Danielle asked about templates on Blogger. Alas, I have no idea what those are. When I searched for them, I got a bunch of third-party sites and designers doing various things. If anyone has any expertise, I think there are many who would appreciate a blog post about how they work.
So, in lieu of writing about templates, today I'm going to talk about customizing your blog. Because that is something I know how to do.
From your first screen, click on "Theme". (If the sidebar doesn't pop up, click on the "hamburger"--the three lines--in the upper left hand corner.) You can click on each of these images to make them bigger if needed.
I think most everyone has gone through and picked a theme that they like. And that's cool. Personally, I like to keep a background image of something I knit. My current background image is of a blanket I knit a little over a year ago. (I like to switch that out every so often. I haven't knit anything that would make a good blog background recently.)
To use your own image, you click on "Customize" and "Background", then you can add your image there.
This bit requires some trial and error. Because, depending on the image you use, you may wish to adjust how you do "Alignment". I have mine as "Tile" and "Scroll with page" because that way you can actually see the knit piece in the background. Other types of images will work better with different configurations.
You can also adjust the "Layout", especially if you want to add things to a sidebar. (And it is a good idea to clean up your sidebar from time to time. When was the last time you checked to make sure everything was current and working?)
The last tab, "Advanced", is where you fix fonts and colors. From my image, you can see Page Text, Backgrounds, Links, and Blog Title. The rest of the list contains: Tabs Text, Tabs Background, Post Title, Date Header, Post, Gadgets, Footer, Footer Links, and Add CSS.
Click on the item you want to play with. Up will pop the option to change the font and/or colors associated with it.
If you plan on playing with this a bit, set aside some time for it. You might be surprised by what you can do.
There is one last bit that I kind of skipped over. The arrow next to "customize".
If you click on HTML, you get the code behind the whole blog. Which is fascinating to look at, especially if you kind of understand how HTML works. I wouldn't change anything there unless you know what you're doing, but if there's some formatting issue that you're continuing to have issues with, that would be your final way to fix it.
Have you customized your blog? If there was one thing you could change on your blog (that you haven't attempted), what would it be?
I need to take the time to update mine. A little cleaner, add a few things. Perhaps modernize the layout?
ReplyDeleteIf you feel it needs it. It looks pretty clean to me.
DeleteWhen I customized (partially finished) the blog I have now, it wouldn't take the choice of black for the post text. Online sources said that some themes are set to dark grey, and that's that. But, my other blog is the same theme and is black. So... I changed the theme entirely, and then back to the one I wanted. Lo and behold, I was able to opt to black text for posts! So, if you are customizing and it won't work, it might be a glitch like I had. I like Blogger, it's (usually) user friendly. I don't have patience for making a blog with Wordpress. I've tried!
ReplyDeleteWhile writing this post I found the HTML for the blog as a whole. If you can find the bit for post text, you could change it to the right color code, if all else failed. But, switching back and forth was probably a much quicker fix.
DeleteI never go very far with hanging themes, etc
ReplyDeleteMost don't need to go into such detail. If yours is what you like, that's all it needs to be.
DeleteThis is a truly helpful and practical guide to customizing a Blogger site. It's great that you break down the process into clear, manageable steps, especially for those who might feel overwhelmed by the options. Your personal touch, like using an image of your knitting, makes it very relatable.
ReplyDeleteFocusing on the "Theme," "Customize," "Layout," and "Advanced" tabs covers the essential areas. The reminder to "clean up your sidebar" is excellent advice too; it is easy to forget. It's also wise to caution about editing the HTML directly unless you know what you are doing.
Oh yeah, I wouldn't touch HTML unless it was for something specific. It's so easy to mess that up.
DeleteI wish I had this guide when I started my blog in 2009. Now, I can't devote that much time to customizing it, especially if I do something that messes things up. But it's nice to know I have your blog to go to for info if things in my life change again.
ReplyDeleteI didn't know half of this in 2009 ;)
DeleteI used to change the theme a lot earlier on but once I got into a certain one, I've been on it forever now. Thanks for the tips.
ReplyDeleteMost of us have our blogs where we want them now.
DeleteI have customised my blog but not to any advanced level. It's good to know these details.
ReplyDeleteMost people don't want more than the basics. Whatever works for you.
DeleteI like to customize my blog too, but it takes time! I changed the template last year and will stick with it for one or two more years (or even a little more) ;))
ReplyDeleteThis is Birgit and I will come back here and get the instructions since I have not changed anything in years and I do need to clean things up.
ReplyDeleteOnly if you want to. Sometimes what we have works, and that's good enough.
DeleteHi Liz - I'll need to be back to update myself with your blogging suggestions ... life is not easy at the moment - but all will be well. Cheers Hilary
ReplyDelete