Anyway, why not check out the orignial post yourselves!

So why not go ahead and make my day…who knows… I may just return the favour

Nevertheless, there is still money to be made, and Brian has indicated that he will be offering support and design services for these “free” themes. I think the next couple of months are going to be extremely interesting and will definitely set a precedent for those who are looking to get into the WordPress design game.

Anyway, I would love to hear some opinions on this…so feel free to leave a comment

1) Get involved and stay committed

Do something without expecting anything in return. This means you need to get involved in the community and share your experience and skills. In the long run you will reap the benefits of some serious goodwill, and who knows…maybe one day you might need a favour or help and I guarantee that there will be people ready and willing to help.  Another thing to keep in mind is that once you start something, see it through to the finish. People will respect you for it.

2) Cultivate your reputation on an individual basis

You need to be approachable and show an interest in people. Everyone is a potential client and should therefore be treated with respect. Respond to people’s queries as soon as possible and never ever say no. If you can’t do something, find someone who can. Make friends with people and learn about their needs, it is much easier to provide a service to someone when you know exactly what they are looking for.

3) Choose your projects wisely

It’s always great to try and push the boundaries of your capabilities, but make sure that you take on projects that you are able to complete and that are of the highest quality. There is no better way to build a great reputation than to deliver something that exceeds the client’s expectations.

4) If you make a mistake, make it right as soon as possible

We are all human and are bound to make mistakes every now and then, but its how we deal with those mistakes that make all the difference. A client will be very forgiving if you make a mistake and then go out of your way to fix it or make up for it. But if you don’t, you will have lost that customer for good. Even worse still, you would have severely tarnished your reputation, because as we all know, bad news travels way faster than good news.

So, my advice would be to take great care when dealing with people, you never know how your business could be affected by one simple encounter.I really hope you find this information useful.

Feel free to share it with others or bookmark it on sites like StumbleUpon, etc. Also, I would love to hear some opinions or views in the comments…maybe you have something to add?<-->

Adii Rockstar – I love checking in with Adii’s blog and tracking his progress over the last couple of months. He has been an inspiration to me and always good for honest and open opinions. Really great read!

Elliot Jay Stocks – I just love looking at his design! Seriously though, all his articles are always very well written and informative and you can easily see why he is so well respected within the blogging community.

Mark Forrester – You have got to love that header! I enjoy reading the assorted posts he writes about his life, work and interests…always a great read. He is also a fantastic web designer.

Brian Gardner – Another inspiring blogger who built his website from virtual obscurity to a top ranked blog on Technorati and others. He also pioneered the premium theme design industry! Enough said

Smashing Magazine- This blog is a fantastic resource for all things to do with design. If you ever need tips or tricks about design, or feel like some useful and free resources, give them a go!

Well now that you’ve seem my favourites what do you think? Why not suggest a blog or tell me your favourites, in the comments!

Sometimes things just seem so impossible, but if you persevere and work hard towards the goals you have set, they become more and more achievable and realistic. So, if you feel like a bit of inspiration why not go check out these awesome articles. Part one and part two! It will definitely be worth your while

I’m just going to highlight some of the key design elements and my thoughts regarding them.

The Header

I designed the header as reflection of my personality as well as my South African culture. I wanted it to look almost like items on a desk… but I’m not quite sure if a really achieved that effect correctly…I will leave that for you to decide .

Seamless background

Well, obviously I was going for a wood effect I was trying to make it look almost varnished and expensive, like the kind of desk you would have in your study. I think I might post a tutorial on how I created the effect, as well as how to get the seamless look, which isn’t as difficult as you might think.

Content containers

I thought I would try to push myself a little with them, making rounded corners is not too difficult, but it can be quite challenging at times. Combined with transparency and a slight shadow does, however, make for a pretty nice effect, if I do say so myself . Any one agree?

Colour scheme

I decided really early on that I don’t want the usual black test on white background, so once the wood texture was finalised, i settled on the orange and blue combo which seems to combine pretty nicely with the overall dark look and feel. I also, decided to use a whitish/grey font to ensure that it didn’t become too dark (and depressing) which can happen really easily if you’re not careful!

Conclusion

I absolutely love designing websites, there is something about conceptualizing an idea and then seeing it come to life. It is absolutely exhilarating! Obviously, not everyone is going to love this particular design, but hopefully you can appreciate the effort. Also, please feel free to let me know any thoughts or opinions!

That’s all from me for now…but stay tuned for my in depth explanation of my design process .

Note: Please let me know if you come across any bugs or problems…

Obviously if you don’t post any questions then I will just go ahead and write the post anyway

So with that having been said…ask away…or don’t, your choice!

It could also be an interesting marketing tool for creative businesses. Whatever you do with it, I highly reccommend you check it out for yourself.  Also, if you have any creative domain name ideas…why not share them here. I would love to hear any opinions on this one