I’m weak.

As for how to create a consistent brand across all of your social media accounts, my top suggestion would be to use the same profile picture and handle as much as possible. Try to avoid introducing new elements that don’t mesh with your blog’s theme. For example, wouldn’t it be weird if on Instagram my profile picture was a plate of pancakes? It wouldn’t fit with my blog’s theme, and thus would dilute my brand.

---

Question: I have some fonts that I bought. Is there any way of using those on my blog?

Answer:

It all depends. If you are using a free WordPress.com blog, then the answer is (sadly) no. The best way to get around this is to edit some text in Photoshop/Word/Canva/wherever and upload that as an image into your post. It’s kind of lame, but that’s just how it is with the free version of WordPress. *Le sigh*

If you are self-hosted and have access to Plugins, then get excited, because THIS IS ACTUALLY A POSSIBILITY FOR YOU!! To find out how to do this, I would suggest that you check out the following tutorials:

• Video Tutorial by Jess Creatives
• Written Tutorial by Torque

---

Question: How do you create a good resolution for your graphic that looks good shrunk down?

Answer:

When resizing raster images (such as JPEG or PNG files), you will usually loose some quality. The reason behind this is that these files are made up of pixels, and pixel count is what determines the amount of detail an image has. When you resize, you are either adding or removing pixels from that file. If you make it bigger, then it becomes blurry because you are adding pixels between the preexisting ones. If you make it smaller, some of the pixels are deleted, and thus you are loosing detail.

The best, surefire way to make sure an image keeps its resolution when you size it down is to either A) make it that size in the first place or B) use a vector graphic (such as an .eps file or Adobe Illustrator file), instead. Unlike raster images, vectors don’t use pixels; they are composed of paths and lines that allow the images to be infinitely scaleable without losing quality. That’s why vectors are so great.

Of course, sometimes you just really need to resize a raster image. Although you will still be loosing some resolution quality, there are ways to minimize the damage. Here is one tutorial describing how to resize an image using GIMP.

---

Question: What would you say is the #1 mistake people make when designing their blog?

Answer:

Thinking that they can’t do it. Sure, not all of us are great with Photoshop – heck, most of us probably don’t even own Photoshop (it’s expensive!) – but that doesn’t mean you can’t customize your blog. There are so many resources out there, so many people who are willing to give advice and a helping hand, so don’t take yourself out of the game just yet.

---

Question: What’s your favorite graphic you’ve ever designed?

Answer:

This is a hard one, but I think I would have to say that I’m most proud of the one I made for Drizzle & Hurricane Books. It matches the colors of her blog so well, and I’m still pleasantly surprised with how nicely it all came out. Whenever I look at it, I’m like, “Oh! Hey! Wow! I might not actually suck at this!” (Because self-doubt is an ever-present monster).

---

It’s Time for the Secret Reveal!

Well, here we are! It’s time for the secret reveal! Why are you looking at me like that; what’s with all these expectant faces? I don’t know what the reveal is.

…

Haha, just kidding. I actually do. But I’ve got to build the anticipation somehow, right? Is it working yet??? Anyyywayyys, my super secret special reveal is that I have decided to launch my own small graphic design shop!!! YAY!

Yes, you read that right. Today marks the GRAND OPENING of my new store, WAFFLEY CUTE DESIGNS.

Starting this very second, I will now officially be accepting commissions, so please go check out my new design shop’s website if you think you might be interested! And what’s more, in honor of my Grand Opening, I will be running a 10% off sale for the next three weeks!

The DOUBLY EXCITING news is that my Blogiful Co-Host, Tracy, also opened up her own store (called Truffle Creations)! So don’t forget to go check hers out as well!

---

What did you think of this event? Was it helpful to you at all? What was something that you learned?

Which post did you enjoy most / find most helpful out of this series?

Was there a topic that you wanted to learn more about, but wasn’t covered?