Whenever I'm advising someone to put a new niche blog network, one of the first things we do is take a look at some of the premium themes (fee based themes) that are on the market, and see if any of them are complimentary to their aesthetic preferences.
I'm a big believer in the idea of building with the best "materials" from the ground floor up, especially if you want good, clean lines, want to sell the sites down the road, and are a complete and utter design and code idiot like myself...
But, more often than not, most people like to start out using free blog layouts, as there are now SO many good ones out there, at times, it can be hard to differentiate between the paid ones, and the free versions that are often only a slender shred down the presentational pretty totem pole.
Quite honestly, if you can't afford a premium theme ( usually between $40-$300 for a commonly distributed template) you can almost ALWAYS find a pretty close version of that theme from the same designer, usually for free, in his or her stable of no cost releases before they had a popular name.
If you go back and look at some of the REALLY popular designers that are charging for Wordpress themes these days, almost each one as a pretty thick portfolio of FREE themes they were giving away just last year.
And if you look real close under the hood..
...
you'll see the free blog layouts they are offering are not only great looking, they're also not that much different than the ones they are selling today! Obviously you can use the search engines to find good themes, too.
Another sneaky recommendation that I have used for some of my own personal themes is to search for "Wordpress design competitions" or whatever blogging platform you are using.
I have found some absolutely KILLER templates that almost no one is using, simply by looking for artistic types who are coding templates for fun, not for profit..
:-)And when I tell you a few of these free ones are stunning, UNIQUE and on some of my favorite sites within my own network, that says something...
considering I've dropped the cash on just about every paid premium package that's out there..
:-) The beauty of using free blogging software, is that the people behind it's creation, and those that like to tinker underneath the hood, are often creative, passionate and exceptionally generous.
They also feel a commitment to the larger community, and as such - their contributions to it allow people with a dunce cap for a designers touch look like me look FAR more stylish than we really are!Have fun, and happy blogging!
I'm a big believer in the idea of building with the best "materials" from the ground floor up, especially if you want good, clean lines, want to sell the sites down the road, and are a complete and utter design and code idiot like myself...
But, more often than not, most people like to start out using free blog layouts, as there are now SO many good ones out there, at times, it can be hard to differentiate between the paid ones, and the free versions that are often only a slender shred down the presentational pretty totem pole.
Quite honestly, if you can't afford a premium theme ( usually between $40-$300 for a commonly distributed template) you can almost ALWAYS find a pretty close version of that theme from the same designer, usually for free, in his or her stable of no cost releases before they had a popular name.
If you go back and look at some of the REALLY popular designers that are charging for Wordpress themes these days, almost each one as a pretty thick portfolio of FREE themes they were giving away just last year.
And if you look real close under the hood..
...
you'll see the free blog layouts they are offering are not only great looking, they're also not that much different than the ones they are selling today! Obviously you can use the search engines to find good themes, too.
Another sneaky recommendation that I have used for some of my own personal themes is to search for "Wordpress design competitions" or whatever blogging platform you are using.
I have found some absolutely KILLER templates that almost no one is using, simply by looking for artistic types who are coding templates for fun, not for profit..
:-)And when I tell you a few of these free ones are stunning, UNIQUE and on some of my favorite sites within my own network, that says something...
considering I've dropped the cash on just about every paid premium package that's out there..
:-) The beauty of using free blogging software, is that the people behind it's creation, and those that like to tinker underneath the hood, are often creative, passionate and exceptionally generous.
They also feel a commitment to the larger community, and as such - their contributions to it allow people with a dunce cap for a designers touch look like me look FAR more stylish than we really are!Have fun, and happy blogging!